Happy Friday from the Sea of Cortez! Today was an activity packed day. It all started with a gorgeous sunrise that welcomed us to Los Islotes. Our Exhale yoga teacher, Jesse Lujan, had a pre-breakfast yoga session on the sun deck to get folks energized for the day. Our first mission was to go snorkeling from our Zodiacs right off of the tiny island of Los Islotes. The island is inhabited by a number of species of birds: brown pelicans, cormorants, great blue herons, yellow-legged gulls, blue-footed boobies, and turkey vultures. But we came here to swim with the colony of sea lions that enjoy the safety of the rocks and the plentiful food that in the sea. Our guest got a snorkel session of a lifetime as young sea lions swam around us with the curiosity of a young pup.
After sailing away from Los Islotes, we were intercepted by a huge pod of common dolphins. For 30 minutes, they rode the bow of National Geographic Venture. Pure fun for both the dolphins and our guest.
In the afternoon, we arrived at our second location, San Evaristo. This small fishing village was a prime location for us to start our second half of activities. Guest had their choice of snorkeling, kayaking, or paddleboarding in the cove of San Evaristo. Some even managed to do all three while others simply enjoyed the relaxation of the beach. To end our outing, we split off into groups of nature hikes and photo walks. The photo walk was led by National Geographic photographer Jeff Mauritzen and our certified photo instructor Alex Joseph. We traversed the desert landscape in search for the perfect sunset photo. Along the way, we found a salt flat that is mined by the locals. With the sun setting behind the mountains, we walked away with some incredible photos.
With a full day of events accomplished, beverages and snacks back aboard National Geographic Venture was the perfect way to end yet another perfect day here in Baja, Mexico.
