We started our new day sailing off the small and very successful Cabo Pulmo National Park; the pre-dawn lights allowed us to see the small former fishing village whose inhabitants decided to stop fishing more than 20 years ago and pushed the Mexican government to declare the area a national park. They succeeded and made sure to enforce it; as a result, the marine life rebounded big time and now it is a paradise for divers and snorkelers. It is also a winter paradise for humpback whales, which make the waters around the southern portion of the peninsula a major breeding and calving area. We spotted the first whales even before admiring a beautiful green flash at sunrise! The clear atmosphere and the flat horizon over the Pacific Ocean made the perfect conditions for the elusive phenomenon and a few non-believers were converted this morning.

We spent the morning sailing around whales, oftentimes surrounded by humpback whales in all directions. A surface-active group of males entertained us for a long time with the antics, heavy exhalations, tail and flipper slapping, and the occasional breach. Those whales migrated here from their summer feeding grounds off the coasts of Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and the Aleutian Islands to mate and give birth to their calves, in the same way that those whales from Southeast Alaska go to the Hawaiian Islands. There were many mature females, males with hopes and aspirations, and many females taking care of their newborn babies.

During lunch we arrived to the Puerto Los Cabos marina near San Jose del Cabo; we boarded motor coaches and some of us went exploring the San Jose River to do some bird watching, while others visited town. San Jose del Cabo is the original town in the Cape region, founded by Jesuit missionaries at the beginning of the 1700s; today it is still a quieter place compared to its more glamorous and international neighbor Cabo San Lucas, only 20 minutes away. We visited a blown-glass factory, visited the mission, and enjoyed some delicious and refreshing paletas, having a great time before heading back to the ship. Then we continued sailing towards Land’s End as the peninsula’s granitic southern point is called; as we neared it we had the privilege to watch another green flash during sunset. Wow, a green flash at sunrise and another one at sunset! Just in Baja…