Pacific Ocean and Punta Belcher
This morning we awoke to the gentle rhythm of the Pacific Ocean pushing us south, and a chance to have a lazy morning. But like all good plans, we were happy to change them for whales! And when it was announced that a blue whale was sighted – the largest animal that has ever lived – we were even more happy to pull ourselves out of bed early, grab our cameras and head to the bow! We had a wonderful show for an hour. The tall blow that can easily go to over 30 feet in the air, as well as the tiny dorsal fin, confirmed that it was indeed a blue whale. And, after watching gray whales for two days, it was obvious how much bigger this whale was in comparison. It seemed to take forever for its massive back to move across the water surface before we saw its fin.
In the late morning we tucked back into Magdalena Bay for a hike at Punta Belcher. We touched terra firma for the first time in almost three days. Some of us wandered with William and had our first introduction to desert plants from his wealth of knowledge and entertaining stories. There were a variety plants, and even a few in bloom. Despite the extremely dry conditions, the Magdalena evening primrose managed to look lush and glorious covered with pink flowers.
Those of us more drawn to walk the shore had plenty of discoveries as well. Mike could tell us about every bone, shell, carapace and fin we found, making many of these beach treasures come alive once again in stories. Who knew that a walk on the beach could be such a great lesson about undersea life? Further down the beach we visited a local fishing camp. It was a stark reminder of how hard it must be to make a living here in such a remote area of Mexico.
Nearby a pair of osprey showed off their resourcefulness in the desert environment. They had a huge “stick nest” which on closer examination seemed to be made more from rope they found on the shore rather than sticks.
In the late afternoon we ended the day much as it began. This time we saw four more blue whales, one of them just off the starboard bow. The lighting and water clarity allowed us to see their blue color and track them as they moved through the water. Eventually they went their own way and we moved to the lounge to experience the colors of white and red. This time no marine mammals were involved; instead it was a wine tasting put on by Erasmo, our hotel manager.
