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Baja Mexico Cruise Review: Sea Bird

March 05, 2003 - Amoung the Great Whales

San Ignacio Lagoon, Baja California

When the dog bites, when the bee stings,
When I’m feeling sad,
I simply remember my favourite things,
And then I don’t feel so bad.

Even the youngest in our group added another memory to their list of favourite things today. In fact, it was unforgettable! We enjoyed astonishingly close encounters with gray whales, one of the large, mysterious and beautiful mammals that, over millennia, have evolved to leave the security of land and live within the vast oceans of the world.

We were somewhat anxious about the long bus and van ride across the Sonoran Desert from Santa Rosalia to Lagoon San Ignacio. Would it be worthwhile? Would there be any whales left for us to see in these warm, protected waters? Maybe they had all left for the summer feeding grounds of the Bering and Chukchi seas off Alaska? If they were still there, would they tolerate the approach of our small “pangas”, the sturdy, open boats used by local fishermen and whale watchers? Sightings close enough for decent photographs perhaps would be the best we could expect.

On the way, we relaxed briefly in the cool oasis village of San Ignacio, with its old church and lush, green date palm groves. Then we set out again across an expanse of desert, admiring scenes with backdrops of long-dormant volcanoes. Lupines, cactus, brittlebush and palo adan were in bloom; a life-giving rain had fallen. But as has happened for centuries, these survivors will quickly use up their precious stores of water and once again become dormant under the torrid summer sun.

“I reached for the gold and I found it.”
(Robert Service)

Once at the lagoon, we jumped quickly into the boats and headed for the “boca”. The whales were there! Even within minutes, the excited young lady pictured here, and her younger sister, reached for the gold. And both found it! They are just old enough to remember and appreciate the very special feeling of being approached by a mother gray whale and her calf. This is a species that twice has come back from periods of near-extinction at the hands of mankind. Now, many have lost their fear of small boats. Indeed, they seem to want to nudge and interact with both.

Will the baby whale - also a girl and probably less than 3 months old - remember rising slowly up out of her watery home to be touched gently by tiny hands? Perhaps she will. But for all of us, this amazing adventure will forever remain as one of our favourite things.

Bryan Gates, Naturalist