Isla San Jose , 12/14/2022, National Geographic Venture
Aboard the
National Geographic Venture
California Coast
Our final morning aboard the National Geographic Venture begins along the east coast of the Baja Peninsula. We are awe stuck at the jagged cliff sides that are illuminated by the morning pink hues and some of us are fortunate enough to see the green flash at sunrise.
Our afternoon comes to a close after sailing through the Gulf of California in search of whales. We are grateful as the sunsets once more along the striking beaches of Isla San Jose.
Growing up along the coastal environment of San Diego, Shannon started her first volunteer job at a local nature center at the age of six. Since then, she has built her personal life and professional career around connecting with nature. She received...
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Today we woke up to a beautiful sunrise! The swell was looking a little big, but once we made it to Isla San Benito Oeste, we were able to tuck away from it and get some beautiful weather. The beach landing was at the base of a small fishing village with lots of interesting little houses and a chapel. This is definitely a secluded island. Some of us completed a long hike to the peak of the island at a 660-foot elevation. Others took it slow and hung around the elephant seal haul out. The females had young pups nursing, and the rest were napping with the occasional argument taking place. Along the trail, we managed to see Cassin's auklet burrows everywhere! We also observed some human-made burrows for the auklets that were placed for nest monitoring. After the hike, we went on a Zodiac tour of the island and managed to see all four pinniped species found in Mexico: elephant seal, harbor seal, Guadalupe fur seal, and the California sea lion. What a treat! We also saw blue herons, black turnstones, terns, and two species of cormorants, brants and double-crested. The geology of the coastline was beautiful. After our morning of activities, we returned to the ship for lunch and started on our way to Magdalena Bay. While we cruised, we enjoyed two talks, one on whales and one on camera composition. After dinner, there was a watercolor activity where we painted whale tails.
With yesterday’s ad- Venture in the mountains of Ensenada in our wake, we awoke to a dewy marine layer running from a rising sun to reveal the double-coned peak of Isla San Martín. A small, mile-wide volcanic island located just off the coast of San Quintín and its vast agricultural infrastructure, San Martín and its small fish camp feel a world away from the mainland—and we got right to exploring! The undersea team peeled off to explore the lush and harbor-seal-infested kelp forests just behind our landing beach, while adventurous hikers braved the cholla and sharp volcanic rocks to reach both volcanic summits some 470 feet above the surf. Kayakers, stand-up paddleboarders, and Zodiac cruisers set off to investigate the kelp forests and rugged coastlines from the water, while the rest of the group enjoyed hikes along the seashore and tidal lagoon. Least sandpipers, our first osprey, and both black and American oystercatchers (seemingly on a date) were among the fine wildlife finds of the day. For this author, the remains of Pelagophycus elk kelp were easily the highlight. This magnificent brown alga is only found from the Channel Islands to Isla Cedros, or basically along the track of our expedition so far. We pulled anchor and enjoyed another delicious lunch and dinner as well as presentations on birds and kelp forests by naturalists Kim and Lauren. As a nightcap, we watched a video of the morning’s dive and harbor seal antics. Tomorrow, we arrive at Islas San Benito for a final dish of offshore Baja—¡Vamanos!
We arrived in Ensenada this morning, and everyone was abuzz. We were excited to be in Ensenada, and we started the day with a few epic hours of morning light! This morning’s sunrise was one of the most stunning I’ve ever seen...no photo would do it justice. Hot pinks ribboned with sherbet orange streaks and then purples like I have never seen except maybe on the tips of passion fruit blossoms. Stunning to say the least. As the ship continued to wake up, we heard a call on the PA system that humpback whales were nearby. We all went to the bow and with an audible “poosh,” three humpback whales exhaled one after the other just a hundred feet off our 11:00 position! Traveling alongside them was a huge pod of common dolphins. Some of the dolphins stayed with the whales, and others raced to the front of our ship to bow ride! It was so awesome, and it wasn’t even 8:00 am yet! After breakfast and a bit of down time, we pulled into Ensenada. Our excursion today was to a sustainable and stunning vineyard. This was perfect since Ensenada is wine country and boasts that they have the best wine in all of Mexico. The name of the vineyard is Las Nubes. Guests spent around four hours at the property. We tasted wine and enjoyed a behind the scenes tour of the grounds. We met winemaker and owner Victor and were serenaded by a mariachi band that is quite famous. We enjoyed a four-course paired meal and a performance by an award-winning opera singer flown in just for our group! Today was such a brilliant day. At cocktail hour, everyone raised a glass to our wonderful day.
