Sunday, January 24, 2010

1-23-10 Whale Sharks

Saturday Jesse and I went in to spend an obscene amount of time on the Internet at a cafe. Saw Marv and Ardy on Odyssey and they had the great idea to go sharking, to find the whale sharks we were hearing about. So scrapping the Internet idea I went with them to borrow Patsy's metal dinghy for this impromptu adventure. I had no camera other than the Iphone, no swimsuit, no snorkel, mask, or fins. Life happens whether you're ready or not so just grip it and rip it. (Favorite golf saying)

We went to Ladybug, a sailboat anchored in the bay, to find Ronie and Chris, friends of Marv and Ardy. We sang "A sharking we will go" after finding them and gathering them into the dinghy. About 5 miles down the beach Ronie spotted the shark's dorsal fins. There were three sharks at first and we followed the largest which was about 25+ feet.

This is the best photo so I'll put it first.


Here's Ronie from Ladybug swimming after the shark. She stripped down to skivvies and went in. She is the last swimmer pictured and the shark's tail is directly in front of her. It just appears as a dark area here and it's head runs out of the frame at the left. Gives you an idea of how big it is. By the way, whale sharks are the largest fish in the ocean and eat plants only. The next one to go in was Chris. About then the tourist boat near us lent us a mask! Send out the "need" vibe and ye shall receive. :)

See if you can spot the fin in this one.

By then I had decided I needed to figure out how to improvise a "swimsuit." I had inappropriate skivvies for the task. So I went in in my bra and silk skirt (mind you I needed to wear something that day that did not bind on my bruised and battered legs (boat bites) and was planning on having an Internet day). But I was not about to miss this.



We were taking turns jumping near the path of the shark because we lacked fins and we could not keep up with it swimming. So I jumped and everybody yelled, "Dive Shanna!" So I slapped the mask on and went down just under the surface and came face to face with the shark just a foot away. I was tempted to touch it's face but I did not want to break the laws protecting them, cause it distress, or worse I was afraid that like sea turtles I might cause an illness in the creature from the oils on my hands.



So I came up wide eyed and yelled, "WOW!" Then I dove again to see its long wide body swimming by! The spots and stripes were beautiful and the great fish had smaller yellow fish swimming by it's mouth. It is incredible to be so close to something so huge and peaceful. I can't find words to do the experience justice.


Marv and Ardy looking back at Ronie and a tourist near the largest whale shark.

Ardy was the last to go in and although she looked to be 6 feet away from it, it's fin was actually close enough to touch as they are so wide (and flat).

What an amazing memory! Next time I will insist Jesse come along!

If I get some photos from Ardy's camera I will add them later.





Ensenada Grande/Los Islotes 1-12-10 to 1-13-10

There are three lobes in Ensenada Grande, we stayed in the largest Southern lobe.
The welcoming committee from Windward Star and Magenta.


Jesse's Girl in our favorite stop in both of the islands we visited.
Again I kayaked while Jesse had a rest.










All by me onesies.



The next morning we got up early and headed out to Los Islotes so I could swim with the sea lions. Here is the Northern side of the island.

The natural rock formations are pretty impressive around here.



A National Geographic boat was there with us exploring in a couple 20 person tenders.
The little blob in the water is me snorkeling. Jesse dropped me off and circled for an hour. The female seals came up first, then there were a few babies that followed, and soon there were dozens swarming around me. There was only one male that started out toward me, I quickly swam the other way to avoid an aggressive display of behavior. Friends have described the males getting in their faces and barking. Luckily I did not seem threatening and there was no issue.

Then it was back to La Paz...

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Caleta Partida 1-10-10 to 1-12-10

Meeting of the local mafia.

I have taken to photographing rocks, shells, and driftwood that would otherwise end up in my garden. That is if I had a garden that wasn't being rented out with our house, if it wasn't illegal to take things from this National Sanctuary, not to mention if there was enough room for more nick nacks on the boat.

View of the bay near the divide between Isla Espritu Santo and Isla Partida, which is the Northern most island.


Jesse's Girl















Peek-a-boo

I'm used to herons that are not so skid-dish. These are truly wild creatures though, unlike the herons that live in the city, seeing people all the time. You can only get this close and then they are squawking shrilly with their odd eerie voices.


Great Blue Heron










Some of our anchorage neighbors dropped by to trade galley fixings and stories of the open ocean.