YES ... Whale Sharks !

YES  YES  AND  YES !

the day after the storm was picture perfect ... beautiful blue skies, and the Sea of Cortez was as calm as bath water and amazingingly clear!

we can verify that after a Tropical Storm, the Whale Sharks seemed to be very plentiful, hungry, and cooperative.

it’s impossible to try to recall each day and each encounter… there were so many !     so many many more than i ever anticipated !


as i mentioned before, our assignment was to take photos of an area between the end of the gills and the beginning of the dorsel fin ... like this  :)

this photo is the Whale Shark's fingerprint and is submitted into the same program of algorithms that NASA uses to map the stars.  this is where the 'Stars to the Seas' name comes from.

this is the size of boat we worked from

let’s start with the procedure:
-before entering the water, all cameras are to take a photo of the slate identifying which shark we are all gathering data on, i.e.,   ‘A’

-then we sit, ready to enter, on the side of the boat

-when a Whale Shark is spotted, our Captain Roberto tries to get the boat into position, and tells us when to QUIETLY enter the water, that means without splashing  :)  ...notice the Whale Shark in the center of the photo and he is positioning the boat:

-the people not in the water record GPS location, day/time, water temp, other conditions, sometimes we can get an out-of-the-water measurement if it comes along side of the 25’ boat .... maybe like this ... WOW

-2 people are in the water with cameras to get photos of each side of the Whale Shark, these photos are the most important info, because they are it's identity

-2 people are in the water to do measurement, after the photos are secured:   one goes to the front with the rope, tugs to let the person in the back know they are at the nose, then the person in back drops back and measures where the tail is on the rope  … theoretically     :)

-one of the camera people can hopefully do a surface dive, down underneath the belly of the shark, turn around and take a photo to determine if it is a male or a female .... this is a male

this is done after ID photos and measurements, because sometimes the Whale Shark isn’t too happy about this, and might decide to leave.   i am proud to say that i was pretty good at doing a surface dive and getting the photo  :)

-it is also helpful to take photos of any distinguishing marks on the body, fins, or tail

then ....
-before you get into the water with another shark, you take a photo of the slate with ‘B’ on it, etc.; so you know exactly which photo goes with which Whale Shark ... makes sense ?


but here is how it actually went ... :)
the first day was magical … we saw our first Whale Shark almost immediately in about 10 feet of water!    we got into the water and tried to swim up to it, but it was too far out in front of us and we couldn’t catch up to it.    :(

but we stayed in the water hoping it would come back.   it did come back and we took some photos; then another one showed up and started swimming around, ....and we took more photos, ....and then another one, ....or maybe the same one …

and then another one, they just kept coming, we didn't even have to chase after then, they were just there

most were feeding, with their mouth wide open, sucking in water and all the nutrients in it ... they didn't pay any attention to us, we just swam right next to them in AWE !

in this photo you can see TWO Whale Sharks ... the one on the left has it's mouth open ... they were everywhere ... whoop whoop !

after an hour or so, we yelled that we had lots of photos ...... but NO idea what photo went with which Whale Shark  :)    …failure for sure.   but Meghann was prepared for this, she just smiled and said this is all part of the experience…. we needed to get the ‘WOW Factor’ out of the way.  
so we got back in the boat, regrouped, reviewed our ‘assignment’ and started again.   this time with better results   :)



every day was about the same ... we went out in the boat early in the morning

and the Whale Sharks showed up.   in this photo you notice how happy Meghann is with 2 Whale Sharks right by the boat ... and notice how close we are to shore !

Meghann took these 4 photos of me on the first day ... i was SO EXCITED !

he was a big boy

and completely unbothered by my presence .. in spite of my laughs of excitement   :)

one morning we took a little boat ride out to some of the 16 islands off the coast.

 

on the way out, i spotted this Byrde's Whale in the distance ... we did not get very close to it, but watched it surface and spout several times

This island was full of Blue Footed Boobies, like the ones i saw in the Galapagos; but we couldn't get as close to them as we did in the Galapagos.    all of that 'white stuff' is their guano, aka poop  :)

we stopped at one of the islands and did some snorkeling with some Sea Lions ... also curious and playful like the ones in the Galapagos

and a few colorful fishes ... obviously nothing like the ones from last winter however..........
this is a tiny Goby, well camouflaged

and Fine Scaled TriggerFish

then we went back to our 'work'   ....    oh how we loved it !!!

more up close and personals 

there are actually SIX Whale Sharks swimming around in this photo !

sometimes you just literally had to get out of their way .... as was the case in this photo ... he turned right into me ...

it was not unusual to see a fish swimming in and out of the Whale Shark's mouth ... they are Remoras and are scavengers looking for food bits ... but it is impossible for the Whale Shark to swallow even a fish of this size .... this is why there is no danger of them 'eating' people !

here is a short video:

their massive gills

after returning with all our photos, we needed to sort and enter them into the computer ... as you can imagine, this was our least favorite activity  ... data entry    :(

we left our mark on the walls of the Research Station with those of all that passed before us ....  i did the 'waves' at the bottom  ... we had to stand on a ladder with our headlamps on because the room we were in had lights that were on a timer and went off after a few minutes ... the things you remember  :)

we also had time for a margarita party at Guillermo's

all the food and LOTS of snacks were provided in the Station and on the boats.   we pitched in when we could to help prepare and clean up

some of us agreed to be woken up at 4am one morning, so we could watch the SunRise.   it was very very dark and we drove a short way, and then started walking up, up, up a rocky path.    i should have asked a few questions about the excursion, but i went blindly.    i had no idea we would be walking up a very large hill to get the 'first light' ... fortunately, i did have a headlamp, proper shoes, and a water bottle.

it was still dark when we got up there and very gradually we were rewarded ... serene ....

it was spectacular ...... fyi: that is NOT me holding that yoga 'Tree' pose in the bottom right corner

it was a beautiful view and you could see some of the islands from up there

this is the happy group of 4am warriors

one of the advantages of sleeping out under the stars, is that you wake up to a beautiful SunRise and don't have to get up at 4am nor hike   :)

in addition to beautiful sunrises we were lucky enough to have a full moon too !
notice, some cots have already been placed to 'save' their favorite spot... it took me a couple days to figure this out  :)

the last day we saw a guy tethered to a bouy 'snorkeling' out front for the longest time ... we couldn't figure out what could be so interesting out there to keep him there for so long .... that night we had a surprise   ... fresh Giant Clams from right off our beach !    ....the 'brothers' fixed a wonderful Clam Bake .... yummmmm

This is our group photo by the Whale Skeleton right before we left ... by the way, it is not a Whale Shark; but a Fin Whale, the second largest whale, after the Blue Whale ...   i slept next to it and it was HUGE, and i wondered what it would be like to be in the water with something THAT massive ... maybe someday  :)

i will say that the desert was noticeably 'greener' on the way back home after all the rains they received with Tropical Storm Lidia ... one more day and we probably would have seen it in full bloom  :(

And our very last photo.  it may look like a strange location, and it was .... we were at a Casino in California just over the border, waiting for some work to be done on the van battery ... so we were a bit delayed getting back that evening

All in All .... my Baja Adventure far far EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS !

Arrival and First Day 1 Sep 2017

i arrived at the Hostel in San Diego around 10am, and i met Christina from Germany.   i invited myself to accompany her on a walk to the sea.    Little did i know it would be an 8.4 mile walk, almost totally uphill.   i do believe i had not properly trained for such an excursion; but happy that i went. i’ve only been to San Diego once before, and had no idea it had such a rugged coastline.  It was beautiful !

the next morning, 6am at a Holiday Inn, we met Meghann and Serena, the 2 women who would take care of us.   Meghann’s father was a professor in the 1970s and wanted a place where he could teach field biology courses;  and started the Field Station in Baja.    Meghann grew up on the Sea of Cortez, listening to her father lecture his college students since she could crawl.   She is a wonderful woman, and i immediately felt like i was in good hands.     She said they had been tracking the impending Tropical Storm Lidia and would continue to make decisions along the way.   If she became a problem, we would stop and spend the night before we got there  :(     …but so far, it looked like the area where we are going is just on the edge of the storm.

The group was made up of students, ranging from 21 to 30, and many of them knew each other from Miami University of Ohio’s Global Field Program.   There were 2 sisters, a couple, a group from Phoenix, some had been involved in other programs together, and some had been to this Field Station for other projects, so they knew Meghann and Serena.
  
so besides being the only one there without a ‘past connection’, i was by far the oldest.   that doesn’t usually bother me, but when everyone else is engaged in ‘catching up’ with old friends, it is a bit difficult at first.   lots of chattering, and yes, i tried to be subtle as i put my ear plugs in  :)

Immigration in Tijuana was clean, fast and easy.    then, we headed through Tijuana and picked up 2 brothers who were also part of the ‘team’ that took care of us.  

One of the reasons i was so excited about this trip, was the opportunity to see a new and different terrain.   I'm used to lush green locations on my snorkeling adventures, so the idea of a desert and cactus, really enticed me!   I took the Co-Pilot Seat so i could get a good view of this terrain, plus have a little less noise from the conversations.  :)  
We followed the coast, it was beautiful…. you can see how the mist was coming off the water and it traveled a long way inland as well.

we drove through dry mountains and hills that reminded me of Wyoming.   It was hot and dry, but we did have AC in the vans :)

Finally, at 1pm, they said we were about half way and we stopped in San Quintin (not the prison), and i saw this map on a wall on the sidewalk, showing the route we were taking

In all the little towns along the way, there were places advertising Fish Tacos.    Fish Tacos had been our motivation for the last 6 hours.   Our staff said these were the ‘best’ and they absolutely were right.    So many fish tacos have a few shredded pieces of fish, but not THIS place … they had entire fillets frying and they put an entire fillet on each taco.

Then back on the road, after El Rosario, we headed inland … into the desert !   It was awesome

i LOVED seeing all the different cactus.   that is a Cholla in the forefront.

we made a short stop for some photos

this is a Cirrio cactus, spiky and very tall.  it actually is not a cactus, but a tree.   it has root-like fibers on the top so i can take advantage of any moisture in the air … pretty cool !   It's real name is the Boojum Tree.  They can grow to a height of 60 feet, and is nearly endemic to the Baja California Peninsula.  It is one of the slowest growing plants in the world, at a rate of 1 foot every 10 years.

as you can see from this photo, you wouldn't want to give it a big hug !

we had a bit of trouble with the van, which was worry-some; but the ‘guys’ knew how to fix it and we were on our way again.

we traveled through more cactus in a huge boulder field that stretched miles and miles.   it was dramatic.   i read that the cactus here can grow larger because any rain that hits the rocks, falls to the ground, giving the cactus more water than if there were no boulders.

we arrived in Bahia de los Angeles at 7:30pm, just after dark…… it only took us a little over 12 hours  :)   obviously we couldn’t see much, but we got a short tour and orientation on how to use the ‘bucket-flush-toilets’ in the small building out back.

and also how to take a 3-cup fresh-water shower, i.e., you take a cup of water out of a 5 gallon bucket and pour it over your head and body;  only 3 of these cups was recommended  :(       ...we have running water, but it is a precious commodity.

we were also introduced to our canvas cots that we could take outdoors, which everyone decided to do because it was very very hot in the building, especially since it had been closed up for several days.

there was still a chance of rain, so i chose a spot close to the overhang of the ‘garage’ so if it rained i could duck inside.     by the time i got settled and laid down, i felt sprinkles on my feet.   i decided to move inside the garage.   i feel asleep to waves breaking on the shore.    awesome !

sometime during the night, i vaguely remembered people moving indoors, and realized i could no longer hear the waves … that was because all i could hear was the raging wind and rain .... Tropical Storm Lidia had arrived   :(
about 5am i decided to see if i could find where they told us the toilets were … i put my headlamp on and noticed that my sandals were FLOATING in water.   was i in TEXAS ????????????

people and cots were everywhere because everyone had moved indoors.    i went into another room and it too was flooded.    i went back to my cot and realized that part of my sheet had draped to the floor and had been wicking water, and the spray from the wind and rain was inside the garage…time to move.   i found a spot on the hard wooden table and tried to go back to sleep to no avail.  
about that time some people were waking up and i was up too.  i found some other girls and we started mopping and squeegy-ing the floors, but the water was just coming right back in.  Time for my problem-solving 'maintenance' skills to kick in.
i got a shovel and started digging a trench and found some tiles to divert the water that was dripping from the roof-line and causing the water to come in the door.     Everyone was quite impressed at my 'engineering' skills   :)

Several hours later, Natalie and i had it under control and the fans running to dry the floor.  

We had a briefing of our activities and a tutorial of the routine, should the seas clear and be calm enough for us to get out there tomorrow. 


The rest of the day was devoted to puzzles and games ... you can also see in this photo that the walls have been 'decorated' over the years by the many groups that have enjoyed this Research Station.

The sea was extremely rough and it continued to rain.   Finally clearing up around noon, we now could see the islands in the distance.  

 we took a walk along the shore

found this poor little, 2 foot, Mobula Ray, ....apparently stranded after being tossed onto the rocks by the raging sea  :(

We saw several of these flapping their 'wings' on the surface of the water and also jumping out of the water while we were there ... they were very cool !

....and a trip to Guerillmo’s for Margaritas occupied the rest of the day.    Plus i am learning new things on my iPhone from the young folks ... like Pano  photos  :)

today was definitely NOT what anyone had expected, but everyone remained positive and enthusiastic.  
Meghann said she has NEVER seen the seas like this in all the time she grew up  here!     it is usually like bath water  :)

we all looked forward to a better day in the morning !