Bahia San Gabriel, Punta Dispensa
As a group of fellow-travelers, we have found our rhythm: quiet sunrises, whether enjoyed with coffee in hand or up on the bridge deck stretching; mornings discovering what the sea or shore can offer; a break at lunch to refuel, then another adventure, then a feast of a dinner. We’ve come to know the majestic cardon and the adorable hedgehog cacti. Pelicans and yellow-footed gulls are our familiars, as are antelope ground squirrels, scorpions of all sorts, and even the elusive black jackrabbit.
This morning, we pulled into beautiful Bahia San Gabriel on Isla Espiritu Santo and put kayaks ashore to explore the mangroves and rock formations. Snorkelers took one last paddle over coral heads and white sand sea floor. The sun was out, the water was lovely, and we were glad to venture forth again.
In the afternoon, we took a slight detour to pick up some kayakers stranded in a cove on Isla Espiritu Santo. Speculation ran rampant on the bow as two Zodiacs zipped to shore to pick up the wayward paddlers. We welcomed them, compared adventures, then traveled south together toward Punta Dispensa for a final walk on Baja’s beautiful shores.
The long, gentle beach of Dispensa held stories from the sea: sperm whale vertebral discs, enough of a bottlenose dolphin skeleton to piece together the creature on the sand, and many other bones, bits, and shells. Over the berm, walkers had a wander through salt flats and cacti—including the charming pencil cactus. The brush was rich with birds, from gnatcatchers to loggerhead shrikes, and coyote melon and native morning glory vines twined around the other vegetation. We could have spent an entire day here, something we’ve come to feel at each spot the National Geographic Sea Lion has stopped.
We left the beach full of sun and stories, ready (maybe?) to return home with all we discovered, all we hoped for, and all we didn’t even know to expect when we began this great adventure.
As a group of fellow-travelers, we have found our rhythm: quiet sunrises, whether enjoyed with coffee in hand or up on the bridge deck stretching; mornings discovering what the sea or shore can offer; a break at lunch to refuel, then another adventure, then a feast of a dinner. We’ve come to know the majestic cardon and the adorable hedgehog cacti. Pelicans and yellow-footed gulls are our familiars, as are antelope ground squirrels, scorpions of all sorts, and even the elusive black jackrabbit.
This morning, we pulled into beautiful Bahia San Gabriel on Isla Espiritu Santo and put kayaks ashore to explore the mangroves and rock formations. Snorkelers took one last paddle over coral heads and white sand sea floor. The sun was out, the water was lovely, and we were glad to venture forth again.
In the afternoon, we took a slight detour to pick up some kayakers stranded in a cove on Isla Espiritu Santo. Speculation ran rampant on the bow as two Zodiacs zipped to shore to pick up the wayward paddlers. We welcomed them, compared adventures, then traveled south together toward Punta Dispensa for a final walk on Baja’s beautiful shores.
The long, gentle beach of Dispensa held stories from the sea: sperm whale vertebral discs, enough of a bottlenose dolphin skeleton to piece together the creature on the sand, and many other bones, bits, and shells. Over the berm, walkers had a wander through salt flats and cacti—including the charming pencil cactus. The brush was rich with birds, from gnatcatchers to loggerhead shrikes, and coyote melon and native morning glory vines twined around the other vegetation. We could have spent an entire day here, something we’ve come to feel at each spot the National Geographic Sea Lion has stopped.
We left the beach full of sun and stories, ready (maybe?) to return home with all we discovered, all we hoped for, and all we didn’t even know to expect when we began this great adventure.
