A dramatic sunrise to the east. A full moonset to the west. Not a cloud in the sky. A soft, warm breeze out of the southeast. The low sun lighting the colorful volcanic cliffs of Cabeza de Mechudo. Leaping rays of the genus Mobula flashing black and white and smashing back into the deep-green water. And a huge school of long-beaked common dolphins moving with what can only be described as casual haste around our ship.
Each morning starts with morning stretching with Laura on the Bridge Deck and Morning Updates Announcement over the P.A. system in our room. We always partake in the latter although we observed the former.
Chris worked out on the Elliptical Trainer to get her continuing physical therapy credits.
Breakfast was Huevos Rancheros, Hash Brown and Bacon.
The surprise this morning, though, was a blue whale, the largest animal species ever to inhabit this planet. This individual was perhaps 50 to 60 feet long, much shorter than the record of 110 feet recorded many years ago in the days of whaling fleets.
Significantly, though, this individual showed what we concluded was a massive disfiguration. The back was markedly humped, arching higher by far than the rostrum and head, and the broad tail fluke was curved upward on the right side. Had this creature survived a devastating encounter with a ship? Or might it have been born with a spinal defect? We may never know, but we were satisfied that it was moving and breathing as most blue whales do, and diving to feed for up to 10 minutes at a time. The natural world is cruel at times, but the will to live is strong.
On the National Geographic Sea Lion, Lindblad Expeditions provide all the “stuff” necessary to go snorkeling. While we are finishing breakfast, the naturalist staff is laying out fins, masks, and wet suits for the ships guests. Snorkelers set off before lunch to explore life along the rocky shoreline of a small island. For the month of March, the water was pleasant.
Others of us moseyed along a horseshoe beach, or swam in the clear water. More adventures on the island followed lunch, with many of us kayaking the shallow waters along rocky beaches, and others scaling the slope that rims the beach and salt plain.
Every time we had an opportunity to do a beach landing from the Zodiacs, the ship crew had already been there with chairs, towels and water.
In the morning we enjoyed walking on the beach of Isla San Francisco. We then returned to the Sea Lion for a lunch of Organic Mixed Green Salad, Cream of Mushroom Soup, Croque Monsieur and Paletas for dessert.
In the afternoon we took the opportunity to do some kayaking out to the Sea Lion and along the edges of the bay.
An outdoor meal in an exotic land is always fun. The setting sun and calm air made for a perfect beach barbecue. While we were back on the ship after our Kayaking, the ship staff was setting up the beach for evening.
Arriving for dinner on the beach, staff was there to take our life jackets and offer an adult beverage. There were enough chairs for everybody positioned around a fire pit.
One of my interests over the years is feeding large groups of people so I was very interested on how they were going to feed this group at the same level that they had on the ship from their large kitchen (not). I had never seen the EVO Flat Top Grill before but the Chief explained that they had tried charcoal and gas barbecues with mixed results because of wind. I check the web on my return and found that they do not cost as much as my cruise ticket but close. Captain Mark Graves explained that it is stored on the Bridge Deck and lifted off the Zodiac with the ship crane. There is a zipper in the canopy over the back of the Bridge Deck that allows them to lower it through the canopy and roll it to its home against the rail.
Dinner on the beach was Coleslaw, Focaccia, Marinated Chicken Breast, Fresh Local Yellowtail, Grilled Tofu, Grilled Vegetables and for dessert Sliced Watermelon and Brownies.
At every meal Hot dogs and Hamburgers were available for people that do not like adult food. I was amazed that I could get a picture that every staff member would not like.
We were able to introduce to the guests from Great Britain the all American treat of S’Mores. A marshmallow is skewered on the end of a long stick and held just above the campfire until its outer surface starts to brown. Once heated, the inside of the marshmallow becomes soft. The marshmallow is quickly pinched off its stick with the waiting graham crackers, one of which has a piece of chocolate on it. Ideally, the heat from the roasted marshmallow partially melts the chocolate into a gooey mess.
Telescopic views of the planet Venus in a slender crescent phase, and of Saturn with its rings aligned with Earth ended our stay here. We would sleep well tonight.