Out to see the sea. December 22, 2024

 One of the main reasons Martin chose Cabo for your trip was he knew how much I wanted to see whales. It is pretty lame that I had never seen one. Lots of people, even those with no interest in nature, have been whale watching. I have done a number of pelagic birding trips and saw a number of species of dolphins and porpoises, but never a whale. There were whales when we did our trip off of Peru, but I was so sick I couldn't get up to see them. The Sea of Cortez is well known for wintering Humpbacked and Gray Whales. The Grays don't arrive in big numbers until January, but the Humpbackeds were in. 

Birding Los Cabos arranged a birding and whale trip for Sunday morning, with an emphasis on whales. Maria Elena picked us up at about 7AM and we grabbed some breakfast near the marina. We drove through the marina where some huge yachts were moored. I pointed out on and said that was the boat I wanted to go out on. Maria Elena said she had tried to book that one, but it was previously engaged. We parked and walked over to the dock with our boat. I knew it was going to be small, but I had no idea it would be that small. I had seen photos of people whale watching in little boats in Cabo, so I knew it was not uncommon. With assistance I overcame my balance issues and got in. We got our life jackets on and took off into the sea.

As I mentioned, I get sea sick. I was a little concerned, but I think being in a small boat on the surface of the water instead of higher up really helped. I never felt any queasiness at all. The captain of the boat was quite young, but very good. We headed out several miles. My natural pessimism started kicking in and I thought I was still going to remain whale-less, but I still was really enjoying the ride. Then the captain pointed and said "Whale!" A Humpback broke the water maybe a hundred yards away. I was shaking I was so excited. Then we heard a deep whoosh and Martin said "Behind us!" The sound was a whale spouting very close to the boat. Two broke the water less than 100 feet from us. I was stupid and tried to take pictures instead of just watching them. We were actually too close to them to get a recognizable photo!

Luckily, they continued swimming nearby and I was able to get a couple of ok photos, but I do regret not concentrating on the experience. After about fifteen minutes they moved on. We started heading back to shore and our one pelagic bird flew by, a Black-vented Shearwater. I wasn't expecting any birds, so that was a bonus. The captain spotted some movement on the water and said there were whales under the surface. We stopped, but they didn't surface. Then in the distance Martin and I saw one breech! That put me over the top! 

During the rest of the trip back to the dock all I could think of was how the hell was I going to get out of the boat. My knees are bad and I was not only worried about my balance, but being able to climb up to the dock. I told Martin I thought I might be spending the rest of my life in that little boat. We docked and fortunately, they dragged my fat ass up and I was able to get on the dock. I was very relieved! 

We still had some birding time left before lunch, so we went to look for our next target, Xantus's Hummingbird. We had thought this would be easy, expecting to see one in town, but Maria Elena told us because of pesticide use they were not common in the city any longer. She said some of the large hotel grounds with good plantings had them, but you can't access those areas unless you are staying there. She drove us through the city to a remote scrubby area where she expected them to be.

We parked on a dirt road winding through what looked like very degraded habitat to me, but what do I know? There were some red flowers scattered in the scrub. A hummingbird was perched on top of a small leafless tree, but it turned out to be a Costa's, the other common hummingbird in that area. Then another hummingbird shot into a leafy bush next to me. I could see a white eye-line and a red bill. I tried to get Martin on it, but it was buried deep and difficult to see. It then took off and briefly fed in some flowers above our heads. It took off before we could get photos, but we were happy. As we walked back to the car we saw a White-tailed Antelope Squirrel, another new mammal.

We ate lunch at a local spot and headed back to our hotel. We were glad for some down time. (Jeez, we are getting old. I would never have said that a few years ago!) We were looking at photos and discussing the whales when a sudden jolt hit the building. It was brief, but unsettling. We wondered if it was a small earthquake. I have never felt one before. A bit later we walked to the grocery store to get some snacks and Martin spoke with the security guard at the door. She confirmed that there had been a tremor, so I could put that on my "bucket list" as well. I would love to see whales again, but there is no need to repeat an earthquake!