When was the last time we did something for the first time? Several times today! Our excursion today ranks right up there with ATVs in Moorea and jet skies in Bora Bora and climbing Mt. Tapioi on Raiatea as one of our most adventurous of the winter. I wonder if it will leave me as achy as all those did over the next few days, and I suspect it will. Medicated with Vitamin I, we are tucked into bed right after dinner again tonight.
We met up with Grant, Carol, Phil and Jan on the pier. Carol had arranged a tour for us today through Kayak Baja (www.kayakbaja.com) to swim with sea lions at Isla de Espiritu Santo in the Sea of Cortez. This was the first visit to La Paz for all of us, so we weren't certain exactly what to expect. The Grand Princess docked at a freight area about 20 minutes north of the town of La Paz, and we were met by a shuttle arranged by the excursion company and driven to their office in town. The landscape was very Arizona-like, with rolling brown hills and an abundance of tall cacti. Once at the Kayak Baja office, we were told that the water temperature would be in the mid-60s (ouch!) and were fitted with wetsuits by our guide for the day, Benjamin. Now, I am not a fan of long sleeved wetsuits (talk about claustrophia!), but to swim with sea lions, I endured squeezing into one (actually, being squeezed into one). Once we were geared up and wearing life jackets, we walked a short block down to the waterfront where we boarded our boat.
The day was bright and sunny but never warm. I had kept my wetsuit on, simply because I could not bear the thought of pulling it on a second time, and was soon glad for its warmth. We met our captain, Armando, and that's when we first heard the news that it would be about a 90 minute boat ride to the sea lions. Oh joy... While we were in the harbor at La Paz, it wasn't too rough, but as soon as we reached more open water, it got seriously bouncy. We bounced across the water, enjoying the rock cliff scenery and willing our travel time to pass quickly.
We swung into a frigate bird sanctuary where Benjamin explained to us that frigate birds got their name from pirate ships, as, like pirates, they are always stealing other birds' food. The rocks were white from guano, and the birds were a little stinky.
We continued on, doing our best to protect our spines and necks and stay warm, until we finally reached the island covered with lounging sea lions. Actually, we smelled them before we saw them. There were dozens of them, males and females with nursing babies that were so cute. I wasted no time, because sitting on a bobbing boat is not my favorite thing to do, and did a backward roll off the side of the boat into the water. Gasp! It was so cold it momentarily took my breath away, but Benjamin encouraged us to get moving to warm up, and he was right. I peeked my head under the water and was amazed at its clarity. It was about 40 feet deep and crystal clear down to the ocean floor. I was surprised to see lots of colorful fish; somehow I thought it would be too cold for them. But it was breathtaking to see the first sea lion race by within feet of me. Up close, they were huge, and moved much faster than I'd imagined they would.
I was soon joined by Suzan, Carol and Jan, but didn't realize until I was back in the boat later that not a single guy got in the water, except Benjamin, of course. I eventually asked G to throw me his scuba hood; its warmth helped ease putting my ears in the water, and I did finally acclimate to the temperature. It never felt totally comfortable, but it was bearable. We stayed there until we got uncomfortably chilly, and witnessed some male aggressiveness under the water that showed that the sea lions did have some sharp teeth.
Once we were back in the boat, we spotted several nearby manta rays jumping straight up and out of the water, which generally means they are unnerved by a predator in the water. It was about a 15-minute ride back to a long stretch of beach where Armando pulled the boat in close to shore and we waded the short distance to the sand. There, Armando and Benjamin set up a table and served lunch: ham and cheese sandwiches, ceviche, avocado and chips and cookies. Suzan, Phil and G had walked over to a nearby store this morning from the Kayak Baja office and purchased some local beers and we washed down our lunch with those, very refreshing and not nearly as potent as yesterday's margaritas.
After lunch, Phil and Benjamin went kayaking while the rest of us enjoyed the warmth of the sun on the beach. About 2:45pm we reboarded the boat, not looking forward to that rough ride back. Fortunately, we didn't have to go as far south as La Paz; the boat dropped us back at the ship, and that took only about 45 minutes. Still, we were glad to see the smokestacks of the Grand Princess appear behind a hill, indicating that we were getting close.
We all met up in a hot tub on the back of Deck 16, warming up and soaking weary muscles, and we stayed there until it was time to get ready for dinner. G and I shared a very quiet meal, listened a bit to Los Briliantes, the mariachi band on board (they are really good!) playing in the Piazza, then got fuzzy water and returned to the cabin. G was asleep in five minutes, and I will be, too, as soon as this blog post is published.
We're in Loreto tomorrow, another first for us, but have no firm plans for the day. Our two days in Mexico have been tough ones, in entirely different ways. It may be time for a beach day, or a walk on the Maleçon, the beachfront boardwalk in most coastal Mexican towns.