Guide Report: Mar.13-17, 2014

Gray Whales of San Ignacio Lagoon

Guide Report: Mar.13-17, 2014

By: Liisa Juuti

This week’s group was lucky on their whale watching trips; everyone had a close encounter with a mother whale and calves, especially one lady that got fluked by a baby whale practicing her tail coordination skills. The weather is getting warmer and the sun was out all the time. Mother Nature showed its power on the last day with winds as strong as 35 miles per hour. We spent the day by watching an interesting documentary of migrating animals, learning about the different bones in the bone yard (we also found some funny looking spiders in the mangroves), and going on a nice afternoon walk to the shore.

We had an interesting and productive walk to the shore at low tide, observing an octopus hiding under the rocks, as well as a brittle star, chocolate clams and some scallops. Once we got back to our camp our guests were delighted to have Maldo prepare them the very fresh chocolate clams with lime and chili sauce. They showed their nerve as they swallowed clams that were still moving. The food could not have been fresher. Then we had delicious local oysters barbecued during the happy hour. Yummy!

During the guests’ stay at Campo Cortez we give them presentations on different topics. First Rubi, one of our guides, talked about the community’s history and how the ecotourism started in San Ignacio Lagoon. The second night there was a presentation of the gray whale. Then Hayley, our other guide, explained to us about the mangrove ecosystem and other plants around the lagoon. On the last night Maldo, the co-owner of the camp gave an interesting talk about how Campo Cortez operates and what does the family do after the gray whale season ends. The gorgeous full moon left our guests speechless and the beautiful sunrise accompanied their journey back home.