Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon, February 28, 2016

Sunday, 28 February 2016

By: Lorna Hill

Mindfulness gratefulness

Over time I began to realize more and more my responsibility and role at the camp. There were many roles expected from us here at the camp, those including meeting and greeting the guests, showing them to their cabañas, showing them how things worked at the camp, helping to serve the breakfasts and dinner, giving presentations on what types of birds they will see at the lagoon, guiding kayakers around the mangrove, taking people on walks through the desert and to the boneyard…. It’s all a lot of fun and I enjoy each activity individually however my favourite is seeing people experience the whales for the first time.

People come with all sorts of different expectations but mostly it’s to touch and pet the whale and, perhaps, even kiss it. It is a beautiful thing to be able to experience and I wouldn’t want to take that away from anyone but as a guide, I am feeling more and more like it’s my responsibility to “introduce” the whales, as it were, in the best possible way. I think it’s important to remind people that these beautiful creatures are still very much wild animals and as we are in their territory, we are obliged to follow their rules and respect them as we would want from any guests visiting our homes!

All the guests that come here are always very pleasant and polite, there are never any “table manner worries” but instead of going in with the mindset of seeing what you can get from the situation, perhaps a change of perspective would benefit both parties much better – what can I give?

I am a musician and have always relied on music as a way of connecting with other people and to make me feel happy so I felt it only natural to bring my ukulele out on the boat and to play to the whales! I don’t think it is something that will definitely bring the whales right up to the boat but I do know that the whales react off energy from us so if we’re playing music, then we’re likely to be singing, which means we’re happy, which means that the energy that we’re putting out is positive and uplifting. Also, it brings the focus away from one thing, touching the whales, and more into the situation as a whole – where they are, what they are doing, what they are experiencing and even if the ukulele playing just makes someone smile and feel happy, then that is just one more positive experience to add to the list of what they will be experiencing here at Campo Cortez!

Campo Cortez-Sunset

Campo Cortez: San Ignacio Lagoon

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon, February 26, 2016

Sunday, 26 February 2016

By: Lorna Hill

Mindfulness gratefulness

Over time I began to realize more and more my responsibility and role at the camp. There were many roles expected from us here at the camp, those including meeting and greeting the guests, showing them to their cabañas, showing them how things worked at the camp, helping to serve the breakfasts and dinner, giving presentations on what types of birds they will see at the lagoon, guiding kayakers around the mangrove, taking people on walks through the desert and to the boneyard…. It’s all a lot of fun and I enjoy each activity individually however my favourite is seeing people experience the whales for the first time.

People come with all sorts of different expectations but mostly it’s to touch and pet the whale and, perhaps, even kiss it. It is a beautiful thing to be able to experience and I wouldn’t want to take that away from anyone but as a guide, I am feeling more and more like it’s my responsibility to “introduce” the whales, as it were, in the best possible way. I think it’s important to remind people that these beautiful creatures are still very much wild animals and as we are in their territory, we are obliged to follow their rules and respect them as we would want from any guests visiting our homes!

All the guests that come here are always very pleasant and polite, there are never any “table manner worries” but instead of going in with the mindset of seeing what you can get from the situation, perhaps a change of perspective would benefit both parties much better – what can I give?

I am a musician and have always relied on music as a way of connecting with other people and to make me feel happy so I felt it only natural to bring my ukulele out on the boat and to play to the whales! I don’t think it is something that will definitely bring the whales right up to the boat but I do know that the whales react off energy from us so if we’re playing music, then we’re likely to be singing, which means we’re happy, which means that the energy that we’re putting out is positive and uplifting. Also, it brings the focus away from one thing, touching the whales, and more into the situation as a whole – where they are, what they are doing, what they are experiencing and even if the ukulele playing just makes someone smile and feel happy, then that is just one more positive experience to add to the list of what they will be experiencing here at Campo Cortez!

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon, February 20, 2016

20^th February 2016

By Maria Teresa Solomons

A Journey of Transformation

 It began with the sound of scratching on the ceiling of my camper, a light-footed, scratching which then crossed the ceiling and down onto the sides of the van to where the windows and mirrors are, like the sound of small scratchy branches blowing in the wind. However, there was no wind and it was still dark, the sun hadn’t quite broken over the horizon across the water. Then there was a solid knocking at my door as if some uninvited guest were outside, wanting to come in.  My alarm had gone off about half an hour earlier but I was still enjoying the comfort of the warmth. I climbed down off my bunk and opened the door. There was no-one outside. Oranges and yellows peeled in layers over the sky.

Two black shadows pecked still at the side mirrors and cawed like the gurgling of an over-ready espresso pot. I'd never heard the Raven sound so close and never thought they´ be here but two campers across the parking lot, where Roberto, one of the panga boat driver´s family stays during the whale watching season was, of course, the treasure they were stalking, a big Osprey nest alive with three fledglings. At some point in their story, whether the Ravens were responsible or not, two would fall and one would remain.

This strange combination of sounds repeated themselves for about an hour every sunrise, from about 5.45am for the entirety of my stay at the camp and had I not already been familiar with the Raven as a traditional shaman totem spirit, I might have felt a sense of ominous foreboding.

The shapes we perceive, in the form of animal bodies or human bodies, in fact any and all life that around us are the clothes worn here for a time, but still they may change according to circumstance.

It is true that the Raven came out of darkness, but its trickster, enigmatic nature was what enabled it to capture a stolen sun and bring the seed of Light to the world.

Tired of the cold and dark the Raven had determined to trick the old man out of the sun he had hidden away in a box. The old man had a daughter who fetched water from the spring every day and as she was drinking he transformed into a seed and dropped into her glass whereupon she swallowed him. From that seed a child was born who stole the heart of the old man who would do almost anything to have the child play, but the little box remained locked away. As the child grew the old man softened to the laughter in the house and decided to show just a glimpse of the beauty and warmth of the sun. He opened the box for a second but shut it away again. Raven played more and the old man´s heart grew warm with the love he felt growing for the child until he decided the sun would be his gift to him. They played, and throwing the sun like a ball between them, the boy kept hold and as the sun warmed his hands, was transformed into a mighty Raven, the sun clasped in its strong black beak. He made a huge sweep of his wings, swept upwards and released it to the heavens where it exploded into a fiery blaze where it has stayed to this day to separate us from the darkness.

In this place, in the time and space of this lagoon, I feel I have a good spirit at my door when they visit and always feel blessed by their presence on my camper top and welcome the deep throttled clicking of their voices as I awake to the colours of the morning.

I can swear that for those who visit Laguna San Ignacio it is a journey of transformation, and regardless or not of whether their external human form changes visibly, something subtle happens in the three days that they are out on the water. Who is to know if the change started because of the emotion of their direct encounters with the whales of the lagoon, or if the stories they read before they came drew them in, or if the stories themselves are alive, and the words of the story is the teller in disguise.

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon February 16, 2016

Guide Report

Campo Cortez, San IgnacioLagoon

By:  Rodrigoro Manterola

Week 2

The song remains the same…

Although most of the gray whale sounds are not audible for us humans due to the frequency (lower frequency sounds) they, like all cetaceans, have a complex communication system. Blue whales songs can travel across the ocean while humpback whales songs are amongst some of the most complex communication systems in the whole animal kingdom, including us.

Communication can take place anytime, anywhere. And also, communication takes any form; like us, whales don’t narrow their communication to just sounds; we normally use our body just as much as our words to transmit an idea.

Whales can display a long list of body language and gestures to communicate; breaching, fluke slaps and other behaviors are forms of communication too but what they mean it is still uncertain.

To my understanding sound is the fabric of the universe as vibrations mold the physical world we live in. The brains of dolphins and whales have evolved to master sounds, odontoceti  developed echolocation to perceive the world around them, find food and, as recent studies also mention, to transmit information between individuals.

Mysticeti on the other hand don’t have such an evolved bio-sonar but their singing tells stories of life and names repeated amongst individuals throughout the ocean.

Campo Cortez is a pallete of sounds and creatures. Coyotes, ospreys and geese paint the air with elaborated s stories from the desert, but sounds go beyond the animal kingdom. The morning winds bring the sounds and smells of the mountains, the afternoon shifts the winds from the west bringing the cool and humid breeze from the ocean while we think of long gone times when only the gray whale roamed these lagoons in their long journeys along the north American shores.

Mangroves in Camp

Osprey and Nest at Camp

Group of White Pelicans

Dolphin Skulls on Beach

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon: Feb.12,2016

Friday 12^th February 2016

By Lorna Hill

La Vida en la Laguna

The new group brought with them a new weather pattern and moon cycle. The cold, gusty winds were replaced by calm, sunny days and the new moon meant high, swollen tides. The water would come right into the camp and created a shallow swimming pool, great for the curlews and dowishers. However, the tide soon went out again and the leftover water was soon evaporated by the hot, Mexican sun.

As with many things here at the lagoon, this changing weather meant we had to rely on the locals for information as to what normally happens, which led me to ponder more about the local community and how it survives. I find myself relating it back to the inhabited islands, off the west coast of Ireland. These islands aren’t very big, smaller than the lagoon in fact and usually consist of a community between 300-600 people. These small communities sometimes have to face a whole range of trials and tribulations, especially when it comes to the weather therefore it is necessary for the community to work together, otherwise chaos prevails. It is like this here, at San Ignacio Lagoon. The people of the Lagoon work together to protect and preserve this unique place, with the abundant wildlife and flora and fauna and, of course, the whales. They also need to work together in order to share this with us, in a sustainable and ethical way. Like the islanders, they are real family people, looking after each other and enjoy working together and spending time together every day, and they are also the nicest bunch of people! I enjoy getting up every day to greet the people staying here but also to see the rest of camp and boat crew, who always, without fail, have happy smiles on their faces. And why wouldn’t they!? They do, after all, live in paradise. There are two young grandchildren who live here and they just have the best playground – playing every day on the beach or in the fields or getting to go out in the boats to see the whales. The education they are getting from such a young age is worth its weight in gold.

I feel so privileged to be here, working in such a special place, with great people and learning so much about the nature around us. I, too, seem to have a constant smile on my face. Must be something in the air!

Camp Cook: Catalina

Guide: Maria-Teresa Solomons

  

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon, February 8, 2016

Guide Report

Feb. 08, San Ignacio Lagoon

By:  Rodrigoro Manterola

Hundreds of thousands of empty clam shells on the ground welcomed us to San Ignacio Lagoon, a reminder of ancient times not so long ago when uncontrolled fishing  and a lacking in regulations depleted the area of all catalina clams, an endemic species that struggles to stay alive in a world that apparently won’t miss it when it’s gone.

Many things have changed since the 90’s and some catalina clams can be seen in the lagoon again. Now, after 20 years more or less, the lagoon is a protected area where the local fishermen self-regulate their work and protect the many species that call San Ignacio Lagoon their home.

Some of these species are around all year long; some others come from far north to shelter themselves from the cold winter, amongst them; the majestic gray whale, the reason for our own migration to San Ignacio.

Campo Cortez can be seen from the distance laying in the flat windy desert aside the Lagoon. From the road, the green cabanas blend with the shrubby vegetation and the mangrove. Planned to be environmentally friendly, the camp was once a bunch of tents that housed the dreams of the Fischer and the Friday families, who started the project twenty-some years ago. Now, these families work side by side not only to make some dreams come true but also to teach foreigners and locals the importance of keeping San Ignacio Lagoon healthy and alive.

For Lorna and I, to come to San Ignacio is a mix of dreams and hopes, hard work and a whole lot of learning lie ahead of us, to live in such a hard environment makes us feel so much more respect for the people, the plants, and of course the animals of San Ignacio.

The first few days…

The wind blows day and night, and my lips and ears are the first ones to notice the dryness of the deserts while Maldo assures me the wind will stop soon. Although the environment is demanding the most of us, the rewards are plenty.  In just a couple of days  I’ve seen more whales than most of the avid whale watchers I’ve come to meet in the camp, some of these folks have been following whales for years. I feel lucky to be here.

Touch down!!

Today the wind stopped, from over 20 miles per hour to a flat zero, while that alone should be reason enough to celebrate, the main event was this morning; Lorna touched a whale!!

We were on our pangas with 8 of our guests. The conditions were perfect; no wind and a whole lot of whales. We were riding for no more than 20 minutes when a mother and her calf showed interest in us. Slowly but surely they got closer and closer until finally they were within our reach. Everyone on the boat got to rub the new mommy and the recently born baby.  Tristan, a young boy who came to the camp from California, was singing at that moment. Some people believe singing attracts whales, some other people think singing does not make a difference, me; I think singing is great and it makes no difference if it makes a difference or not.

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon, February 7, 2016

Sunday, 7^th February 2016

By: Lorna Hill

A week ago today we arrived at the camp, Rodrigo and I, to work as guides at Campo Cortez and boy, has it flown by.

Our peaceful journey North from Cabo San Lucas, where we live, soon turned into a whirlwind of meeting the crew, learning the ways of the camp, absorbing lots of interesting information and snapping the odd picture or two, all the while in awe of the beautiful sunrises and sunsets, landscapes and wildlife.

We enjoy having Ospreys, egrets, herons, geese as our neighbours and we like to look out for our more shy friends, the coyotes.

The group consisted of a really great bunch of people. We had a warm hearted American couple, Doug and K, a sweet British couple Andrew and Evelyn, a friendly Canadian lady called Evie, and a super Californian family, Trish, Brad and their awesome son, Tristan. It turns out that Tristan was quite the singer and he lured those whales in with his great rendition of Star Wars!

The whales have been taking their time getting to know us, most likely due to the fact that most of the Mothers have young calves by their side but we had quite a bit of interest from some of them and a really great day was had by all yesterday, 6^th February, when we all got to pet our first whale. As it was also my birthday, I felt like I had received an extra special birthday present, thank you whales!

The end of the trip coincided with the Superbowl, so the guys at the camp put in some real effort getting the TV connected up so our American friends could watch it. I enjoyed seeing my first ever Superbowl and what a presentation it was, especially as it was a celebration of the 50^th anniversary.

A great ending to a fun week.

Gray Whale Census - San Ignacio Lagoon: Feb.02, 2016

Gray Whale Census

San Ignacio Lagoon

Date:  February 02, 2016

Gray Whale Calves:  84
Gray Whale Adults:  140

Total Gray Whales:  224

Guide Report: San Ignacio Lagoon

Campo Cortez Blog  -- 2016

By Norma Lira

February 02, 2016

Another exciting season of the great Gray Whale migration has begun, and Campo Cortez is one of the few places in the world that provide an opportunity to get up close and personal with friendly 50 ton Gray Whales and their new calves.  January and February are an exciting time to witness these incredible leviathans in action, including their newborn “pickle” calves learning how to maneuver as best they can with their floppy tails. 

The journey to the lagoon is also filled with the beautiful sights of the majestic desert peninsula.  Under the bright, blue skies you will find flora, including collapsing cactus, new thriving cardon, and blooms of the tobacco flowers and ocotillo.  The picturesque Laguna (lagoon) and entire surrounding area make for a unique and wonderful experience. 

The opening of camp went smoothly, and even when some high winds showed up, we were able to go out on a side excursion to witness migrating White Pelicans, as well as exchange previous travel stories from our group that included people from Italy, Germany, England, and from all over the United States.  New friendships were forged, and many new travel stories were created.

In our trips out into the lagoon, we had numerous opportunities to witness the whales’ amazing breaching and spy hopping behaviors, and there were often times when there were so many whales around our boat that they could be seen in every direction at once.

I hope you will find time this season to make it to the camp.  March is known as our “friendly” month for the sheer number of whale close-encounters, as the mother whales encourage their calves into touching (and even kissing) distance of the boats.   And even though we call a trip to Campo Cortez a once-in-a-lifetime experience, we do have many guests that make a point to return.