SEA OF CORTEZ

           Islands off Mexico

The Sea of Cortez in Mexico wasn’t even on my radar until a friend called looking for a roommate and travel companion. This would be a primitive camping trip and my friend knew no one else willing to sleep on the beach in a pup tent. She figured I’d be game.

After arriving at LAX  I learned we were being weighed and limited to one small carry-on bag. I found a couple empty chairs to do a little repacking before checking in. Fortunately I’d stuck a backpack in the outside pocket of my suitcase. I pulled a change of clothes, nightgown, bathing suit, tee, mask, snorkel, and cosmetic kit out of the suitcase, put it in the pack and was good to go. In case the luggage didn’t arrive with me at least I could cope.

            On arrival in La Paz our guide told us, “The Sea of Cortez spans nine degrees of latitude crossing the Tropic of Cancer at the southernmost tip. The diverse landscape provides for a variety of cultures and ethnic groups. The shores of Baja’s Pacific coast vary from the shores along the Sea of Cortez. There are many resorts along the shores of Baja for those who enjoy that sort of comfort and travel, but the 53 uninhabited islands and the many rock outcroppings in the Sea of Cortez provide adventure and real variety. We will be camping on Isla Espiritu Santo, one of the larger islands in the southern part of the Sea."

            Espiritu Santo is approximately 25 miles from La Paz and a 2 ½ hour boat ride. When arriving at our beach the azure blue, clear water was too shallow for the boat to get very close to shore, so the captain dropped an anchor over the side and we loaded pangas (small outboard Zodiac-type motor boats) for the trip into the beach. The 6 X 8 tents housed two people. You can imagine the calisthenics we performed when getting out of a wet bathing suit!

            We retired early after the evening programs, but the gentle lapping of the waves on the beach soon sent me off to dreamland. I woke with the sun and each morning my friend heard me say, “What a treat to wake up to fresh steaming coffee and a hot breakfast. This is the life!”

            Our cook produced wonderful meals. Food always tastes better when eaten out doors, especially when it is prepared for you! The island was our home port for ten days and we had a wonderful time with lots of adventures.

A SCARY EVENT

MAYBE TOO ACCOMMODATING
      The last day camping with a group in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico we returned to Los Isolates for a final swim with the sea lions. Accommodating one of the swimmer’s request, the guide dropped anchor on the windward side of the island. Big mistake!
      I was the first one in the water and before I even came up for air a terrific surface current had swept me to the end of the island! One of the fellows was right behind me. We swam over to the island and hung on for awhile.
      I said, “Wow, I had visions of landing on that island over there.”
      As my roommate floated by. I waved frantically yelling, “Come over here.”
     “I can’t, the current is too strong!.”
     “The current’s a lot less here. Swim over,” I yelled.
      She did, and while the three of us clung to the rocks we watched another gal float by. She probably weighed over 400 pounds. Think blimp—as she floated on her back, feet first, toes in the air as if charting her float. She was screaming and yelling and floating just as easily as can be.
       By that time the people on the boat realized what was happening and stopped anyone else from entering the water.
       Immediately the little life boat was put in the water and the first rescue was the floating blimp. She had trouble getting in the boat so they simply towed her and came over for us. We three climbed in the skiff and then it headed back to the bigger boat.
       The three of us were able to board the ladder with no problem, but the blimp’s legs floated under the boat and she just couldn’t get her balance to manage the ladder. The crew had to lower a net into the water and eventually lift her aboard. Although this could have been a serious situation it was pretty funny after the fact. She was really very heavy and a real strain for the crew who were always most accommodating.
      Now it was apparent, and we all knew why, we had anchored on the other side of the island a couple of days earlier. It’s always better to follow the safety rules and everyone was fortunate that this situation was without incident.

SALT POND

                 UNBELIEABLE FLOAT
One warm sunny morning during our week in the Sea of Cortez in Mexico we motored our panga over to Isla Partida. A narrow isthmus allows small boat passage only at high tide. With a little people-shifting in the boat and the guide walking the panga through parts of the channel where the water was really shallow we made it safely with no problem. Our destination was a small salt pond on the opposite side of the island.

After walking overland to the pond we all headed for the water which was warm and probably only 7-8 feet deep. Once your feet left the bottom it took a fair amount of energy and effort to stand up again. It was kind of weird to be suspended in the water with absolutely no effort. I sat suspended looking at my toes peeking through the water surface for a good while keeping my balance with a slight sculling motion. Talk about relaxing!

If I’d had a book I could have read while floating. There was no tide or current so one just stayed in the same place where he let his feet float to the top. We chit-chatted and visited with each other, but after awhile we’d had enough and one by one we started to stand and wade out of the pool.

Back on dry land, we watched lots of funny little fiddler crabs run around the marsh surrounding the salt pond. They are always a lot of fun to watch and they put on quite a performance for us. We were almost dry when we walked back to the ocean to rinse all that salt off both our bodies and out of our swim suits.

More than one of us remarked, “This was better than the Great Salt Lake.” It certainly was fun.