La Paz

The small city of La Paz sits near the south end of the Baja California peninsula. From there we would take the ferry to the mainland. La Paz faces into the Sea of Cortez, which divides Baja California from the mainland. The sea is warm, shallow and sheltered, attracting wildlife. It’s a beach hotspot.

We intended to spend a few days in La Paz but it was such a wonderful location it turned into a week. I’d marked on the map that swimming with whale sharks was a possibility but knew little else – information online was confusing, so we’d check that out when we got there.

Our Casa Buena accommodation was a real hit as it had a very comfortable room, a social area and a swimming pool that you could actually do lengths in. 15m wouldn’t qualify for a training pool but was wonderful to push off, stretch and not stub your fingers on the other end. And, apparently, Itchy Boots stayed here when she came through.

The town itself is a tourist resort which has managed to find the balance between tourist tack and a functional Mexican town. The promenade provided access to the golden sandy beach although the advice was not to swim from the town’s waterfront. There were plenty of cleaner beaches further along.

On our arrival in La Paz we pulled over at the posh marina (not inside, it wasn’t free!), and the gatehouse attendant dug out a jolly fellow called Oscar, who did boat trips, only to find out that the sharks are seasonal and won’t be in for another month but the boat trips to the island of Espiritu de Santa are still happening. ‘You’ll be able to swim with sea lions,’ he enthused. Sea lions, they’ll do. ‘Lunch on the beach and snorkelling over coral reefs during the afternoon. Arriving back about 5,’ he continued. Great! But we couldn’t go for at least two days because the winds were too strong and the harbour was closed.

The ferry from La Paz to Mazatlan goes three times a week and we had to be in Mexico City by 30th Oct. Putting our crossing back two days was still perfectly achievable. We instantly extended our stay visiting the museums and wandering around the town to fill the days. The Baja California Sur Regional Museum was as to be expected – stairways to well organised rooms, displays annotated in Spanish, QR codes available for English translation. The second museum was a real treat. The Museo de la Ballena y Ciencias del Mar was a sandy grit base with three shacks housing exhibits with plenty more aquatic bone collections outside. Pickled brains were a blast from the past and reminded me of my supper the night before which luckily Gid ate. Hippopotamus and whales were on the same display and one of the earliest separations on the time line. There were also a few electronic displays in Spanish but the cooling fans were the biggest attraction.

We started to understand where things were in town, and appreciate the steep price gradient as one got nearer to the Malecon (promenade). Speaking of which, Gid chose the statue of Jacques Cousteau as a running turn-around point, but couldn’t find him the first time and fell short. The run had to be completed by 8am, as by then it was getting much too hot. Locals knew that, the prom is pretty busy 7-8 but everyone soon vanishes, emerging again just before dark.

We arrived at the jetty at the appointed time ready for our boat trip. The wind had died down but the sea was still producing some big swells. We were one of two couples booked in for the ‘swim with sea lions’ boat trip, along with an extended family.

We set off full of expectation. It soon became evident that it was too rough for our crew. As to be expected really, the swell was still up. The two children were whimpering as the boat bounced along spray flying high. Once we were heading away from the shelter of the land the chop became more intense. Our plaining hull rose over one wave crashing onto the next covering us in spray. One wave came over the bow and ran a river down the footwell over our feet. The children panicked. It might swamp the boat. The next wave we jumped had us all briefly zero-g above our seats. Gid and I would thrive on this excitement being seasoned sea-kayakers but the two children instantly burst into tears. That was the end of that. Sea lions were off! The day turned into a snorkelling over coral in the sheltered bays exercise. It was pleasant enough, and scratched our “beach itch”, but not what we had paid for.

As we set off for home from our snorkelling pursuits Andrea, our guide, announced that we would visit the nearby lighthouse rock as it was reported that sea lions were there. I assumed that they had had radio communication with the other tour boats in the area. A smile was back on my face.. It wasn’t far to the rocks which we circled in the boat looking for sea lions. Nothing! Andrea asked who wanted to snorkel anyway. Gid and I jumped at it but the rest were set for home. We were quickly ready and in the water. Circling the lighthouse rock the visibility was great on one side but less so on the other. Just as we were ready to call it a day a squeal of excitement alerted us. A single sea lion swam lazily past us. Success!?

At breakfast the following day our German friends exuded enthusiasm for their trip where they had made it out to the island. They were full of how wonderful the experience had been – swimming with numerous sea lions. They talked of how close the sea lions came, the acrobatics they performed, the babies on the rocks and the unmistakeable bark of the sea lions.

It had to be done. We extended our stay at the guest house again. Thankfully we hadn’t booked the ferry yet – back that went another two days. Once on the mainland we had to make Mexico City in three days now. Perfectly do-able providing everything went well.

Our second boat trip was a totally different experience. A more professional set up that cost twice as much but our guide, Andrea, gave a more extensive dialogue about the marine biology and geology we passed along the way, and more of a look at the local birds too. It cost twice as much but was worth every peso. And, the sea was now flat.

Indeed, we swam with numerous sea lions. They came really close, performed superb acrobatics, the babies were on the rocks and the unmistakeable bark of the sea lions surrounded us.