A Humpback Whale Fluke is unique and used to identify the animal.
In the Ocean, Not all Entanglements End Happily
Don’t you love seeing whale and animal rescues on YOUTUBE or tv or the news? I know I do. Like the one with the whale that was freed and thanked her saviors by giving them a breaching display for over an hour? Not all of these stories end happily, though. In fact, most of them don’t. [Read more…] about In the Ocean, Not all Entanglements End Happily
I am in Puerto Lopez, Ecuador, volunteering with the Marine Megafauna Foundation, taking photographs of Manta Rays for Identification in order to discern manta behaviors and migrations. Four or five years ago I saw a documentary about the work Dr. Andrea Marshall was doing with manta rays, a species which was virtually unstudied. She has discovered that there is more than one species! My interest in the project led me first to Tofo, Mozambique, where Marine Megafauna was founded, and now to Ecuador. The population of manta rays here is unbelievable! Yesterday, they were all over the place, one after another! Here are also many admirable people from whom I am learning a great deal. The town of Puerto Lopez is….developing. Maybe not fast enough, but it has possibilities! These photos are from my first week of photographing such a large species, so don’t be too critical!
And why would I be interested in Mantas? Well, when I was growing up we vacationed in Ft. Lauderdale, FL every summer. Every summer we would see Mantas, though we were called out of the water because of how dangerous they were (they are completely harmless, without even a stinger). I fell in love with their size and graceful movements. But humans are hard on mantas…. Manta Rays are very vulnerable and endangered. We must do everything we can to keep these beautiful creatures in our oceans.
The trip to Puerto Lopez was about 4 hours from Guayaquil, in a van filled with luggage and people. Kind of bumpy too, but we made it, so no problema! The hotel is nice and clean, with balconies overlooking the ocean. There are also hammocks on the balconies, which is quite nice. Upon arrival our group, which consists of Ralph, Larry, Peg and Tina, took a bit of a rest then headed out to meet with the dive masters and the scientific team (Marine Megafauna Foundation) to have dinner and get to know one another. Actually the group I am with has been here for the last four years and is well known to the teams. I guess I’m the newbie! Everyone is friendly and helpful, which is very useful because I knew my first few dives would be difficult. In a new place, they always are. I’m not sure why that is, but it just is. I have learned to prepare for it.
Our first dive day was slow, filling out paperwork, signing legal documents, making sure gear was correct, that sort of thing. The beach is filled with fishing boats, both on and off the water, surrounded by Emperor Pelicans and Brown Pelicans, Frigate birds, and yes, Blue footed Boobys! They are totally adorable…and so clumsy! Talk about big flat feet! They are cute, cute, cute!
Not so cute are the numerous fishing boats….as always, there is friction between the divers and the fishermen. Ecuador wants to make the most of being a country eco-friendly with national parks where no fishing is allowed….but the fishermen fish the national park daily, as we have seen. A lot of politics going on down here. There are only 3 dive companies as of yet, and change is slow when it comes to a clash between trying to change an economy based on fishing to one based on tourism, diving, and national parks. It is difficult to explain to them, but the fishermen don’t realize that a marine protected park is a valuable commodity….the fishing just outside of MPAs is excellent. It will take time.
The ride from Puerto Lopez to Isla de la Plata (where the mantas congregate this time of year) is an hour or more. Dive conditions were favorable yesterday, and so we suited up. The cold water hit my chest like a sledgehammer. I felt like I could not breathe. I’m not used to diving in more than a 1 mil wetsuit (or skin), and here I am layering a 3 mil topped with a 1 mil. After I acclimated we went down the line for the dive, and it was pretty murky….but out of the murk came huge manta rays! Absolutely amazing. These animals are really huge. My second dive was much better, and the mantas were everywhere. Beside you, below you, above you….where to look?? I took a few shots of them, and also some photos of eels and seastars. I slept on the way back…in the last few weeks I’ve had Dengue Fever and a kidney stone, so I’m not as strong as I am normally. Of course, I blew out an ear on the second dive….I’m calling it “manta ear”. See manta, get closer to manta, forget everything else including clearing your ears while looking at mantas. One of the scientists was a guy I had met in Mozambique, and he suggested vinegar. Perfect choice. I had no ear problems today. Good old vinegar, my gargling standby for sore throats (mixed with honey). It works on ears too.
Ah, today. The swells were much bigger, the boat ride harder, the diving was freezing at 15 degrees Celsius (that is 59 Farenheit.) This time I bumped my head on the boat, lost my mask from my face, and basically felt like an idiot. But there were plenty of mantas! Dr Andrea Marshall, or the Queen of Mantas as she is known all over the world, was on the boat today. Like me, she feels like heavy wetsuits are strangling her…and like me, doesn’t wear a hood since it constricts the throat. We must have been strangled together in a former life. She and her husband are absolutely wonderful. He brought me cushions to make sure my back felt okay on the ride out and back. What a sweetheart!
I’m taking the day off tomorrow….this is not the relaxing diving of Cozumel or the Caymans….this is hard work in comparison. Seeing huge mantas is worth the effort, though, and hopefully the water will warm up a bit. Today was apparently the coldest day yet! Brrrrr!
In the past few weeks I have had serious doubts as to whether I was going to be able to make this trip! I planned to come to Ecuador over a year ago with a scientific team and volunteers from Marine Megafauna Foundation, to help identify and conserve Manta Rays at Isla de la Plata, the Island of Silver. Also known as “the poor man’s Galapagos”. I tried to go to Komodo last January with the group, the Ray of Hope Expeditions, but last September my husband went into a shocking respiratory failure and ended up with a double lung transplant. I know, I still can’t believe it myself, but here we are, a year later, and Randy is doing very, very well! Well enough for me to travel. So why did I think I might not get here?
Well. I went to Cozumel, Mexico in August and came home with Dengue Fever. My advice? Stay away from mosquitos who carry the virus. It is well nicknamed, “breakbone fever”. And yes, one feels like one’s bones are BREAKING. So painful. I ended up missing my daughter’s engagement gathering. I can’t even stand to think about that.
Then, off to Florida to help out with relatives who are having issues. I came home, ready to prepare for my fabulous trip….and ended up in the Emergency Room on August 28 with a kidney stone! Luckily it was not my appendix. THAT would have really sucked. So, I’ve been feeling a bit weak and worried about another stone. However, I feel fine, and I decided to just get on the damned plane. So I did. And here I am. Looking around on the plane I couldn’t help but notice I was a rare commodity…a woman traveling alone. I rode to the hotel with a group of men from Argentina, all of them staring at me. I’ve traveled alone all over the world….and have yet to find other women traveling alone! Does anyone else get out and go on their own??
I haven’t even seen Guayaquil ( the largest city in Ecuador and a World Heritage Site ) yet as I arrived in the dark, at night. So, tomorrow I see the city and drive 4 hours to Puerto Lopez to prepare for diving over the next two weeks. Can’t wait! I will be posting as I go!
Buenos Noches, mi amigas!
My last visit to Cozumel was wonderful. I spent it with friends, did yoga, and went diving and snorkeling A LOT.
Enjoy looking at the fabulous creatures and scenery you can see under the waves in the beautiful
Mexican Caribbean!
Hope you enjoyed today’s show and tell! Some of these are not as appreciated as they should be. I love photographing the little stuff!
Have a great weekend!11
Fabulous food should be part of everyone’s vacation. Good food cannot be confused with fantastic food. In Cozumel, the restaurant to go to is La Cocay. La Cocay means “dragonfly” in the Mayan language, but it’s food is distinctly Mediterranean. Here is some good news: they have enlarged their menu!
I confess that La Cocay is my favorite restaurant on the island. I love the location (3 or 4 blocks off the oceanfront, in a non-descript area) because you would never expect to find such a gem there. When my friends walked in, they said, wow, this is beautiful. I was kind of worried about this when you drove by here! No worries, Mexico has all kinds of hidden surprises!
There is inside seating, which is lovely, but my favorite place is the garden seating. In August it can be a little warm, but the evening we were there wasn’t bad at all. I loved hearing my friends and their “ooooo’s” and “ahhhh’s”. La Cocay has wonderful artistry in their presentation of every dish.
We gobbled the tapas before I could photograph them!
Next up were the Phyllo Rolls…..they melted in your mouth!
And my favorite salad in the world, La Cocay’s Napa Salad! Loaded with fresh vegetables, fruits and nuts,
it has to be tasted to be believed!
Leslie ordered Mahi-Mahi served with potato augratin….a culinary masterpiece, truly. I’m not a foodie, I have no idea how it was prepared, I only know it was an explosion of flavor! Kamailie and Lana enjoyed a Margharita Pizza from the wood oven. I had a bite of each….muy delicioso.
But I was waiting for the coup de gras! Chocolate Torte! I haven’t had any of their other desserts, though they look delicious. I HAVE to have my torte!
I have so many photos of our family and friends enjoying wonderful evenings at La Cocay. Once all of our kids were old enough to appreciate it, we’ve spent birthdays there (instead of at Carlos and Charlies). I hope our family will continue to enjoy La Cocay for many years to come!
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