Isla de la Plata & Humpback Whales

Around 9:30 am, our group of 12 people gathered at the pier. The guide explained the tour itinerary and told us all about Isla de la Plata, the behavior of humpback whales, etc.! I wasn't really listening, I just wanted to get on the boat. After a lot of blah blah, we were allowed on the boat. There was enough space for the group. Yesterday, the waves were very strong, and with a speedboat, some people may feel a bit queasy. Daniela was smarter than me, she took a sea-sickness pill right after breakfast. For me, it was clear that I didn't need a pill. But after the first girl vomited and the woman next to me turned pale, I thought, THAT WAS A BAD IDEA not to take the pill. Luckily, I had them with me and I was able to take one. It actually helped. After almost an hour of riding, the motor stopped and we stared at the water. Huge waves rocked the boat, it was a really uncomfortable feeling. Then the first group of three humpback whales appeared. People, it's really indescribable. You stare at the water and then the spray shoots up into the air, and you know they're about to dive. It was AMAZIIIING! Everyone was thrilled. And then the next two whales came, and when they dove, you could see their gigantic tail fins, it was really incredible. I had to sit down and was speechless, well, almost speechless, because I said to Daniela: Isn't it amazing what we've already experienced and seen here?

After whale-watching, we continued to Isla de la Plata. A 2-hour hike was scheduled here. Fortunately, the sun kept disappearing behind a big cloud cover, otherwise it would have been unbearable. It was mostly uphill. On the way up, we saw many blue-footed boobies. Some were sitting on their eggs and other males were trying to attract a female. That was also very impressive, and we felt sorry for the males who didn't succeed. Then came the next highlight. A blue-footed booby dad was feeding two babies. Oooooohhh, they were soooo cute. We could hardly contain ourselves. The little wings were still fluffy on top, then there was fuzz on their heads and bellies. No, seriously, I could melt again. The guide just grinned, of course he knows this sight. But we didn't, so we had to observe extensively, take 100,000 pictures and videos. After several "Vamos" from the guide, we reluctantly followed him further. On top of the Isla, there were lots of frigatebirds flying around, and many of them were sitting on their nests in the trees. The males puffed up their red throat pouches to impress the females. The sight of all those inflated red throat pouches was awesome. Some even flew around with them. Yes, I was deeply impressed by Isla de la Plata and the whole trip. When we got back down to the beach, there were lots of turtle eggshells lying around. Apparently, turtles also come to the island to bury their eggs.

Back on our boat, we changed to go snorkeling. At first, I didn't feel like it, but Daniela managed to convince me. It was also beautiful there. Huge colorful fish, lots of turtles, and unfortunately, countless jellyfish. One of those damn creatures landed on my hand and I thought my skin was burning off. So I got out of the water, and on the boat, there were others who were also bothered by the jellyfish.

On the way back, we made another stop for whale-watching. What happened next, you probably only experience once in a lifetime. A whale completely jumps out of the water, makes a skillful turn, and lands back in with a huge splash. My mouth was open, I was blown away. Such a magnificent creature shoots out of the water and jumps completely, it's truly unbelievable. All the other whales that were still surfacing and diving were also amazing, but that was the MEGA-BURNER. THANK YOU, WHALE :-)

We ended the evening nicely with a huge pizza.

Best regards, Anke & Daniela

PS: Whale pictures will follow a bit later.