We decided to splurge a little and stay in a marina for a week. Marina Cortez is a partially completed new marina located a short walk from the main part of town. We were assigned a slip right next to another Hans Christian boat (38’ sv Wahkuna 1), and two slips away from yet another Hans Christian (33’ sv Korbett Rose). Earlier today the owners of a sister ship to Apropos, a cutter/ketch (43’ sv Calypso) came aboard our boat and invited us to theirs, which is moored at nearby Marina La Paz. The owner, who is from Bremerton, WA, knew about Apropos when it was for sale in 2004. He thinks his boat has the teak propane box that was once on Apropos (when Lake Union Yacht restored Apropos, they built a new teak propane box to replace the worn one and the previous owners of Calypso bought a used one at around the same time).
It was nice being in a marina and we washed the boat, re-provisioned, did some boat work, and got together with friends who were staying on the same dock. We had some repair work done on the inflatable paddle board, Karen finished sewing the stays’l bag, I fixed the minor leak in one of the Racor fuel filters. I also polished off the rust marks that were forming on the stainless steel tubing (stanchions, bowsprit, pushpit) due to the salt, which wasn’t ever a problem in fresh-water Lake Union. We hosted a movie night on our boat with crew from Flying Squirrel where we placed the TV in the cockpit and the kids watched the animated Howls Moving Castle.
Swimming with Whale Sharks
We went on a tour that takes you to an area known for Whale Sharks and lets you snorkel around them. At up to 50’ long, Whale Sharks are the largest fish on earth. They are filter-feeding fish and their main food is plankton such as crustaceans and fish eggs. These gentle giant sharks can live as long as 75 years. Whale Sharks are protected in Mexico and are considered an endangered species worldwide.
The boat ride to where the Whale Sharks are took 20 minutes. When we arrived we could see huge dorsal fins moving slowly around. We went in the water with masks, snorkels, and fins and swam alongside several whale sharks for a couple of hours. We saw some juveniles and some larger adults. Some were in a horizontal position and lazily swimming while taking in many gallons of water with each gulp. It took some effort to keep up with them, but it was possible to swim alongside them for a minute or two. Others were floating at a 45 degree angle with their mouths just below the surface staying relatively stationary. They offered great close-up views of their set of 5 gills per side, their relatively small eyes, and their huge mouths. You could also see the turbulence of the water as it entered their mouth, and the outrush of water through their gills. Small fish called Remora were attached on the backs of the whale sharks getting a free ride and feeding on leftovers (Wiki says the host also benefits from the Remora’s cleaning of its sloughing epidermal tissue). Floating alongside the stationary ones, you would sometimes find yourself 3 feet in front of their huge open mouth when they pivoted around. I held Jacintha’s hand and pulled her along to help keep up with the faster whale sharks. She had no fear and I could hear her giggling underwater. We’ve done enough snorkeling now that she’s very comfortable breathing with a snorkel. The water was a comfortable 78 degrees so I didn’t wear a wetsuit and ended up getting stung on the arm by a Jellyfish.
videos: http://youtu.be/K9g44pWr7Zg
