Whale Shark Sighting!

We are anchored here in Bahia de Los Angeles - a nice little anchorage area just off a little village. This morning we were getting ready to head to town in the dinghy to get some more groceries and to drop off the laundry. I looked out over the water and very close to the boat I saw I fin. I knew right away it was not a dolphin or a sea lion (sea lions often lay on their backs with everything submerged except their fins) and I said to Mike "What is that? Is it a shark?" He looked and grabbed the camera and said "It's a whale shark!" It came closer to the boat and because it was near the surface and the water is clear I got a really good look at it. Mike took a picture but I am not sure it turned out because of the way the sun was hitting the water. But it is a nice blue grey color with spots and a really big mouth. They are the biggest fish (they are sharks, not whales, therefore not mammals) and this one was about 20 feet long, which is about half the size they can get. They only eat plankton, so are not dangerous in any way. I heard they were in this bay, but I never dreamed I'd actually get to see one. Now I am hoping to see more of them.

They don't have a laundromat or a laundry of any sort in this town, but we met this man (an American who has lived here for ten years) who took us to this woman's house as she does laundry. We will pick kit up tomorrow. Mike is going to look through the binoculars to see if she hangs it outside like the woman did in Turtle Bay. This woman is named Yolanda and she was nice and friendly and spoke really good English. This is a very interesting town - in spite of being so remote (it is many miles off the main highway, has no cell phone coverage and only one paved street) it has long been a fishing destination so they are used to tourists, especially boaters. and we were able to get a good supply of groceries and other related items - and things like the good plastic bags with secure zip locks - even Glad brand! I have always prided myself on not buying into brand allegiance - my sister Anne called me the queen of the generic brand - but I have discovered that there are some brands that are simply better than other brands and Glad storage bags are one example. I have never had to empty and clean my refrigerator and freezer (a huge hassle if one is not in a marina) because something leaked and stunk it up when I have Glad bags. Now we have a big stock of several different sizes, so all I have to say is bring on the fish!

So that is all for now. We are planning to leave here day after tomorrow, and head to San Carlos, where we should have regular internet so I can post some pictures of what we have been seeing for the past month. Have a great day!

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