Dreams Do Come True

Swimming in good luck

Bucket Lists are for dreamers. Right? Well, I take mine seriously...and I’ve checked almost all of them. Most items on my list have been about travel, and I’ve been lucky enough to travel many parts of the world, including an African photo safari.

Last week, I got to check off one of the most thrilling items on my list. I’ve dreamed of swimming with dolphins. These creatures are, in some indigenous lore, the Creator’s communicators. In my personal lore, they are simply Nature’s harbingers of joy. So, on a recent trip to Baja, Mexico, I was able, with the help of good friends, to snag a boat excursion to the Sea of Cortez on what I hoped would be a chance to swim with the dolphins.

As our week in tiny Todos Santos unfolded, I got to body surf on the town’s Pacific coast beaches in water that chilled at first, then warmed quickly to turn waves into cheerful playgrounds. Morning beach walks in bare feet became social events with locals and their canine pals. We toured an old mining town to learn about Baja cowboy – Vaquero -- history; the stories of a dying culture and missionary exploitation of the indigenous people. We watched the sunset from a high-end Gringo bar one night and watched whales breach from a deserted beach on another day. Huge pelican flocks co-existed peacefully with local fishermen on one beach, and I was able to get close enough to touch these elegant prehistoric beasts with bills as long as their bodies. We even watched tiny tortoise hatchlings do their miraculous swim into the ocean hours after their entry to the world. These little marvels manage to punch their way out of eggshells and dig out of two feet of sand to make their way to the wild wild world. In this case, 20-some tortoise newbies managed their entrance with the help of eco volunteers who had warmed their incubation period and protected them from predators. For me, each of these revelatory moments was a religious experience that filled my heart with hope for a future where Nature survives our human demolition.

On the very last day of our trip, I was informed that we had the go-ahead for a 5:00 am start to that boating excursion I came for. All week long, my friends were adjusting my hopes kindly as they informed me that I was not likely to see dolphins on our trip, much less swim with them. ‘Turns out the Mexican government no longer allows humans to swim with dolphins because it disturbs them. Okay, I got it. Still on the long dark van trip to LaPaz and the Sea of Cortez, I found myself ‘calling’ the dolphins from my heart.

My gringo host and I were joined by our only companion on the trip, a delightful and funny 70-ish woman from Tennessee who we learned later is a great story teller. We all slept during the 90-minute trip, me dreaming to the dolphins.

We met our guide, Dany, at the port in LaPaz where he told us the rules of engagement with the wildlife we were about to visit -- the sea is their home, and we are to respect it. No dolphins, but we were promised a chance to swim with whale sharks, so, to say I was excited would be an understatement. We got on the boat, got our wetsuits, fins, snorkel gear and headed out to sea...VERY bumpy half-hour ride in this small, canopied motorboat. It reminded me of riding a bucking bronco, but I had consumed considerable raw ginger to prevent nausea, so I rode that bronco with my head high the wind and salt spray caressing my entire being. Then we started the whale shark search. There were a couple other similar groups doing the same. Every boat gets one whale shark: that’s the enviro rule.

While we were looking, lo and behold, a huge school of DOLPHINS started frolicking around our boat, breaching and diving, singing and dancing. I rushed to the front of the boat and breathed them into my heart and soul. I was convinced they had come because I called. Out of respect to them, of course, I could not join them in the water, but I was HAPPY. Our guide even confirmed my arrogant belief by telling me that sort of activity is rare.

Then our Captain Jave, spotted a whale shark. This one, Dany said, was young and frisky, circling us with quick, sharp turns. He’s ‘only’ 12 feet long, a baby. Dany went in first and soon beckoned me to jump in with him. He had instructed me to stay with him at all times – and six feet away from the whale shark -- but the water there was murky and I couldn’t really tell where he or the whale shark were. Then Dany grabbed my shirt and started dragging me fast through the water to keep up with the baby fish. This is when I realized I’m really out of shape. I could not kick hard or fast enough to keep up with him; my heart and lungs felt like they’d explode, and my snorkel mask was leaking...I was sure I was about to die. Soon, we were so close to the whale shark I could almost touch it (against the rules), and it was magnificent. We got back into the boat and watched this creature for some time as it opened its square-jawed mouth on the surface to scoop up tiny fish, while the little sucker fish rode on its back, cleaning it, in a sweet symbiotic partnership. Its smooth skin was dark gray, speckled with elongated white spots. I guess they call it a shark because it has a dorsal fin that protrudes on the surface of the water, but a gentler creature would be hard to find. Besides, this fish had no interest in us humans; that baby was all about breakfasting on krill.

While I was still trying to catch my breath, we took off to swim with sea lions. Totally satisfied, I figured the trip was over with dolphins and whale sharks swimming in my memory. Yet there we were, taking another bronco ride to a huge coral out cropping the sea lions call home. And on the way -- a miracle happened. As we were riding to the sea lions’ den, a mama humpback whale the size of an airplane breached within a foot of our boat. Out of the water she flew, spouting from her blowhole and dwarfing us awe-inspired humans as we rocked in our tiny boat. She and her calf stayed with us for a while, again, circling our boat (curiosity?) as I reveled in yet another religious experience...more than I’d ever hoped for.

We arrived at the home of the sea lions, dove in and swam around with them, making eye contact under water (my snorkel mask was working fine by then) and marveling at all the exquisitely colored fish in this now very clear water. Parrot fish, pilot fish, tiny skinny fish, blue and yellow fish and more. It was mesmerizing. We hung out there for nearly an hour, then Dany and Jave took us into a cove with white sand and aquamarine waters. There we were told when we got out of the boat to shuffle through the sand in order to wake the sleeping sting rays before they could sting us. Magical! These two lovely gentlemen then fixed us a gourmet lunch on the beach. I, however, was unable to eat due to my battle with nausea from riding the floating bronco. But a little club soda and time to get my land legs righted my stomach and the ride back was glorious in sun, sea spray and wind, though I was by that time returning to ‘civilization’ reluctantly.

All in all, it was a perfectly magical bucket list experience that will forever hold a whale-sized place in my heart. Beyond the adventure, the sea, the wildlife, the blessing of visiting their world I was reminded of how small we humans are and how much better off we’d be if we simply accepted that Nature is in charge. This is Her world, and we are safe here as long as we get over the idea that we can dominate.

The Boat

Whale Shark baby

Diving in