Loreto Mexico on the Baja Peninsula January 26, 2026

 

The short cut I took this morning down to the Sea of Cortez to see the sunrise ended up being a long cut!  The distractions were plentiful!  My inner voice was saying "don't stop" but I wasn't listening, here a stop there a stop everywhere a stop stop!  All the while I did watch my watch to see I had some time on my side.

The sign said stop so I had to stop!

I reached the archway to where the beauty began!

This was my view after walking under the archway then crossing the street to the walkway along the Sea of Cortez. Now it was all about stopping, taking in the sights and breathing in the sea breezes.  The breeze was gentle enough, the temperature was perfect, this packaged together with the breathtakingly sunrise scene created a wonderful gift! 

the view in front of me of Isla del Carmen

the view behind me of Isla del Coronado

the day dawns on this little piece of paradise called Loreto

view over my shoulder from the sandbar 

I joined lots of people on the sandbar, all of us accepting this gift and just being present.  No one spoke!  I could only here the gentle ripples, each breathe I took and oh all the shore birds doing their morning thing.   I enjoyed seeing their reflections!  This is a Snowy Egret. 

Great Blue Heron

Sanderling

Yellow-footed Gull

Royal Tern

Least Sandpiper

Little Blue Heron

Tricolored Heron

Belted Kingfisher

Tropical Kingbird

Now back at the walkway, it was time to carry on north!

today's collection of seaglass from the Sea of Cortez

Loreto Mexico on the Baja Peninsula January 25, 2026

 

I just had to go again, whale watching that is! It was forecasted to be perfect today so there was no doubt the pangas could head out.  Here comes my panga with Carlos the Captain.  There were five of us this time plus Carlos. Instead of walking to the marina this morning, the tour company picked me up, Jesus was the driver.  He picked up the four others after me.

In no time at all, we were on the panga, life jackets on and ready for the adventure. 

We’re off! 

That little white tower in the background to the right of the motor is the Loreto Airport.

We headed south just like we did on Wednesday.  

As I was admiring Nopolo Rock, a whale appeared!  It was a Humpback Whale! 

As it turned out, there were four Humpbacks.  They were frolicking about in the vicinity, not staying under water for very long and were not as far away. Carlos moved the panga every now and then so we had various views of the whales around us.  I was not able to get the four Humpbacks together in the sane photo.

Carlos got word a Blue Whale was sighted near the northern end of Isla del Carmen. As the panga was turning to head north, we spotted a sea lion. We admired it for only a few seconds.  As we began to speed away…..

…..the Humpback Whales popped up again so we stayed and watched!

eventually we sped away!

This was our view as we approached Isla del Carmen. A few pangas were already there.  Supposedly the Blue Whale was hanging out here.  Then…..

…..this popped up!  It was the Blue Whale!  It looked more blue than the ones I saw on Wednesday. The lighting makes a big difference.  

It looks like the panga is sitting on top of the Blue Whale but it is no where near the whale.

Another Blue Whale was sighted even more north and a bit west so once again, off we went. 

No sooner did we get to the general area, a Blue Whale surfaced. 

After watching it come up twice, we watched it go down one last time.

Four hours of whale watching flys by so quickly. It was time to motor back to the marina.  It was a twenty minute trip at a great clip.  All the while, this Brown Pelican stayed with us.

coming in for a landing as we slowed down to enter the dock 

When I got back to my home away from home, I had a local beer to celebrate. 

 Later I went out for dinner and celebrated again yet this time with a glass of wine.

I brought my painting supplies with me on this trip.  

I painted this from one of my photos.  

It’s a Blue Whale in front of Isla del Coronado. 

Loreto Mexico on the Baja Peninsula January 24, 2026

Just going with the flow of this Loreto lifestyle means just going with the flow! As the winds picked up last evening , along came heavy rain all night. The rain stopped before sunrise but the wind did not. Because of that, the Marina was closed for the day. There would be no being out on the sea for me today so along with all other tourists who planned to be out there, we just went with the flow and found other ways to enjoy this piece of paradise.

If I could not be in or on the water, then I would be near it. That’s easy to do here.  Before leaving my home away from home this morning, I checked the live webcam for the sights and sounds by the sea. It was time to go down to the sea again. This was the view as I arrived!

It was windy! Weather was happening all around me but not over top of me. I will let the photographs tell the weather story.  The shore birds were plentiful and I spent tons of time snapping shots of them.  I met another birder from Ottawa who also had a tour cancelled for today.  He too was just going with the flow.

After birding and collecting seaglass, I headed to the Marina to see, that yes, it was closed.  The pangas were tied up when typically at this time of day they would all be out cruising.  These are a few of the dozens of pangas. The second one from the left was the one I was out on Wednesday for whale watching. 

Just going with the flow found me back at Plaza Juarez!  Being a Saturday it was bustling and probably more so with many more tourists just having to go with the flow today. There is so much to see along this stretch, I see new sights each time I am there.  

a shop at the right

golf tours promoted at the left door

a hotel in the heart of the plaza

note the portion of the vehicle at the left

police and military are plentiful

they are a noticeable strong presence 

a restaurant 

in its yard near the centre of the plaza

AI says:  The Camino Real de las Californias(or King's Highway) in Loreto is the historic 17th-century, 1,600-mile Spanish colonial missionary trail that began at the Misión de Nuestra Señora de Loreto, the "mother mission". It served as the primary supply, communication, and religious route connecting Baja California missions up to Alta California.

along the walkway through the plaza 

 

ice cream shop

I walked this eight kilometre route twice today.  I returned to walk it late afternoon but did not take photos that time. The winds remained strong. The forecast calls for calmer conditions tomorrow.  This is today’s seaglass collection.  I hope to have enough to create something once I return home.