Magic

During the week, Paúl, from work, told me about his weekend in Puerto Lopez and how amazing it was. He  described it as simply Magical and I was immediately convinced. I quickly packed my bags, then a few friends and I were off to Puerto Lopez, filled with wonder and excitement about what had yet to come. Puerto Lopez is a small fishing village set in the Pacific coast of the Ecuadorian province of Manabí. It has a population of about 16000 and its main industries include fishing, eco tourism and jewelry making. It is known for its beautiful white sanded beaches, great seafood and the Machalilla national park that offers fantastic whale watching. A small island nearby named Isla de la Plata, also holds the nickname “poor man’s Galapagos” because it shares many unique seabirds with the enchanting Galapagos Islands. As a lover of nature and its many wonders, I personally couldn’t wait to learn more about the interesting biodiversity of the sea life. Puerto Lopez is located about 4 hours away from Guayaquil by bus. I have learned a lot about the wildlife during this trip, and strongly believe knowledge should be shared, so hopefully you will learn something new today too. We left early Saturday morning and arrived around 10am, just in time for breakfast on the beach.

Our Hostel

We then settled into our cabin style hostel (pic) and decided what our plan was for the weekend. The plan was simple, beach day today, and activity day tomorrow. We then went to the travelling agency and booked seats for the whale watching, snorkeling and a hike on the famous isla de la Plata for the following day. 

Los Frailes beach is located just north of Puerto Lopez and is part of the National Park of Machililla. We called a taxi and I was surprised by the driver opening the trunk door of his truck, and told us to hop in. With the wind in our hair and the sun on our faces, I couldn’t help but think “I could get used to this”. But please don’t worry mom, I`m coming back to Canada… probably. 

Wind in our hair, on our way to beach

The beach was beyond belief beautiful, these pictures don’t do it any justice at all, the water was so very warm, and inviting. We had a great time swimming, laying on the beach, reading, writing and taking pictures. 

Los Frailes

Swimming all day is absolutely exhausting! Our wrinkly fingers and toes, and hungry stomachs told us that it was time to go back to the hostel.While waiting for everyone to shower and get into dry clothes, I snuck in a quick nap. Soon, we were on our way to a restaurant and after my first bite, I realized I was in heaven. I quickly understood why they were famous for their seafood, because it was the best I have ever tasted!

We then visited some shops and I purchased a few things from the many jewelry makers stationed along the beach. Our night ended shortly after dinner, in great anticipation for an early starting adventure the following morning.

When we woke up, after a big delicious breakfast at the hotel, we were on a boat on our way to La Isla de la Plata, and some whale watching too. I’ve personally never seen a whale in real life, so this I was shaking in excitement wondering what to expect. The boat held about 16 people, and was driving pretty quickly. It was eveb catching some air off of some off some of the waves, and smacking back onto the water. Two people got seasick along the way, and I thanked my lucky socks that I wasn’t one of them.

There’s something about being in the middle of the ocean that puts me in a constant state of mediation and relaxation. Maybe it’s the sound of the waves, the freshness of the air, the absence of the city chaos, or simply the isolation from any land. Whatever it may be, I liked it. As I was staring into the horizon, in a daze, the boat suddenly stopped and everyone stood up. So I followed their lead and took out my camera thinking (this is it!) We waited only 3 minutes, and there it was, a humungous, yet graceful beautiful whale jumping high out of the water and creating the loudest and biggest splash I have ever witnessed. My jaw dropped open I was so amazed, that the first few times it jumped out of the water, I didn’t remember to take a picture, I was too busy admiring its beauty. :”WOW CASSIE ARE YOU GETTING THIS??”Good thing my friend Jay reminded me that I did in fact have a camera in my hand, and taking pictures of this once in a lifetime event would be ideal.

Showing off for the ladies :)

Monster Splash

We learned that, jumping out of the water is a courtship ritual for the whales. The male that jumps the highest and makes the biggest splash attracts the female. If she is impressed with his strength and the rumble that it creates in the water, they mate. The waters of Puerto Hondo are an ideal place for the humpback whale to procreate for many reasons including the depth of the water. The shallow waters of Puerto Hondo make it impossible for deep sea predators to be a problem, such as the Orca Whale, or the killer whale. Also, the baby whales need the warm shallow waters to survive, the adults have a thick layer of blubber protecting them from the cold, and the babies are born without that.This makes it a haven for many fish, turtles and small whales to live peacefully and happily without much to fear. In Ecuador, it is illegal hunt whales. They are a protected species here, and the only places in the world that doesn’t have this law in place are Japan, and St Vincent and the Grenadines islands. After killing 50 whales in 2005, Japan faced a global protest to protect the species.

Soon after the whales quieted down we arrived to Isla de la Plata. This island is uninhibited by man, and has sheer cliff walls rising from the ground to a gently sloping with a dry tropical forest area on the top. The only permanent residents on this island are the different sea bird species. There were many trails that varied in difficulty, altitude, and bird species. The trail we were taken on we saw the 2 very famous Galapagos Island bird species in their natural environment; The Blue footed boobies, and Frigate bird. If you’ve ever watched the (Birds of Paradise) BBC documentary DVDs, you may recognize both of these bird species.

"Birds of paradise have the campiest costumes and the craziest mating game in the feathered kingdom." - National Geographic

Male and female Blue footed Boobies

I was amazed at how many birds we saw in such a short amount of time. After a short 10 minute walk, we were surrounded by Blue footed boobies. These brave beautiful creatures didn’t even seem to notice us staring at them in awe just a few feet away. It’s strange to watch something on tv, and find yourself right beside it. I felt like I needed top pinch myself a few times because it was simply unbelievable. They are very interesting birds, with amazing eyesight; they can see fish deep in the water from up to 200 feet in the air. To catch them, they shoot themselves down to the water head first,  and spear the fish with their long pointy beaks. They have a 94% success rate when fishing. The tour guide didn’t speak English so I helped translate for the group of tourists, and I also added some information that David Attenborough taught me on the nature DVD I’ve watched many times. When they are not fishing, the blue footed boobies are quirky birds that waddle when they walk like penguins, and are very social. The female bird does a low croaking sound, and the male does a high pitch whistling sound. Hearing them go back and forth was very amusing, and they also dance to communicate. They reminded me of clowns with their big blue feet and very expressive funny ways.

My brave and curious little friend

Dad and babies

The males stay home with the babies while the females go out and catch some fish in the Ocean.

The waddle

Great Fragata or Frigate bird

The Frigate bird or (Fragata), like the whales, were also in their mating season. During this time, the male inflate their necks like a big red balloon, and make it rumbles back and forth while they make their very unique clicking sound that is followed with another sound that resembles that of a telephone ringing. Hearing the large group of male birds’ make that sound all at once, was giving my ear drums a massage. I found the sound very pleasant. These birds are known as the "Pirate birds". The reason for this is because their feathers are not water proof. they cannot swim nor touch the water or they will drown and die. Every feather has a specific shape and location that allows them to fly, without being water proof, that shape gets ruined and they sink. This is why they have to act as pirates, and steal from other seabirds, and they are also popular around fishing boats, and fisheries.

Big wing span

Other bird species that are on the island that I didn’t get the opportunity to see yet were the Albatross birds, red billed tropical birds and red footed boobies.

The Island is surrounded by a coral reef and is perfect for snorkeling. When you look into the water, it’s like seeing the movie “Finding Nemo”, except everything was real. There were many schools of fish, that when you look into the water you see an overwhelming amount of bright colors and shapes. 

I learned so much about the wildlife and the history of the picturesque little beach town of Puerto Lopez. The people were very friendly, the food was phenomenal and the close and personal experiences with the animals were breathtaking. If the Galapagos is too expensive, isla de la Plata is more than comparable. Paùl from work did not exaggerate with his description of Puerto. After visiting, I agree, it was purly magical, and I shall return again.

"Thats the thing with magic. You've got to know it's here, all around us, or it just stays invisible to you."

-Charles de lint