Dolphins
Our tour drove an hour and a half north from Punta Tombo to the port city of Rawson. Here I sat down for a 45 minute break and ice cream with my two companions Steve and Shirin before heading out on the ocean. I had only seen dolphins on various nature programs or as part of a movie. Their friendly nature and playfulness is well known, but witnessing it first hand was the highlight of my time in Puerto Madryn.
While walking to the boat landing, our guide joked and asked why we were walking so slowly. If we got to the front of the line, she advised, we would obviously have better seats. That was all I needed to hear and we threw it into high gear and briskly walked by our companions. This earned us seats at the very front of the boat and, even though my knees would be aching, allowed me a slightly more stable position from which to take pictures. We headed out for what I would guess was a couple miles from the shore. The calm water and beautiful weather provided a perfect day for such a trip. It was hard to believe they could almost guarantee us dolphin sightings, but before we knew it, there they were–Commerson dolphins! The smaller dolphins measured about 1.5 meters in length and were black and white like a killer whale.
Taking pictures was quite an adventure. First of all, the bumps from the waves continually knocked me off balance, even though I was on my knees in the front. Secondly, those dolphins moved like underwater jets. It was incredible! They loved playing with the boats and were not shy in the least. One minute they would sidle up alongside our boat and swim with us and just as I waited for them to cross to the other side of the boat or go in front of us, they would dart off in another directions. They were impossible to predict. Their jumps out of the water were so quick and their movements so deft that I would spot them and then try to take a picture, but they would disappear! I think everyone in our boat could have spent the whole day watching these magnificent creatures frolic in the water. It was an unforgettable experience and I look forward to seeing other dolphins species in the future.
On the way back, our tour made a stop at the small town of Gaiman, originally settled by the Welsh. We were offered the chance to participate in “high tea” at one of the local tea houses. Earlier we had been given the chance to select the “traditional” tour, which included visiting the penguins and high tea at Gaiman. The other option, which we had all selected, was the “adventure” tour–a.k.a. seeing the dolphins. So when we stopped in Gaiman anyway, I think everyone was thinking the same as me, “No! We don’t want high tea! Why didn’t you give us more time with the penguins instead of coming here?” But all of were too nice to bring this up and everyone rather politely, but probably disgustedly, turned down stopping for tea. We did the quick tour of the town, and then returned to Trelew to drop off a few passengers for their flights or buses. After this I was alone with a Spanish couple for the ride to Puerto Madryn. We had a pleasant conversation and I even helped the man practice his English, but that didn’t last very long as he had very limited understanding and had just begun his studies.
There’s not much point to putting up this video, but it’s all I have. I tried to record the dolphins, but it was impossible with the pitching of the boat and the rapid movement of the dolphins. In this one I started to record them swimming alongside the boat and then got thrown around.
