YOU CAN DO IT TOO
Jay Sketching a Sea-Lion image by Dan Shipp
SKETCHING SEA LIONS IN THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS
By Jay Shipp
How do you sketch a sea lion underwater? Well, it's not easy! They move fast! They are undeniably one of the most efficient movers in the ocean. Their low drag builds, Propelled by powerful fore flippers, allow these stealthy creatures to perform a hydrodynamic ballet of agility, speed and efficiency. Patience is your ace card, of course, but being in the right place at the right time helps, too! The Galapagos Islands are one of those places at any time!
The Galapagos sea lion is a curious creature. Especially the young ones! They're also extremely playful! Add a dash of audience participation, a human, and you have the makings of an entertaining snorkel or dive. Props seem to be an essential element, too! Especially the bubbles exhaled by the scuba diver's regulators. These bubbles tend to send the Galapagos sea lion fraternity into an exhilarated frenzy!
So you've got your curious sea lion right up close. Waterproof sketchbook at the ready - perfect! They've even brought their toys to amuse themselves - a starfish, rocks and an understandably grumpy marine iguana hanging by the tail from the sea lion's mouth. The problem is, they've now decided to take it up a notch and are moving even faster! It's playtime, and you are almost certainly part of their game plan. One sea lion, toy in mouth, swims to the surface and releases the object or animal. At the same time, the others wait with great anticipation. A sudden burst of pirouetting bodies descends, chasing the object down. The human, that was me, was inevitably left behind, like the youngest child amongst a group of children playing tag. I watch the turmoil below, hoping they will return as I need to make those last few pencil marks in my sketchbook. I wait, and there, I spot them. The winner ascends with the recovered object, shrouded by playful escorts. I might add that, at this point, the marine iguana has escaped with its tail intact. A little ruffled but otherwise unharmed.
So, after two hours in the water, I finally finished my sketches and enjoyed every moment of the process. The sea lions were, of course, in complete control of the whole experience. I certainly would never chase after a wild animal. Neither would I touch them. They are wild creatures and need to be respected as such. Many of the creatures of The Galapagos Islands have learnt to trust humans, an unsurprisingly rare behaviour. This unique gem, the Galapagos Archipelago, is a large protected marine park where wildlife can live in the company of humans without fear.
WHICH ISLAND IS BEST TO SEE SEA LIONS
Sea lions can be found on almost all of the Galapagos archipelago islands. They practically own the place! That's not an exaggeration! You'll find them in the water, on the beach, occupying most available benches and stretched across the roads. Everyone has to move around them, including the local transport. San Cristobal is where I spent most of my time sketching these lovable creatures. It is the easternmost island in the archipelago and one of the oldest. It is also home to one of the largest populations of sea lions. Young sea lions are particularly interested in people. These youngsters drive most water-based interactions as they are playful and extremely curious.
WATER CONDITIONS
A combination of five converging water currents influences the biodiversity of the Galapagos Islands. One of them, the Humbolt Current, flows from Antarctica. It's cold! The endemic wildlife has adapted to this temperature, but a 5mm wetsuit is advisable if you intend to stay in the water for long periods or, like me, feel the cold.
ON LAND
If you don't want to spend most of your time in the water, the beach is also a good option for sea lion watching, especially during the breeding season. It starts around June and ends in December. In San Cristobal, October to December is the best time to visit, as this is when the highest proportion of babies are born. These newborns are adorable! They stay mainly on the beach for the first five weeks, and then, once they have moulted, they start dipping their flippers into the ocean and learning how to swim and catch fish.
GETTING THERE
To get to the Galapagos Islands, you must first travel to Ecuador. There are two international airports in Ecuador, Quito UIO and Guayaquil GYE. Direct flights from both cities depart daily for San Cristobal in the Galápagos Islands.
BEAR WATCHING IN TORFINO, CANADA
By Jay Shipp
We adorned our Mustang floater suits and made our way from the adventure store to Torfino's waterfront, where our boat awaited. Two raccoons scurried across the boulders along the harbour wall as we crossed to the jetty, they regarded our party of four for a brief moment before resuming their food search. John, our guide and boat captain, handed us our life jackets as we descended into the tour vessel. It was an open boat with a large outboard engine. We were all here for the same reason-to go bear watching!
We settled into our seats while John began to brief us on realistic expectations of an encounter. He was optimistic, as another boat had spotted one earlier that morning. I was relieved, as it was still quite early in the season; however, mild winter conditions had stirred some from their deep torpor early. Our guide told us that the bear seen that morning would almost certainly be a male. It was the first week of April, and females, he explained, usually emerge with their cubs from the den in May.
Our little boat Skimmed across the tranquil waters of the Clayoquot Sound, passing small cloud-shrouded, forested islands along the way. John scanned the horizon and rocky beaches with expert eyes as we ventured forth, primarily looking for bears, but also for birds and marine life that he thought we might want to see. We slowed to view a bald eagle as it flew above us, crossing our path to settle upon the top of a tall pine. John’s passion for these birds was addictive, and I gained a new respect for these magnificent eagles. Bald eagles are considered sacred to the indigenous peoples of North America, and are often associated with vision, healing and power. A smaller second eagle landed close by to the first one. They called to each other. Their eerie cries cut through the cold morning air, adding a mystical feel to the experience.
As we progressed, a large group of sea otters, known as a raft, passed by. We watched them as they watched us-a lovely moment. These charming creatures bobbed past on their backs. Some balancing rocks upon their bellies-tools of the trade for cracking open prey. John calculated that the raft was made up of around one hundred individuals. He explained that you would have been lucky to see one a few years back. We learnt that their numbers during the 1800s and 1900s plummeted due to the value of their pelts. Now they are flourishing- a triumphant return, aided by a successful reintroduction scheme.
Time eased by as we explored the sound, and I had almost forgotten the aim of our tour-bear spotting. The landscape and wildlife had already captured a place in my heart, but the pièce de résistance was just around the next corner. A black dot on a honey-bouldered shoreline. As we got nearer, the form of a black bear became apparent. Everyone was delighted! John cut the engine of our little open-topped boat, and we floated upon the glassy water, keeping a respective distance between the bear and us. We watched as the bear rolled hefty rocks effortlessly aside, in search of crabs, a regular food source for the Vancouver Island Black Bear. His dark coat shone in the sunlight, a clue to his healthy condition. He had fared well during the winter in his underground den. Scarface was his name, and he was the first bear that I had seen in a natural environment, not in a zoo. I sat silent, taking in the rush of emotions. A frenzy of camera clicks began, and I followed suit, this was a moment worth recording. After an hour, Scarface scaled the rocky shore to the tree line. He paused momentarily to look back at us before disappearing into the pine forest. It was a perfect end to a spellbinding morning. What a place, what a day!
Scarface by Dan Shipp
