EL VALLE, Colombia — I drop my rucksack on the reception doorstep and tip sand out of my sneakers. My sweat-soaked T-shirt reeks of farm animals.
As I wait for the receptionist, dinging the bell a third time, a couple holding hands saunter past in their swimwear. They smile and head out toward the ocean.
Daniel and Federica are on their honeymoon. They’ve chosen this small fishing village of El Valle, on Colombia’s Pacific coast, to explore some of the world’s greatest biodiversity, and live their dream of watching humpback whales migrate from the South Pole.
I’ve come to see turtles, to witness them emerge from the ocean and lay eggs on the beach at night. This has been my dream ever since I watched the original “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” movie when I was 8. My girlfriend had planned to come, too, but she’s been held back in Medellin for a job interview, leaving me alone.
Yes, alone, arriving on a pickup-size plane laden with mangos wrapped in cellophane and several boxes of chirping chickens. Normally I wouldn’t choose to fly with tropical fruit and live poultry, but, after seeing online that tickets for the two commercial airlines were “unavailable,” I’ve had to charter a private flight. The usual route is a 45-minute airline flight with Satena or ADA (Aerolínea de Antioquia) from Medellin to the airport in Bahia Solano, then a 40-minute taxi to El Valle.
Because it’s mid-September — prime whale-watching and turtle egg-laying season — I expected the beachfront eco-lodge, El Almejal, to be bouncing with camera-toting nature fanatics. In fact, it’s almost empty. Daniel, Federica and I are the only guests. Apparently the local airstrip is inaccessible to large aircrafts after huge, though not unusual, amounts of rainfall last week. “No more guests will be arriving for a few days,” the owner tells me. The empty restaurant, vacant cabins and unblemished sandy paths suddenly become apparent as I ponder my solitary vacation.
After unpacking in my family-size cabin — one of 12 on site — and testing the hammock on my porch, I ask about the excursions. From the page-long list, including waterfall visits, surfing, fishing, canoe rides, dolphin searching and bird watching, I choose two: whale watching and a tour around the Utría National Park. “If it is OK, I’ll arrange for you to go with the honeymoon couple who are staying here,” the owner says.
This is a relief. Whale watching and touring a huge national park alone has a certain ring of sadness.
A four-seat table is set for me for dinner. The honeymooners sit with their arms wrapped around each other. As I open my book, readying myself for another meal alone, something wonderful happens.
“Hi,” the newlywed husband says, rising from his table. “Would you like to join us for dinner?”
Attempting to conceal a beaming smile, I accept.
Daniel and Federica introduce themselves, tell snippets of their journey so far and express a childlike excitement for seeing whales tomorrow.
We eat and chat. I tell them that, from September to December, olive ridley sea turtles lay their eggs on these Pacific beaches, and my new acquaintances agree to come searching for turtles with me after dinner.
So with our flashlights and Daniel’s iPhone, we set off onto the beach. Our search is futile. We head back to the lodge.
Luckily, Luisa the receptionist has received a call from a conservation group that has found one. Luisa tells us the location but warns that there is an expected donation of 25,000 Colombian pesos — about $10. We return to the beach to find a dozen people standing around a female turtle laying eggs. Kneeling beside it are two women. One scribbles notes on a pad. The other measures the shell, about 2 feet long. Everyone else watches in silence.
After the last egg plops out, the turtle flicks sand over the hole then crawls toward the ocean. Everybody tiptoes behind.
One of the women collects the eggs — 48 in total. The other moves among the crowd, collecting donations. These women are part of Asociación Caguama, a group of 20 conservationists who walk beaches at night protecting eggs from poachers.
Asociación Caguama workers collect the eggs and save them in a pen until the hatchlings are ready to be released into the ocean.
The next morning I stroll 10 yards from my cabin to the restaurant. My place mat has been set across from the honeymooners’. Whether they like it or not, they’re stuck with me.
After breakfast we all board the lancha — a small boat — at 9 a.m. for the whale watching tour. The boat bounces along, and I try to take pictures but give up after my camera leaps up and clocks me in the chin a few times. Another thumping wave almost throws me against the canvas roof.
After 15 minutes we arrive at a strait of wavy ocean; a whale hot spot, according to the driver. The boat slows down. We all wait.
Then, a spurt of air shoots up from the ocean. “Over there,” Daniel shouts. A mound of black rolls out of the water. Seconds later, another blast. Federica shrieks, “Behind you!” We swivel around to see a fin rotate out of the water and down again. Another blast. Then another.
“Mothers and their babies,” the driver shouts.
We circle the area a few times and glimpse more of these great mammals at the end of their epic journey from the South Pole to the Colombian Pacific. It’s in these warm waters that they mate and give birth between July and October.
During a cool-off swim in a nearby bay, we eulogize what we’ve just witnessed. We walk through Utría National Park, swiping through images on our phones, zooming in on our whale photos and squinting to see each other’s videos.
We walk back along the beach, stopping occasionally to point out whale squirts in the distance.
If you go
WHERE TO STAY:
El Almejal
Playa El Almejal, Choco
011-57-320-674-6023
This eco-lodge, with 12 cabins, sits on El Almejal beach and has a restaurant, nature reserve, natural pool, observation porch and vegetable garden. All-inclusive three-night package with excursions, $359 to $461.
Posada Villa Maga Inn
Bahía Solano, Choco
011-57-320-777-4767
Three bamboo cabins with sunken showers and balconies. About a 10-minute walk from the village of El Valle. Meals are eaten in town with locals. All-inclusive package, about $40.
WHERE TO EAT:
Rosa Del Mar
El Valle, in front of the church
A local home serving seafood. Meals about $4.
Posada Turistica Hotel
Rocas de Cabo Marzo
Bahia Solano
011-57-313-681-4001
Owner Enrique García-Reyes prepares fresh fish meals and thin Italian pizzas. Entrees about $5.
WHAT TO DO:
Whale watching
Book a guide and boat with El Almejal to watch migrating humpback whales. June 15 to Oct. 20. $35 per person.
Parque Nacional Ensenada Utría
Trips offered by most hotels and hostels.
Travel by boat to the national park to see marine fauna and indigenous birds for about $31. Snorkel off Playa Blanca and lunch for about $6.
Surfing
The Humpback Turtle
011-57-312-756-3439
The beach hostel offers surfing lessons on El Almejal beach April through October. $12 per hour with English instructor.
Scuba diving
011-57-314-630-6723
Posada del Mar at Bahia Solano offers two dives with equipment for about $100.
INFORMATION:
