AND COUNTING

Thirty six hours and counting; could have hunkered down for a typical, midwest winter but Baja is calling and I’ve no reason not to answer the call. “Tortugueros” is a nonprofit organization that preserves and protects sea turtles on Mexico’s Pacific coast. Sharon Flanagan, (mi amiga) and I have volunteered for a two week commitment. Unlike the military, we pay all of our expenses and work long hours for an environmental cause, sea turtles in this case. The turtle station is on the Pacific side, maybe 25 miles up from Cabo San Lucas at a village named Todos Santos. I’ll need my passport and answer some questions but it’s really no different than flying to Seattle. You wait until someone in uniform says, “Next” and you take your turn, tell the truth and get on the plane. 

At Todos Santos the water is relatively cold and the beaches are not great for tourists but sea turtles think it’s a great place to start a family. The problem is, both animal predators and human poachers would dig up or destroy all the eggs leaving in the end, no new turtles. The Tortugueros operation either relocates each new nest to a new site inside a fenced corral where predators can not get to the eggs or (for reasons I will surely learn about) eggs are relocated to a sand filled box in a green house where they get lots of TLC. 

There are several jobs to be done and volunteers rotate duties so everyone gets the full experience. One job is the night shift: taking the 4-wheel ATV on patrol up and down the beach. If you discover turtle tracks leading up to the berm you follow, find the turtle or new nest and collect the eggs, relocating them to a new spot inside the nearest corral. You have to dig a hole that is as similar in size and shape to the natural nest, carefully deposit eggs and cover with sand. Mark the spot with a stake noting species, number of eggs, time & date so they know when that nest should be hatching. All the time, you are aware of when other nests are due to hatch and you keep track of them as well. When little turtles start popping up you set a small, screen fence around it, count turtles until all the littles have arrived. Then you put them in a tub, take them down to just short of the surf and release them. 

Early in the season, most of the work is with new nests. Later, it’s more about hatching and releasing. Our visit is to be there on the cusp, near the end of egg laying and start of hatching. With four different species and different gestation periods, we should stay busy. It’s the best reason I can think of to stay up all night. Of course there is day work on the beach and the green house, with visitors and tourists and we won’t be the only volunteers. Meeting people may be as fulfilling as the work. It doesn’t matter if I like them or not, the more you travel, the more people you share something with, you grow a little, the more tolerant and accepting you become. At the same time, I don’t expect to encounter any selfish, tunnel vision assholes doing the volunteer thing. 

Back in ’09, volunteering at Kenai Fjords Nat’l Park I learned that volunteer duties come with some benefits. We will get some time off to travel so we will probably rent a car. Whale watching in the Sea of Cortez/Gulf of California is great this time of year. Both Gray and Humpback whales are birthing and nursing their calves there. You’re almost guaranteed a close encounter. Cabo and La Paz are about the same distance, both noted for whale watching. So here I am, still a day and a half out. I need to pick up a prescription at the pharmacy, need a new head light (flashlight for my head) and some new socks but I’ll be ready when they start boarding.