There are chances in life that might only come once in your life that you must embrace and welcome fully. This was my first charter onboard as part of the crew of the Nautilus Belle Amie that set sail for a small island roughly 220 nautical miles south west of Ensenada, Mexico. Just leaving the port we had dolphins passing by and just a few miles out the engines slowed as the black ridge of a juvenile humpback whales crested the surface of the azure blue water. We arrived at the break of dawn to the sight of an eroded mountain face that showed its age layers of rock rising to the apex of the mountain. The sound of the anchor vibrated through the water as a beacon to the massive apex predators to come in our direction. The stainless 5 cages are lowered half way in just behind dive deck platform. All of our guests were gathering together sliding on their wetsuits and making finally check to camera gear to make sure they get the photos that will last a life time. The first bubbles are blown as the guests are lowered 33 feet below the deck. Crystal clear blue waters greet us with 20 to 30 pound Yellowtail Jacks circling around the cages. Out in the distance, Blue and Yellowfin Tuna swing their tails to enter the fray of Yellowtails. This goes on for 30 minutes then out of blue, an ominous frame comes. It s really hard to comprehend seeing something with such girth and mass coming your way. With a mouth slightly open to bare its continuous rows of teeth, the first white comes into sight. 13 to 14 feet in size, the leviathan slowly bats the sickled shaped tail as it pierces the water. Shortly after the arrival of the first shark another figure comes into sight. The cages are lowered and dropped through out the day. The sharks pace constantly around the cages. Some sharks skirt the surface as the iconic dorsal fin cuts into the air. Our second day the action picked up when we had four sharks either passing in the middle of our guests or lingering just on the outside perimeter. A small group of bottle nosed dolphins came right up to the boat during mid day and many of our guests were able to view the dolphins underwater. The fun continues on the beautiful Belle Amie at night with an authentic Mexican dinner on the sundeck during our nightly happy hour. We had more dolphins coming up to our lights during the dinner. Our last day we had two sharks join us early. As our time here waned, our final encounter comes from an excited females coming to every cages in a hurry. It makes things easy to have such great guests that come from around the world to share a common thread of adventure and to view these unique and beautiful creatures in the wild. A fantastic way to start with the Nautilus Explorer Belle Amie
The first bubbles are blown as the guests are lowered 33 feet below the deck.
