Beautiful day at sea today. Sun is shining and there’s no wind to speak of. There are some sizable swells rolling through, but they are long and smooth like glass.
We just watched the trip dvd slideshow, and it sure looked like a great trip 🙂 Last night after we pulled anchor we saw a fishing boat, what looked like a purse seiner, about 0.5 nm off the NE point of San Ben. It looked like they were hauling in their nets. There was still some light, so we steamed in that direction in the hopes of getting pictures or being able to identify them. As soon as the fish boat realized we were headed their way, they turned tail and fled. Guilty of fishing in a park sanctuary. Their nets were likely filled with more than just fish. We were all furious. We tried in vain to reach them on VHF, tried to get their identity, told them what they were doing was illegal, and they knew it, but darkness fell, and soon they were just the unidentifiable bright lights of a fishing boat. But, at least now they were almost eight miles off San Ben and getting further away. In the distance we could make out the lights of two other fish boats just outside the 12 mile boundary.
I called the Explorer and let them know what was going on. They were 20 miles north of San Ben, and would be arriving shortly to take over watch of our beloved island and the animals that live there. The fish boat we chased thought all the dive boats were gone after the Solmar V left earlier, as we were diving the Boiler on the other side, and the island seemed deserted. Happy we were there to discourage the opportunists from further destruction.
Their nets were likely filled with more than just fish..
