It is always a privilege to have the chance to watch the sunrise at sea; today we had one more opportunity to do so as we approached the peninsula of Baja California. The eastern horizon became brighter and brighter by the minute and then, as if a by a miracle, a tiny blip of pure emerald green followed by a blinding yellow illuminated the sky: the green flash! Oftentimes considered a myth by skeptics that have failed to see it, the green flash is an optical illusion caused by clean atmosphere acting like a prism and separating the colors of the sunlight, absorbing most except the green. It is a beautiful phenomenon that we see regularly here in the clean environment of the Sea of Cortez.
The early morning light made the peninsula very picturesque as we approached the small town of Santa Rosalía to spend the morning; from the sea we were able to see many evidences of its former glories as a mining town. In 1888 Santa Rosalía was born as a company town when “El Boleo Mining Company” was created by the French Rothschild House in agreement with the Mexican government to exploit the rich copper deposits in the area. After several decades of intense mining using the top technology available at the time and that novelty called electricity for ventilation, pumping, pulling, drilling, melting and everything else, El Boleo ended operations in 1954 and Santa Rosalía became a quiet fishing town. But the town remained a mining town at hearth and refused to remove the old buildings that give it such a unique flavor and personality, which worked great for us as we strolled around taking pictures and enjoying the lifestyle of an authentic place. We visited the local bakery which has been open since 1911 and the famous Catholic Church designed by no less than Gustave Eiffel, of Eiffel tower fame. Today Santa Rosalía is back in business after a new company started to mine for copper again a few years ago.
From Santa Rosalía we continued sailing north towards the Gulf of California’s midriff region, an area of strong upwellings and intense productivity levels; we will wake up tomorrow in the middle of it for some more adventures to come in the beautiful Sea of Cortez.
