Anatomy of a RED Sustainable Travel Camp

By Jenni Denekas, Communications Manager

The chatter of coyotes rises and falls in an eerie chorus. The cool desert air soothes your sunburned face, and the rest of your body is warm under thick blankets. You are still marveling at the plethora of stars you saw in the dark, velvety sky while you were brushing your teeth at the outdoor sink. Tired but exhilarated from the day’s adventures, you set your watch alarm for another early morning.

Camping along the remote shorelines of Magdalena Bay may not involve 300-thread-count sheets, marble floors, or even plumbing. But it is highly luxurious by backcountry standards, and it is a spectacular experience for anyone enthusiastic about the outdoors.

One of the most popular destinations on our website are the wilderness camps set up by RED Sustainable Travel, a non-profit operator based in Baja California Sur, Mexico. SEEtheWILD promotes two of RED’s trips: Baja Whale Watching and Turtle Research, and Baja Sea Turtles and Kayak Adventure. Both trips involve camping on the remote shorelines of Magdalena Bay. I enjoyed the opportunity to experience a RED trip recently; here’s the lowdown on the accommodations:

Guests’ Tents (Las Carpas): When you arrive, the roomy two-person tents are already set up, your

bed is made, and on your pillow are two welcome gifts: a personalized card and a small trinket. Each guest gets a twin-sized, slightly firm but delightfully thick mattress with clean sheets, blankets, and a soft pillow. Between the mattresses is a broad aisle, and a small wood slatted nightstand, perfect for stashing an alarm clock (battery or solar-powered) and headlamp, and anything else you want handy during the night. The tents have zippered vents to provide air circulation during the heat of the day and a rain fly to keep out the wind and dew at night (the desert can get chilly after sundown). A bamboo mat serves as the “front porch,” a convenient place to remove and stash shoes. A small brush is provided for each tent to manage the sand that will inevitably get tracked inside.

Kitchen and Dining Area (La Cocina): There are two large kitchen tents – out of which come healthy, delicious meals with local flair. The large, long dining tent is next door, and contains three wooden tables, plenty of plastic deck chairs, a cooler with purified water, and a bookshelf featuring tomes on plant, bird and animal identification, Spanish language, and other useful topics. The walls of the dining tent can be tied back to catch a breeze during the day, or closed to block the wind at night.

Paths through Camp (Los Senderos): To protect fragile desert vegetation, walkways are lined with
white stakes, stuck in the soft desert sand every few feet. Interspersed with the stakes are solar-powered lamps, which provide enough illumination at night that one doesn’t need a headlamp or flashlight to walk through camp.

And now onto everyone’s favorite place…

Composting Toilet (El Baño): There are two outhouses, situated a distance from the kitchen and the tents. This arrangement is clean and practical, and the baños themselves are tidy, sanitary, and even smell good (you’ll learn why in a minute). Enclosed by three walls and a roof, the white plastic toilet faces away from the tents into the vast, uninhabited space that surrounds the camp. It is a wonderful view – and there is no one to see you! Obviously there is no plumbing at a camp in the middle of the desert, so once you are done, you sprinkle a handful of woodchips into the toilet. The woodchips help the composting process, masks smells that may attract animals, and keeps the baños smelling surprisingly fresh. There is also a sealed bucket full of clean, fresh toilet paper rolls next to the toilet – plenty for everyone. All used paper is then deposited into another sealable bucket next to the toilet (the paper does not easily biodegrade and has to be disposed of separately). Once that’s all taken care of, you can head over to the...

Camp Sinks (Los Lavados): There are two, one near the baños, and one by the doorway to the kitchen. Stepping on a pedal under the sink causes water to squirt out the delicately arched faucet and splash into the bronze-colored bowl. This lovely sink even has large clam shells lining the bottom (classy, no?). Biodegradable soap is provided in a bottle next to the sink. The used water drains through plastic tubing and into the nearby brush. A small towel hangs alongside the sink, and there is a small counter. The one downside? During the day, bugs were drawn to the water.

Shower: A tall, 3-walled enclosure houses the camp “shower.” Sun-warmed water awaits in metal containers and a rubberized mat with drainage holes prevents sand accumulation on your wet feet as you wash off. This water source also drew a lot of bugs. But this is more than most backcountry camps offer, so it’s hard to complain.

So there you have it: RED Sustainable Travel camps are well-organized in order to provide a comfortable experience for guests, maximize efficiency, and minimize ecological impact. Basic needs (and then some) are met with a wonderful combination of rustic charm and classy innovation. Of course, it is not for everyone. If you are leery of anything from insects to slightly firm mattresses, this may not be the trip for you. If, however, you have camping experience or an eagerness to learn about the outdoors, you will enjoy a comfortable and invigorating stay in a beautiful desert setting.

Loving Dolphins to Death in Zanzibar

by Rebecca Hamilton, Volunteer

Last year, I had the distinct proviledge of spending 4 months studying abroad on the beautiful island archeapelago of Zanzibar, a hot-spot for tourism off the coast of Tanzania. While spending a month in Kizimkazi, the home of Zanzibar’s dolphin tourism industry, I had the single most awesome experience  of my life thus far; I went out on a boat late one evening and got in the water to swim solo with a pod of 30 wild indo-pacific bottlenose dolphins.

I was surprised by how relaxed they were around me, moving slowly so that I could keep up with them and coming incredibly close to me, checking me out and making eye contact with me. A mother even brought her small calf within arm’s reach. For a species known to be very protective of their young, I could only guess that she trusted me enough to not harm her precious baby.

Many people say the ocean is a peacefully quiet place, but those people didn’t hang around dolphins! There was constant chatter of whistles and clicks, and whether they were talking to each other about the stranger in the water or trying to get me to talk back, it was a truly humbling experience to have such an intimate interaction with an intelligent being of another species. The dolphins let me stay with them for about 20 minutes before they decided they either had better things to do or were offended I wasn’t responding to their persistant calls. They picked up speed, disappearing into deeper waters. I got on the boat ginning from ear to ear - it was nothing short of a magical experience. However,  most dolphin swims here aren’t anything like what I had just done.

The dolphin tourism in this area can only be described as rampant. Every morning tourists arrive in Kizimkazi from the main city of Stone Town and pile onto boats owned and operated by local fishermen to head out in search of dolphins. The boat owners race to make sure their tourists get the best view of the dolphins first and there can be anywhere between 2 and 18 boats with a single group of dolphins at one time. Boat drivers then race around the pod at full speed, trying to drop the tourists into the water right on top of the dolphins.

Unlike when I swam with them, the dolphins are stressed by the flurry of boat activity and the dozens of noisy swimmers in the water. They take deep dives and move quickly away from the boats, but almost all of the groups around here have young calves that can’t make it too far without needing to breath. As soon as they’re spotted surfacing, boats race at them again and the harassment continues. Studies here have shown that the dolphins no longer have sufficient time to forage, rest, socialize, mate, and nurse their young. If it’s kept up, the local population is expected to decline.

I know from my personal experience swimming with the dolphins that it’s not inherently stressful or harmful to them. If they didn’t want me there, they could have swam away and there was no hope of me being able to keep up. Instead, they were curious and trusting of me.

Everyone can and should have this kind of wildlife experience. If you ever go to watch animals in the wild, be it a safari, turtle walk, or dolphin swim, do it the right way. Go with an organization that is conservation-consious and make sure tour groups are of reasonable size - too many people will cause stress to most animals. If possible, talk to locals and ask their opinions of the tourism. If it’s harming local wildlife, they’ll have noticed.

If you think an experience you booked in good faith seems to be harmful, please, don’t go through with it. Many of the tourists in Zanzibar said that the dolphins seemed stressed but they had already spent the money and they were already there so what difference would it make for them to leave? I know it’s hard to give up something you’ve paid good money for (trust me, I’m a broke college student), but isn’t the welfare of the animals worth just a little bit more?

For more information about Zanzibar or the dolphin tourism of Kizimkazi, you can download Rebecca's paper here.

Dolphin Volunteer Expeditions:

Kenya Dolphin Volunteer Project (Global Vision International) 

Bahamas Dolphin Research (Oceanic Society)

Belize Dolphin Research (Oceanic Society)

Whales & Dolphins Under the California Sun (Earthwatch Institute)

Dive into the Magical World of Gray Whales

During the 17th and 20th century, the whaling industry had depleted the gray whale population causing this magical animal to become nearly extinct. Thankfully, today their numbers have increased to an estimate of 20,000. They live  in the Eastern North Pacific Ocean, the Western Pacific Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean. The United States removed the gray whale from the endangered list in 1994, but is still protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The gray whale plays an important role in the overall health of the marine environment and it would be devastating to see these magical animals disappear.

Here are some interesting facts about the gray whale:

1. The scientific name for the gray whale is Eschrichitius robustus. The name is derived from Eschricht, which was the last name of a Danish zoology professor, and robustus which is the Latin world for strong.  The gray whale's common name is due to their appearance. They are dark gray with lighter gray patches and white spots. These white spots are barnacles and whale lice giving them the appearance of a crusty ocean rock. They can grow to be 48 feet long and weigh 80, 000 pounds. They live up to 50 to 70 years! 
2. Pacific gray whales are known as the "friendly whales" since they are known to approach boats at their winter calving grounds in Baja California Sur, Mexico. 
3. The gray whale has one of the longest migrations of any mammal. It travels 10,000 miles round trip every year from their Arctic feeding ground (where they search for mollusks, tube worms and small crustaceans) to their birthing lagoons in Baja, Mexico.
4. The International Whaling Commission partial protection to the gray whale in 1937 and full protection in 1947. The Eastern North Pacific Gray whales were protected by the Endangered Species Act until 1994, but are still protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Western North Pacific Gray whale population is listed under the Endangered Species Act as endangered, but the Eastern North Pacific population has been increasing steadily.  

Even with the help of acts like the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the gray whale does face threats. Some of these threats include habitat degradation, collisions with ships, entanglement in fishing gear, chemical pollution, oil and gas development. Let's look at some of these threats in detail and how they harm the gray whale.

One of the top most concerns is the pollution caused by oil and gas development. According to spokesperson Leigh Henry of the World Wildlife Fund, oil companies have overlapped their gas leases with the gray whales feeding grounds. When looking for oil, sonic booms are used creating a deafening noise which can disorient the gray whale who uses deep sounds to do just about everything. Gray whales use deep sounds to navigate through the oceans, locate food, find mates. Not only does this noise affect their day to day activities but it can cause the calf to separate from its mother! Oil companies also bring the risk of oil spills and some companies are not prepared to handle these incidents. A great example of this concern was the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico a few years ago. Oils spills have caused the gray whale to change its migration pattern and foraging for food habits which has caused them to come in closer contact with fishing boats. Gray whales have been found with injuries from the propellers of these boats. 

Would you like to meet the gray whale up close and personal? Check out the fascinating opportunities like the Baja Whale and Turtle Research tour or the Whalesof Southern California volunteer expedition. 

What to learn more? Take a look at the many wonderful adventures available with SEEtheWILD. 

Wildlife Travel with a Side of Adventure

Incorporating outdoor sports that range from hiking to snorkeling, SEEtheWILD’s Adventure Travel Tours are perfect for the active wildlife enthusiast. Learning opportunities abound as you explore the open ocean, mountains, rainforest and other stunning environments, viewing wildlife in their natural habitat, with the assistance of multi-talented, naturalist guides. In addition to offering tips on how to navigate Alaska’s coastal waters by sea kayak or stealthily trek the Amazon rainforest, experienced guides will educate you on local culture, flora and fauna. It’s a hands-on, thrill-packed learning experience – perfect for the adventurous at heart.

As always, proceeds from these tours support local conservation efforts at your destination, while tour operators, lodging, meals and other services are locally sourced in order to strengthen local economies and promote sustainable tourism. In short, you can enjoy a spectacular adventure while doing your part to support wildlife conservation.

The following five trips are our most popular adventure tours; you can also browse our full selection of adventure tours on our website.

Glaciers and Grizzlies: Delve into the coastal rainforest habitat of Southern Alaska as you explore the shoreline of Glacier Bay and the rugged wilderness of Denali National Park, home of North America’s tallest peak. Hike through thick old growth in search of bears and other wildlife, and view calving glaciers and whales by boat. This 11-day trip starts at $6,395 per person.

Nicaragua Wildlife Adventure: Venture into Nicaragua’s rich cultural history, rural villages, and stunning natural landscapes by foot, bike and kayak on this family-friendly tour. You will explore key sea turtle nesting beaches, rainforest, volcanic craters and peaks, as well as colonial architecture and vibrant towns. Starting at a mere $2,850, this 9-day trip will give you more than your money’s worth.

Peru Andes and Amazon Expedition: From the heights of the Andes to the lowland rainforest of Tambopata, you will explore a vast swath of Peru’s fascinating landscape. Walk among the towering edifices of the Sacred Valley, visit Inkaterra’s spectacled bear conservation project, and boat and hike through species-rich rainforest on this 11-day tour. Starts at $3,375 per person.

Yellowstone Wildlife Safari: Explore one of the world’s first and most famous National Parks, Yellowstone, as well as its gorgeous neighbor, Grand Teton National Park. On wheels and on foot, you will seek out wildlife ranging from wolves and bears to bison and elk. Stops at stunning geothermal landmarks including Old Faithful and the Midway Geyser Basin, and views of soaring peaks will complete your experience. This 7-day trip starts at $3,995 per person.

Whale Sharks and Turtles of the Yucatan: Experience the highlights of the region known as the Mexican Riviera. Swim with whale sharks, the largest species of fish in the world; walk sea turtle nesting beaches; tour the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve; and explore the Mayan ruins of Tulum. Opportunities to enjoy world-class beaches and soak in cultural experiences also abound. This incredible 7-day experience starts at a mere $1,995 per person.

No matter the sport, wildlife or region you wish to experience, you will find ample adventure and enjoy wildlife conservation education on these eye-opening trips. It’s a great way to support conservation while getting your travel fix.