Huatulo 2020 Final Deep Sea Fishing Excursion: Last Call for Adventure

Just a few short days before quarantine measures began for the corona virus, a few us had the chance for one final Huatulco excursion and it was outstanding.  Most of the tourists had already disappeared and UMAR Huatulco was scheduled to close its doors in another week.  We gathered bright and early on Sunday morning to head out on the big ocean.

Here's the crew from left to right: Juan; Isaac; Shanda and William.

A few tourists were gathered for another small boat.  I think that's all the action the marina saw that day.

All aboard.

Captain Ramiro is ready and waiting.

Away we go.

Lots of dolphins.

After more than 4 hours, this was our moment of truth. 

That's a 30 kg swordfish William and Ramiro pulled on board.  Teamwork!

Back at the marina.

Captain Ramiro expertly divvies up the spoils.

It wasn't long before we met some new friends.

Ramiro tossed them a few treats and everyone was happy.

A day and a half later, UMAR Huatulco sent everyone home earlier than originally planned and the town gradually shut down.  I'm so glad we made that last call for fun in the sun.  Thanks to everyone who made this day happen.

But when I say final day, it isn't final final.  Good times will return.  Just stay alive and be patient.  The fish will be biting when this crisis comes to an end.

Plus Size Animals

Notice that big brown stain to the right of my left hand? That is all that's left of the biggest scorpion I've ever seen in my life outside of a Japanese monster movie. It's a shame I didn't stop and grab the camera while it was still alive but I wouldn't have had the nerve to put my hand next to it for perspective even if I had.

I often just fall into bed at nights. It's rare for me to flip the light on but I did and there it was. I picked my jaw up off the floor and ran downstairs for the mop. A sneaker wasn't big enough for this job. I've been shaking out my bed sheets ever since.

What baffles me is how the thing grew to be so big. We don't see that many scorpions in Huatulco in the first place. Men walk through the streets in the early evenings with big spray guns of insecticide. As far as I know, there's no atomic reactor in the neighborhood.

I saw this bigger than average tarantula while investigating some young girl's scream outside my classroom. We see tarantulas fairly often but some are definitely bigger than others. There's nothing in the picture for perspective but, trust me, it was bigger than my hand.


The most dramatic things happen when my camera is nowhere near. There were already lots of people in the water when I arrived early at Santa Cruz this morning. Before I got sorted out, they had all moved back to the sand. Near the shore, in the waist deep shallows, was a dorsal fin cruising the water. It was just like in the movies. This fish was as long as I am tall.

It was all good fun as long as no one was trapped in there with it. Oops. There were four oblivious people still out by the buoys. I shouted out to them to get out of the water, that there was a shark; in Spanish, I'm proud to say. They understood me and started heading back immediately. "Go to the rocks!" Also in Spanish. The rocks were much closer than the sand and they could avoid crossing its path.

That's when a man explained to me it was actually a swordfish, a small one as swordfish go in fact, that was just looking for food. Usually they stay out in the deep, like sharks. When I looked again, it was clearly not a shark fin. Sorry for the false alarm, folks. Better safe than a lifetime of regrets for slow reaction time. I rather doubt that swimming with swordfish is entirely safe anyhow. Eventually, it drifted along