Description: Using the concierge service at our hotel, we booked a kayaking tour to the Laguna Grande, just outside city of Fajardo on the northeast section of Puerto Rico. I’m not the kind of person that goes kayaking without a purpose. In this case, it was to see the bioluminescent (glow in the dark) plankton-type creatures that can only be found in about 10 locations around the world. That meant we were going to be kayaking in the dark. Yikes! What were we thinking?
It took about an hour by van to get to the kayak spot. The plan was to take a two-person kayak about 50 yards across a bay, into a mangrove swamp, and come out on the other side in the Laguna Grande. Just let me say that for first-timers, it was easier said than done.
The mangrove swamp was curvy, with the big mangrove roots on each side. We got used to hitting the mangrove roots with our kayak. It was pitch black: the only light being from the blinking lights attached to each kayak on the tour. At one point, we were turned sideways, stuck between two sets of mangrove roots, unable to turn around. We got the giggles and finally called the guide back to help us. In addition, there were shrimp jumping into our boat! Not to mention the iguanas jumping into the water from the trees.
As we reached the lagoon, we also had a nice giggle over the fact that our guide was standing up in his kayak trying to get a shrimp out of his pants. (I’m completely serious). Our guide, Nestor, gave us the rundown on the creatures, the lagoon, etc. These bioluminescent creatures (dinoflagellates) are like plankton. They’re very small, but very concentrated in these waters. Any movement in the water makes them glow. There are a few theories as to why. The one that made the most sense to me is that they were telling the other dinoflagellates not to swim that way because it was likely they’d get eaten. One of our kayakers went for a swim amongst them and it was amazing. You could see his legs and arms glowing as he was treading the water.
We had perfect conditions for viewing. There was no moonlight (the darker the better and most of these tours don’t go during a full moon), so the creatures were easier to see. If you got tired of seeing glowing plankton, you could be mesmerized for hours at the night sky. There was even a shooting star!
Our kayaking skills having developed, our trip back through the mangrove trees was much easier. And we enjoyed watching our oars glow as we paddled back towards the shore. Despite the fact that I was scared to death of falling in the water (I don’t know why, it wasn’t deep in the swamp), I’m super glad we took the chance to see this amazing sight.
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