Beyond the Beach in Puerto Rico

My co-paddler and I were in one of eight kayaks moving through a narrow mangrove lagoon outside the fishing village of La Parguera in southern Puerto Rico. Our destination was the famous bioluminescent bay, a natural phenomenon created by tiny organisms that glow as a protective mechanism - the better for predators to see other game.

It was so dark on this evening, we kayakers could hardly see our hands holding the oars. A scuffling in the dense bushes startled us. We heard a snort (a wild pig?) and brushed up against something hanging from a tree (a python?). A fish jumped in the water (a piranha?). And then a big crash as we butted up against a fellow kayaker - who was not amused as we laughed uncontrollably from relief, fear and from exhaustion. “*

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