The town of Santa Rosalía pulled out all the stops to welcome the Western Flyer on a vibrant day filled with tradition, science, and heartfelt community connection.
We arrived in the historic copper mining town on the morning of April 17, tying up alongside our supporters and partners at UnCruise Adventures, with the rust-colored mountains and shaded verandas of Santa Rosalía rising in the background. Though Steinbeck and Ricketts skipped this port in 1940, we couldn’t resist its pull.
The day began with a ceremonial deer dance performed by young members of the Yoreme Yaqui community, their rhythms grounding us in the long human history of this place.
Government officials and community leaders welcomed us with moving speeches and symbolic gifts, and we were especially honored by the presentation of beautifully handcrafted wooden models of the Western Flyer—one for each guest onboard. The gesture left many of us, including our UnCruise companions, deeply touched.
Guests explored artisan stands, sampled local seafood, and wandered through a photo exhibit celebrating the coastal fishing heritage of the Santa Rosalía–Mulegé corridor. Later in the day, we toured the ITESME Marine Laboratory, where students and faculty shared their research, ideas, and vision for a growing marine sciences program—an initiative supported in part by one of our founding Board members, Dr. William Gilly, who has long-standing ties to the community.
As Pat Webster, naturalist and multi-media storyteller who joined us for part of the journey, wrote:
“We sailed past the grand arroyo that bisects the pueblo mágico and into old La Compagnie du Boleo’s storied harbor. Wooden awnings intertwine with shade trees under rust-colored roofs. Blink and the town will appear as if the French Quarter of New Orleans had wished for a drier heat and finer copper…
Yet it was the young Yaqui youth who shared their deer dance who left the biggest impression. The rhythm of their resonant gourds and shaken seeds drew us all to a wavelength that amplified with our surroundings. Time stopped then, and we existed together.”
We’re deeply grateful to our partners at Hagamos Más, ITESME, and the entire Santa Rosalía community for crafting such a rich, warm welcome. It was a day we won’t forget—a reminder of why we’re here: to connect past and future, science and culture, people and place.
