Interns Journal | a Baby Turtle’s way to the Ocean
There are moments in life when you definitely need background music. One of those is setting a baby turtle free to the big wide ocean during sunset on a beach in Bali.
This is made possible by the Turtle Conservation and Education Center in Serangan, a small island close to Sanur. As a friend of mine volunteers there, I got to see pictures and videos of baby turtles every single day (“Look, it’s swimming! Oh LOOK, isn’t that super cute? It’s swimming!”). So after some time, my housemates and I decided to give it a try and take part in a release as well.
After a nice little tour around the center, we were spoiled for choice: “Okay, now pick a turtle!” That was one of the funniest parts, because everyone of us was convinced to choose the coolest baby turtle that would make the first place in the race towards the ocean. It was quite a struggle, as they have about 600 cute little babies swimming around in four tanks…
When we finally made our choices, the turtles were put into transport boxes for us to carry them the short way to the beach. There is also the possibility to make a release from a boat, but as we wanted to take pictures of the event, we considered the beach to be a better scenery for that.
And then the moment came: we could take the turtles out of their boxes and place them on the sand a few meters away from the water. The animals knew by their natural instinct which direction to take, but it was still quite funny to see how confused they were with having that much space around them… So the “race” began! Everyone observed and encouraged their own turtle to make their way to their future home.
It took them a while, so we had enough time to sit next to them and just watch nature take its course. And that’s where some kitschy and touching background music should set in (maybe I just watched too many movies)… Anyway, after a little while, our turtles came close enough to the water for a wave to come and take them with it. Well, one of them needed a little help – ironically it was the one my friend Chris had named “Number 1”… But in the end they all made it, and as slow they were moving on the sand, as fast they were swimming in the water! You could definitely see where they belong.
So it was time to wave our little babies goodbye and wish them the best luck and a long life in Bali’s oceans. Maybe my turtle and I will meet again on a dive one day, who knows…
If you enjoyed reading this blog, you may like to read https://www.baliocean.com/blog/sharks-are-not-food/
