Captain's Blog

Hello whalewatchers,
Today started out great with calm weather and so we started up the San Jose channel looking for whales. We saw some common dolphin and a humpback whale right away. Unfortunately the wind came up again and made looking for whales difficult. We saw a Bryde’s whale in the distance and had a hard time getting a good look.
We elected to continue on to Isla Santa Catalina for the remainder of the day. Everyone had a snorkel or a “Crazy Coastal Cruise” (with Cole or Cameron!) after lunch to photograph the coastline and its wildlife. Some went for a nice hike on the island. This island’s cactus and plant life are stunning, and it can be a terrific birding spot.
There was a great sunset and the wind seems to be calming down. We are hopeful for better weather so we can find some whales tomorrow. We have paid our dues this trip with the wind, so we are due to get a break!
More tomorrow,
Capt Art

Hello whalewatchers,
Today the wind dictated our day since it is still with us. We visited the mangroves at the southern end of Isla San Jose. This is a large area of mangroves with lots of birds and shallow water channels to motor the skiffs through.
After that we went over to Isla San Fransisco and everyone went ashore for a walk and snorkel.
Our plan is to stay the night here and start up the San Jose channel looking for whales. That channel can be very productive for large whale species.
More tomorrow,
Capt Art

Hello whalewatchers,
Today we were offshore all day off Bahia Magdalena Bay. We had tough conditions for whalewatching and viewing today with choppy seas and overcast skies.
We found some humpbacks and watched them breaching, flipper flapping and tail lobbing. It was a liitle warm-up for tomorrow at Gorda Banks.
Our bird list increased with frigate bird and Sabine’s gull. We had a Sabine’s gull hang out on the boat for a while so we got some good looks at a very pretty bird.
Looking forward to tomorrow with better sea conditions,
Capt Art

Hello whalewatchers,
Today was our first day in Laguna San Ignacio. It is always great to come back to this special place. Crossing the bar was uneventful since we had a high tide. There were plenty of gray whales out by the entrance and, as usual, plenty of whales were present around Rocky Point, our anchorage area.
The weather was glorious with clear skies and no wind for about four hours in the middle of the day–great weather for whalewatching.
Everyone enjoyed some good whalewatching from the pangas, and a few people had a close encounter with a cow and calf.
Heading to the mangroves in the morning.
Looking forward to tomorrow,
Capt Art

Hello whalewatchers,
Today we spent the day at Islas San Benito in calm waters behind the island. There were plenty of Guadalupe fur seals on the rocks on the way into the beach and everyone had a great hike.
Part of the group stayed close to the elephant seals and the other part of the group went up to the lighthouse and around the island.
There are several “weaner” elephant seals on the beach, alone after being weaned from their mothers.
Also, the plants have had some rain recently and there were more plants in bloom this trip.
Looking forward to tomorrow in Laguna San Ignacio,
Capt Art

Hello whalewatchers and blog readers:
Today our passengers arrived from all corners of the world (Ohio, England, the high desert of California, Maryland, Vermont, central and northern California, and Australia), braved a chilly Southern California rain storm and boarded Searcher to sail south to Baja!
We readied the boat with food and fuel, and the cleaning crew did their part at the dock. In addition, Capt Art and I loaded 57 boxes of school supplies into Searcher’s fish holds to transport down to Laguna San Ignacio’s primary and secondary schools. These supplies are provided very generously by Baja School Friends. We provide the transport, along with Baja Expeditions’ staff in San Diego and San Ignacio. We were also able to purchase some supplies for fishermen in the more remote areas of Baja.
More about the wildlife they encounter starting tomorrow.
celia

Hello whalewatcher,
Our final day started at Nopolo Village for a pre-breakfast walk to look at birds and and see the great canyon there. We left there after filling the local’s fresh-water containers.
We travelled down the San Jose channel looking for whales. There were a few dolophins but no large whales there. We continued on and half way between isla San Fransisco and Los Islotes we came actoss something I have only seen one other time in over 20 years. It was a bachelor group of sperm whales laying on the surace. There were 12 individuals, all males, and they stayed on the suface for at least an hour.
The weather was calm so it made for pefect conditions to stay with these whales. We actually ran out of time and had to leave so we could enjoy Los Islotes.
The snorkelling there was great everyone had a good time. Good visi bility and lots of fish. The non-snorkellers had a nice skiff ride to see the sea lions and nesting birds.
What a great trip, with good weather, and lots and lots of whales and other things to see.
Looking forward to next trip,
Capt Art