There were 347 gray whales: 151 mothers and calves and 45 singles. A gray whale’s blow is distinctly heart-shaped on a calm day and when viewed from behind (or on Valentine’s Day). Many thanks to Carla Mitroff for the use of her photo.
Hello whalewatchers: We started our trip with a rare San Diego rain storm! In some rolling seas, we mortored to Ensenada to clear Mexican customs. Then we went to Islas Todos Santos in better weather for a look at some pinnipeds, comorants, brown pelicans and oystercatchers. The island is very green with the recent rains.
We saw plenty of gray whales heading north, and some groups of whales were exhibiting mating behaviors. Everyone had a good look at gray whales today. As for pelagic birds, we found some black-vented shearwaters, Cassins auklets, Scripps murrelets and northern fulmars.
All in all it was a good day with much better weather than last night.
Team Searcher
Naturalist Lee Morgan and the mighty vessel Searcher will head south again tonight for a wonderful wildlife adventure! Many thanks to passenger Christine Hallas for use of this photo.
Roca Solitaria at Bahia Agua Verde
On 13 February, a total of 347 gray whales were counted. That is 134 cow/calf pairs and 79 singles!
Hello whalewatchers: We woke up to a great sunset and flat calm seas, then organized a great trip into the mangroves at Isla San Jose. We found more dolphins on the way to Los Islotes for a snorkel session with sea lions. Everyone enjoyed the fun snorkeling with them. We headed offshore for a final look at a whale and added a new species with two Bryde’s whales. What a great trip for sightings and weather!
Team Searcher
I received a phone call today with the news of loads of blue whales! They left anchor near Isla Carmen this morning and found lots of blue whales. All is well still and I am sure to get another quick call on Tuesday evening.
Hello whalewatchers: We had a wonderful sunrise at Punta Colorado to start the day, then a nice walk and a snorkel session. There are lots of flowers in the arroyo. Then we headed north in the San Jose channel in Sea of Cortez. We came across a large herd of long-beaked common dolphin and a big group of pilot whales. There were also lots of black storm petrels. The highlight was as we arrived at Isla Santa Catalina we had bottlenose dolphin in the bioluminecence riding the bow. It is very hard to describe, but it is very dark and a torpedo with a trail behind approaching the boat from 200 yards away. It truly is one of the best things we see on these trips. Click here: http://youtu.be/AfWxnE5lUQQ?list=UUtoQBhyrjFCsrxIME7FFE2w
Team Searcher
Hello whalewatchers: We are enjoying one of the best days watching humpback whales in a few years! You can look in any direction today and see a whale on the surface. And at one point you could see a whale breaching in any direction. We’ve witnessed all the classic behaviors almost all day including tail-lobbing, flipper-flapping, adults breaching and calves breaching. It was remarkable! Here’s a sample: http://youtu.be/oAk7QKlpD4w?list=UUtoQBhyrjFCsrxIME7FFE2w
