Gray Whale - Eschrichtius robustus

Gray Whale Head Breach

It is that time of the year where I will wish I was back at Laguna San Ignacio in the Baja Peninsula of Mexico. The gray whales have migrated down from Alaska and not giving birth to their calves. It is a protected spot in only certain numbers of people can be in the Laguna at any one time. The Mexican guides take you out in their pangas to where the whales are and the whales will come right up to your boat. It is an exceptionally thrilling experience. You can touch the whales and in doing so you become one with them.

Meeting a Gray Whale

Gray Whale Head with Barnacles

I am looking at you

Blow by a pangas

Juvenile Gray Whale

Juvenile Gray Whale on Back of Mother

You can learn more about the gray whale's history of being hunted to where it is now a mainstay of ec0-tourism in parts of the Baja in "Eye of the Whale: Epic Passage From Baja To Siberia" by Dick Russell

Day five of my Log of the Searcher Natural History Tour Around the Baja by Boat January 27, 2011

Well, we are starting an another day at Laguna San Ignacio. After another great breakfast by Charles the chef, we got ready for another panga ride. The pangas belong to the ecotourism group Kuyima. There is interesting meaning to the word Kuyima. Here is a quote from the book "eye of the whale: epic passage from Baja to Siberia" by Dick Russell. "Kuyima simply means two things -the whale could light up the darkness or it could dance in the clouds." I really recommend this book for all to read, it is available on Amazon.com - http://www.amazon.com/Eye-Whale-Epic-Passage-Siberia/dp/0684866080.

We continue to have encounters with the mother/Gray whale pairs which came close to the boat and one even went under the boat.. In the picture, the whale is going under the boat upside down. You will notice that there are only several short deep creases on the throat to allow for expansion of the throat during suction feeding as opposed to the humpback whale, which has multiple creases on their throat.

Touching

Happy ship-mates

There  She Blows

Calf

Calf resting on mother

Gray whale Fluke

We also encountered bottle-nosed dolphins and birds.

Frigatebirds in Rigging

Brown Pelican

Royal Terns

Bottle-nosed Dolphins

Surf Scoter

Later in the afternoon, we all took a beach walk, which had some interesting sightings.

Dunes

Skeleton on the beach

Animal footprints in the sand

shell in the sand

There was another great sunset as we now started our trip south toward toward Cabo San Lucas and make the turn into the Gulf of California. There was sadness among everybody on leaving the close company of the gray whales and feelings toward them. As I stated before, this was a very moving experience and I highly recommended it to everyone.
 
 

Day four of my Log of the Searcher Natural History Tour Around the Baja by Boat Januanary 26, 2011

Upon arriving at Laguna San Ignacio, we would be greeted by a gray whale breaching, which offered an inkling of what will come later. Everybody was excited to go out in the pangas to observe the gray whales closer. One of the panga was lucky enough to have a gray whale and her calf swim over to the panga and  the people were able to  touch and pat the whale. The calf was extremely playful, offer us many views of its head. This day we had three different panga rides with numerous encounters with the gray whales.

Gray Whale Breach

Magnificent Frigatebird n ships rigging

Close encounter and being sprayed by the whale's blow

Calf's head

Gray whale head with barnacles

there she blows

touching me touching you

Common Loon

Spy hopping

What of the gray whales approached our panga and I was able to touch and pat the whale. It was a moving experience, not only did I touch the whale, but it touched me, and there is a sense of bonding with it. Now, I have been whale watching on and off for at least 30 years, mainly on Stellwagon bank off of Cape Cod and on a 27 foot zodiac at in Newfoundland. I have been close to the whales, but the experience in Laguna San Ignacio was something even more, I am now one with the whales.

After supper, chairs were set up on the back deck of the Searcher, where we all gathered and spent a quiet time, with all of ships lights and generator off. The stars and Milky Way were fantastic and all a glory and you could hear the Dolphins and whales breathing and blowing around the boat. It was another moving experience.

Sunset at Laguna San Ignacio