The morning’s sunrise was accompanied by the presence of a grey whale swimming lazily past the bow of National Geographic Sea Bird. Cotton clouds floating above a coral pink sky make for a beautiful backdrop for the stretch class at 7 am. After breakfast, our Zodiac drivers arrive at the stern to take guests out for a second day of whale watching. The gentle blows of a mother and her week-old calf are a stark contrast to the frantic mating ritual experienced days before in Almejas Bay. After a few hours of whale activity, the guests retire to the ship to enjoy lunch and an afternoon siesta. Later, Zodiacs take everyone to shore for the week’s Beach BBQ, where guests enjoy a delicious meal prepared by our head chef Neal. We end the BBQ by making smores as the sun sets on another beautiful day in Baja California.
2/27/2023
Read
National Geographic Sea Bird
Bahia Magdalena
Today the passengers of National Geographic Sea Bird awoke in the northern, narrow part of Bahia Magdalena to an announcement of a gray whale mom and calf pair resting right off our bow; this set the tone for the rest of our day. Our local panga drivers hail from the nearby town of Lopez Mateos. They drove us out into one of the most important nursery grounds for these gray whales where we had an experience that was beyond amazing. A good portion of our guests had the very special honor of interacting with a friendly mom/calf pair, getting to touch and some getting to kiss a sweet baby whale. This cute little calf did the rounds, going from boat to boat and allowing guests to give some scratches and love. It was a life changing experience for both our guests and naturalists, as well as a great moment of reflection on the incredible transformation these whales have gone through from “devil fish” to the “friendly whale.” After a full day of whale watching, we ended our night enjoying cocktails on the beach with a full charcuterie board and s’mores. We watched a beautiful sunset and acted like kids, leaping off the sand dunes as whales continued to swim along the nearby shore.
