Bahia Magdalena & South in the Pacific Ocean

This morning began with the most spectacular sunrise we have seen yet. Those of us who were up for the sunrise whale watch enjoyed the changing colors of the sky while we sipped our coffee, donned our life jackets, and readied for one more morning in Magdalena Bay.

Like yesterday, we felt privileged to see numerous gray whales and their variety of behaviors. The puzzle of why they do certain things at certain times will be one that remains with us, but it was fun to test various theories of how to get the whales to come closer. One Zodiac had a whale cheer and a whale dance to encourage the whales to come closer. Did it work? Well, that doesn’t really matter. What matters is that everyone had fun trying.

We enjoyed watching the winged inhabitants of the bay this morning too. Double-crested cormorants gathering nesting material, pelicans on their morning commute, magnificent frigatebirds perched on the mangroves, and yellow-crowned night herons were among our favorites.

After transiting back south along the length of Isla Magdalena, we arrived at the entrance to the Pacific Ocean in late afternoon. Once again, there was no shortage of things to keep us out on the bow with our cameras and binoculars. Sooty and black-vented shearwaters were new birds to add to our species list. We had several groups of long-beaked common dolphins come in to bow ride in front of the ship. It looks so fun and effortless for them. Maybe that is why they swim in with such speed when they see our ship in the vicinity.

The finale to the day, however, were two humpback whales. We first spotted their breaches on the horizon. And they kept it up as we got closer and closer. One breach, then another, and occasionally the two whales together. They leapt, they dove and they raised their 15 foot long pectoral flippers to slap them down on the water again and again. Eventually they returned to breathing and diving, and we continued south to round the tip of the peninsula tomorrow morning.

To view footage from this day, please click here.