Boca de Soledad and Hull Canal
We awoke to some Pacific coast fog, thus slightly delaying our ‘one more round of whale watching’, before we had to leave this spectacular Gray whale nursery. But soon the fog cleared and the weather was perfect and we eagerly climbed into the Zodiacs to search for whales. As we ventured out into the boca, (an inlet that leads to the Pacific Ocean), our excitement and sweet anticipation of what awaited us intensified. What a whale-busy morning it was! There were lots of whales coming and going, some swimming with the outgoing tide, while others were swimming against the current occasionally spy-hopping or breaching! We wondered who was directing all this whale traffic! As they rolled so gracefully, arching their backs, the early morning sun glistened on their massive backs, in preparation for a deeper dive. We all cheered as they presented their wide flukes just before disappearing below the surface. We also had some spectacular close views of some females with calves swimming rapidly against the current perhaps giving their calves some early morning training for the long journey north that they will be making sometime next month.
With smiles on our faces, after another great morning with the Gray whales, we made our way back to the Sea Lion for a wonderful presentation by Randy Puckett, the world’s foremost whale sculptor! We marveled at the beauty, grace, and passion of his work and listened to his personal stories behind some of the large sculptures he has made for many museums and aquariums. We also learned of the fascinating and complex processes of Bronze sculpting and the casting process of a life size Humpback whale that he recently completed. After his talk we were privileged to watch him work on sculptures of the Gray, Humpback, and Blue whales. The above photo shows him carving a Humpback whale. These models will be used for a limited edition casting for the guests of this special voyage!
We awoke to some Pacific coast fog, thus slightly delaying our ‘one more round of whale watching’, before we had to leave this spectacular Gray whale nursery. But soon the fog cleared and the weather was perfect and we eagerly climbed into the Zodiacs to search for whales. As we ventured out into the boca, (an inlet that leads to the Pacific Ocean), our excitement and sweet anticipation of what awaited us intensified. What a whale-busy morning it was! There were lots of whales coming and going, some swimming with the outgoing tide, while others were swimming against the current occasionally spy-hopping or breaching! We wondered who was directing all this whale traffic! As they rolled so gracefully, arching their backs, the early morning sun glistened on their massive backs, in preparation for a deeper dive. We all cheered as they presented their wide flukes just before disappearing below the surface. We also had some spectacular close views of some females with calves swimming rapidly against the current perhaps giving their calves some early morning training for the long journey north that they will be making sometime next month.
With smiles on our faces, after another great morning with the Gray whales, we made our way back to the Sea Lion for a wonderful presentation by Randy Puckett, the world’s foremost whale sculptor! We marveled at the beauty, grace, and passion of his work and listened to his personal stories behind some of the large sculptures he has made for many museums and aquariums. We also learned of the fascinating and complex processes of Bronze sculpting and the casting process of a life size Humpback whale that he recently completed. After his talk we were privileged to watch him work on sculptures of the Gray, Humpback, and Blue whales. The above photo shows him carving a Humpback whale. These models will be used for a limited edition casting for the guests of this special voyage!
