Week 3 began with yours truly heading up to LA to film a clip or two with the Oceanic Preservation Society for their new upcoming theatrical documentary on the 6th extinction. A great and short experience.
After heading back to Baja the next day we began right where we left off. Smack in the middle of probably the finest February for both whales and weather that anyone has ever seen here. The very first whale of the week was a blue and just as we had perfect position for a left side photo ID picture the whale suddenly turned and headed straight for us! With one and all standing on or near the bow, this adult swam just under the bow very slowly, all 75-80 feet of it. This was a purely awesome sight and left all of us transfixed.
The week was full of whales and offered up one of the finest surface feeding displays we have even observed here. Two fin whales were paired up and feeding in perfect symmetry with a number of single blue whales lunge feeding nearby. The waters were clouded with krill which were again so thick they were observed jumping clear of the surface. Everyone was amazed to see how small the food that sustains the magnificent blue whale truly is.
Dolphins were very numerous and seen on some days in the thousands, with lots of jumping. Humpback Whales continued to appear in record numbers.
At weeks end our dear friends Clark and Peggy Tibbitts joined us for a long day at sea. The day ended with a gentle surface feeding blue whale, the water full of krill and hundreds of 6 to 7 foot manta rays skimming the krill all around us. The sky softened, the blue whale popped up right in front of us and glided just by the starboard side of the boat and all of us froze and simply stared in awe. It was a pure and wonderful Baja moment.
Our guests from Vermont, California and Hawaii had many hours at sea on mostly wind free days and it was a week to remember. Stay tuned for our next blog as week 4 unfolds.
