Chase WHALES off San Diego
From roughly December through April every year, gray whales migrate along the California coast as part of a 12,000-mile round-trip journey between the Arctic and the calving lagoons of Baja California. Every winter, this spectacle inspires hundreds of whale-watching boats to gather up curious humans and head out to sea for a few hours. San Diego has a hefty supply of them, including Adventure Whale Watching (which uses rigid inflatable boats that are smaller and faster than the catamarans and other vessels most companies use), H&M Landing, San Diego Whale Watch, Oceanside Adventures and City Experiences by Hornblower.
There are plenty of whale-watching excursions from Orange County and
L.A. County too.
If you don’t want to wait until winter, blue whales swim through the same coastal waters May through November. Also, as San Diego Whale Watch likes to remind people, sightings of fin whales, humpback whales and minke whales are possible year-round. And whenever you go out, you may come across pods of dolphins, often leaping in the surf.
Winter whale excursions typically last two to four hours and cost $35 to $65 per adult. On any of those boats, you should hear plenty about the wonders of Eschrichtius robustus (the gray whale), which grows up to 50 feet long and weighs up to 36 tons. Often, the Oceanic Society points out, one whale’s barnacles and whale lice can add up to 400 pounds. (Is anybody else feeling itchy now?)
BONUS TIP: You can also look out for whales from the shore. The best bet is high ground like Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve in La Jolla and Cabrillo National Monument on Point Loma.