La Ballena Gris: Gray Whales of Bahia Magdalena

After leaving El Requeson, I continued to head south, and my destination was Lopez Mateos, and the whales of Bahia Magdalena, along the Pacific coast of Baja.  Whale watching along the central Pacific coast is one of the main reasons many visit the Baja, and I would be no exception.  Along the Pacific coast, and the lagoons and small bays of Bahia Magdalena serve as nurseries for gray whale calves.  The gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) are the only species of whales in the Family Eschrichtiidae, one of the families of baleen whales.  This species can grow up to 15 m in length, and individuals tend to stay close to shore, preferring to feed, and give birth in shallow water.  This makes this species one of the best species of whales for ecotourism, as they are very accessible, especially in the Bahia Magdalena.  This species has only two populations, Asian (or western Pacific) and eastern Pacific populations.  These large marine mammals annually migrate from the cold, and food-rich waters of the Northern Pacific south to warmer and more protected waters along the Baja (the eastern population) to calve.  The western population is considered to be critically endangered, while the eastern population appears to be relatively stable (20,000 - 22,000 individuals).  The locals often call these animals "the friendly ones", as they are easily approached, and they actually seem to enjoy interacting with us, even allowing touching and petting.  They are beautiful, impressive animals.

There are number of places where you can easily see, and approach these animals, on the Pacific side of the Baja, from Guerrero Negro and Laguna Ojo de Liebre in the north, to Puerto San Carlos in the south.  I chose Puerto Adolfo Lopez Mateos on the recommendations of a few I had met during my travels south, and I was not disappointed.  Lopez Mateos is a great little village, clean, safe, and the dock facilities are great.  I would highly recommend a visit here during the winter whale-watching season if you want to see whales, and enjoy some good Mexican hospitality.

After leaving El Requeson, I headed south, through Loreto, then Puerto Escondido, up and over the Sierra Giganta to Ciudad Insurgentes, and then south to Ciudad Constitucion, where I spent the night.  I spent one night at Campestre La Pila Balneario and Trailer Park ($200 pesos, flush toilets but no hot showers, though they said there was hot water, and no Wifi), where I was alone for the night, before backtracking to head west to Lopez Mateos.  I spent two night in a great little hotel ($500 pesos per night), Hotel Villajaimez, with hot showers, good Wifi, and a short bike ride to the embarcadero, where there are many pangas at the dock waiting to take you out to check out the whales.  They charge $1500 to $1800 pesos per hour per boat, so you get together with others to fill up a boat (6 people maximum, at least in most boats), and split the cost.  I only paid $600 pesos (plus tip) for 2 hours, and our captain, Fernando, was great.  I made sure to be out there early, as it was high tide, and there were supposed to be more whales in the lagoon in the morning.  It was fantastic, we saw whales blowing all over the place.  It was great fun, even if the photography was challenging.  In addition to being on a small boat, bouncing around with the swells coming in from the ocean, the whales often did not cooperate.  Even with camera at the ready, they were challenging to photograph as you would first see them blow, and then you would just see their backs as they slid back into the water.  I shot about a hundred photos of their backs, just not that interesting.  So instead, I focused on photographing their tails, as they sometimes were exposed as they submerged after a blow.  I got some good photos of tails, but  only one breach.  We saw a few whales breach, but they always seemed to be off in the distance, and it was just luck, and a very quick click of the shutter, to get a photograph of an individual breaching.  We also got up-close and personal, and I photographed a woman in another boat petting one whale, though we never got that opportunity.  It got a bit crazy out there as we approached out 2 hour limit, many other boats were arriving, we were no longer only one of a few boats like it was early (we left the dock just before 8:00 am).  We bought an extra half hour for another $225 pesos, saw a bunch of additional whales, including at least a few mothers with their calves.  We also had a great group of people on the boat, fun folks, and really fired up about seeing whales.  It was a fantastic morning, the gray whales of Bahia Magdalena, Lopez Mateos. 

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