Captain's Blog

Hello whalewatchers:

We had another great day here in Sea of Cortez. We started with a whaleshark snorkel in the morning. The swimmers and observers got some good looks at multiple animals here in Bahia La Paz.  Then we travelled north and checked out the frigatebird colony on Isla Espiritu Santu for lunch.

We finished the day with a skiff ride and a snorkel around Los Islotes. The sea lions were very playful this afternoon and entertained the snorkelers.  We are going to go ashore in the morning at Punta Colorado on Isla San Jose.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Hello whalewatchers:

We rounded the Cape (at Los Cabo) around 5am  and headed for the Gorda Bank.  When the sun came up we were greeted by a large number of humpbacks. We got on a group of 4 or 5 and they hung out around the boat for 30 mins. The next thing you know we were surrounded again. In the group was an excited calf. We had multiple breaches close to the boat and lots of good looks because of this calf!

We left around lunchtime for Punta Arena.  There was a little chop but we tucked in tight to the beach and everyone got a chance to try out their snorkel gear and go for a beach watch. All of this was topped off with a beautiful sunset.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Hello whalewatchers:

What a day today!

Once we got south of the entrance to Bahia Magdelena, we spotted some tall spouts out to the southwest.  Once we got closer we could tell right away that the one we were pointed at was a blue whale.  Next thing you know we were surrounded by we what think were 4-6 blue whales milling around.  We got a few good looks at a single and a pair.  The conditions were not ideal so after a hour and a half, we broke off and kept traveling south.

We spotted another blue whale 20 miles south and this one was much easier to work with. We had good looks from a hundred or so yards away on the surface and right under the surface.

We also spotted some common dolphin and humpbacks throughout the day to go with our albatross, masked boobies and Sabine’s gulls and many more seabirds.  We will be on the Gorda Banks offshore Cabo San Lucas tomorrow.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Hello whalewatchers:

Nice weather and good whalewatching again today in Laguna San Ignacio. Not as many friendly whales today but still plenty of good looks.  We made a trip to the mangroves this morning for birdwatching and did a beach walk this afternoon.
We took off at around 4:30 p.m. and are across the entrance sandbars and are headed south for Bahia Magdalena.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Hello whalewatchers:

We got across the sandbar (at the entrance to Laguna San Ignacio) this morning successfully around 7:30am and were greeted by an abundance of gray whales.  We got the anchor down shortly after and sent everyone out in the pangas–a very good day of whalewatching! Everyone got a an opportunity to touch a whale today. All smiles here!

We’re hanging out tonight hoping for some more of that tomorrow.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Hello whalewatchers:

We had a little bit of breeze this morning sliding into Isla San Benito, however it decreased dramatically throughout the day. There were plenty of pinipeds on the beaches and rocks around the island: elephant seals, California sea lions and Guadalupe fur seals.

We left the islands after our hike at around 2 p.m in search of wildlife. We found some humpbacks that were not too easy to observe, and medium herd of common dolphin. We enjoyed some great birding to as well.

We are headed for Laguna San Ignacio right now and will be crossing the bar first thing in the morning.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Searcher at anchor from the trail at Isla San Benito Oeste

Hello whalewatchers:

We departed Ensenada this morning and were greeted with calm seas and an abundance of gray whales as soon as we passed Isla Todos Santos.  We had something to look at for the majority of the day.  After the gray whales we came upon a few spots of common dolphin and Pacific white-sided dolphins (attached photo from a previous year thanks to Rob Nawojchik).  Later in the day we watched a pair of humpback whales, and right before the sun went down we followed a pair of fin whales.

There were lots of shearwaters, gulls and some albatross to keep the birders busy.  We will be arriving at Islas San Benito in the morning.

Captain Mike and Team Searcher

Gray whale fluke by Rob Nawojchik. Taken in Laguna San Ignacio.

Hello whalewatchers:
It was an exciting day for our whale watchers since many had waited two years to make this journey to Baja California! Wishing them wonderful wildlife sightings.

We’ll post about their tour here as they migrate south.

Team Searcher

Hello whalewatchers,

We startd with a walk and a snorkel session at Bahia Agua Verde today. The weather is tremendous with calm seas and sunny skies.

We left there in search of whales and it didnt take long for the crew to find our first blue whale of the day. It was a long-winded whale down for 15 minutes at a time and not at the surface for very long. The crew spotted another blue whale in the distance and this was a cow and calf. We had excellent looks at both animals. It is truly amazing to see this, a mother and calf blue whale pair. We decided to leave and let mom and baby do what they do.

We headed south and found a humpback, a fin and another blue whale in the same area. We had great looks at blue whale flukes again as well as the right lower jaw of the fin whale. That was a busy afternoon and you could add several Craveri’s murrelets to the list, as well as two Red-billed tropicbirds right after we left Agua Verde.

We ended the day with a great sunset over the peninsula and our traditional back deck buffet with BBQ ribs and all the fixin’s. We hope our UK guests enjoyed this US tradition!

Captain Art and Team Searcher

Stock photo showing the lower right jaw of the fin whale. It's white!

Hello whalewatchers,

We had an excellent day today in the Sea of Cortez. We started with a great sunrise at Punta Colorado on Isla San Jose, then a walk on the island, followed by a snorkel session with great visibility. We headed north looking for whales and it didn’t take long to find a blue whale. Everyone had hoped to see a blue whale on this trip! The whale was great to watch with a 9- ,minute dive and plenty of time on the surface so we could get a good look, and then the whale fluked.

We continued north and came across an area of pilot whales. There were multiple spots of pilot whales so we had some good viewing. Another large blue whale was next up and some great looks at a big whale.

The weather was fantastic with calm seas and no wind. The landscape as always is a highlight. Looking forward to tomorrow.

Captain Art and Team Searcher