Watching the Whales Go 'Round

Whale watching season is underway in San Diego! Each year, 20,000 eastern gray whales embark on the world's longest mammal migration, a 10,000 mile round trip from their summer home in the Bering Sea to their Baja California calving and mating grounds.
From late December through mid-April, naturists from the Birch Aquarium, home of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, and proud vendors of Whale Tails Tortilla Chips, invite the public to join them on daily excursions to locate the magnificent gray whales. Ocean experts are on board to answer your questions about marine life as they point out not only whales, but seals, dolphins and sea lions.
On the Scripps blog, whale watching coordinator Audrey Evens calls the migration a parade:

...our passengers and naturalists observed gray whale mating behavior, females traveling with calves, breaching (leaping with much of the body out of the water) and spyhopping (raising the head above water to peek around).

and Birch Aquarium naturist Elizabeth Argyle explains the gray whales' diving pattern:

During their approximate 5,000-mile southward journey, gray whales demonstrate a unique behavior of 3-5 surface dives followed by a single deeper dive known as a sounding dive. Following each subsequent shallow dive, the whale surfaces and exhales.

Daily Flagship–San Diego Harbor Excursions depart at 9:45 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., lasting three and a half hours. Printable $5 discount coupons for the 2013-2014 season are available here.
If you love whale watching as much as we do, contact us and share your stories!

The Gray Whales Have Returned To Point Reyes National Seashore

The rangers at Point Reyes are reporting that the Gray Whales are back and are at the peak of their annual migration south.  They are also reporting that the gigantic Bull Elephant Seals have made themselves at home and the first seal pups of the season have been born.

Point Reyes is one of the best areas to view the whales up close because of how the point extends about 10 miles out into the ocean. The Park Service is running shuttles on the weekends to take visitors out for an up close encounter.

Here are some facts about this annual migration event which is the longest migration of any mammal on earth:

• Summers are spent at the feeding grounds of the Chukchi and Bering seas.

• As winter approaches, signaled by the shortening days, they begin their migration to their winter home in Baja, California.

• Their migration will mean a total journey of about 10,000 miles.

• Their average swimming speed is about 5 mph but they can swim for 20 hours straight.

• Fully one third of their lives are spent migrating.

• They will once again be seen at Point Reyes on the return trip in March.

While the Gray Whales are the major draw for a watching experience, the Elephant Seals are another, fascinating creature that can be viewed at this time of year.  They descend on the beach in great numbers and the best viewing can be found at North Drakes Beach.  This is the time of year that they mate and fight so the scene can be quite dramatic (and loud) at times.

At Whale Tail Chips we hold a special place in our hearts for these gentle giants that share our planet.  We also feel pretty strongly about the snack products that we have to offer.  We take great pride in providing you with healthy, delicious and environmentally responsible snacks that are a great addition to your whale watching picnic basket.  If you get a chance to visit Point Reyes and want to show off a picture or two, please contact us and let's share!