Pelagic charter trip selection in Southern California pales in comparison the the wonderful array of trips that Debi Shearwater schedules from Central California every year. All the SoCal Pelagic Charters we are aware of are posted on this website. If you will be visiting SoCal and want to go pelagic birding, but find no trips scheduled on this website, we strongly recommend you get up to Monterey, only a five hour drive up Interstate 5 from Los Angeles.
Debi Shearwater has been offering the best and most extensive menu of pelagic seabird and marine mammal trips in the world for 36 years. Being based in Monterey allows her the opportunity to schedule trips to the most productive pelagic bird sites on the west coast including Ft Bragg, Monterey Bay, Bodega Canyon and the Farallon Islands. She even goes to Antarctica.
Debi's August Fort Bragg trips are the most dependable in the United States for seeing Dark-rumped (Hawaiian) Petrel. Her Farallon Islands trips have a 100% success rate finding Tufted Puffins. Her trips from Monterery Bay hold many first-records, as well as seeing more rarities every year than any other California trips. Debi's trips hold the world record (twice!) for the highest count of shearwater species observed in a day (eight!).
Debi's careful planning, extensive schedule at a variety of locations, recruitment of the country's top pelagic leaders and friendly communication make give her the well deserved honor of the title "the matriarch of pelagic birding."
Whether its rarities or diversity, Debi's trips offer it all. Many pelagic enthusiasts spend 3 - 5 days every year on Debi's trips. Other come out for the trips with the highest probabilities for a certain rarity. Whatever your fancy, a trip (better yet, trips) with Debi is not to be missed. Shearwater Journeys
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THE STORY OF THE WOMAN WHO PUT CALIFORNIA PELAGIC BIRDING
ON THE RADAR SCREENS OF THE WORLD'S BIRDERS
Debi Shearwater put California pelagic trips on the radar and map of the world. Her company, Shearwater Journeys, has offered one day pelagic trips from California since 1976. Since that first trip, she has shared Monterey Bay with some 60,000 birders and nature lovers.
Perhaps, the sight of her first whale— a Blue, set her heart to sea. Nevertheless, she has now traveled to many of the world’s most far flung corners, including all seven continents. Along with Les Lieurance, she co-produced a best selling DVD, Through the Seasons: An Introduction to the Seabirds and Marine Mammals of Monterey Bay.
Debi authored several popular articles about seabirds, has worked with EarthWatch on a radio tagging project for Blue Whales, has had some photographic images published in books and magazines, and has worked with studies of various dolphins, humpback whales, killer whales and albatrosses.
Most recently, Debi successfully chartered an entire expedition ship to take keen birders to the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Antarctica. Marine natural history has been a major part of her life. Altogether she has logged more than seven years at sea, visiting such places as the Bering Sea, Russian Far East, Aleutian Islands, Iceland, Spitsbergen, Seychelles Islands, Solomon Islands, Galapagos Islands, many Caribbean Islands, Panama Canal, Mediterranean islands, Tasmania, Macquarie Island, Sub-Antarctic Islands of New Zealand, Tristan da Cunha Islands, St. Helena, Ascension Island, Cape Verde Islands, Juan Fernandez Islands, and numerous voyages to Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. She has worked as staff on over thirty expedition voyages.
Debi is a past member of the American Birding Association’s Board of Directors. She is a frequent speaker at various birding festivals, a past IFO (Institute for Field Ornithology) instructor and amateur photographer. She has been honored with several awards for community leadership. Retired some years ago from her dental hygiene profession, she lives in the small town of Hollister where she enjoys the golden hills where her most favorite bird in the world soars— the Golden Eagle. Currently, Debi is a volunteer for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, counting nesting albatrosses at Midway Atoll, the world’s largest albatross colony.
Pelagic and Natural Wonder Trips
With Debi All Around The World
In addition to California trips, Debi offers trips and natural wonder expeditions all over the world, including Antartica. We highly recommend them.
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