WINTER SEABIRDS & GRAY WHALES
Targets: Gray Whales, Risso's Dolphins, Short-tailed & Manx Shearwaters
From Point Loma Sportfishing, San Diego
Sponsored By: Buena Vista Audubon Society
Saturday, WINTER, 2013
IN PLANNING
THIS TRIP IS IN PLANNING - ALL INFORMATION THAT FOLLOWS IS FROM THE PREVIOUS TRIP - THE 2013 TRIP INFORMATION WILL BE AVAILABLE IN NOVEMBER 2012
8:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Boarding Time: 7:20 a.m.
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| Gray Whale 2010 San Diego (c) Tom Blackman |
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Few sights are more breathtaking than a breaching whale, a cavalry of hundreds of Common Dolphins leaping all around the boat or a feeding frenzy of thousands of seabirds brawling over bait fish. These are all sights seen regularly by ocean-loving birders and nature enthusiasts just a few miles off shore.
Please join us for adventure on the Fifth Annual Buena Vista Audubon Seabird, Dolphin & Whale Pelagic Trip. This year we've move to trip to San Diego Fisherman's Landing from Oceanside so that we can see a higher number of seabirds, whales and marine mammals that we're able to see from Oceanside. You do not need be a member of the Audubon to join us. We'll depart on Saturday morning at 8:00 a.m. sharp in search of those pirates of the sky: jaegers, the winged racers: shearwaters, birds that practically live their entire lives at sea: auklets - plus sea lions, 2 - 4 species of dolphins and WHALES.
WHALES: We're smack dab in the heart of the Gray Whale migration. Gray Whale watching-season begins in mid-December and extends through early-March. Over 15,000 of these peaceful "giants of the sea" make the annual trek from the cold Alaskan seas to the warm water breeding lagoons of Baja California. In addition, we may see Fin, Humpback or Minke Whales.
2011: 3 species of shearwaters (including Short-tailed). Show stoppers included VERY close encounters with 8 Fin Whales (see photos), Bottlenose Dolphin doing acrobatics – flipping and spinning out of the water, 18 Grey Whales, and a heart-pumping Peregrine Falcon using Grande as a “blind” or distraction while making multiple high-speed stoops on unsuspecting Cassin’s Auklets, missing, circling directly over and around Grande then stooping again until after a dozen or so tries it came up with a plump auklet and carried it away with gulls in hot pursuit hoping to force a dropped auklet.
2010: We saw 2 species of whales, 4 species of dolphin, Gray Whales surfacing only 90 feet off the starboard side of the boat, 2 species of shearwater, lots of alcids, great looks at a Parasitic Jaeger, Wandering Tattler and Surfbirds. 2010 Trip Report.
2009: Close Minke and Gray Whales, a family pod of Risso's Dolphins with young, 3 species of shearwaters and 2 Xantus's Murrelets. 2009 Trip Report.
2008: Hilights included Common Dolphins, Bottlenose Dolphins and a spouting Gray Whale that surfaced 6 times within several hundred feet of the boat to the delight of all aboard. We had great close-up views of a Short-tailed Shearwater, a "lifer" for many onboard. We also saw Northern Fulmars, Bonaparte's Gulls, 45 Rhinocerous Auklets, Cassin's Auklets and Common Murre. 2008 Trip Report
2007: On our maiden 2007 voyage, participants were treated to a tremendous feeding frenzy of dolphins, gulls, shearwaters and jaegers. Thousands of birds were soaring, diving, screaming, brawling and gorging themselves on bait fish chased to the surface by hundreds of Common and Bottlenose Dolphins.
LEADERS: Experienced San Diego pelagic bird spotters, guides and leaders will be on board to identify and point out marine mammals and seabirds.
Arrival Time: 6:45 - 7:00 a.m. Park in the Fisherman's Landing parking lot for $6 or on the neighborhood streets for free.
Check-in Time: 6::55 - 7:15 a.m. Stop at the Point Loma Sportfishing Ticket Office to obtain your boarding pass.
Boarding Time: 7:20 a.m.
Security Gates Closed and Locked: 7:40 a.m. sharp
Return: 1:30 p.m.
REGISTRATION:
EARLY-BIRD REGISTRATION is $39 until Jan 23.
Registration is $49 after Jan 23.
Late Registration is $59 after Jan 31.
RESERVATIONS: Telephone Point Loma Sportfishing (the landing) seven days a week at (619) 223-1627.
Tell them you wish to make a reservation for a birding trip on Grande.
IMPORTANT DETAILS: Click for IMPORTANT INFORMATION about Grande, Point Loma Sportfishing, driving directions, maps, lodging, weather, refund and cancellation policies, on-board facilities, meals and snacks,
HOW TO PREPARE: Click for tips on how to prepare, what to wear, what to bring and when to arrive.
EXPECTED SPECIES: What we see depends on the season, the itinerary and how far from shore we venture. Learn more about what species we will probably see and what species might be seen.
CANCELLATION POLICY: Trips on this website are sponsored by different organizations using different boats departing from different landings and harbors. As such, policies vary from trip to trip. Prior to registering, please familiarize yourself the Grande and Point Loma Sportfishing's policies regarding reservations, cancellations, refunds and substitutions as well as reviewing driving directions, check-in times, procedures and equipment allowed on the boats.
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| Manx Shearwater (c) Matt Sadowski |
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LANDING LOCATION: We will board Grande 30 minutes prior to departure at Point Loma Sportfishing Landing, 1403 Scott Street at the corner of Emerson in San Diego 92106.
GOOGLE MAP OF THE LANDING: Map and driving directions
DRIVING DIRECTIONS TO THE LANDING: http://www.pointlomasportfishing.com/pg/map.php
PARKING: There is a large parking at Point Loma Sportfishing for $6 a day. Enter the lot using the Emerson & Scott entrance and you'll be right at the landing 100 feet inside the parking gate so you can drop off your gear then seek permanent parking. Free parking is available on the residential streets around the harbor (for day trips) but can be very limited on weekends. If the Fisherman's Landing parking lot is full, you'll be directed to a lighted off-site self-serve pre-pay parking lot about a block away that has always had space (bring exact change of $6 per day in folding money for the lockbox).
GEAR UNLOADING: You may pull into the Fisherman's Landing parking lot, unload your gear directly in front of Point Loma Sportfishing and then park in the lot or seek on-street parking. You're not charged if you're in the lot for under 30 minutes.
START YOUR DAY STRESS-FREE: We recmmend that you arrive at the landing at least an hour prior to scheduled departure to allow plenty of time to find the landing, unload or transport gear, obtain a boarding pass at the Point Loma Sportfishing ticket window, sign the manifest, use Point Loma Sportfishing's restroom, get a cup of coffee, visit with friends and board Grande 30 minutes before scheduled departure. All trips depart on-time without waiting for late-comers. Boarding begins 30 minutes prior to scheduled departure. More tips and hints on our trip preparation page.
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Best viewed full screen by clicking the icon near the lower
right hand corner of the video (beneath the "You" in YouTube).
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| Risso's Dolphin & 2 calves were seen on our 2009 trip (c) W. Terry Hunefeld |
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| This rarely seen Minke Whale was photographed on the Jan 31 2009 trip by Tom Blackman |
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| (c) Todd McGrath and Jon Feenstra |
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