Gray Whale Observation Posts: Week of March 19, 2003 Vancouver/Tofino and Ucluelet, British Columbia Jamie wrote: "Well, the 17th Annual Pacific Rim Whale Fest got off to a rainy and windy start; however, the weather is starting to abate, the sun is shining and the sea state is dropping. We saw more than usual numbers of whales earlier in the month, up until the weather hit on March 12. With winds up to 90 km. there was no way of getting out to the ocean to spot whales for the last few days; however, starting March 16, the Whale Watch boats are back out there. The numbers reported in the last couple of days are typical for this time of year: two to three groups of two to three animals in a five to eight mile range. We look forward to better weather and sunny skies! Till next time-- , Cheers, Jamie at Jamie's Whaling Station and Adventure Centres Westport, Washington Captain Geoff Grillo of Advantage Sport Fishing reports: "Pretty tough whale watching weather the last week. Swells have been as high as 27 feet and have only dropped to about 12 feet today but the wind and swell are on the increase for the next 4 days. I did have numerous sightings again about a week ago. Still no whales in the bay that I have heard of yet...I'll try to give a report as soon as we are able to get out again." Capt. Geoff Waldport, Oregon Trained volunteers stationed at twenty-nine locations on or near the Oregon Coast are looking ahead to a big week from March 22-March 29. This is around the springtime gray whale migration peak along the Oregon coast, and the volunteers are from Whale Watching Spoken Here. Seeing whales depends completely on the weather, so they are hoping for clear days without much wind. While Whale Watching Spoken Here® focuses on the coincidence of peaks in gray whales numbers migrating past the Oregon coastline during winter and spring breaks, the migrations are spread out for a few weeks on either side of both "watch weeks." Many so called "resident" gray whales also spend months near the Oregon Coast, especially in summer and fall. Gray whales might be seen year round on the Oregon, Washington and California coastlines. Warm, weather - appropriate clothing and binoculars really help if you want to see whales. Other tips: Morning light (with the sun at your back) is often helpful to spot blows first with your naked eye, then focus more closely with binoculars. Calmer days are better whale watching days, by land, sea, or air! Any spot with an ocean view may yield whale sightings. Charterboat and air services are also available for modest fees at many locations for even closer experiences of gray whales and other sea life. Santa Barbara, California Carol writes with news from the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary (CINMS): "In the Santa Barbara Channel, volunteer naturalists reported 118 sightings of 263 whales, only three of which were calves. The whales without calves return north first. Some of these were sighted two or more times, as there were several boats out each day. The California bight runs east west, and all the whales reported were heading west on the way north. There were many of reports of breaching, spyhopping and fluking. We had a few pec slaps, several reports of possible mating behavior, and one report of a gray basking on its back with a flipper in the air. One whale was reported swimming close to the surface with its mouth open for about 50 feet, perhaps eating. Here are some of the naturalist?s comments: "The whale seemed to be feeding on kelp, coming up with kelp all over it. Lots of spyhopping." "Two grays gave us an incredible show. Interaction with common dolphins, 8-9 breaches and a spy hop, and swimming upside down straight at the boat. Fantastic!" "Four grays swimming near surfaced. They were joined by two others. There were 4-5 breaches, showing of pec fins, and possible mating action. WONDERFUL SHOW!" These are some the questions that whalewatchers asked of the CINMS naturalists: Q: How many calves does the typical Gray have in a lifetime? A: A single calf is born in late December to early February after a gestation period of about 13 months. Most females bear calves once every two years Although some grays may live as long as 70 years, the usual lifepan is 40 or 50 years. Q.Will a mother always recognize her young? Or once a calf ventures out on its own, does it become just another gray to the mother? A: Gray whales are considered solitary animals that do not live in family groupings or pods. They may travel together for protection and the calves can accompany their mothers for up to a year, but they do not appear to form social groups. Point Vicente, CA (ACS /Los Angeles Gray Whale Census) So far, only two cow/calf pairs have passed the ACS/Los Angeles census station at Point Vicente, CA (33.74 N, 118.39 W), and that was back on Feb 28 and March 1. But Mike and Winston say that March 7 was an exciting day at the ACS Census. They saw 22 northbound whales, the largest number of northbound whales seen so far (until fabulous March 8, when there were 36). But March 7 was still special. Why? "We passed 1000 total whales this season and we are rapidly closing in on passing the total whales seen in prior seasons." Mike and Winston gave these numbers: 1994-95 total whales were 1121 1990-91 total whales were 1123 Try This! The total whales seen by March 7, 2003 stood at 1020. How many more whales do the ACS spotters need to see to pass the 1994-94 season? How many more whales to pass the 1990-91 season? Copyright 2003 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form