BAJA WHALES COMBO - Baja California, Mexico
- Trip Intro
- Details
- Dates & Rates
- What to Bring
- FAQ
The migrating California Gray Whales travel both night and day to arrive in the calving lagoons of Baja California around the end of January. Will you be there?
Trip Details
This itinerary is a sample only - the exact itinerary of your trip will be dictated by factors such as weather, tides, and group interest, with the guides working within the parameters of safety, time, and the highlights of the area.
Day 1
Arrival in Loreto by air. At the Loreto airport, you'll be greeted by our ground service and transported to our hotel in Loreto. Check into pre-assigned rooms (included in trip cost). You're on your own for sightseeing or shopping until eve pre-trip meeting (6 or 8 pm) in the hotel lobby, where we'll answer questions and let you know the meeting time for the next day. Dinner is on your own.Day 2
Please eat breakfast and be packed by the meeting time. We'll board a van and drive to the put-in site. After loading the boats, we'll teach you the basics of paddling and thoroughly review safety procedures. We won't leave shore until all participants feel comfortable in the boats. Kayak to our first night's campsite. We’ll be making 50-minute, 2 to 3-mile crossings to the off-shore islands of Carmen and Danzante in Loreto Bay National Marine Park.Meals: lunch / dinner
Days 3 – 5
Our days begin with spectacular sunrises and end with delightfully cool evenings enjoying sunsets, stars, moonrise, and even bioluminescence. We'll spend our time paddling and exploring the scenic cliffs and coves of Danzante and Carmen. We'll be camping on sandy beaches allowing for superb snorkeling, swimming, tide pooling, and strolling. During the trip there will be three or four different camps on the islands with one or two layover days (ie we paddle out and back from the same camp). We’ll generally paddle 4 hours per day (with breaks). We'll sleep in comfortable and roomy dome tents, although with Baja's lack of insects you may be tempted to sleep out under the stars. Several campsites have a desert arroyo hike which will give us spectacular views as well as a great opportunity to explore some of the desert flora unique to Baja.Meals: breakfast / lunch / dinner
Day 6
After a final breakfast, we break camp and paddle to our take-out site around 2 PM. At the take-out, we unpack and proceed to our hotel in Loreto to (did somebody mention showers?) clean up. In the evening we go to a favorite local restaurant for a fun dinner (no-host and not included in trip price). Here we toast our new found kayaking skills and friends.Meals: breakfast / lunch
8 days / 7 nights Combo
8-day tour includes 5 days of kayaking in the Sea of Cortez as per above itinerary, and 1-day Magdalena Bay Whale Watching excursion as follows:Day 7
We’ll pick you up at the local hotel early in the morning for an exciting day of whale watching!Every February and March, hundreds of gray whales travel over 5000 miles from the Bering Strait to mate and bear their young in these protected waters. You can experience the whales and their newly-born calves surfacing just a few feet away from a motorized skiff, and if you're lucky, reach out and caress this extraordinary mammal. This one-day excursion focuses on whale watching from 22-foot skiffs in a remote part of the lagoon accessible only by water. The skiff takes you out to the deeper waters of the bay, where "friendlies" swim up and nudge the hulls. Breaching, spy-hopping and fluking, the whales will captivate your attention with their behavior. In addition to whales, the lagoon is home to dolphins, sea lions, pelicans, and thousands of shorebirds. Your guide will introduce you to the desert plants, birds and other wildlife of Baja's lagoons. You'll bring home a lifetime of memories. Van transportation back to the hotel in Loreto.
Meals: lunch
Day 8
On your own for transportation to the airport for your flight homeward. Taxis are easily found, approximately $5-6/person; depart for the airport no later than 2 hours before your flight departs.10 days / 9 nights Combo
10-day tour includes and 5 days of kayaking in the Sea of Cortez as per above itinerary day one to day six combined with 3 days whale-watching/2 nights at Whale Watching Basecamp as follows:Day 7 & 8
Your day is filled with whale watching, hiking along the sand dunes and beach combing the Pacific beaches. We will take a motorized stiff into the bay in the morning for close encounters with gray whales, leaving the afternoon free for swimming, dune walking and exploring. We can also lead skiff birding tours into the mangrove areas, or part whale watching, part birding sessions.
Meals >> day 7: lunch / dinner
Meals >> day 8: breakfast / lunch / dinner
Day 9
Several motorized skiffs will meet us at camp for 2 hours of whale watching in Boca Soledad before returning to Puerto Lopez Mateos for lunch and a van ride to Loreto. Evening at hotel (included in tour price). Dinner not included.Meals: breakfast / lunch
Day 10
On your own for transportation to the airport for your flight homeward. Taxis are easily found, approximately $5-6/person; depart for the airport no later than 2 hours before your flight departs.Sea of Cortez
One of the most spectacular sections of this rugged coast lies beneath the towering basalt escarpments of the Sierra de la Giganta. Offshore, the blue waters are pierced by the jagged shapes of Isla Danzante and Isla Carmen, both uninhabited wildlife sanctuaries. From our launch site near the base of the Sierra de la Giganta, we paddle into Loreto Bay National Marine Park spending most of a week exploring Islas Danzante and Carmen. Red-hued desert colors, azure blue water and magical landforms give this area great aesthetic and photographic appeal. Paddling a sea kayak in these waters offers exceptional opportunities for viewing marine mammals including dolphins, sea lions and with a bit of luck, fin and blue whales - the largest mammals on earth! And there's no shortage of sea birds: we'll see blue-footed boobies, high flying frigatebirds, osprey, and squadrons of pelicans soaring above on the lookout for fish as we paddle to our next camp.Magdalena Bay Whale Watching
Your whale watching expedition will be a time of discovery and tranquility surrounded by the unique environment of Magdalena Bay. "Mag Bay", over 700 miles south of San Diego on the Pacific side of Baja California, is the winter home to some of the largest and smallest of animals. At the end of a 5000-mile journey from the Bering Sea, hundreds of California Gray Whales gather each year in mid-January in the protected inner waters of this 90-mile long estuary to mate, bear their young and pass the winter months before returning north in mid-March.The narrow waterway allows us to observe at close quarters the fascinating behaviors of marine mammals such as bottlenose dolphins, California sea lions, and the gray whale. The miles of mangrove-lined channels in Magdalena Bay provide excellent bird watching. In addition to birds and marine mammals, Magdalena Bay is also home to coyotes and other desert life. The delightful surprise about Magdalena Bay is the barrier island, Isla Santo Domingo. Legions of barchan dunes, some forty feet high, march from the Pacific providing fascinating exploring by day and a wonderland to explore by moonlight. Along the Pacific shore (a brief walk across the island) is over 12 miles of uninhabited beach, enough for even the most avid beachcomber. Shells, driftwood and even a whale bone or two are to be found.
The food
The source of many compliments, our legendary wilderness meals are prepared from fresh, healthy ingredients. Our specialty is Dutch oven cookery with savory main dishes like chili rellenos, baked salmon and vegetable lasagna; and delicious desserts from brownies to pineapple upside-down cake. We serve fresh ground coffee as well as an abundance of local fruits and vegetables. Wine and mixed drinks are served with hors d'oeuvres each evening for happy hour. Special dietary requests can easily be accommodated. There's a special emphasis on our meals because we believe you are entitled to gourmet dining in the wilderness as you are at home.- Trip Intro
- Details
- Dates & Rates
- What to Bring
- FAQ
