Each winter the waters off the San Diego coastline are briefly inhabited by gray whales as they migrate between nutrient-rich waters in Alaska and their breeding grounds in the Gulf of Mexico. Typically, the whales first appear in mid-December and will be seen through March. During this time, it’s become a popular for families to take whale watching trips and spot a few of the 26,000 whales as they swim by.  (Image by wjklos )

Finding gray whales as they make their 10,000-mile migration is helped by their large size (they grow to around 50 feet long), slow swimming speed (5 mph) and limited time spent diving. Since gray whales don’t swim too far off shore they can be seen from land and the best vantage points are at higher elevations like Torrey Pines State Beach and Cabrillo National Monument on Point Loma. But for up close and personal views, head out to sea on one of the many whale watching expeditions. Here is some information about a few different San Diego whale watching operations:

Bike, Hike, Kayak Take a guided kayak tour out of La Jolla Shores and paddle about a mile off shore and meet up with the whales as they swim by. Expect to get wet and do a lot of paddling as you make your way out to sea. To keep warm from water splashes, Bike, Hike, Kayak provides everybody with wetsuits and booties, but it’s also recommended to wear water-safe shoes and a bathing suit. Kayaking experience isn’t necessary. Children under 8 years old cannot join and the ability to swim is a must. The cost of the 3-hour tour is $60 for single kayaks or $55 per person for tandem kayaks.

Birch Aquarium at Scripps and Flagship Cruises & EventsFlagship Cruises and Events joined with the Birch Aquarium to create a narrated, educational experience as you look for gray whales. Supplementing the narration, passengers receive a fact sheet about gray whales. Flagship launches two trips per day (9:30 a.m. and 1:15 p.m.) and weekday rates are $30 (adults), $25 (seniors and military) and $15 (children), but on weekends add $5 to the adult and senior prices. If you’re a teacher and want to take your students on a whale watching trip, call for group rates.

Dennis Conner’s America’s Cup ExperienceSail in style onboard the ‘America,’ which claims to offer a seasick-free trip and the guarantee for a whale sighting. Last year the ship carried 4,300 guests on 110 whale watching trips and will travel off shore up to eight or nine miles to live up to their whale spotting guarantee. ‘America’ passengers can bring their own lunch and drinks for a “picnic on the ocean.” The trip lasts four hours (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and costs $65 for adults and $34 for children (ages 12 years old and younger) on weekdays and $85 for adults and $44 for children (ages 12 years and under) on weekends.

Hornblower whale-watching cruisesThe Hornblower offers two, 3.5-hour departures per day and already boasts a half-day trip this year which passengers saw over 50 gray whales and a pod of about 2,000 common dolphins. Don’t get too excited about that result because a normal trip means seeing six to 10 gray whales (which is still a very successful day). If you want to see a detailed list of each day’s sights check out their whale watching report. Hornblower also guarantees a while sighting or it will issue a voucher for another trip. Weekday rates are $34 for adults, $17 for children ages 4 to 12 and seniors/military are $29, while weekend prices are $39, $19.50 and $34, respectively.

Whale Watching Tips

Before you embark on your next whale watching trip, talk to the company you’re going out with and ask about what they recommend to bring, including food, drinks and proper clothing. In case you forget to ask, here are a few good tips to remember. (Image by Cabby14)

1. Some boats allow you to bring food onboard, while others ask that you purchase food from their galley. It doesn’t hurt to pack a lunch for your family; if you have to leave it in the car, then you have a snack on the way home.

2. It is best to dress in layers because boats go a few miles off shore where it can get windy and the temperature can be 10 degrees colder than on land. Wear close-toed shoes with traction since you’ll be walking around on a pitching deck and it might get slippery.

3. Bring binoculars because there is no guarantee your captain will be able to maneuver his boat very close to the gray whales. But when those up close moments happen, have your camera or video camera in hand to document the experience. Whales spout, breach (jump out of the water), spy hop (pop their head up vertically to see above the water) and you’re encouraged to capture all their actions.