BajaNomad

Whales in mid-March?

claratea - 2-9-2009 at 03:28 PM

Hello, we have a week off from March 16-23 and are hoping to see some whales in Baja. Will they still be around, and if so, where would be the best place to see them?

We are planning on driving from Phoenix. Will this be enough time (how many hours of driving, roughly? I know it is about 5 or 6 hours to San Diego from Phoenix)? We have a Subaru Outback 4x4, so some bumpy roads should be OK, but the vehicle clearance isn't terribly high.. Can someone suggest a good route? Is it better to cross though Calexico or Tecate?

If driving is more trouble than it's worth, does anyone have any other suggestions on how to get to the whales? The issue is that we're on a budget, and most of the trip outfitters seem to cost an arm and a leg. They are probably all booked up by now, anyway...

Thank you for your help!

woody with a view - 2-9-2009 at 05:48 PM

YES. tecate. forget outfitters.

drive to ojo de liebre/scammons lagoon. pay $40 per adult. camp on the edge of the lagoon or hang around GN or san ignacio. return home.

EASY!

Whales in mid Mar

BajaDanD - 2-9-2009 at 05:59 PM

We have gone as late as Mar15th and still got to see plenty of Whales. End of Feb or early Mar is best I think.
Cross at Tecate head to Ensenada Then down Mex 1 to Gurrerro Negro. Just past GN there is a big sign. " Ejido Benito Juarez" with a whale picture, turn right. Take that road out to the Lagoon
Ojo de liebre. There is a whale watching station there a resturant and campground too. It takes Aprox 10-12 hours to get from border to GN
Looks like you have 7 days to do this trip thats plenty of time
Take your time though there is so much to see along the way.
We do it from Prescott Az and we only have 5 days to make the trip wish we had 7.
Be safe
Dont drive at night in Baja unless you absolutly have to.

Ken Bondy - 2-9-2009 at 07:13 PM

In my experience, March is the best month. The mating is substantially complete and many of the bulls have headed north, leaving the females and newborn calves. We have had the best "friendly" encounters in March. Our favorite is Laguna San Ignacio. You don't need an outfitter, just drive to the lagoon and make arrangements there, lots of options.

[Edited on 2-10-2009 by Ken Bondy]

ELINVESTIG8R - 2-9-2009 at 08:31 PM




That little whale is over at Shari's see below url.

http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=36756

[Edited on 2-10-2009 by ELINVESTI8]

Bajahowodd - 2-10-2009 at 12:43 AM

Ken is absolutely right. Late in the season, only females with their calves are left in the lagoons. Not sure why, but the mothers encourage contact between their calves and humans. Greatest possible opportunity to pet baby whales. Be advised that the road to Laguna San Igancio is paved for only about 1/3 of its distance. So, you'll have to put up with about 30 miles of semi-washboard. It's worth it. An alternative would be Laguna Ojo Del Liebre just South of Guerrero Negro, where there is only a 15 mile dirt road.

You're on a budget. If you go to San Ignacio and are not camping, Ricardo's Rice & Beans is a very affordable motel, with a great restaurant. In Guerrero Negro, the best combination of comfort and value is Raul's Los Caracoles, which you really can't miss as you drive into town.

claratea - 2-10-2009 at 10:55 AM

Thanks for all the excellent information. Diver, your itinerary (from my other post) looks like a really great one to start with. Thank you for that. Bajahowodd, we were thinking of taking some time to see the Sea of Cortez side of Baja. Which brings me to--

What are your thoughts on driving home along the Sea of Cortez (I have a feeling I know what the general response will be)? I don't have any good maps to go by, yet, but some of those roads look a little iffy, and it seems it would take longer than to just go on Rte. 1 (keep in mind that Calexico is 1.5 hrs closer to our home).

Regarding washboard roads to/from San Ignacio, Ben LOVES them (and I get white-knuckled), so at least one of us will be happy. He's always looking for the bumpiest, rockiest, pot-holiest road to drive on. Yay.

Assuming you guys will advise us to take Rte. 1 home, and we still want to see the other side of Baja, what are your thoughts concerning Sta. Rosalia vs. Mulege? Mulege sounds more lovely, but further away. We'd love to get some snorkeling in at some point somewhere, but please stop me if you think we're getting too ambitious.

Diver, we will probably do a combination of hotels/tent camping. Any advice on particularly beautiful/special places to camp? Will we be able to hear the whales blow from our campsite? We had an amazing experience camping on an island in the Bay of Fundy, listening to whales all around us. If anyone wants advice on that area, let me know. Oh, and are there safety issues we should know about? What are the dangers of driving at night?

I am hopping up and down with excitement. I've ALWAYS wanted to make this trip. We recently moved to Phoenix from the East coast and my first thought was that we would be closer to the Grays in Baja!!

Clara

Dangers of driving at night

BajaDanD - 2-10-2009 at 11:13 AM

Cows and Semis and vary narrow road with no shoulder to speak of. No one comming to help if something happens.

As for driving over to see the Sea of Cortez try San lucas cove. Might as well go all the way to Mulege too not much to see in Santa Rosalia.
The idea of driving back along the S O C side NOT GOOD That Dirt road, kills Cars /Trucks /Tires And will take forever.
You might want to drive out to Bay of LA though and spend a day there.
We sometimes do this on our way home, if we are comming from San Ignacio. Its too far to try to make it to SanQuintin in one day so we turn off and spend the night in Bay Of LA
GOOD LUCK
DAND

claratea - 2-10-2009 at 11:22 AM

Thanks for the quick response, DanD. Bahia de LA, very interesting! I just looked at the map and couldn't help but noticing the Canal de Ballenas. Is there good whale watching there? I can't imagine the Grays would want to swim all the way around, so they must be other species?

Bajahowodd - 2-10-2009 at 11:23 AM

There is no way to drive up the Sea of Cortez side from Santa Rosalia. You will have to retrace your route up to about 30 miles past the BOLA turnoff. take the turn off at Chapala Junction and pass by Gonzaga Bay and Puertecitos. I'm guessing that the time will end up about the same. I say this because although you'll have some slow going at the Southern end of the route, You can probably make much better time from San Felipe to Mexicali than just about anywhere along Highway 1 above El Rosario. But even if a bit longer, you get to see different things.

As for a choice between Santa Rosalia and Mulege- depends on what floats your boat. They are quite different in so many ways. If you do decide to go as far as Mulege, do give yourself some time to explore Santa Rosalia. It is probably the most unique town in Baja.

tripledigitken - 2-10-2009 at 11:34 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by claratea
Thanks for the quick response, DanD. Bahia de LA, very interesting! I just looked at the map and couldn't help but noticing the Canal de Ballenas. Is there good whale watching there? I can't imagine the Grays would want to swim all the way around, so they must be other species?


You are discovering the magic of Baja. There is a lifetime of exploring to do. Yes, there are whales in the Canal de Ballenas, but not concentrated like in the lagoons of the Pacific. One camping trip south of Bahia de los Angeles (Animas Bay) we awoke to the sound of a whale just yards off shore.

A good one week trip can be spent exploring Santa Rosalia to south of Mulege along Conception Bay.

Have a great trip.

Ken

BajaDanD - 2-10-2009 at 06:12 PM

Did'nt mean to Dis. Santa Rosalia It is a way cool town, but the beaches and views are way nicer as you go south.

claratea - 2-10-2009 at 09:59 PM

I am now leaning toward stopping by the Bay of LA on the way home, instead of going further south to Sta. Rosalia/Mulege- we'll have to save that for the next trip.

I did some quick research and apparently there is quite a lot of wildlife in that area- are there opportunities to go out and see it? Do you think it would be worth it to hire a panga and spend a few hours out in the bay, or would we just be getting seasick all afternoon without seeing anything?

Or, should we try snorkeling there? We won't have any gear with us (is it still pretty cold in mid-March? Wetsuits necessary?).

We would be there for the most of one day and one night. Thinking of staying at Archelon.

Not sure if I mentioned this, but you guys rock. Seriously.

Ojo De Liebre

BajaDanD - 2-10-2009 at 11:47 PM

This was at Ojo de liebre
If you look hard you can see mom under the boat she was helping her baby to interact with us by lifting it up to us. She would then hang back a little and watch. Every now and then she would llift the baby back up to the boat.


As for Bay Of LA
lots of stuff to see and do at Bay of LA without ever going out on the water. Ive never hired a panga for only 2 hours you might get one for half day. March can be windy. Summers can be brutally hot My wife will only go there in Feb, Mar, April or May. If we had one more day this trip we would stop there on our way home.
I Still think its one of the most beutiful spots on the Sea of Cortez.
There are lots of Nomads here with much more info about it I know there is a website with lots of links but cant remember who's it is.

[Edited on 2-11-2009 by BajaDanD]

[Edited on 2-11-2009 by BajaDanD]

[Edited on 2-11-2009 by BajaDanD]

[Edited on 2-11-2009 by BajaDanD]

2005 whales 2 012.jpg - 46kB

Bajahowodd - 2-11-2009 at 12:03 AM

Whatever you choice, just know that for this trip, in March, it should be noticeably warmer in Mulege than BOLA.