Take a whale watching
adventure on Spin Doctor Sailing Charters in Cabo San Lucas
(Click on images in this article to expand)
 The gleaming
twin hulls race
through the winter waters of the Pacific, less than a kilometer from Land's End
in Cabo San Lucas. The sailing catamaran cuts smoothly and quietly through
the 75° water where the Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific. Someone exclaims,
"There!" and guests and crew alike, turn to watch as a a 20 ton Gray Whale
pirouettes effortlessly, then slams gracelessly back into the sea. Whale
watching brings booming business in Cabo in the winter months.
Every year Los Cabos receives an influx of winter
visitors. Some wander the tiendas and shop while others are content to sit
in the sun and sip Margaritas on Médano
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 There are several ways to
whale watching in Cabo San Lucas.
Boats of varying capacity and propulsion carry the thousands of Baja Whale
Watches out to see these marine mammals as they visit our peninsula in
their annual migration. One of my favorite ways to see and photograph the
whales is from the stable decks of a sailing catamaran.
Spin
Doctor is 46’x28’ custom built catamaran with room to move about the
decks for the best views of the whales or the Baja coastline. Captain
Ismail has been sailing these waters for 8 years and says; "I see them
almost every trip at this time of year, but every time it's the same, they
are amazing." Although no trip can guarantee whales, the odds are in
in your favor
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Beach. Yet some of our other annual visitors prefer to spout off, dine on amphipod crustaceans and swim
the relatively tranquil waters where the Pacific meets the Sea of Cortez.
I am of course referring to Grey Whales
 which can bee seen just a few
kilometers off shore of Land's End.
Grey whales migrate to Baja each season to enjoy the
food rich warm waters and give birth to the next generation. Although
places like San Ignacio may be more famous for their whale watching, it is
likely that more people actually SEE whales in Los Cabos than any other
place in Baja. The whale watching season in Cabo runs from about the end
of December to the end of March.
Whales are air breathing mammals, their young are a
live birth and are fed on mother's milk. The whale is mottled grey with
numerous white, yellow or orange patches of barnacles and parasites around
the blowhole, on top of the head, and on the fore part of the back. Males
are 35-50 feet, 28-38 tons; females 42-50 feet, 34-38 tons. The barnacles
begin to form at birth and it seems the amount of grown and pattern seem
directly related to that of the mother.
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between
the end of December and the first of April. This year is expected to
 be a
particularly good year for sightings, as the gray whale population in
this area continues to rebound.The newest addition to the La Princesa Sailing
Charters, Spin Doctor sports a
winged mast and state-of-the-art composite
material hulls that add the thrill of sailing to your whale watching
expedition. The one hour and fifty minute trip includes open bar,
guacamole and chips and music and shaded comfort for up to
 48 guests. The
scheduled trips are morning, mid-day and sunset and cost $39 per person.
But, you
should call ahead for reservations as Spin Doctor also does private
charters for parties and corporate travel and the daily schedule may vary.
The sunset sail also gives you the opportunity to see
Land's End and the famous Arch Rock as the sun dips into the Pacific. The
evenings get just a little cool out on the water, so you might want to
bring a light jacket with you. If you forget, the crew of Spin Doctor can
provide you with a Mexican blanket and another Margarita to fend off the
chill.
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Almost all adult grey whales have evidence of scaring
from encounters with Killer Whales and have patches of white where
barnacle growth has been scraped off. The scars and growth markings serve
to help researchers tell one whale from another. The scientific name for
the species is eschrichtius robustus.
Grey Whales are the only bottom feeding whale; they
scoops and filters amphipod crustaceans from the mud. A single calf is
born every other year. Primarily a bottom feeder, the Gray will dive to
120m, but prefers much shallower water. While feeding, it stirs up clouds
of mud from the seabed and filters out food through the ballean in it's
mouth. While migrating the Gray will feed at the surface on small fish
 and
shrimp-like mysids. There are more than 25 000 gray whales; once nearly
extinct, they are now fully recovered and have been removed off of the
Endangered Species List.
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Snorkeling trips are another great way to have an
opportunity to see the Gray Whales and dolphin that visit the waters
around Los Cabos. The three to three and a half hour trip takes you 6
miles east along the coast toward San Jose del Cabo to
 Santa Maria Bay.
Although this trip doesn't actually seek out the whales, we saw four or
five of them and several dozen Pacific Common dolphin on that route last
weekend. Again, Whale watching and snorkeling tours alternate the mid-day
trip in conjunction with cruise ship visits. Calling ahead will get you
the trip you want, when you want to take it.
What ever trip you choose I sure you will have a
delightful time aboard the Spin Doctor and please remember to say hello to
the crew from their friends at the LosCabosInsider!
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