The “Luck of the Irish” was with passengers on board today’s Nature
Cruise…..good sightings of 12 gray whales, including a young whale that
breached six times!  Additionally, spouts of 20 different gray whales were seen
as we transited to Los Coronados Islands.  A small pod of Pacific white-sided
dolphins swam by the vessel; soon a megapod of hundreds, if not thousands, of
common dolphins were observed jumping, tail slapping, and generally having a
great time, as were the passengers.  A few elephant seals remain at Sunset Cove,
and many harbor seals and their young were spotted.  One brown booby chick was
spotted in a nest with its parents, and a few pelican chicks were seen in the
many nests on Dead Man’s Island.  Entering San Diego Harbor, we were briefly
escorted by a few bottlenose dolphins, ending a day with terrific sightings of
marine mammals and birds.  One couple exclaimed to me, “This was the trip of a
lifetime.”

Submitted by Whaler Diane