Whale Watching on an "America"n Beauty

I recently had the pleasure of enjoying the beautiful sailing ship "America" on a whale-watching excursion while visiting San Diego.  You may recall that Dennis Conner sailed the great “Stars & Stripes,” capturing the America’s Cup yachting prize in 1988. This fine 139 ft. yacht has been lovingly recreated in the vessel, “America,” which now sails out of San Diego Harbor daily during whale watching season from January through March.

Some Background

The largest mammal to inhabit the ocean, the whale has fascinated man for all time. Indeed, Moby Dick was the nemesis of Captain Ahab and for years man hunted baleen whales for blubber, baleen, meat and bones.

“Baleen” is made of the same material as our fingernails or hair. Each baleen plate hangs from the upper jaw of the whale, overlapping the next. Think of what vertical blinds would look like in a whale’s mouth and you get the general idea. Each plate is frayed on the bottom and sides. (It feels like thick plastic hair!). These fringed edges mat together and help trap food.

Baleen was used for corset stays, combs, even buggy whips. Before modern chemistry, whale blubber was an important commercial product. Melted down as oil, it was used for heating, lubrication, and lamps. It was also used in the processing of soap, candles, paint, textiles, margarine, and rope. Some people also ate whale meat and blubber.

The blue whale is the largest animal in the world at up to 105 feet in length and 200 tons in weight, the equivalent of 30 elephants. It cruises at a speed of eight to ten knots, surging for 20 knots every ten minutes.

The gray whale reach lengths up to 45 feet and weigh as much as 70,000 lb. Males are slightly smaller. At birth, calves are approximately 15 feet long. Both the blue and gray whales are “baleen” whales.

Whale-Watching on the America

A stunningly beautiful ship, the America sailed into her berth at 10 a.m., when they gathered the passengers for the four-hour trip. Once everyone was onboard, we received a safety briefing from the crew and were soon underway into San Diego Harbor.

No sooner had our guide for this trip, Dave Berg, begun his narration, someone spotted a gray whale in the harbor. We had barely left the dock and already we had our first sighting off the starboard side! Apparently this gray has been feeding in the harbor for the past few weeks. Despite several attempts to lure him back to the ocean, he knows where the food is and remains in the harbor. He submerged and a few minutes later, surfaced on the immediate port side. This time, he was so close you could see the barnacles on his body! A thrilling start to our day.

As we made our way out to sea, it grew markedly colder and I cursed myself for “packing light” and not bringing my fleece jacket and cap! Fortunately, the crew soon brought out blankets for the passengers. I strongly suggest a fleece jacket, gloves, a fleece cap and a good windbreaker on these trips. Layering is crucial. You may start out on a sunny warm day, but you never know what the weather is going to be like when you head out to sea. Remember the Scouts’ motto: “Be prepared.”

As we made our round-trip journey to the Santa Catalina Islands, we saw so many whales, I gave up any attempts to photograph them and just enjoyed the trip and the beautiful “America.” It was an unforgettable journey. This was my first trip on a sailboat and even though the waters were smooth and the winds so light that we motored the entire trip, I hope that it won’t be my last sailing adventure.

If you are ever in San Diego and have a choice between the diesel-powered crowded whale-watching trips or the magnificent sailboat experience that awaits one aboard the “America,” I would take the latter every time. It costs more, but for me, this was a trip about memories, not about saving money.