Lots of southbound gray whales!

Image: the course taken by the Condor Express today from its AIS track. (The automatic identification system (AIS) is an automatic tracking system that uses transponders on ships and is used by vessel traffic services). Courtesy of marinetraffic.com

2026 01–25 SB Channel

The ocean surface was smooth. Skies were partly cloudy. There was a very light SE wind in the northern Channel, but by the time we reached beautiful Santa Cruz Island it was calm. This report will be short and sweet. We observed 10 gray whales, and we closely watched 4 of them.

As you can see from our track above, Captain Eddy and the crew made a nonstop trip to the SE and headed directly into the Santa Cruz Channel. Southbound migrating grays swim 24 hours a day, and are in groups with varying degrees of distance between them. When you go to a known hotspot at a particular time and day, you are indeed rolling the dice.

Continuing the gambling analogy, we hit the jackpot today. We encountered a pod of 4. They fluked up regularly and showed their tails. Additionally, they came close to the boat and we watched them right off of our bow. We spent the better part of an hour getting great looks. At least another six spouts were in the area.

On our way home, we paid a visit to the world famous Painted Cave. It is always a thrill to peek inside it’s outermost chamber.

You never know what mother nature has in store.

Bob Perry

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