2018 02-28 SB Coast – Captain Dave and his crew found nice sea conditions along the Santa Barbara Coast which led to close looks at 2 gray whales and 60 California sea lions today.
The trip began with a slow search of the nearshore waters from the harbor west as far as UCSB. Today’s first whale was near Campus Point. It was a northbound juvenile on its way back to Alaskan waters for the feeding season.
After a nice long stretch with the juvenile, Dave turned the Condor Express south (offshore) to see what might be lurking in deeper waters. Several large rafts of California sea lions were watched. Each raft consisted of 30 or so animals and they were mostly packed together resting and had one of their pectoral flippers in the air to capture the warmth of the sun.
The last encounter was on the way back to the harbor when a second gray whale was located and followed. Unlike the first very coastal whale, the second one was found out past the 50-fathom curve offshore. Tons of fun!
You never know what Mother Nature has in store. Bob Perry Condor Express