November 21, 2005
Whale watching in California
Places for whale watching in California:
Northern California (best time for whale watching January through March): Centerville Beach (5 miles west of Ferndale), Guthrie Creek Headlands (12 miles southwest of Ferndale). Mendocino holds a "Whale and Wine Festival," March 4-5, and has whale-watching walks.
South of San Francisco on Highway 1: Pillar Point Harbor in Half Moon Bay (boat tours); Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (see migrating whales breaching as they travel along the coastline); Davenport, (whales come close to the shore).
Los Angeles area: San Pedro (yacht trips December through March). Marina del Rey, Channel Islands Harbor (planning a "Celebration of the Whales Festival," March 5).
Orange County: Newport Harbor in Newport Beach (boats leave daily January through late March), Dana Point (daily cruises in winter). The Dana Point "Festival of Whales" is scheduled for March 4-5 and March 11-22.
San Diego: Cabrillo National Monument has an observatory (it's enclosed); McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad (whale-watching flights).
Posted by James Trotta at November 21, 2005 1:09 AM