Aquarium of the Pacific: The Bryde and Blue Whale Harbor Breeze Viewing Excursions Begins!

Photos by Billy Bennight for the Los Angeles Beat

The last time I embarked on a whale watching excursion it was the time of year when the Grey Whales were migrating. I was then keenly interested this round in seeing the Bryde and Blue Whales on this Aquarium of the Pacific and Harbor Breeze cruise kicking off this season’s Whale viewing excursions that embark from Long Beach. The trip started in earnest when the captain fired up the engines to the new 150 passenger Triumphant to cruise out to the deeper waters and to see big beautiful whales.

Our journey lasted about 3 hours. We found a pod dolphins in one spot when we first headed out between Long Beach and Catalina, but no whales. We then headed towards the coast line of Rancho Palos Verdes. This is where the ocean shelf drops off dramatically and the Krill swim deeply. This is where the Blue whales dine on these tiny crustaceans. We found a pod of Bottle Nosed Dolphins swimming about but we were still lacking in the whale department. There was a quiet sense of desperation and disappointment brewing in that moment. Of course, the fresh sea air and the open beauty of the ocean was stirring and uplifting all on its own. The Triumphant was speedy and comfortable. It was far roomier than its predecessor and offered great viewing opportunities on all sides. When we arrived at our final destination itt was almost instantaneous when we settled at our new destination we saw the spray of a large Blue Whale. She dropped down on a dive and we waited for arrival some 8 minutes later. The was quiet till another Blue Whale emerged to our rear blowing a large spray into the air as we cooed at the sighting.

Photo essay after the jump!

This Blue Whale was named Ilene because her flute is longer and curved on her left side. She shared, for us, an unintended or unexpected biological event, when she left feces behind from her previous feedings. I was told it’s rare to have a whale leave such dropping behind. They highly prized by marine biologist for understanding how the Blue Whales lives and discerning its health. Ilene then dived for approximately 10 minutes to wow us with another grand surfing and a couple of magnificent sprays or known as the “Blow” from he blow-hole as I and the others passionately and observantly watched the largest creature to ever live on the face of the Earth pass by us. The Blow must have gone 30 to 40 feet into the air. It’s hard to imagine the scale of such a thing but it hypnotic experience when confronted with it in the immensity of the surrounding ocean. These Bryde and Blue Whale viewing will continue through the end of October. It an adventure the whole family can enjoy, but most of all it an amazing adventure!