Whale Hugs!

Click images for a larger view.

Took a bus trip with a bunch of fellow naturalists (plus a few other cool people tossed in for good measure....) to the Baja in Mexico to go look for whales in the lagoons there! Gray whales leave their Alaskan feeding grounds for the lagoons in Baja to have their babies. The cold Alaskan water is too cold for skinny new baby whales. Plus, these lagoons are safe from predators, like Orcas, which are known to snack on baby gray whales. Anyway, in these lagoons, the gray whales can sometimes be quite friendly. The photos should prove that! These only show the baby who came over for hugs. Seriously. Mom was present below the surface paying CLOSE attention. After a bit, Mom came over for hugs too. Many more great photos to come, after I get over being sick! Such an amazing experience.

The bottom photo shows my hand on a barnacle covered baby gray. The two oval stripey things are whale lice that eat dead skin.