A heavy blanket of fog laid over National Geographic Sea Bird as the last day of the voyage began. After a brief stretch class, guests enjoyed a healthy breakfast to prepare for a morning of whale watching. Pangas full of guests sped along the sand dunes that line Canal de Soledad as eyes were set on the horizon, hoping to see the distinct heart-shaped spout of the gray whale. It didn’t take long for the panga drivers to find a mother and calf floating at the surface of the water, apparently enjoying a restful sleep. After a period of quiet observation from a distance, the whales began to stir into motion. Guests were greeted by a friendly giant as the young gray whale prodded the fiberglass boats with curiosity. We wrapped up a productive morning of whale watching when guests came back aboard for lunch. We made a short transit through Hull Canal with navigation by our longtime pilot, Sergio Camacho. The ship anchored near the southern tip of Isla Magdalena so guests could make the short trek to Sand Dollar Beach as the last adventure of the day.
3/10/2025
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National Geographic Sea Bird
Bahia Almejas
The day began with an exhilarating stretch class just after sunrise. Gray whales were spotted on our way south and guests enjoyed the early morning at the bow looking at whales, dolphins, and a couple of curious sea lions. Essentially, we saw whales all the way to the mouth of Bahia Almejas. During the morning whale watch outing, we boarded pangas with local captains who took us to the best spots. The experience with the whales was characterized by the number of spy hops we saw. At one point we counted up to 10 whales in the same area! For the second outing in the afternoon, some boats were lucky enough to see whales up close and even touched them. We were fortunate to have perfect weather all day which allowed us to calmly enjoy the whales going about their daily activities. Back on board National Geographic Sea Bird , guests felt inspired by what we’ve experienced and put it in watercolor. At the end of the day, we attended a presentation about climate change with guest speaker, Joy Ward.
