Nothing like a baby to ring in the New Year!
Passengers aboard one of Dana Wharf’s boats, the Dana Pride, spotted the first great calf of the season Sunday. To the delight of passengers, this calf was just 10 feet long.
"The calf is in my opinion no more than a day or two old and you can see the fetal folds, plump baby skin and distinguished dimples on its face. The mother was comfortable with the boat and never strayed off her southbound path," said naturalist for the American Cetacean Society, Steve O’Toole, who took the photos and video for Dana Wharf.
You can find Steve out with Dana Wharf every weekend, said General Manager Donna Kalez.
“The calf spent most of its time drafting in mom's back-left quadrant. They paused from time-to-time and we're assuming the calf was doing what most infants do looking as if to say: 'mom, I'm hungry again!' We saw the calf stumble a few times, not quite strong enough yet (or hasn't figured it out yet) to frolic too much, but for sure, we saw him also catching a ride on mom's back,” he said. “It was a wonderful day and brought smiles to everyone.”
Dana Wharf, which began whale watching from Dana Point in 1971, says the gray whale season is the best time of year, and gray whales are what made this area famous.
