Giants in San Diego! Blue Whale season has officially arrived in San Diego! Today was our first ever Blue Whale Extended Tour aboard the Hana Hou, and we had so many amazing looks at the largest animal to ever live! The drone view really allows you to get a sense for just how massive these animals really are! We’ve got a beautiful weekend ahead, so grab a spot on any of our trips for an excellent chance to see a real life giant! Viewed today aboard @gonewhalewatching with our amazing crew including @saltheetai, @jess_whales, and @erica.sackrison!

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2天前

Probably one of my favorite breach shots I’ve ever taken! With the Humpback activity continuing to be incredibly strong this spring in San Diego with @gonewhalewatching, I wanted to reshare this clip from a couple of years ago! Our focus is definitely about to switch primarily to Blue Whales, but these Humpbacks are really vying for our attention! We have space available all week! www.gonewhalewatching.com

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4天前

Blue Whale charging full speed ahead! What an amazing day it was with @gonewhalewatching! Erica and I were out on the scouting boat today and found at least ten Blue Whales, most of which were in range of our 2.5 hour trips! To that point, Captain Michael on the Hana Hou spent time with 3 Blue Whales, as well as a Fin Whale on the 11am trip today! The weather this week is looking top tier, and the Blue Whales are arriving in San Diego! While nothing can ever be guaranteed with wild animals, this would be an excellent week to come out with us to search for the largest animal on earth! For tickets visit: www.gonewhalewatching.com

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11天前

An Eastern Tropical Pacific killer whale explodes out of the water from our stern wake! This pod of ETPs has developed a unique habit known as “stern wake riding,” where they actively seek out boats moving at a moderate speed just to surf the waves. It’s a learned behavior shared within this specific group, and not something all orcas do. For 99% of orca interactions in California, it’s much better to stay off to the side of the pod at a slow speed and a bit of a distance…but this group actually goes out of its way to target boats that are already moving at higher speeds in order the play in the waves. Our boat did not run on top of them to create this interaction, rather the second they saw us moving away they bolted for our stern! The safest thing to do for the orcas(and for us), is to not do something unpredictable like changing course or speed until the orcas have had their fun and move on. This moment inspired a deeper dive on my YouTube channel of this behavior and more, where I explore how orcas across the world have different cultures, behaviors, and even short-lived fads. I connect this to the now infamous orca/sailboat/rudder interactions off Spain’s coast, and explain why those events aren’t “attacks,” but part of a passing behavioral trend within one distinct orca population. I also touch on the harm caused by sensational headlines used in news stories about Killer Whales, and why language matters when it comes to protecting these animals. Watch the full video now on my YouTube!

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13天前

The grandest mother of them all! Happy Mother’s Day from myself and the entire Gone Watching Team!

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20天前

Never once has someone gone whale watching and thought to themselves “what a colossal waste of tax dollars!” It took the effort of an entire globe of people united to bring the great whales back from the brink of extinction at the end of the 20th century. Today, it’s hard to imagine a group of people united to agree on just about anything…but as the temptation to wallow in the current state of humanity grows ever stronger, I am also reminded at what a remarkably unifying force whale watching can be. Since I began taking guests out whale watching with @gonewhalewatching in 2019, I’ve been amazed at the impact experiencing these animals in the wild can have on people from all walks of life. We saw over 10,000 guests last year, including people from all over the globe. We’ve hosted men and women, young and old, liberal and conservative, black and white, and everything in between…and there’s one undeniable constant: nearly everyone is profoundly impacted by the experience of seeing these animals in the wild. I am steadfastly confident that protecting their ocean home is an issue we can all agree on. Not all government is bad, and a government that protects our wildfire and monitors the state of our oceans is in the best interest of not only all Americans, but of humanity as a whole. We must once again stand united as a people and proclaim that we will not accept a world without whales.

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25天前

Becoming one with the pod thanks to the “Vapor”, an underwater scooter from @subluetech! I’ve always wanted to try out one of these underwater scooters, and recently I was given that opportunity. The only problem was the water around San Diego was very green this spring, so I knew we needed to get way offshore to have a chance for some blue water! Thanks to an optimal weather window last week, we made it over 50 miles offshore, all the way out in international waters, where the water was incredibly blue! It takes a lot to get me to jump into 59 degree water, but a chance to try out this scooter in such clear water was irresistible. During the first test run I couldn’t believe how FUN this thing was! My inner child was grinning from ear to ear! If that wasn’t enough, I was then joined by a giant pod of bottlenose dolphins! The dolphins treated me almost as if I was a boat: “bowriding” the front of the scooter and seemingly inviting me to join their pod! I doubt they’ve experienced many humans that can keep up with them underwater at 10km/hr! I can’t wait for this summer when the local waters clear up(and warm up) a bit so I can use the Vapor to explore the kelp forests and beyond! #Dolphins #vapor #UnderwaterScooter #California #Sponsored

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27天前

Orcas riding the bow like the big dolphins they are! It’s been awhile since I’ve seen the famous pod of ETP Killer Whales that visits San Diego from time to time. Today I woke up to yet another much to early incidence of “May Grey”, and those gloomy skies reminded me of the last time @erica.sackrison and I hung out with this very special pod of killer whales near the end of last year. One thing I really love about being based in San Diego is that it’s possible to encounter just about any species of dolphin or whale you can imagine that resides in the Pacific! Aboard @gonewhalewatching

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04-23

Join us in Maui in 2026! Now that we’re a few weeks removed from our amazing 2025 5-Day Maui Experience, it’s time to start thinking about 2026! Last season was our first time partnering with @maui_ocean_adventures as our host company, and our two weeks of trips could not have gone better! We experienced hundreds of Humpback Whales and witnessed every behavior imaginable in near perfect weather every day! It’s hard to overstate just how special these trips are, but if you’ve ever dreamed of witnessing whales jumping out of the water, or having a 40 ton Humpback be inches from your fingertips…then this trip is for you! Here are some quick trip details: We are officially taking bookings for week one which will take place from January 27 – 31, 2026. These dates are chosen specifically to target the absolute peak of the season with the highest frequency of friendly whales! What’s Included: -Welcome dinner on 1/27 with unlimited food and drinks (including alcohol) -Over 20 hours of world-class whale watching with our private group -Extended daily excursions to maximize sightings (banana bread & drinks provided) -Opportunity for a “blue water swim” mid-channel to hear whales singing underwater -Highlight video of the experience, created by the Gone Whale Watching team -Photo & video coaching from our professional wildlife filmmakers and photographers, including: Domenic Biagini (Blue Planet III, The Americas, Big Beasts, Oceans with David Attenborough, San Diego: America’s Wildest City, and more) Kyle Christensen (The Americas, Collision) Erica Sackrison (The Americas, San Diego: America’s Wildest City) -Complimentary 2.5-hour signature whale watching tour in San Diego with @gonewhalewatching For more information and to make a deposit to sign up for our 2026 trip please email info@gonewhalewatching.com Amazing video from the 2025 season by Captain Emma! @emmajean__17

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