News from San Jose

Whale Watching with UCSC Alumni

Last year I spent weeks sweating over an event at the San Jose Museum of Art for the Silicon Valley chapter of the UCSC alumni association. This year, I organized a whale watching trip that included members of the alumni association in the Silicon Valley, Santa Cruz and San Francisco in a few hours.

We reserved an entire boat from the Oceanic Society for a half day of whale watching in Half Moon Bay. We started out at Pillar Point and the naturalist on board immediately began identifying sea birds for us. We also saw a seal, dolphins, jellyfish, and grey whales. It was a great trip, with plenty of animals to see and good conversation.

After the trip, we had an intimate potluck lunch. Everyone had been invited, but only about five people showed up. Since we were mostly leaders, we ended up having a little brainstorming session. I decided that next year, I'm going to do another whale watching trip to see blue whales, which can often be found near the Farallon Islands off San Francisco Bay. The Oceanic Society does trips out there, too.

On the west coast of California, people can spot gray, humpback and blue whales. I've seen the first two species. Just one to go!

last updated May 11, 2001