Tomorrow, December 15th, is one of the most important dates on the Los Cabos calendar, marking as it does the official arrival of the region’s
biggest and most highly anticipated seasonal visitors.
Yes, tomorrow is the official start of whale watching season in Los Cabos. Unofficially, whales begin making their way down from summer feeding grounds in Arctic waters to winter breeding grounds around Baja California Sur as early as November, but December 15th is the first day activities operators are legally allowed to offer dedicated whale watching tours, opening up a 120-day window (whale watching season ends on April 15th) for what amounts to a bucket list opportunity: the chance to get up-close with leviathans whose size and power almost defies description.
Each year, an estimated 5,000 or so whales migrate to Los Cabos; or more accurately, transit through Los Cabos waters on their way to winter breeding grounds in coves and inlets around Baja California Sur.
Each species has their own breeding grounds of choice. Ojo de Liebre and Magadalena Bay on the Pacific Coast of Baja California Sur, for instance, are the favored breeding grounds for gray whales, while humpbacks continue on into the Sea of Cortez. Both species are commonly sighted in Los Cabos each winter, although humpbacks are more often seen; and because of their spectacular breaching behavior – in which they lift nearly their entire bodies out of the water (all 60,000 pounds or so) – much more of a focus of local whale watching tours.
During whale watching season, virtually every local boat offers tours, from small sailboats to luxury yachts. But by far the best way to see them, and to get as close as possible – Mexico has legal limits to protect whales from overzealous tour operators – is by embarking on Zodiac boats tours. These high-speed inflatables have enough power to allow their captains to spot whale spume and anticipate where the next breach will occur. Some local adventure companies even offer hydrophones, so that in addition to the sight of these magnificent creatures, guests can also listen to their incredible “songs,” a form of language so complex scientists are still working to achieve a basic understanding.
But complex language is only one of many fascinating things about these majestic creatures. With that in mind, here are a few of our favorite whale related fun facts in honor of the season.
Fun Facts About Whales and Whale Watching Season in Los Cabos
- Everything about whale watching season in Los Cabos is larger than life. Even the migration is out-sized. In fact, the longest migration in recorded history involves a gray whale – dubbed Varvara by scientists – who in 2015 completed a 14,000-mile round-trip journey from Russia to Cabo San Lucas. Not bad for a nine-year-old.
- No whales breach more spectacularly than humpbacks, and as luck would have it humpbacks are by far the most commonly sighted species in Los Cabos. But they’re not the only species by any means. Orcas are sometimes sighted, as are sperm and even blue whales, the latter being the largest creature ever to existed on Earth.
- Blue whales can grow up to 100 feet in length and reach 380,000 pounds in weight.
- The average life expectancy of a humpback whale is 45 to 50 years, and they are enormously intelligent, possessing a “spindle” neuron in their cerebral cortex that exists only in whales, dolphins, humans and great apes. The smartest whales, however, are sperm whales, who have brains five times the size of humans.
- Gray whales, the second most commonly sighted whale species in local waters, live an average of 70 years. So if Varvara’s trip from Russia to Cabo San Lucas is her normal migration and she does it every year of her life, she will have traveled approximately 980,000 miles.
- Whales can communicate over vast distances. A humpback singing in Los Cabos can be heard by other humpbacks thousands of miles away.
- Each whale species not only has their own language, but like humans, communicates in different dialects based on region. A study of Pacific sperm whales discovered five separate clans, each one of which had their own unique dialect.
- In a 2012 study, it was shown that beluga whales can actually mimic the human voice. So perhaps one day we can communicate with one another.
- Although all life on earth comes from water, whales – like other cetaceans such as dolphins – lived on land as recently as 50 million years ago, before evolving back into the sea.
For more information about events, activities and villa rentals in Los Cabos, call us TOLL FREE at 1-888-655-4548, visit www.LosCabosVillas.com, or email us at Info@LosCabosVillas.com.
Photo credit: Elegant Mexico
Upcoming Events Calendar
December
Art Walk in San Jose del Cabo – Dec. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Viva La Plaza in Cabo San Lucas – Dec. 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
Sabor a Cabo Rural – Dec. 5
Top Chef Taco Series at Paradero – Dec. 9 – 10
El Dia de la Virgen de Guadalupe – Dec. 12
Official Start of Whale Watching Season in Los Cabos – Dec. 15
Las Posadas – Dec. 16 – 24
Taco Fest 2021 at Casa Dorada – Dec. 17
Nochebuena (Christmas Eve) – Dec. 24
Navidad (Christmas) – Dec. 25
Nochevieja (New Year’s Eve) – Dec. 31
Studio 54 New Year’s Eve Party at Casa Dorada – Dec. 31
January 2022
Los Cabos Pro-Am Golf Tournament at Twin Dolphin and Cabo del Sol – Jan. 9 – 13
Tropic of Cancer Music Series in Todos Santos – Jan. 12 – 16
Todos Santos Writers Workshop – Jan. 30 – Feb. 5; Feb. 7 – 11
February 2022
Todos Santos Writers Workshop – Jan. 30 – Feb. 5; Feb. 7 – 11
Todos Santos Open Studio Tour – Feb. 4 – 6
Carnaval in La Paz – Feb. 26 – Mar. 1
Cabo Collegiate Golf Tournament at Querencia – Feb. 27 – Mar. 1
March 2022
Fiestas Tradicionales in San Jose del Cabo – Dates Not Yet Announced
April 2022
Semana Santa – Apr. 10 – 17
May 2022
Cinco de Mayo – May 5
Dia de la Madre – May 10
Warren Hill’s Los Cabos Jazz Festival – May 15 – 18
Premier Golf Pro-Am Tournament – May 15 – 21
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