I have already told you a story about one of Baja’s most amazing natural phenomenons – the whale migrations to our warm lagoons.  This time, I am very excited to share with you a story about my personal encounter with these amazing mammals.

Whales can be spotted in Cabo San Lucas and at Capella Pedregal resort as well, but one of the best areas to experience them is at Magdalena Bay, where they come to give birth, mate and play. A recommended starting point for a whale-watching trip (and to spend the night) is Puerto San Carlos, a small fishing village of around 3,000 residents and a beautiful coastline on Magdalena Bay.  The village is 5 ½ hours from Cabo San Lucas, but it is well worth the visit.

I decided to make the trek and signed up for a guided tour. Captain Luis, who led the adventure, explained that whales are very curious creatures. I was anxious to discover this myself as we pulled away from the dock. Suddenly a shadow in the ocean could be seen approaching the boat. Everyone put their hand in the water and coaxed the whale towards us. And there she was, a beautiful giant whale! She came right up to the boat and we were able to touch her! But the experience didn’t end there. Next we encountered a mother and her calf. The mother proudly showed off her baby, lifting his head so that we could see him. I couldn’t believe the show I was getting!

It is difficult to fully express my whale experience, Puerto San Carlos and Magdalena Bay, but I would like to invite you to experience it in person. It is truly an event of a lifetime. Save some time between January and March next year, come visit Capella Pedregal and the whales.

Every winter in Baja California Sur we are a witness to an amazing natural phenomenon, that we all look forward to with great enthusiasm and expectations – the arrival of the whales.  Every year virtually the entire population of Grey Whales makes a 5,000 mile migration from the cold waters of Alaska’s Bering Sea to the warm water lagoons of the Baja Peninsula.  Grey Whales, often accompanied by Blue, Fin and Humpback Whales, come to Baja waters, where from mid-December to mid-March they feed, give birth, nurse their offspring and play.

Grey and Humpback whales delight people by spouting and breaching, leaping almost completely out of the water.  It is such a pleasure watching how the moms teach their babies to jump and play!  Last winter a whale came very close to Capella Pedregal beach, and together with the guests, I was amazed to see her breach and play in front of us.

Wow! I just picked up the new Robb Report Collection and on the cover is an amazing home owned by Ed Shimmon, also a Residence Owner here at Capella Pedregal. Ed’s home is in Los Altos, CA, featuring 7,500 sq. ft situated on 3 acres. His home is very modern and very beautiful, but what really caught my eye as I was oohing and aahing, was his scale model of our Capella Viking Cruiser, the Carina, in one of the photos! Each of the Capella Yacht Club Members received their very own Carina model to display and Ed’s was prominently displayed in his bookcase! It looks great by the way.

Carina Yacht Model

A tired but jubilant Capella Pedregal Owner, Juvenal Chavez, had a field day on the Auriga this week! Weighing in at just over 400#, a new record has been set for the largest black marlin caught on the Auriga on Monday, August 18, 2009. Within minutes of arrival back to the marina, a large and excited crowd quickly gathered at the yacht to hear all the juicy details of the battle. And Captain Chuck can certainly tell a lively story! High fives and smiles all around for what has now officially kicked off the Black and Blue Season for the Capella Anglers Team and the start of tournament frenzy. With the high stakes Bisbee tournament just around the corner in October, this black would most likely have been in contention for a daily jackpot and set the pace for the remainder of the tournament. We are all very proud of Juvenal and look forward to many more successful outings on the Auriga. And to laying claim to that elusive Bisbee Championship Cup!

Juvenal Chavez with his 400 pound Black Marlin

The summer months in Cabo are traditionally known as one of the best times to fish, simply because the water temperature draws a multitude of species. Striped marlin are plentiful and tuna, dorado and wahoo round out the mix. And all the yacht captains are waiting for the first sightings of blue and black marlin to signal the start of each year’s tournament season. Your fishing day is almost sure to bring something to the table and may even include hooking up a billfish for the record books. George and July Butler had one of those special days recently on the Auriga Yacht and, from the smiles on their faces, are bringing home some fish stories to go along with the sashimi!