There’s whale watching and then there’s up-close-and-personal whale watching. Capt. Dave’s is the latter. For more than a decade, he’s made a career of seeking out dolphins and whales off the Orange County coast and is considered one of the best in the area for his ability to find dolphin pods, California grey whales and blue whales.
With a 35-foot catamaran and passenger loads of up to 49 people, it’s easy to get a gull’s eye view of marine mammals.
An onboard TV screen and hydrophones straight from the Scripps Institute in La Jolla enhance the experience beyond squinting at the horizon in an effort to distinguish whales from whitecaps. These catamarans allow passengers to see underwater images and talk back to the dolphins and whales. Of course, it all depends on the animals’ cooperation.
Some days you might find yourself amid a pod of frolicking dolphins that clearly want to play. Other days, you might float alongside a giant whale.
What makes Capt. Dave’s excursions different is they focus on all marine mammals, avoiding the disappointment of going out to see a whale and not finding one.
According to Dave, cold, gray, windy days make it less likely to spot sea life. Some of the best whale viewing, he said, is in the summer when the blue whales visit the area.
Capt. Dave, otherwise known as Dave Anderson, operates two boats with his wife Gisela. He’s become somewhat of a celebrity in dolphin circles. He’s appeared on ABC, NBC and CBS news, on the Travel Channel and collaborated with Greg McGilivray on the Imax film “Dolphins.” He also produced a DVD, “Wild Dolphins and the Whales of Southern California,” which won seven awards at the International Wildlife Film Festival.
He calls our waters the “Serengeti of Southern California” for dolphins, with about 400,000 of them living off our coast.
Grey whale season runs through April as the whales make their way from breeding grounds near Cabo San Lucas (these whales know where to party) back to their summer homes in Alaska.
Capt. Dave also presents ocean awareness programs during Dana Point’s Festival of Whales, which concludes this weekend.
Aside from whale-watching excursions, the 37-year-old festival includes concerts, a street fair, crafts, art shows, seminars at the Ocean Institute, kayak demonstrations and a sailing regatta.
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Sandi Cain
