I will be back in Oregon long before they will. Hopefully I will see the great humpback whales when the are migrating north along the Oregon coast in spring. But seeing them on the last day of fall off the coast of Sayulita, Mexico, was thrilling. Here are a few picks. They breached very close to the boat. We were very lucky the leviathans treated us to such a show.

This was NOT cropped! Shot with a Canon 5D Mark II

I thought we would get splashed.

We saw them frequently in groups of three.

Big time breaching.

79,000 pounds of airborne marine mammal.

 After an incredible whale show, we sailed to the Marieta Islands, a protected wildlife refuge, for some bird-watching. The islands mark the entrance to the Bahia de Banderas, upon which sits Puerto Vallarta.

Look closely and you'll see the blue foot of the... blue-footed boobie.

Heron launches from the Marieta Islands

Captain Lorenzo at the helm.

Whale-watcher on the way back to Sayulita.

I had some computer issues dowloading the rest of my pictures. I’ll post a slideshow of the whole trip.. after we finish it.

Happy Trails,

Matt Zaffino