Above: *The solar & biodiesel-powered OOGmobile *Hawaii meets Chumash *Sacred Circle, led by Fred Collins
Below: Our 2013 Thank You Whales Celebrity Whale Cruise...

Oriana Kalama boards the SubSea Tours Catamaran in Morro Bay. The visibility was iffy at first but the sun eventually broke through. Other special guests included former California Coastal Commissioner Sara Wan, and her husband Larry, who captured the spectacular next series of wildlife photos. But first, a few by me, of another special guest on board, my trusty dog Lobo. Later in the cruise, Lobo and I both got seasick, sharing our queasiness in solidarity. But the whales didn't let us down! Now, this may sound weird, but Oriana was calling to them, and in they came, along with a very curious Mola mola!
Above: Lobo on whale watch, waiting for stragglers, and our seaworthy boat
Below: Photographs by Larry Wan, 5 miles out from Morro Bay!
*Double-crested Cormorant *Wilson's Phalerope *Pink-footed Shearwater
*Sooty Shearwater *Sea Lion *Sea Lions
Southern Sea Otters in Love...
We got lucky on two counts: we had award winning nature photog Larry Wan on board, and we stumbled onto otters engaged in mating!
The payoff: "Here be Whales!"
Above: Humpback takes a breath
Below: Flukes tell a story, possibly a story that includes Orcas!
Thank you to everyone who pitched in this year, especially Diane and Stephen Smith, and Oriana Kalama and Lance & Lyndia Leonard, and Max Gail, Fred Collins, Lou Blanck, Sandra Brazil, and Barbara Greenwood at Dolphinshirt-