Sanctuary Cruises - Captain's Log

Spring 2000
Jan. 1, 2000	From the Heart
April 28, 2000	Humpbacks Every Direction!
April 27, 2000	The Grays Go North; the Humpbacks Arrive
April 27, 2000	The Bay of Humpbacks
April 22, 2000	A Tale of Two Whales
April 17, 2000	The Humpbacks are back!!!
April 17, 2000	METCALF DECRIES MAKAH WHALE HUNT
April 15, 2000	A Whale of a Debate Stirs Up the Waters at CITES 2000...
April 2, 2000	Will They Name It Sanctuary?
March 2000	From a recent email (which we love getting!)
March 29, 2000	Whales Galore!
March 24, 2000	Lesley's Money Well Spent
March 18, 2000	Ambling North With the Grays
March 13, 2000	It is Spring!
March 4, 2000	The Mighty Gray Whales' Northern Migration
Jan. 30, 2000	Killer Whales Off Monterey
Jan. 9, 2000	The Oakland Brownies Ship Out
Jan. 8, 2000	Traffic Jam at Point Pinos

1/1/2000: From the Heart!
This morning, I opened our email and tended to some business. I love getting to know people who find us on the web, then come out with us.

Next, I opened an email from a dear friend. We met him when he filmed the CNN pieces on our work with the whales and kids. You know this feeling: you are drained and miserable... You wish things could be just a little easier... Taking a day off hurts... If only there were more time...

Then the murky skies open up and a ray of sun so pure and bright that it warms you from within shoots out of the heavens and finds you. Here is our ray of sun:

Hello Steph and Heidi,
Hope all is well with you folks. Today, on the very first day of this Millennium, the first thing I read was your letter that accompanied your "Live your dreams" card. I had no doubt that it would offer something inspirational. Indeed, it was full of them. I have always had the greatest respect for the kind of lives you folks lead. It is old school, something raw, with purity of intent.

I am so proud of what you folks are all about. You pursue your ideals and though you've been rebuffed despite the good intentions, you've come back over and over again in another form. You folks are like that villain guy in Terminator 2. Every time Arnold blows the guy away, he keeps coming back. But you differ from the villain, you are the good guys!

I really have had the optimistic intentions of being more useful to you folks. You kindness and feeling of friendship to me is something I feel honored to have. One of these days, I'm sure I'll come in handy. I still want to help out by producing some sort of introductory tape for your business. [Ray owns Beyond Pix in San Francisco, a full TV production company and we met when he shot some pieces for CNN on us.]

I also want you to know that your efforts don't go unnoticed. Ever since I met you, you have made me more aware of the ocean life and its need for our awareness and protection. Growing up on Guam, a tiny island in the Pacific, I have always tended to take the ocean for granted for it was always there. Not a day went by without ever seeing the ocean. Our house was on a hill and the Pacific was a constant companion, a presence that youwould never even begin to think of as a fragile element in this world.

But because of your teachings, I now understand that even the great and expansive Pacific Ocean and its sister oceans are constantly threatened by human trespasses. Because of your teachings, I read, listen and watch out more for issues regarding our natural resources. And because of the awareness you caused, I now know and understand that our human society of 6 billion people is no longer using the interest of our earth's resources, but are actually biting into the principle. Despite the vastness of the oceans, the seas no longer replenish what we cultivate, in essence, our pond is running out of fish.

It took you folks to make me understand that and I grew up as a Boy Scout for years, so I've always had a tender heart for nature. But, just think how much more influence others will need to embrace the same thoughts. Spaceship Earth. It's a term that became part of the popular societal conciousness in the mid-seventies. But despite the awareness and the big push for environmental/conservation efforts, there's a general complacency that runs rampant.

So in this war against complacency, I see you both as the foot soldiers that go into battle everyday through your own volition and purpose, uncluttered by bills and legislation; by mandate nor by corporate ulterior motives, but guided by the conciousness and the soul of Planet Earth. It is high idealism that is backed up by your daily toils and practices.

Hooray for the fact that you both have taken up the mantle of responsibility for education. Congratulations for the little victories you have won and forge ahead to conquer new ones. I have always been a fan of this thing called the "human spirit." It is the driver that has given us the vaccine tofight diseases, build nations, compose songs and write poetry. It is the impetus of progress and the inspiration for our undeniable will to live. And though personal wills will clash with each other from time to time, it is what the human experience is made of on this stage called Earth. I am glad there are folks like you to defend worthy causes.

So on this day, the first day of the Year 2000, I thank God for people like you and wish for your voices to be heard louder than ever. And while most of us carry on in our day to day lives, seemingly uncaring, your efforts are the representation of the collective lot. On behalf of all those you have touched, please accept our gratitude.

And what is that old seafaring term? Godspeed to you!

Always,
Ray

4/28/2000: Humpbacks Every Direction!
Today was awesome. I know, that word is overused. People describe a hamburger as awesome; a ball game... But picture being just a few miles from the breakwater. You've been on the water all of 25 minutes. And there are humpback whales every direction you look! There were balls of bait so big under us that some of the skippers described them as haystacks. Haystacks the size of football fields. Humpbacks, sooty shearwaters, brown pelicans, three types of dolphins, sea lions and more were out there to feast on the small fishes.

We saw whales breaching, lunge feeding; they were in front of us, under us, behind us. On our second trip, we tried for 10 minutes to head in, but the whales kept popping up in front of us! So we'd stop, people would spring up to take pictures, the whales would sound and we'd start to throttle up again and more whales would surface and we'd slow down again.

We must have seen 20 whales within a few miles of each other and more were reported farther out. What an incredible day. Yeah... Awesome!

4/27/2000: The Bay of Humpbacks
The first humpback whale arrivals to the bay have been joined by a whole bunch more. They are all over the Bay. Enchanting!

4/22/2000: A Tale of Two Whales
The last several trips have been quite a mixture. We have had calm seas, rough seas and in-between seas. We saw one or more humpbacks on one trip, a gray whale on the next one and three species of dolphins on the one after that. Yesterday, we saw no whales but did get to cruise with Risso's dolphins for quite a while. Today on our first trip, we saw absolutely nothing except for black-footed albatross' and sooty shearwaters; on our second trip, we saw one fast swimming northbound gray whale and more Risso's. It is always different. The humpbacks should be arriving in stronger numbers any time now, but the gray whales are thinning out considerably. Yesterday, there was an article on the gray whales in the Monterey County Herald. Wayne Perryman, a biologist with the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in La Jolla, conducts the annual gray whale cow/calf pair census at Piedras Blancas, south of us a few hours. As of last Thursday noon, only 17 pairs had been spotted northbound. In 1998 at the same time, 170 pairs had been counted. 11 more pairs passed by yesterday, but it still brings the total woefully short of previous years. More disturbing is the fact that Perryman noted the condition of the whales is not good. He has seen the skinniest whales ever this year. One reason for this could be the late ice breakup in the Bering Sea last spring. This kept the whales away from their feeding grounds when they usually would be gorging themselves in order to withstand their fast on the migration south. Last year, we saw a gray whale surface feeding on krill off Monterey, which shows a wonderful ability to adapt. But how much can they adapt and can they find enough food along the way to stave off starvation? A lot of questions, too few answers.

4/17/2000: The Humpbacks are back!!!
We have seen several humpbacks on each of our trips this week and it is a thrill. Folks have gasped, raved and left Sanctuary with grins as broad as a barn door. From now through fall, all of our whale watching cruises are 3 hours long. These include our regular cruises as well as special cruises on select dates. Prices for regular 3 hour cruises are $27.00 for adults/$22.00 for kids under 12.

We have seen whales (plus dolphins, migratory birds, wonderful jellies and much more) on the vast majority of our trips. Occasionally rough weather hampers us, but even then, we often have great whale sightings. If this is something that you have always wanted to do, by all means, get out there with us!

Special charters may be scheduled before our regular trips, after them, or even in lieu of them. Got a cool idea? Let us help make it even cooler.

4/27/2000: The Grays Go North; the Humpbacks Arrive
The humpback whales are back on Monterey Bay. It was like seeing old friends when their broad black backs sliced the surface, followed by their enormous, graceful flukes. We will be seeing them well into fall.

Meanwhile, the grays are still heading north. We've seen gray whales as recently as the last few days. The gray whales are the most ancient and primitive of the grea whales, but all isn't perfect in their world. There are problems for the grays as well as other whales, as evidenced by the following:

A Whale of a Debate Stirs Up the Waters at CITES 2000, 4/15/2000: Delegates Vote Overwhelmingly Against Whaling While Japan Criticizes

NAIROBI, Kenya, April 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Japan blasted CITES [Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species], the International Whaling Committee (IWC) and the IUCN, when it took the floor today at the 11th Meeting of CITES to defend its three controversial whale proposals, which would allow for the commercial hunting of the Eastern Pacific gray whale [our grays!!!], Southern Hemisphere stocks of minke whale, and Western Pacific and Okhotsk Sea stocks of minke whales.Specifically, Japan seeks to downlist all three whale stock populations from Appendix I to Appendix II, allowing for the commercial hunting of these whales. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW -- http://www.ifaw.org) opposes these and a similar Norwegian proposal for the downlisting of the Northeast Atlantic Ocean and North Atlantic Central stocks of minke whale.After a secret ballot was cast -- Japan's Pacific gray whale downlisting proposal was voted down. Of the 109 official votes counted, 40 supported the proposal, while an overwhelming 63 voted in opposition of it.More than 27 countries and several international organizations initially asked to speak in comment of Japan's first tabled proposal -- the downlisting of the Eastern Pacific Gray Whale, requiring the Chairwoman to close the speakers list, which caused some stir on the floor.Much of the debate centered on the role and capacity of the International Whaling Committee (IWC) and its relationship with CITES. The IWC established a commercial whaling moratorium in 1986. In respect of this, CITES parties decided at the time that all whale stocks subject to commercial whaling (except for W. Greenland minke whales) should be placed on Appendix I.In defending its gray whale proposal, Japan criticized IWC for lack of capacity, it also criticized IUCN's scientific analysis, recommending that it be withdrawn, and asked the CITES Secretariat to review its recommendations.CITES Secretary-General Willem Winjstekers reiterated the Secretariat's recommendation that CITES should defer to IWC in the matters of commercial whaling.The United States delegation spoke in opposition to Japan's proposals, saying that, "The Eastern Pacific stock of Gray Whale does not meet the criteria for downlisting from CITES Appendix I to Appendix II." The US delegation also noted its concern that, "the highly endangered Western stock of the Pacific Gray Whale -- of which there are only 100 -- is not genetically different than the Eastern Pacific stock."The US was joined by Mexico, both gray whale range states, in opposition of the proposal. Many more delegations turned out against the whale proposals, including Portugal, Netherlands (representing the EU), and Australia. Japan was supported by Iceland, and Antigua Barbuda among others.IWC Chairman confirmed that the moratorium on these species is still in effect. While IUCN confirmed that the gray whale stocks and Southern Hemisphere stocks of minke whale do not meet the criteria for downlisting.The International Fund for Animal Welfare's Japan Representative, Naoko Funahashi, was invited to speak and stated that IFAW strongly opposes all whale downlisting proposals. Funahashi added, "I have been collecting samples of whale meat for independent scientific DNA testing. Results of this work have been published in scientific journals and presented to the IWC Scientific Committee. We found many species other than those hunted legally, including species that have been fully protected. This we believe indicates that the control of the market in consuming countries is very poor and that the Japanese and Norwegian whale proposals fail to address this."After no consensus could be met, the Chairwoman announced that a vote would be taken. Japan requested that a secret vote be carried out, this was supported by 10 required delegations. New Zealand brought chuckles to the committee room when it requested that all binoculars be barred from use by those in the viewing gallery to allow for the secret vote to be carried out.While the defeat of this whale downlisting proposal indicates strong international support for gray whale protection, a final CITES decision will not be official until April 20th, the last day of the 11th meeting of the CoP to CITES.Note: For full details on Norway and Japan's whale proposals visit http://www.ifaw.org/cites .

4/17/2000: METCALF DECRIES MAKAH WHALE HUNT
But Congressman Applauds International Decision to Keep Whale Ban

Everett, WA -- Rep. Jack Metcalf (R-WA) decried today's decision by the Makah to again kill gray whales on the Washington state coast.
Said Metcalf: "The decision by the Makah to kill more whales today is deeply disturbing. This is the year 2000. We have turned a calendar page into a completely new era--a time when these majestic, highly intelligent creatures should not be brutally slaughtered. Most distressingly, the whales are merely pawns in a political game orchestrated by Japanese and Norwegian whaling interests, and supported by the Clinton/Gore Administration."
According to news reports, the Makah Whaling Commission recently issued a permit to Makah hunters to kill whales. The hunt began secretly at 5 a.m. this morning.
Ironically, the hunt began immediately after a failed attempt by Japan and Norway to overturn the international ban on the commercial trade in whales. Japan and Norway pushed to overturn the ban at a weekend meeting of 150 nations at the U.N. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Nairobi, Kenya.
Japan presented three proposals and Norway one. They needed a two-thirds majority, but were a minority in each vote. The proposals won even less support than when similar ones were presented in 1997.
Said Metcalf, "Japan and Norway will do anything they can to overturn the ban on hunting whales. They have been consistently defeated in their direct attempts. Therefore, they resort to subterfuges. Japan performs its hunts under a loophole that allows whaling for 'scientific' purposes. These 'scientifically' obtained whales end up as sushi in expensive Tokyo restaurants. Now, Japan and Norway want to encourage native North American tribes to hunt whales, so that eventually, these whales can end up in the stomachs of Norwegian and Japanese gourmets."
Metcalf concluded, "Americans have to stand up and say no to this barbaric practice from the past. Americans need to call the White House and tell them to end their support for this outrageous and brutal hunt." [There are direct email links to Clinton, Gore and others on Advocacy on the other side of this web site, In the path of Giants.]

4/2/2000: Will They Name It Sanctuary?
On our last trip of the day yesterday, a woman who had just arrived in town called to ask about a trip today. I was on top of the wheelhouse, squealing with delight because after seeing gray whales, we'd spotted Risso's dolphins and decided to head out and show them to our passengers. Their trip ended up running 1/2 hour over because we had such a great time showing them what the ocean has to offer. A divemaster from Portland, Oregon, the caller made her reservations and anxiously waited to be first to board at 10:30 this morning.

"I hope yesterday wasn't THE trip," she said. I agreed. I believe it is possible to use up all of your magic on a trip so extraordinary that the wind is knocked out of the world around you momentarily.

We headed down the coast south of Monterey looking for northbound gray whales. There were hundreds of moon jellies in the water which made for great entertainment on our cruise, as did the calm ocean and sweet, warm air laced with jasmine and pine. Off Pebble Beach, we came across a trio of mating whales. It never ceases to amaze us how whales mate. With abandon. With passion. With perserverence. They stroked each other, rolled, compressed, separated, threw their flippers in the air, their flukes, their heads!

A few times, they surfaced beside us and our passengers were able to look into their huge, knowing eyes.

"Once you've looked into the eye of a whale, your life will never be the same," Steph told them. The divemaster was right about someone getting THE trip, but she needn't have worried about missing out on it.

Late in the morning today, the wind was knocked out of the world momentarily and she was right there when it happened.

3/29/2000: Whales Galore!
On our way out this morning, we were able to watch a gray whale within the bay. I saw it as I drove along Cannery Row and alerted our passengers to it, but admitted lone whales--if that's what it was--are not much for showing themselves. This one was the exception and it dazzled us as it worked along the shoreline. It was an auspicious beginning, because we saw several grays out on the ocean. Three of them surfaced together much of the time and two more were nearby. The sun was out, we had a newly married couple with us from Georgia and everyone had the chance to really see whales in their world. Jeez, I love this business.

3/24/2000: Lesley's Money Well Spent
This morning, we had an entire boatload of local kids out with us for whale watching. They attend the Boys and Girls Club of the Monterey Peninsula, which is an organization we are more than fond of. When Lesley donated $2000.00 to us this year, she left it up to us to decide how to spend it in our conservation efforts. How better than to take kids out onto the ocean, many for their first time? We headed onto a calm sea and soon were watching a single gray whale swimming north. Steph scanned the horizon for more whales and was rewarded by a lot of activity half a mile away. Off we went and soon we were in the midst of a couple of hundred Risso's dolphins, a dozen Pacific white sided dolphins and a bunch of Northern right whale dolphins! Try telling 30+ kids about the animals they're watching when you're surrounded by so many wildy exciting species. I think we did a pretty good job, especially since a large part of our goal is not just to educate our passengers, but to let the animals enchant them. Steph and I mixed it up, both laughing with the kids and exclaiming over the animals' antics and describing something about their lives, the threats to their environment and what these kids can do about them.

But that wasn't all the kids got from their day at sea. The ocean was so gentle that I invited every child into the wheelhouse to take a turn at the wheel. Imagine it! Only a few had ever steered a car, but every one of them got to drive Sanctuary. Some kids went home today and told their parents and siblings about their extraordinary day on the ocean. Some kids went home and told their foster parents about their experience. And a few of them returned to group homes where maybe an overworked and underpaid staff member shared their joy. Regardless of what these kids went home to, on this day, they were on the wide open ocean with fabulous creatures all around them and they left Sanctuary the better for it.

Lesley's donation will allow us to give several of these trips to kids and for that we thank her and the Lyceum for administering the funds and arranging the trips.

March 18, 2000: Ambling North With the Grays

We've had some fair-sized swells at times recently which provide a wondrous opportunity. Today was a perfect example of such a day when the whales ghosted along just below the surface. Several times, they were in the swell ahead of us and as it rose and lifted them, they glowed with that magnificent blue-green that is the color of the sea. Calmly working north, the whales dazzled our passengers. Many have felt themselves in the presence of something wild, free and fragile. Here is a note received from a couple who was out with us recently:

"The genuine love you have of the sea and these majestic creatures was abundantly demonstrated...May God richly bless your desire to enhance and protect the lives of these wonders of nature." -- Matthew and Daniella Davis

March 13, 2000: It is Spring!
We paid our dues for Saturday and got our just desserts! A spectacular ocean, marvelous people who were so cool, we wanted to keep them and whales that popped up around the boat like clockwork! A family from England joined us and told us thay had to come after hearing a lengthy piece on BBC about us. They couldn't wait to meet Fluke (our weird but charming golden retriever) and they were beside themselves at the prospect of seeing whales. Two trips were extraordinary; the kind of trips we figured we had imagined during the dismal storms of last month. But everyone who left today did so with enormous grins, many clutched In the Path of Giants T-shirts and all gave firm assurances they would spread the word about our work.
I ask you: How could it be better than that?

Sunday was not as calm, but we had very good whale sightings and saw something I wish I could have photographed: the whales' blows caught the sunlight just right and turned into streaming rainbows. While we have seen this many times, never have they lingered so long, blowing away behind the whales like spectacular banners. I had my hands full running the boat and Steph was busy tracking, narrating and keeping an eye on our folks, so neither of us could grab a camera, but it sure was something to see.

March 4, 2000: The Mighty Gray Whales' Northern Migration
There is a phenomenon on Sanctuary when people board her. Some sit inside, most sit outside toward the stern and some make a bee line for the bow. Bow riders are up for everything. They scream with glee when the salt spray splashes onto their faces. They throw their hands over their heads occasionally as though riding a roller coaster and they wave as we pass other boats. These are people who enjoy the moment and today, Steph and I had a bunch of them on board. They also asked thoughtful questions, fawned over our dog, Fluke, and were reluctant to leave when we returned from our cruise. Although we often laugh with our passengers, I can't recall laughing as much over the enjoyment they've shown as I did today. It was the same for Steph. I think we all felt that first powerful zing of spring's arrival and it was great!

3/2000: From a recent email (which we love getting!)
We just wanted to say thank-you for a great afternoon. [We all] really enjoyed the trip and the opportunity to see the whales. It was truly wonderful. Thanks for sharing so much information...we all learned quite a bit. We will definitely recommend you to others and visit again after we move to the Bay Area. Take care and enjoy the whales!
Donna, Art, Martha and Libby

[As I told Donna and Art, who are moving here from Texas, they have definitely made the right decision; I think they agree!]

1/30/2000: Killer Whales Off Monterey
The gray whales were pretty sketchy our first trip out yesterday. They surfaced briefly, showed almost nothing of themselves and stayed down a very long time. Of four whales spotted, we only saw small glimpses of them a second time if at all. They were near the shoreline, even though we often see them a few miles out and in what Steph and I have come to call the stealth mode. Our second trip explained why: a large pod of Orcas was out there, scouring the ocean. Only a few of our guests had ever seen killer whales in the wild. On TV, in the "Free Willy" movies, maybe at Sea World. But not running free in the ocean. So there we were, cruising along with the sleek black and white animals all around us. No one complained that they were seeing Orcas rather than grays. No one said that to see these wild animals where they belong wasn't nearly as good as in a concrete pool. Most of what you heard yesterday on Sanctuary was, "Ooooohhh!" and "Click," "Click," "Click" then "Ziiiiiiiinnnnng" as film rewound. On our third trip, we were surrounded by Orcas again but by this time, they'd headed out and were a long run from Monterey. Since we didn't have another trip scheduled for the day, we gave our folks an extra half hour. As Steph explained to them, "This is our business; we can lose as much money as we want to."
On Monday, we learned that this pod has never before been spotted south of Gray's Harbor, Washington. Why now? Possibly because the salmon has been badly depleted thanks to habitat destruction upriver. This includes timber clearcuts that foul creeks where the salmon lay their eggs. These eggs are buried in redds by the spawning females before they die. The eggs and smolt need cold, clear water to survive. The shade of trees overhead helps keep them cool and standing trees along the bank maintain its integrity. But these trees are being decimated and the result is muddy, warm streams choked with debris. Factor in the impact of fertilizers and pollutants that flow into the tributaries along with the dams that have forced many salmon runs into extinction and you can see why the Orcas may need to get creative in finding food. But is this why they were here? We can only conjecture right now.
Our buddy Tinker did see a salmon carcass Saturday in the area where the Orcas were. It was freshly torn apart, which would indicate the strong possibility of feeding.
Whatever their reason for visiting, it was a magnificent day; you should have been there.

1/9/2000: The Oakland Brownies Ship Out
Troop 2069 from Oakland joined us for a cruise today. Decked out in baseball hats, several wearing hot pink jackets (excellent taste in colors, girls) these kids were charged up and ready for action. At hearing I was their captain and had also been a Brownie, they cheered! We headed out onto the bay toward Point Pinos. The girls lined the bow, clinging to the rails. They were fascinated with the long, fluid jellies we passed, and stared into the water at them as we cruised along.
There was a moderate swell. As we neared the point, it got a little tossy. Occasionally, a larger swell would come our way and as we went up over it, the girls squealed with delight, laughing and throwing their heads back. They are from Hillcrest and Aurora Elementary Schools and it was clear with their first whale sighting that these girls LOVE whales! As several of the giants sounded, showing their almost heart-shaped flukes in the process, the Brownies took pictures and chattered happily. Several of them braved the cool temperatures and never gave up their prime positions on the bow the entire trip.
On the way in, we learned from Barbara Chadwick, who organized this outing, that the girls are already taking on conservation projects. They've conducted a lakeshore clean-up in Oakland and may now take on the problem of balloons used outside (these balloons get loose, find their way to the ocean and kill marine life).
At the dock, Steph took a picture of me with the girls before they got off Sanctuary. Just before they left, I asked, "What can a girl grow up to be, anyway?" I expected they might yell, "Captain!" since this was fresh in their minds. But instead, one raised her voice and bellowed out confidently, "ANYTHING THEY WANT TO BE!" That was Amelia and girl, you made my day!

1/8/00: Traffic Jam at Point Pinos
The gray whale migration is in full swing! Today, we saw whales almost every direction we looked, plus there were a couple of hundred common dolphins zipping around out there. We had folks from Stockton, Nevada, France, England and even some locals on Sanctuary with us today. We also had a small school group from San Jose, kids who had never done anything like this before! Tommorow, we start our day with a boatload of Brownies. I was a Brownie and never could have guessed, growing up on the coast 100 miles north of Monterey, that I would be captain of Sanctuary some day and taking a whole bunch of the new wave of Brownies out to sea. We're gonna rock.