Loreto Mexico on the Baja Peninsula January 21, 2026

I have my park pass for Loreto Bay National Park and I’m ready to go whale watching, Blue Whale watching that is. Blue Whales are the largest animals on earth, equal to the size of thirty elephants.  Ever since I went whale watching for the first time ever back in October in Victoria, British Columbia, I knew I needed to go again and soon!  Loreto Bay National Park in the Sea of Cortez came onto my radar and well, here I am!  

Mid January is early for Blue Whale sightings but I took a chance, flew here, signed up for a tour and kept my fingers crossed while saying a little prayer.  Seven of us along with our Captain Alfredo boarded a panga and set off on water that was like a pane of glass.   

With water conditions like that we were able to clip along to get out to where hopefully there would be something to see.  I was caught up in viewing and photographing the mountainous scenery. It was incredibly beautiful and unusually calm conditions for here for this time of year.  .  

Well, only thirty minutes into our trip out to further reaches, we were surprised by a Blue Whale!  The Captain cut the engine, we watched in awe!  

Oh WOW!

Once the tail comes up like in the above photo, it then dives down deep for up to thirty minutes.  That’s when we moved on to our originally planned location.  But before getting there, we were surprised once again, another Blue Whale!  

another whale watching boat

Then another one!  

We got to watch this Blue Whale for a longer period of time before it dove deep.

a three second video

I could not keep my mouth shout!

As we moved along to another location, we were surprised by a school of dolphins!  

These ones were either following us or chasing us away!

Some were so close, I could probably have reached out and touched them!

a four second video

Eventually time came to begin the trip back to the Marina. About thirty minutes out, Alfredo cut the engine again and we had lunch, lunch out on the Sea of Cortez.  All the while, as we ate, we watched for activity.  We saw a Mantra Ray, maybe a Fin Whale and another Blue Whale (may have been the one we saw at the beginning of our adventure).  

The winds known for this area for this time of year presented themselves!  

getting close to the Loreto Marina

Brown Pelicans welcoming us back!

They did move as we stepped off the panga!  We were a happy bunch of whale watchers and Captain Alfredo was happy for us.  He has been out searching each day, and today was a gift for him too!  I can’t stop looking at my photos and videos which I have so many more of  in addition to what I shared here. How am I ever going to sleep tonight after a day like today!