Baja Wildlife Expedition Trip Report 2025

Trip # 4
May 17 - 24, 2025

May 18, 2025 – Day One

Hard to believe we’re already three weeks into this expedition. It never feels like enough time—not when you’re trying to truly understand these animals. I've learned more, seen new behaviors, noticed patterns I didn’t recognize before. But it still feels like I'm just scratching the surface.

Always trying to learn that unseen language of the ocean.

Anyway—the day begins.

I’m excited to get back out there and see what the ocean has in store for us.

9:15 AM – We’re on the water. The wind is already picking up and conditions are getting rough. We went north, but we’re forced to stick close to the coastline due to the weather. We followed a few frigates that were hitting baitballs, but no solid action yet. Still, it’s a good indication that something could develop this week.

We're on the lookout for whale sharks today. There have been a few reports over the past couple of days, so we’re going to investigate.

Also encouraging: dolphin sightings. That’s always a good sign. It tells me that means predators could be near.

For me it means the orcas can show up any day, any hour.

Our sister boat found a whale shark, and we motored over to join them.

Unfortunately, by the time we arrived, it was gone. We launched the drone to try and relocate it, but no luck.

While we were searching, a pod of bottlenose dolphins swam by. We made a couple of in-water attempts, but they weren’t in the mood. So we moved on to keep searching.

2:00 PM – We’re heading in. The swells continued building throughout the afternoon, and we made the call to wrap it up. We’re motoring back slowly after what turned out to be a quiet day at sea.

This weather has been crazy this season.

Another great day for the kite boarders and foil borders though, but sadly a tough day for us.

The rough conditions limited our ability to search, but the signs are there.
We’ve got dolphins. We’ve got lots of mobulas around. The pieces are moving.

Hoping for better weather—and better luck—tomorrow.

May 19, 2025 – Day Two

We left land at 12:00 noon today.
The morning was blown out by high winds, but with a forecast for improving conditions in the afternoon, we decided to delay departure rather than lose the whole day.

The bay was still choppy as we motored out. While we waited for the wind to die down, we chased a whale shark report inside the bay—but came up empty.

Just as we were heading out of the bay, we spotted a humpback whale breaching—again and again. It was spectacular. The boat was rolling in the swell, but we snapped as many shots as we could. I had my shutter at 1/2000 to try and freeze the action and grab as much detail as possible.

I launched the drone to try and capture it from above, but had a hard time keeping track of the whale.

Still managed to get a few shots before bringing the drone down—with some much-appreciated help from Antonio and Fer. Definitely need more ocean time with that drone to get better at tracking moving wildlife from the air.

After the humpback, we pushed about 17 miles offshore toward one of the canyons, hoping for dolphins or anything else.
Unfortunately—nothing.

We saw a few dolphins inside the bay earlier, but nothing offshore. With the swell, they might’ve been out there and just hard to spot, but either way—it was quiet.

6:00 PM – We’re heading back in. The sun is dropping low and the ocean is calm. It was another slow day at sea with no real in-water time, and not much life beyond the breaching humpback and a few mobulas in mating chains near the surface.

But the ride home made it all worth it.

As we cruised back toward land, the sunset lit up the entire sky. The light just kept getting better—rich oranges, purples, and deep golds.

We ran into a group of jumping mobulas, and tried to capture them mid-air with the sunset colors behind them. We stayed out through the entire sunset, soaking it in.

No matter how slow the day, the ocean always finds a way to give you something beautiful.

Tomorrow’s a new shot. Fingers crossed.

May 20, 2025 – Day Three

We left port this morning to a perfect bay—flat, calm, and absolutely beautiful.

There were scattered mobulas on the surface, mostly in small mating groups but no large schools. Still, Uwe, Charles, and Elizabetta jumped in for a quick swim and enjoyed some peaceful moments in the water with them.

Afterward, we headed out to sea to begin the orca search.

Along the way, we encountered a couple of humpback whales cruising slowly along the surface. We watched them briefly, then continued on.

Next up: a pod of bottlenose dolphins. They were playful on the bow—riding the pressure wave and showing off—but once we got in the water, they weren’t very interested in interacting. That’s how it goes sometimes.

The ocean stayed glassy calm, giving us incredible visibility for spotting wildlife. We could see far and wide—but, sadly, there wasn’t much activity out there.

We decided to change course and head to La Reina to visit the sea lions. Just as we neared the site, an orca report came through. Since we were close, we made a quick detour to investigate—but it turned out to be a false alarm.

So, back to the sea lions—and I’m so glad we did.

The conditions were stunning. Crystal-clear water, perfect light, and a pair of young male sea lions putting on a show. They were sparring, mock-charging, and wrestling—clearly preparing for the day they’ll challenge for their own harem of females.

They chased each other through the reef and came in close over and over again, mock-charging the camera. It was a blast to photograph and film. An incredible way to close the afternoon.

But the day wasn’t over yet.

On our way in, our captain spotted a small group of boats in the distance and decided to check it out. When we arrived, they had a whale shark—and people were already in the water.

We waited our turn, and when it came, we geared up and jumped in for a quick swim.

The whale shark was massive.
Way bigger than anything we usually see in Isla Mujeres during our trips there. She was a true giant—a monster in the best way—and absolutely beautiful.

We swam with her for a few unforgettable moments before climbing back aboard and starting the ride home.

4:42 PM – We’re heading in. The ocean is still flat and glowing—it honestly hurts how beautiful it is out here.

Riding home on the sea when it’s like this... it’s the stuff of dreams.

Tomorrow’s a new day, and if today was any sign—I can’t wait to see what shows up.

May 21, 2025 – Day Four

9:00 AM – We set out this morning under epic conditions. Flat, flat seas. Not a single cloud in the sky. It felt like the ocean was inviting us in.

THIS DAY IS GOING TO BE INCREDIBLE!!!

We motored out—and then… prop break!

Captain Cano turned us around and headed back to shore. Fortunately, he lives close by and had a spare prop at his house. Within minutes, he was back.

Five and a half minutes later, we were back on the boat and headed out again.

That’s what I love about this crew—hands-on, no-excuses, make-it-happen mentality.

Out here, you learn to rely on your own skills—captain, mechanic, crew—it all blends together. That’s how you survive. That’s how you keep moving.

As we got farther out, we passed a cluster of fishing boats, but nothing happening there.

We pressed on, cutting glass—the ocean was that smooth.

12:38 PM – We hit a super pod of common dolphins. Thousands of them. Spread out but active—jumping, swimming fast, clearly in hunt mode. Always incredible to see, especially knowing these guys are prime orca prey. Their presence keeps us hopeful.

We stayed with them for about ten minutes, then pushed forward—still on the hunt for something big and bad.

Later, we found one of our friends sitting still on the water, waiting for a sperm whale to surface. We joined him, waited, and sure enough—up came the whale. Then another. A nice little treat.

We spent a few minutes watching them breathe and glide, then continued on.

We spotted four sailfish finning at the surface—their tail fins slicing through the water. We tried a jump, but they turned and disappeared before we could get eyes on them underwater.

Soon after, we came upon another super pod, this one mixed with pantropical dolphins and spinner dolphins—feeding near the surface. Huge pod.

We jumped in a couple of times.
 First jump: the dolphins dodged me. Dirty buggers.
 But at the end of that jump, we saw more sailfish finning. We jumped again and got a few proof-of-life clips—nothing close, but enough to confirm the action.

Second jump: the dolphins avoided me again, but others in our group had a solid pass. While swimming back to the boat, I looked down and spotted a big school of yellowfin tuna gliding through.

Managed more proof of life footage of them too.

As we were climbing back into the boat, Uwe called out—“There’s a shark under us!”
 I was still geared up and dropped straight back in.

Below us was a five-foot silky shark, flanked by a gang of pilot fish.
 Natural shark encounters are the best—raw, unplanned, and wild. 

I live for moments like that.

We left that mosh pit of wildlife and began the long run home. We'd gone deep today—so the ride back would take a few hours. Still, plenty of time and open water left for something unexpected.

And we got it.

On the way in, we saw a blow in the distance and raced toward it. It was another sperm whale.

I grabbed my drone while we were running full speed, launched it, and managed to reach the whale just as it was diving. I think I caught the fluke on camera. I was flying low, so we’ll see how the footage looks. Fingers crossed.

A little later, we came across a Bryde’s whale. Antonio sent up his drone and managed to get a quick clip before it disappeared.

An absolutely packed day. Wildlife everywhere.
 Some close, some just out of reach—but that’s the ocean.

You never know what’s coming next.

May 22, 2025 – Day Five
We left port this morning at 7:30 AM.
Day five has always been a lucky one for us, so we were hopeful the streak would hold.

The bay was glass calm, and right away we had a nice mobula encounter. There were quite a few scattered rays cruising near the surface, and we jumped in for a short but fun session.

Afterward, we headed north—but the wind picked up quickly, and conditions forced us to turn around and retreat back south.

As we hugged the coastline on our return, Captain Cano pointed out some goats on Cerralvo Island.

He shared a bit of local history: a fisherman used to live there years ago, and when he left, he released his meat and milk goats.
With no natural predators, the goats thrived—and now, there are way too many roaming the island.

While motoring south, we spotted what we believe was either a very young Bryde’s whale or possibly a pygmy whale of some sort. It was tiny and alone, so we’re not entirely sure—maybe a lost calf or a little-known species. A mystery, but a beautiful one.

1:50 PM – We’ve been slowly cruising the southern waters, but luck hasn’t been on our side. The wind dropped a bit, but not enough to clear the whitecaps, so it’s been tough searching.

We decided to head down to one of our old mobula hotspots—but strangely, most of the mobulas seem to have moved into the bay. Not sure why that shift happened, but it’s clear the usual patterns are changing.

This particular spot is just outside Puffers Cove—a gorgeous area and an epic place to snorkel, thanks to the hundreds of puffer fish that call it home. Local fishermen clean their catch nearby, and the puffers (along with other reef fish) have moved in to help clean up the scraps. They do a great job.

The water here was perfect—crystal clear, calm, and full of life. The puffers were curious and playful, and it turned into a really fun half-hour swim. A little reset before calling it a day.

On the way back, we saw mobulas jumping near the shoreline. We couldn’t resist—we jumped in again.
A fast-swimming school was moving through very shallow water, making for some great photo opportunities.

And just as we were finishing up, I spotted an eagle ray resting on the ocean floor. I dropped down quickly to grab a few shots. Such beautiful animals. Always a joy to see.

We wrapped up the day with some nice moments, even if it wasn’t the wildlife explosion we were hoping for.
But we’ve got one more day, and I’ve got a good feeling…

Tomorrow is our day. I can feel it.

May 23, 2025 – Day Six! Final Day
Here we go — the final day of the trip! And what a day it is. The ocean is glassy flat, the sky is bright and blue, not a single cloud in sight.

We left the dock at 9:00 AM, planning for a late return.

Our goal?

Stay out as long as needed, catch the sunset, and — hopefully — find something big and bad to close out the trip.

11:15 AM. We’ve been heading south. The skies that started off crystal clear now have some puffy white clouds drifting in. Still great light for photography, but we’re always keeping an eye on cloud cover — not because of rain (this is Baja, after all — it rains maybe ten times a year), but because light is everything when you're shooting underwater.

12:00 PM. We got the call. Orcas spotted to the north! The intel seems solid — confirmed by friends we trust — so we spun the boat around and raced that way. Fingers crossed!

We found them.

Relief. Joy. Excitement. We located the pod, and I’m especially happy for Antonio and Ernesto — it’s their second time trying for orcas, and they didn’t get lucky the first round. At least now, they’ve seen them.

These orcas are shy — almost certainly the same elusive pod that spends a lot of time in the north. It’s likely the group of individuals, we saw on our first week, on day four. Their behavior matches. 

We are out here looking for them as long as possible and see what happens. They are constantly moving, surfacing in random spots. 

Always so far away from where they dropped down.

3:36 PM. Unfortunately, no in-water action. We tried. Everyone tried. But this pod was evasive. Boats came and went — some headed back south — but none had any luck getting close. It’s frustrating, but that’s nature for you. She doesn’t surrender her magic easily.

Still, we saw them. And for that, I’m thankful.

As we motored home, we spotted a pair of olive ridley sea turtles mating — our one and only in-water session of the day. We slipped in quietly for a respectful and brief encounter. A beautiful little moment.

Before heading back to shore, we sent the drone up for our traditional group shot — a great way to close the trip and say goodbye to Baja.

What a week. So many memories, so many laughs, so much wildlife. 

Sending out a big hug to the whole crew… Already miss you guys.