Whale Watch and Intertidal Life Festival
On January 11 & 12, 2025, visit Cabrillo National Monument for Whale Watch Weekend!
Celebrate the return of the Pacific gray whales as they pass Point Loma along part of their annual, round-trip migration from Alaska to Baja California. We are also celebrating the 75-year anniversary of the first public whale watching event, held right here at Cabrillo National Monument.
Schedule of Events
Saturday, January 11 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM:
- Enjoy exhibits and activities from multiple ocean and conservation themed organizations!\
- Attend presentations by experts in marine conservation and more! (See speaker schedule below)
- Take your little ones to do whale-y fun crafts in the visitor center!
- Enjoy a children’s book reading in the Visitor Center at 11:30am and 1:30pm
- Earn a Junior Ranger Badge
- Spot whales at the Whale Overlook with the help of park volunteers and staff!
- Visit the restored Military Bunker from 10am-3pm.
- Visit the Kitchen Garden next to the Lighthouse and talk with the volunteers at 10:30am and 2:30pm.
- Hike down the Oceanside Trail and visit the low tide in the tidepools in from 1pm – 4:30pm.
Sunday, January 12 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM:
- No exhibits or speakers this day, but the fun continues with…
- Take your little ones to do whale-y fun crafts in the visitor center!
- Earn a Junior Ranger Badge
- Spot whales at the Whale Overlook with the help of park volunteers and staff!
- Visit the restored Military Bunker from 10am-3pm.
- Visit the Kitchen Garden next to the Lighthouse and talk with the volunteers at 10:30am.
- Hike down the Oceanside Trail and visit the low tide in the tidepools in from 1pm – 4:30pm
Speaker Schedule for Saturday January 11:
Auditorium Presentations
10:00 AM – Trevor Joyce
Research Biologist, Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
11:00 AM (via Zoom) – Dr. Steven Swartz
Author of “Lagoon Time: A Guide to Grey Whales and the Natural History of San Ignacio Lagoon”
12:00 PM – Serge Dedina
WILDCOAST
Topic: From Devil Fish to Friendly Whales: The Amazing Story of Gray Whales in Baja California
1:00 PM – Dr. Audra Ames, Ph.D & Dr. Ann Bowles
Hubbs Seaworld Research Institute
Topic: Whale Acoustics and Tracking / Noise-Related Research and Applications
2:00 PM – Ric Matthews
Founder, American Cetacean Society
3:00 PM – Dr. Dimitri Deheyn, Ph.D
Scripps Institution of Oceanography / Walter Munk Foundation
Topic: Research on Fluorescence from Intertidal Sea Anemones
4:00 PM – Dr. John Hildebrand
Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Topic: Why do the Great Whales Sing?
Visitor Center Presentations
10:00 AM – Katie O’Donnell
US Ocean Conservation Manager, WILDCOAST
Topic: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
11:30 AM – Mary Rose
Children’s Book Reading
1:30 PM – Mary Rose
Children’s Book Reading
For more on whale watching at Cabrillo, go here.
