By Kristina Pritchett
On Tuesday, Aug. 8, a gray whale made its way into the Dana Point Harbor, which quickly caught the attention of many people.
Dave Anderson, owner of Capt. Dave’s Dolphin and Whale Watching Safari, said he heard the whale was in the Harbor around 7 a.m.
Anderson said he went out two separate times and spent about an hour and a half with the whale.
He said, while it’s not unusual for whales to be in shallow water, he believes it’s unusual to see a gray whale this time of year.
“We don’t normally have gray whales in August,” Anderson said.
Donna Kalez, general manager of Dana Wharf Sportfishing & Whale Watching agreed.
“Gray whale season doesn’t start until November,” Kalez said. “The last one we saw was in June.”
Citizens assisted the OCSD Harbor Patrol in helping the whale get out of Dana Point harbor and back to open water. #teamwork @ocsddanapoint pic.twitter.com/tvc8JQPH37
— OC Sheriff, CA (@OCSD) August 8, 2017
Anderson said the whale looked to be a 1.5 years old and said it looked “a little skinny.”
“I would say it’s maybe having a little trouble finding food,” Anderson said. “The fact that it’s not in the arctic eating, makes me a little concerned. But, I didn’t see anything that made me think it was in serious trouble,” Anderson said.
Both Kalez and Anderson believe the whale was the same one spotted in Carlbad on Monday.
On Tuesday morning, the Ocean Institute posted a video of the juvenile whale and said it was right near their dock.
Lt. Lane Lagaret of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said citizens helped to get the whale out of the Harbor.
Kalez said no one has really seen the whale since 1:30 p.m.
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