We took an Uber into Cabo San Lucas on our third day for a whale watching tour that Mia had reserved without my knowing. Mia sets these things up despite knowing I’ll grumble and complain, then go and enjoy, and later claim ownership for the whole idea to begin with. She suffers silently as do all saints.

El Arco at the southern tip of Baja California, just a rock-skip from Cabo San Lucas.

The tour provided a naturalist who, over booming loadspeakers, directed the passengers’ attention to the breaching mammals. We followed a mother and her newborn calf, accompanied by an escort male. The naturalist explained that the humpback whales migrate south from the Gulf of Alaska, where they feed in cold waters, down to Baja California where they mate and give birth. With a gestation period of about a year, there are mothers who are giving birth while others are just having fun.

A humpback whale takes a breath and dives. Just follow Mia’s pointing finger.

The humpbacks don’t feed at all while off the Baja California shores, so you can imagine how important their success is in feeding prior to their roundtrip journey from Alaska. Of course, we humans make this challenging as we upset the balance of the oceans.

Both Mia and I felt some guilt in participating in the whale watching, where boats large and small race after the pods when the visible plume of a spout exposes their position. I think the whales look at the humans the way we might see mosquitoes on a camping trip.

Marina Cabo San Lucas.

Cabo San Lucas from sea, where the Pacific Ocean meets the Sea of Cortez.

The 46,231,408th person to pose here.

More from my Cabo trip

Marquis Los Cabos

San Jose del Cabo

Baja from Above