Dana Wharf Whale Watch

Dana Wharf Whale Watch Year round opportunity to see many whale and dolphin species right here in Dana Point, CA And just like that, whale watching was born.
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The story of Dana Wharf:
In 1958 While running several sport fishing boats off the San Clemente Pier,Don Hansen, decided to take children out on a whale watching excursion at the urging of friend and local educator Philip Grignon. For years Hansen and his fellow captains had been watching Gray Whales pass by them but no one was really watching this majestic Whales at the time. Some years later, H

ansen moved the operation to Dana Point Harbor when it opened in 1971. This was where the West Coast Whale Watching industry originated - not only for school field trips, but the public Whale Watching excursion was born in Dana Point. Don's love for the Gray Whale inspired people from all around the world to come and see for themselves the friendly Gray Whales as they migrate past Dana Point. Dana Wharf Whale Watching, the first whale watching company in Orange County, is a year-round whale watching facility in Southern California. Interacting with thousands of whales during the Gray Whale migration in the winter and Blue whales in the summer plus year round whales such as Fin , Orca, Minke and Humpback . In addition to whales, thousands of dolphins, sea lions, sea faring birds and even sharks are found in the beautiful waters right off Dana Wharf. There is always plenty of wildlife to experience, as you will see in this video. Today Dana Wharf sits in the heart of a busy, flourishing harbor and continues to be owned and operated by the Hansen family.

What a gorgeous sunny, warm, winter??? day off of Dana Point Harbor! On our first trip at noon, we headed up the coast ...
01/16/2026

What a gorgeous sunny, warm, winter??? day off of Dana Point Harbor! On our first trip at noon, we headed up the coast and were surprised to come upon a raft of at least 100 sea lions moving up the coast. This was an unusual sighting to see so many sea lions at sea. It wasn’t long after that we found a southbound cow/calf Gray Whale pair. This calf was definitely about a week old. It had already learned how to come up and breathe without lifting its head up and out of the water like very fresh ones often do. What a delight to follow it from Laguna Beach to just below 3 Arch Bay. This pair was less than a half mile offshore. From there we move just a little farther offshore and found a pod of Pacific White-sided Dolphin. How exciting that we are seeing these winter dolphins more frequently than we have the last year or two. On our 2:30 trip we relocated the cow/calf pair just north of the San Clemente Pier. It appeared they had moved slightly farther offshore shore but still within a mile of the shoreline. Once again we followed them farther down the coast. We can’t help but yell out, and wish them well, as they continue down to the lagoons off of Baja! Coming back to the harbor, we once again had a pod of PWS dolphins! They were spread out, traveling up the coast. Entering the harbor we ended our day with more sea lions. These were resting on the red navigational buoy at the mouth of the harbor. We began the day and ended it with sea lions! Today’s totals: 1 southbound Gray Whale cow/calf pair seen on both trips, 2 pods of 30 or more Pacific White-sided Dolphin, pelicans, cormorants, gulls, and the many sea lions.

Report & 📸 Nona the Naturalist

Dana Point Times

01/16/2026

One of the most spectacular sights this time of year 💙
Back in 2023, we were lucky enough to have a mother gray whale bring her calf right up to our boat. Moments like this are truly priceless and still give us chills every time we watch it.


Dana Point Times

The morning began with at least three Coastal Bottlenose Dolphins including one calf heading north just outside the Dana...
01/15/2026

The morning began with at least three Coastal Bottlenose Dolphins including one calf heading north just outside the Dana Point Harbor. Turning south and traveling about eight miles, we encountered our first massive megapod of Long-beaked Common Dolphin moving south off San Mateo Point, followed by a second huge pod stretching from Aliso Canyon all the way to the Dana Point Headlands on our noon trip.

An Osprey was perched on the jetty marker, with a California Sea Lion hauled out below and a Yellow-crowned Night Heron nearby. On our final trip of the day, we encountered what may have been thousands of dolphin from the harbor to far south of San Onofre, possibly the days earlier herds had merged together. During the afternoon’s encounter, the group appeared to split, with several hundred dolphins turning back north and heading up the coast. Passengers were amazed by the sheer number of dolphin, along with hundreds of Black-vented Shearwaters and other seabirds joining the dolphin.

Just as we were preparing to pack up, Captain Steve quickly increased speed toward a surprise ahead, a juvenile Humpback Whale, not yet registered with Happywhale, ready to steal the show. This young whale delivered an unforgettable aerial display, breaching at least six times. Each sequence followed a consistent pattern: surfacing for two to three blows, lifting its flukes high out of the water, diving, then launching out of the water with a powerful, twisting breach. What an truly incredible way to end the day!

Report & 📸 Laura Lopez
Drone 📸 Gavriel Berghouse
📸 Ernie Leal

01/15/2026

A juvenile Humpback whale put on an incredible show just south of Dana Point Harbor—breaching patterns of 2–3 blows, fluking, and powerful rotating breaches only 2 miles offshore! What a way to end the day! 🐋✨

Video by

🎥 Laura Lopez

Dana Point Times

01/14/2026

Gray whale season is here! 🐋
These gentle giants make one of the longest migrations of any mammal and we feel lucky every time we get to see them pass by our coast 💙
Video by
marinemammals whalesoftheworld cetaceans coastallife

🎥 Laura Lopez

Dana Point Times

Under blue skies and calm, glassy waters both the Ocean Adventure and the Lot’a Fun headed out to enjoy two hours on the...
01/14/2026

Under blue skies and calm, glassy waters both the Ocean Adventure and the Lot’a Fun headed out to enjoy two hours on the water and see what we could find. It wasn’t long before Captain Jamie on the Ocean Adventure spotted the blow of a whale just south of Dana Point Harbor. After seeing the initial blow and looking southward, the whale popped up on our port side headed north. This is the time we “expect” to see southbound Grays but this was indeed a Gray whale headed north. It was confirmed by Alisa Schulman-Janiger to be CRC-1758 first identified in 2015. As we left the whale just north of the Headlands, we spotted another whale south of us. With little time to stay with the whale, we saw blows in a distance and a back and confirmed it too was a southbound Gray. On our noon trip, the Lot’a Fun was the first to relocate our northbound whale. It was now off of Laguna Beach. Observing the whale from its left side, we could see a large white circle. These “birthmarks” further confirmed this was CRC 1758, but we think “Frisby” might be a friendlier name! Such a treat to see an early northbound whale part of “PCFG” - A Pacific Coast Feeding Group whale. These Grays tend to not make the complete round trip migration from Arctic Waters to Baja and may actually stay along the Pacific Coast in places such as Depoe Bay, OR during the summer months. That is why species identification can be so crucial in the study of cetaceans. Our 2:30 trip headed out and south. Just south of the San Clemente Pier and extending down past San Mateo Point were our winter visitors, the Pacific White-sided dolphin. There were many dolphin spread out in groups of about 10 or so. They were eager to bow ride and some began jumping in our distant stern wake. On our return to the harbor, we had a brief look at a pod of about 100 Common Dolphin. Throughout the day, there were sea lions feeding and traveling in the same waters with our northbound whale and right in with the PWS dolphin. On all trips the viewing of the dolphins and whales was shared with our sister boat, the Lot’a Fun. Today’s totals: one northbound and one southbound Gray whale, numerous Pacific White-sided Dolphin, one pod of about 100 Common Dolphin, and many sea lions.

Report & 📸 Nona the Naturalist

Ocean trash picked up today - January 13, 2026 ~ 2 Mylar Balloons Balloons Blow Stand Up To Trash

Dana Point Times

01/13/2026

Did you know Dana Wharf started 55 years ago on the San Clemente Pier with our founder, Captain Don Hansen?! From a small dream on the pier to unforgettable whale watching adventures today — thank you for being part of our story! 💙🐳 The legacy continues with generations of ocean lovers, countless whale sightings, and memories that will last a lifetime.

Dana Point Times

We are excited as part of our 55th year to be continuing the tradition of our Wyland Whale and Dolphin Adventure Art Les...
01/13/2026

We are excited as part of our 55th year to be continuing the tradition of our Wyland Whale and Dolphin Adventure Art Lessons! Starting January 24th-April 25th! Who’s going to be the 2026 grand prize winner!

Dana Wharf established Whale Watching in Orange County in 1971 and is endorsed by Wyland (Artist of the Sea). The renowned marine life artist found inspiration for his artwork of the beloved gray whale during their migration to warmer waters in the winter. It was from the Gray Whale experience that inspired Wyland to develop the program “Art Lessons in the Wild” with Wyland’s Whale and Dolphin Adventures in partnership with Dana Wharf Whale Watching.

This exclusive package for kids ages 3-12, includes an art lesson via video feed by environmental artist Wyland and a FREE 2-hour whale watching adventure. Each child that participates in the Art Lesson (cost is $15) will be entered in a contest to win prizes as well as a gift from Wyland just for entering! The 2025 Grand Prize will be a framed and signed artwork by Wyland valued up to $3000! All children’s artwork will be judged by Wyland for a chance to win other prizes!

Art lessons begin at 9 am. The Whale Watching Adventure departs after the art lesson at 10 am and will end at 12pm. The lesson is limited to 15 children and the $15 art lesson fee will be donated to The Wyland Foundation. Additional Whale Watch tickets are $65 for adults and $45 for kids 3-12 years of age not participating in the lesson. (Valid only on Saturdays at 9 am and must be accompanied by a paid adult, 2 kids max per adult.) The paid adult must be present to participate in the art lesson and free whale watching. Not applicable for discounts or promos.

https://danawharf.com/cruises-and-events/wylands-whale-and-dolphin-adventure-art-lesson/

Before leaving the Dana Point Harbor on our first trip, 3–5 Coastal Bottlenose Dolphins were swimming around the bait do...
01/13/2026

Before leaving the Dana Point Harbor on our first trip, 3–5 Coastal Bottlenose Dolphins were swimming around the bait dock before turning towards us as we pulled out. Passed by an incoming trio of California Sea Lions, the dolphin headed toward the harbor mouth, then angled toward Doheny before continuing down the coast.

We cruised several miles north along the drop-off and later returned closer to shore, but no additional cetaceans were found, so all of our passengers received “Whale Checks” which are free tickets to come back anytime for a free trip.

This afternoon, we headed north once again, following bird activity, and just past Laguna Main Beach we encountered a massive feeding megapod of Long-beaked Common Dolphins. These dolphin couldn’t resist taking turns bow riding and surfing our stern wake, with many launching high into the air.

It was yet another beautiful day on the water, with snow-capped mountains to the east and Catalina and San Clemente Islands visible to the west.

Report & 📸 Laura Lopez
📸 Ernie Leal

01/13/2026

🐋✨Dana Point delivered a beautiful weekend full of Gray Whales — migrating mothers, calves, and plenty of flukes. Every trip has been full of unforgettable moments!
Video by
CaliforniaCoast MarineLife SoCalAdventures VisitDanaPoint WildlifeWatching

🎥 Laura Lopez

Dana Point Times

Address

34675 Golden Lantern
Dana Point, CA
92629

Opening Hours

Monday 6am - 10pm
Tuesday 6am - 10pm
Wednesday 6am - 10pm
Thursday 6am - 10pm
Friday 5am - 10pm
Saturday 9am - 10pm
Sunday 9am - 10pm

Telephone

+18005909994

Website

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Our Story

on our trips : Visitors can take a voyage with Orange County’s original whale watching company. Riders on one of Dana Wharf's 17 vessels often see whales, dolphins and sea lions while embracing the majestic coastline of DanaPoint, all these excursions are narrated by expert naturalists . In addition, Dana Wharf is endorsed by renowned wildlife Artist Wyland.