THE GAMES GRAY WHALES PLAY

Beyond this point are the gray whale nurseries. Itis here that mothers mate and then return to bear their offspring in the warm, salty Baja

A panga outing

Manuel approaches in Kuyima, a Mexican panga (Spanish for skiff) that will take one party into the lagoon for a phenomenal encounter with nature. The rest of us go with Choppy in a numbered panga.

We are in the most pristine and remote of the three lagoons on the Pacific coast of Baja California, the centuries-old breeding ground for gray whales and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. Mexican government permits regulate entry into Laguna San Ignacio, but as Searcher passengers we are fortunate to be among the restricted numbers.

We are all excited with anticipation when we spot gray whale blows erupting in the distance. Choppy looks around with trained eyes because he knows there are many moms and calves waiting to subtly surface and surprise us.

Scientifically documented reports from the 1970s dubbed their lack of fear of humans "the friendly gray whale phenomenon" when they began approaching local fishermen, marine biologists and more recently tourists. Locally they are nicknamed "los amistosas" - Spanish for "the friendlies."

The first sighting

Just when we begin to settle in for a long wait, Choppy points to a whale spouting some 50 yards away. He silences the motor and slowly drifts towards the disappearing ripples. Suddenly a mother gray whale appears beside us, almost twice the size of the panga, with her baby swimming alongside.

The calf casts an inquisitive look our way then with a quick wave of its flipper, disappears into the depths below. But the show is not over - it's mother's turn to surface, displaying her eight-ton shiny skin, mottled by barnacles. Slowly and silently she sinks underwater and is gone.

Playing gray whale games

We are caught off guard, but not for long. As if on cue the duo come close to the boat again, gliding their large forms slowly and deliberately. Seven pairs of hands reach into the water to touch mom or baby, but they quickly disappear under the panga and we must quickly decide, left side or right, which will it be?

Really close and totally comfortable

With all eyes on them the mother gently coaxes the youngster towards the boat with her massive eight-ton body acting as a natural breakwater in the process. Morgane, 16, is the first to attract their attention and she screeches with delight. Encouraged, her friend, Emily, splashes her hands in the water urging them to come closer. Within seconds the baby is doubling back to the boat and Lynn is the next person the whale makes happy, followed by yours truly, and finally Gaynell, an avid nature lover.

How can I explain the mesmerizing eye contact and the profile of the long curved mouth seemingly outlined by a permanent grimace? My pulse quickens, my heart beats faster and I am caught in a wave of emotion - me, a human being, reaching out to touch this magnificent, fearless creature. There are no tears, but this is one of those rare occasions that renders me speechless.

I just can't imagine that these wandering giants are so tame that they allow themselves to be rubbed, petted and kissed by humans! I am thrilled to pieces to touch four whales during this outing. Now that I think of it the skin has the texture of a hard-boiled egg without the shell, but maybe it is a bit more taut.

Baby tales

At the height of these awe-inspiring moments it hardly dawns on me that a baby gray whale weighs between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds and measures15 feet at birth. Like little giants the calves gain an amazing 200 pounds per day feeding on the fat-rich milk from its mother.

More tales

Up close I also notice gray whales possess long, triangular-shaped heads, roughly one-sixth of their entire body length. They stare innocently with eyes the size of a tennis ball, located some six or seven feet from the tip of the snout.

Grays are 'bottom grazers' remaining in less than 200 feet of water, feeding on schools of small fish, pelagic crab and lobster krill. They swim with their mouths wide open, then slam their jaws shut thereby trapping their catch behind a curtain of baleen that hangs from the roof of their mouths.Yet they appear harmless as they congregate by the hundreds during breeding season in the lagoon with water depths ranging between 60 and 100 feet.

The performers

Our second outing is with Alvaro, the panga driver who has no trouble locating more gray whales in the lagoon. They circle the boat repeatedly raising their heads above the surface, as they allow him to pat them. Again and again I feel a compulsion to touch them. Another lucky day for me - I reach out and pet not one or two or three, but four more whales!

Maybe they are attracted by the outboard motors on the pangas. The noise and sound levels are reportedly similar to the vocalizations of the gray whales, according to one scientist's findings some 20 years ago.

Whatever the reason, we are happy when they approach the boats. These magnificent performers are the answer to every photographer's dream. This time they are in their element for spyhopping - they spring from the water and propel their bodies upward with almost a half turn, then dive beneath the sparkling water. There is absolute silence, except for rapid-fire clicks of our camera shutters. In less than a minute, the spyhopping is over and the whales take one last look around before arching their tail flukes skyward to descend with a powerful splash.

In the end, no one leaves Laguna San Ignacio without a great gift - an empowering experience that brings humans face to face, eye to eye and sometimes cheek to cheek with the colossal gray whale - "the friendly giant of the deep."