Homeward Bound

They've had their fun, and they're nearly home:

Delta and Dawn pick up steam in Bay
By Dorothy Korber - Bee Staff Writer

By 1 p.m. Tuesday, the wayward humpback whales Delta and Dawn were deep into San Pablo Bay, about six miles west of the Carquinez Bridge on their seaward trek.

The mother and calf have gone beyond the Napa River, avoiding a wrong turn there. They seem to be moving west at a steady clip.

"Everybody's really excited that hopefully these animals are heading out. Everybody's got their fingers crossed," said Jim Oswald, spokesman for the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito.

The whales are moving on their own without any human assistance. The flotilla of vessels tracking them are there primarily to monitor their health and keep them from harm's way from ships and boats in these busy channels.

On Monday, authorities fished out at least two people who jumped into the water to attempt to swim with the whales, and issued verbal warnings to nearly two dozen others on piers and in kayaks. The whale team continues to ask boaters, kayakers and others to respect the 500-yard safety zone around the humpbacks.

Before reaching the Pacific, the whales have two more bridges to navigate: the Richmond/San Rafael and the Golden Gate.

But the Carquinez Bridge seemed to pose no obstacle to the pair. After some hesitation, they swam beneath its spans while a freight train rumbled by, blowing its horn. There was also a plane overhead and vehicular traffic on the bridge -- plus a gallery of onlookers.

Earlier this morning, there were euphoric shouts from spectators as the calf breeched from the water in a silvery spray - behavior typical of healthy whale young.

Researchers think the antibiotics administered over the weekend are taking effect -- their skin condition is improving with some of the lesions sloughing off.

This 20-day saga has been a virtual treasure trove for researchers seeking to understand whale psychology and physical health. They have been taking still photos, video, and studying the whales' every move from tail lobbing to breeching -including their sometimes seemingly erratic behavior.

I would add that the saga has also been a nice diversion, particularly since it appears that the hoped-for happy ending is imminent.