Next Level Sailing

It was an absolute blast having the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills aboard earlier this year! We cannot wait for Season 11 :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5qLKoJpdbQ

Fly into the weekend! Brown pelicans can fly up to 30 miles per hour, WOW! Beautiful photo, thank you for taking this during your trip Lauren! ... #sailing #optoutsides #whalewatchingtour #pelicans #flyhigh #seabird See more

Hank These metal pieces hold the staysail to the stay. They allow the sail to easily be hoisted or flaked. No, they have nothing to do with Tom Hanks. The term hanks come from the Norwegian word "hank," which means handle (on a cup for instance). Something to ponder while you enjoy your cup of tea this morning! #sailing #sandiego #yachtamerica #hanks #photography #vintage #sailboats #yachting

Beautiful Fin Whales #savethem #endangered #saveourseas #slowdown #conservation #sandiego #finwhales #whales #ocean #salty #whalewatching

Something fun in case you want to show your friends how pretty she looks! We are very happy to share this video from Nobleman Productions :) https://youtu.be/hr1p6y1m3i4

https://youtu.be/tACbYvEpMdw

It was such a stunning day on the water today with a high of 71 degrees. Can you believe it's January? We sailed out to find that the ocean was very calm and flat. We headed south and found two gray whales, a mom and a baby! This cow and calf pair was too darn cute. There were a lot of other boaters close by, so we reminded everyone to stay behind the whales and maintain 100 yard distance. Once everyone understood the safest whale watching guidelines, we were able to watch th...is mom and baby make their journey south towards Mexico. At one point, we even saw the pair link up with a pod of Pacific white sided dolphins. These dolphins played with the cow and calf which was just amazing to watch. Be sure to check out the photos of the calf. The fetal folds are just starting to disappear, so we estimate that this calf was just two weeks ago. They have another week until they reach Mexico. Wishing them luck on their journey! See more

January 9, 2021 Today was such a gorgeous day. We are in the height of our gray whale watching season, so it’s wonderful to get out and see the whales. We had enough people to go sailing today and gosh, we had such an amazing experience. We sailed south towards Los Coronados and found 2 gray whales. These whales were moving fast, but we had some awesome views. We also spotted 2 more whales in the distance that were traveling quickly as well. We had finally had to turn around... and head for home. Suddenly we saw 5 gray whales all swimming together. We were so excited to see such a big group, so we just had to investigate. Fathom got some great photos of 2 grays that were right next to each other. Be sure to check them out in our gallery. At this point, we were going to be really late so we headed for home. On our way, we got to see all the sailboats racing out to Los Coronados, which was a fantastic sight. Leading the race was Pyewacket, owned by Roy Disney. It was exciting to see this famous Transpac winner out on the water. All in all, it was another fantastic day aboard the Yacht America. We look forward to seeing you next weekend! See more

January 1, 2021 Happy New Year! We couldn't be happier to sail into a brand new year. It was an absolutely gorgeous day as well with three different types of dolphins and gray whales. We saw bottlenose, Pacific white sided dolphins, and Pacific common dolphins. We can't wait to go whale watching with you all again soon.

December 30th, 2020 Due to our COVID-19 protocols, we have limited capacity. Typically, during this time, a lot of people come to San Diego to see whales. We wanted to ensure that everyone gets to see whales, so we are now offering two trips per day. Our first trip took us up to La Jolla where we found a southbound gray whale. Along the way, we saw a feeding frenzy where 500 Common Dolphins were feeding along with the seabirds. We also saw a small pod of Pacific White Sided ...dolphins as well. On our way home, we spotted 2 bottlenose dolphins just inside the mouth of the San Diego Bay. Our second trip took us straight out west where we spotted a southbound gray whale. We followed this whale and noticed that it was on 2 minute cycles. After several cycles, we sailed off to see what else we could find. We had a fabulous sail as the breeze picked up. We got a very close view of the sea lions on the way in and the Naval Dolphins did some great tricks for us. Both were great trips, we can’t wait to see you all tomorrow!

December 19, 2020 We saw a breaching gray whale! It was such a surprise, no one was prepared so unfortunately we didn’t get a picture. It was really cool to see! With the help of our incredible whale watching community, we found a gray whale following the kelp line by the Point Loma lighthouse. It continued its journey to the SD buoy and we sailed alongside, watching it come up for several breaths. We were just about to turn away when it started rolling and spy hopping. Suddenly we saw a huge pod of 500 Pacific Common dolphins! It certainly looked like this whale was playing with the dolphins. It was so cool to watch. Suddenly, the dolphins took off and stampeded towards the Coronado Islands in Mexico. It was a truly phenomenal day. We can’t wait to sail with you on Tuesday!

We saw our first Gray Whale of the season yesterday, December 18th. We can't wait for this great season :)

December 27th, 2020 It was shocking that we didn’t see any whales today. That said, we did witness a really cool shark interaction. We saw three sharks feeding on a dead sealion. These sharks were very active, we saw their dorsal fins and caudal fin. The bottlenose dolphins were swimming very close to the sharks, less than 100 yards. It was fascinating! Everyone gets to come back for free. We will see you next time.

December 26th, 2020 Talk about an action packed day! As soon as we exited the San Diego Bay, we saw a gray whale. We just saw it spout a few times, so we proceeded to find more consistent whales. We passed by a few Pacific Common Dolphins and continued our journey north. With the help of our wonderful whale watching community, we found a fabulous pair of southbound gray whales. They were traveling at 3 knots. It is amazing to watch these animals, knowing that they will travel 5,000 miles over the course of 55 days. We had to say goodbye and headed for home. We can’t wait to sail tomorrow!

December 5th was a real treat! We saw two humpback whales, one even breached. I didn't catch the breach, but I did snap the splash. Enjoy :)

Captain Troy had the best time talking about the history of the Yacht America on Sea Wolves this week! Check out this great program :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjs76uHEqeM&t=780s

Swimmin’ through 2020 like #wheres2021 #letsgo #arewethereyet #commondolphin #sandiego #whalewatching #beautiful #optoutside #dolphins

November 22, 2020

November 21, 2020

Stowaway Sunday #boatbirds #yachtlife #whalewatching #featherfriends #sandiego #stowawaysunday #ecotour

Congratulations Tracey and Jarred! Wishing you fair winds and following seas @tidalweddingfilms #wedding #sandiego #yachtwedding #gorgeousbride #beautifulcouple #sailing #romantic #perfect

August 31, 2020 The ocean was incredibly flat today with a swell of 0-2 feet. We sailed south towards the Coronado Islands and found a huge pod of 100 offshore bottlenose dolphins. These were the most active offshore bottlenose I have ever seen, some jumping 25 feet up into the air. Fathom was lucky enough to catch a few pictures of one such occasion. We continued our journey south in search of whales but unfortunately, we didn't find any. Everyone will be able to come back for free. In the meantime, enjoy these great shots!

August 30, 2020 We sailed south towards the Coronado Islands. Although it was very sunny, the wind had a slight chill. Don’t forget to bring your jacket because it can be chilly on the water. Once we were above the canyon by the Coronado Islands, Fathom spotted a blue whale! This beautiful animal decided to swim north and Captain Troy skillfully sailed alongside, keeping a safe distance. This blue whale was extremely punctual, coming up to breathe every 10 minutes. We even saw its fluke just barely come out of the water on one occasion. On two separate occasions, this whale decided to come up right next to the Yacht America. That was very exciting, guests could even smell whale breath! We said goodbye to this whale and headed for home. We can’t wait to go whale watching tomorrow.

August 21, 2020 The ocean was calm today with a small swell of 2 feet. We have been feeling a lot of humidity lately due to a tropical storm down by Baja. The marine layer was thick this morning, but the sun burned it off, making the visibility wonderful. We headed south to the Coronado Islands and found a huge megapod of common dolphins. We sailed with them for a long time and then found a minke whale. Although minkes are difficult to track, this one proved to be quite friendly and stayed close to the boat. The guests got some great views. We can’t wait to go sailing again!

August 20, 2020 What a fantastic day! We sailed out to the Coronado Islands and found a massive blue whale. We had an incredible view as it came up to breathe several times. We then went to check out a very active pod of common dolphins. Some were doing back flips in the air! We finally had to head home, but we ran into another large pod of dolphins. Be sure to check out our gallery for pictures. We can’t wait for tomorrow.

August 15, 2020 What a phenomenal day! On land, San Diego had a high of 86 degrees Fahrenheit. Everyone was excited to get out on the water and cool off, the cool sea breeze was welcomed by guests and crew alike. We headed south to the Coronado Islands and found a massive blue whale. We watched in awe as it came up to breathe several times. Everyone was also able to clearly see its small dorsal fin as well. We then saw a large pod of dolphins stampeding towards us, so we went to investigate. There were many calves in the mix, they were just too cute. It was so fun watching all the sea life in the ocean today. We can’t wait to see what we find tomorrow!

August 14, 2020 It is starting to get pretty hot here in San Diego. Today, we had a high of 86 degrees Fahrenheit on land. Of course out on the water, it cools off quite a bit, so don’t forget to bring your layers. We started our journey north, but then heard of a report that there was a lot of action by the Coronado Islands. We headed south and found a huge pod of active common dolphins feeding on fish. We also saw a lot of birds as well. The dolphins started swimming north, so we followed them up the canyon. We looked for whales, but they eluded us today unfortunately. Everyone gets to come back for free. We can’t wait to find whales tomorrow!

August 12, 2020

August 7, 2020 It was such a beautiful day today with a high of 77 degrees Fahrenheit, the wind was also warm. We sailed out past Point Loma and started heading south. To the north, we saw a huge group of birds. Fathom looked through the binoculars and just barely saw some movement in the water. We went to investigate. It turned out to be a huge pod of common dolphins feeding on a bait ball along with sea lions and a large array of sea birds. The dolphins split up, so we followed the largest pod north. They lead us to 4 more bait balls with more and more common dolphins. We saw at least 700 dolphins in total. There is a lot of food in the area. We kept a close eye out for whales, but unfortunately we didn’t find any. Everyone will be able to come back for free to fulfill their guarantee. We can’t wait to see you tomorrow.

We've been getting a lot of questions from our guests about our COVID-19 protocols. Come aboard and see what we're doing to keep you safe!

August 1, 2020 The wildlife was out today! It was super hot inland, which brought in a very heavy marine layer. Even though it is warm on land, always remember to bring your layers as it can be chilly on the water. Today was no exception. As soon as we left the San Diego Bay, we saw a bait ball with common dolphins, pelicans, and sea lions. After watching them play for a bit, we sailed west to 9 mile bank. With the help of our whale watching network, we found a large pod of a...t least 100 offshore bottlenose dolphins. These dolphins were swimming south towards the Coronado Islands. We followed them south along the bank for at least 20 minutes. Suddenly, Captain Troy spotted a spout to the west. We went to investigate and found it was a blue whale! We got a fabulous view of its tail fluke, be sure to check out our photos. After watching it for a few cycles, we headed home. The fog was so thick we couldn't even see Point Loma as we passed next it to. It made for a very mysterious ride home, we had so much fun. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow! See more

July 24, 2020 Today was an absolutely gorgeous day. The water was extremely flat in the morning, you could even see the ripples when a bird landed on the surface. We sailed south towards the Coronado Islands and found a large pod of at least 400 common dolphins. They started to swim north, so we followed them along 9 mile bank. We continued our journey north and sailed home. Along the way, we were able to watch the aircraft carrier, USS Lincoln, leave the San Diego Bay. This ...ship is 1,092 feet long and weighs 99,790 tons. As we sailed in, we stopped and watched the USS Essex motor into the San Diego Bay. This 844 foot LHD (Landing Helicopter Dock) carried five Osprey helicopters. Check out the pictures below to see how the wings and rotors were folded to allow maximum efficiency for storage on deck. It was fascinating to witness! We look forward to seeing you next time. See more