The Sea Lion had been cruising all night in the gentle seas of the Gulf of California. Her morning destination was the San Jose Channel searching for all varieties of marine mammals. Sea conditions were excellent for spotting any activity in all directions. The natural history staff and many of the guests were on the bow with binoculars scanning the horizon for blows and any surface activity.

After spending several hours with blue whales, a school of dolphins was spotted at least one or two miles from the Sea Lion. Slowly we made our way in their direction in hopes of much closer views. Soon the second mate had our vessel positioned directly in front of this fairly large pod of Common Dolphins. As we approached, several dolphins began to approach the bow of the Sea Lion in search of a free ride, being pushed by the pressure wave created by our ship as she moved through mirror-like waters. Many of us hung ourselves over the bow watching the dolphins watching us directly below and just in front of the Sea Lion's bow!!

We could see the reflection of the ship mirrored back at us with the graceful bodies of common dolphins slipping in and out of view just under the surface of the calm and beautifully patterned waters of the Gulf of California.