Southern Right Whales 2026 Week 2

Arrival in Puerto Piramides

Big Fish Expedition’s first week with Southern Right Whales set a high bar with epic in-water conditions, coupled with some rare terrestrial sightings. Our second-week photographers arrived and were promptly whisked via comfortable coach to the hotel to begin prepping gear for the coming week. After arrival, we met for dinner and a briefing where we detailed a short history of the peninsula, its wildlife, and how to conduct ourselves in the water. Our government minders were in attendance to meet everyone and go over what our professional photography permits would allow us to do. Argentina’s Península Valdés is one of the few places in the world where photographers can take in-water pictures and videos of Southern Right Whales, albeit under a professional photography permit issued by the government. The briefing concluded with some good news: the following day looked promising, and we would be departing the beach as soon as the light allowed.

Overly Friendly Whales!

As forecasted, we departed the beach shortly after breakfast, and although conditions were good, they were admittedly a little bumpier than expected. It was a non-issue since everyone had significant in-water experience, and the waves were still a far cry from questionable. We exited the primary bay and immediately headed right (west), quickly coming across a group of three sociable juveniles. Thankfully, this trio proved genuinely curious, often testing the spatial
awareness of our photographers and safety diver. They stayed near the surface, frequently rising out of the water to get an in-air look at us. It is easy to describe the experience in text, but completely different to actually experience a 50-foot whale lift its head out of the water, from mere feet away to get a better look. These three individuals spent upwards of 2.5 hours with our boat before moving on.

After they departed, we spent some time searching for other whales before eventually making the call to head east into the other protected bay. Conditions here were almost flat, and the whales were plentiful. We quickly found two juveniles who once again exhibited interest in our boat and divers. Suddenly, a third whale showed up, though it
seemed less engaged than the original pair, only intermittently appearing to check out the action. This group—sometimes two, sometimes three whales—stayed with our boat for the remainder of our time on the water.

Terrestrial Photography Tour

Unfortunately, day two saw the return of wind, cold, and a port closure, so we opted for a land tour of the peninsula. Our first stop was Punta Norte, on the northern tip of the peninsula, to see Southern Sea Lions, Elephant Seals, and hopefully Orcas. Along the way, we saw numerous Guanacos (llama-like ungulates). At Punta Norte, we were able to go down to the beach and see a small number of sea lions and elephant seals close-up, but the orcas hadn’t been sighted since several days earlier.

Near the beach, movement in a grassy plain revealed a Hairy Armadillo running around in search of a meal. Word had spread about how entertaining it is to photograph these small mammals, and this little one proved up to the task.
At first, it kept its distance, but then quickly realized we were no threat and ran right between our photographers as it searched for a late-morning snack. Eventually, the armadillo scurried back into the bush, and it was time for us to make our trek to Caleta Valdés. Along the way, we encountered Burrowing Owls; their large yellow eyes make for captivating photos if you can get close enough while they look in your direction.

In addition, we spotted a Patagonian Fox, though it chose to sit directly behind a wire fence—good for a “proof of life”;
shot, but no magazine covers today! Once at Caleta Valdés, we saw the orcas’ preferred attack channels and numerous Southern Mountain Cavys, small rodents that look like short-haired guinea pigs with no tails. Right around our scheduled departure hour back to the hotel, we received confirmation that conditions were improving and the port would reopen the next morning.

Friendly Juveniles and Courting Adults

Day three lived up to expectations, although early-morning conditions were bumpier than anticipated. However, all forecasts showed both winds and waves would die down as the day wore on. We initially headed west and spent some time looking for whales, but it seemed they too had sought shelter from the prior day’s conditions, so after a short look around, we again went east into more protected waters. We quickly found a group of three whales that took a shine to our boat and spent well over two hours with our photographers. It was quite interesting: although three whales were present, only two seemed genuinely curious about our divers, while the third focused its attention on our boat, circling with close passes. After approximately two hours, these three swam off, and we went in search of others. Once again,
it didn’t take long to find another group of three or four individuals engaged in pre-mating behavior. These juveniles were actively rubbing against and making physical contact with each other. They would interact, break off to take a closer look at the photographers, and then return to the group. This went on for another two hours before they decided to swim off, leaving us with low light, nearly depleted camera batteries, and memory cards at near-capacity.

Mating Whales!

The gradually calming seas from the day prior translated into near-glass conditions on day four. We left the beach gazing at smooth seas with high expectations, as these were shaping up to be the best conditions of the week. We repeated our path from the previous day, initially heading west, then east until we found two promising groups. As we approached the first group, it became apparent they were adults engaging in active mating behavior. They were bumping and churning the surface, and the group quickly grew to over seven individuals. Southern Right Whales aren’t aggressive animals, but when a large number of adults are engaged in mating activity, they pay little attention to anything else nearby. For everyone’s safety, we decided to investigate the second group instead. As we approached, they proved to be the complete opposite of the mating group. These whales were completely relaxed, often barely moving except to surface for breath. They alternated between breathing and going completely vertical in the water column, seemingly oblivious to our presence. We shot many videos and photos of these animals before they eventually moved off a couple of hours later. By this time the day was wearing on, but we managed to find one last group of two juveniles interested in our in-water activities. They approached divers and posed relaxed for photos, though a third whale would occasionally appear from a blind spot to join the fray. Eventually, the light dropped, and it was time to return to port.

Our final day was forecasted to be a continuation of day four, but we quickly realized that not all predictions are accurate. Once we cleared the sheltered bay, we hit numerous whitecaps, strong wind, and currents, forcing the difficult decision to return to shore. However, everything indicated that conditions would lay down in the afternoon, so we told everyone to keep their phones handy and stay prepared. Sure enough, we got confirmation that conditions were waning, and we targeted a 2:30 PM boat launch. We actually left a little before then to find that conditions had indeed improved. We searched extensively but found limited whales until we spotted one in the distance behaving unusually, staying in constant motion on the surface.
It quickly dawned on us that this whale was surface feeding! This is extremely rare, as food is limited within the peninsula’s bays, and adults typically fast during their time near the Argentinian coast, instead focusing on mating or nursing their young. Somehow, this individual had found a phytoplankton bloom. We managed to get in the water while it vacuumed across the surface, but ironically, the very thing keeping it in the same area—the
dense phytoplankton bloom—dropped underwater visibility to near-zero. Even so, watching from the surface offered a compelling end to our week as we occasionally caught glimpses of the baleen plates as the whale cruised for an early dinner. Soon after, the light began to wane, signaling the end of our day and another fantastic week with Argentina’s Southern Right Whales.

Next year we will return to Patagonia under our special pro-photography permit for more encounters with the friendliest large whales in the ocean. Learn more: Southern Right Whale Photography Tour