Come See 5,000 Humpbacks Singing & Breeding Near Kitebeach Cabarete Dominican Republic!

The Whales Are Coming! The Whales are Coming!

Humpback whales are now coming to the Dominican Republic, to Samana Bay, only a few hours by car from Kitebeach Cabarete. 

This is your chance to see these amazing water mammals close up - a truly breathtaking experience! 

You know, 100 years ago, when I was a 19YO and was traveling Australia for 2 1/2 years, I had sailed up the east coast along the great barrier reef, Darwin and Arnhem land as well as the Taurus Straights. I loved the sea, the abandoned islands, the amazing Australian sunsets and sunrises… the rich wildlife and the fantastic windsurfing beaches; the lone, white sandy never-ending beaches of Western Australia, the laid back ancient land and spiritual feel of the place.

Early one morning, while sailing in northern Australia, I was alarmed  to see a large capsized yacht some 500 meters away. Looking hard, I wondered where the keel was, because it wasn't there… when the whole thing just rolled over and sprouted water high into the air… Blow me down, it was a huge whale! 

That first whale sighting stayed with me all my life.

Now you too have a chance to watch whales, but not merely one little chance whale…

Why Watch The Humpback whales?

How Many Humpbacks Are Gonna Be Here? Who Else Is Coming?

It is estimated that up to 5,000 male and female Humpback whales will make their annual pilgrimage to the protected waters of the Dominican Republic this year. 

Humpback whales are by far the major attraction, however Sperm and Pilot whales and a variety of dolphins, including Bottlenose, Rissos and Spinner dolphins, also join the Humpback whales on their visit to the coastal waters of the Dominican Republic. 

Hear Humpback Whales Singing The Longest Love Song

During Humpback whale mating season, males serenade their chosen humpback females with a magical haunting mating song, which can be heard (if your lucky to have good ears or a hydrophone) by other humpback whales for more than 20 miles away! 

Male Humpback whales sing the longest and most complex mating songs.
Wish I knew what they were saying, as their words seem effective and get the job done… 

Each love seranade lasts for half an hour. She better get the idea or… The male humpback whale may repeat the same song dozens of times over several hours… until she does…

The aim of these singing whales is likely to woo the humpback whale females and possibly to frighten off rival humpback whale males. 

Some More Interesting Humpback Whale Facts:

• Humpback whales are known for their black and white markings on their bellies as well as their distinctive tail markings. Similar to our fingerprints, each of the humpback whale markings is unique.
     
• An average humpback whale is 40 – 50 feet (12-15m) long and weighs between 30 – 40 tons.
• A whale's pregnancy lasts for almost one year
• Baby humpbacks are born weighing an average of one ton… Like a big African elephant!

Where All the Humpbacks Go…

During Spring, Summer and Autumn the humpback whales like to hang out in cooler, high latitude polar waters to stuff themselves on fish and sea-feed. Or on what remains after our fishing fleets wipe out the area.

In Winter the humpback whales do what we all want to do and run off to warm, low latitude tropical waters. Places like the Dominican Republic are a great Humpback tourist destination, and a preferred breeding ground for humpback whales. 

The humpback female whale gives birth to her 1.5 – 2 ton baby here, before she too heads north. 
When born baby Humpbacks have very little blubber (fat). They need the fat layer to protect them from the cold water awaiting them in the north where they migrate to for feeding, so the rich mother milk they drink (50 gallons of milk per day…) has 50-60% fat (Human mother milk has 2% fat) and gains them 100 pounds fat per day…  

Most humpback whales make massive return journeys of approximately 20,000 Km every year between their feeding and breeding sites. Keeps those big guys and gals fit, but hungry.

The humpbacks don't all travel together; the teen humpbacks get north first, followed by their older and heavier dads, then joined by the humpback whale moms swimming slower with their (elephantine) little babes.

Because seasons are reversed either side of the equator, Northern and Southern Hemisphere populations of humpbacks whales most probably never meet.

Humpbacks whales maintain their power for such a long journey by traveling 1 mph, (it's merely a 1/5 of what speed they can get up to), resting and socializing along the way. 

Seeing Whales Before All Die Out  

Sadly, there are but a few thousands of whales left on our planet earth today.

Wiped out by over-fishing and the polluted waters, the number of whales continues dwindling fast year for year. Whaling decimates the populations of large whales. Today, for example, only 300 Northern Right Whales remain and all other whales are endangered too.

Where Can You See 5,000 Humpback Whales?

The “Silver Bank”,  which Samana Bay is Part of, contains the largest population of humpbacks in the North Atlantic Ocean, if not the world.

Conservative estimates believe 3,000 – 5,000 humpbacks pass through this odd shaped twenty square miles encompassing the Silver Bank during a season.

For many centuries the humpback whales have used Samana Bay as a winter breeding ground.  

Cave paintings found in the nearby Los Haitises National Park by Samana, Dominican Republic, depict spitting whales. These wall paintings date back to the Taino period (The Aborigine Indians who were wiped out by the early Spanish conquerors) and show that Whales have been visiting the region for at least fifteen centuries before Christopher Columbus sailed to the Caribbean in 1493. 

Humpback Whale Watching Tours

In the Samana outer bay, you’ll find humpback whales competing for a partner, singing for all they're worth…

In the protected inner bay of Samana you find one of the largest humpback whale nurseries in the world. 

Although whales can be seen sometimes even from Kitebeach Cabarete and especially from the Samana shoreline (with a pair of strong binoculars), the best whale-watching is gained by getting out there amongst the whales. Good way to do that is to go on a whale-watching tour. 

A typical humpback whale watching tour departs Cabarete before dawn, at around 6am, and includes three to five hours aboard a whale-watching boat, usually with an experienced guide. Tour fees are around $100 per person. In addition to transportation to and from the vessel, the cruise, and the services of the guide, most tours include one meal and beverages.

From Puerto Plata it is a 4h drive. From Cabarete around 3-3.5h to reach Samana Bay.

FYI: Swimming with the whales is forbidden and it could be dangerous to go scuba diving near them, as there were cases of divers being dragged away to sea or pulled deep under by playful, annoyed or protective whales.

Samana Bay, Cabarete, Kitebeach and Other Fun Activities

Samana Bay is a favorite tourist destination, due to its lovely calm turquoise waters, the thick, lush green tropical forests and long, uncrowded, white, soft, sandy beaches. Well worth staying 2-4 days.

The whale museum in La Samana features a 40-foot humpback whale skeleton and may be interesting for you to see. 

In addition to whale watching, you can go hiking, visit beautiful waterfalls, enjoy excellent scuba diving, horseback riding along the beaches, and a host of beach activities are offered here or around Cabarete. 

Restaurants and Hotels are plentiful in the Samana Bay area. 

Cabarete and Kitebeach are only a few hours away by car, so once you had enough of the humpbacks, you can enjoy world class kiteboarding beaches; take kitesurfing lessons, rent or buy new or used kiteboarding gear. 

And if you like to party – Cabarete is the nightlife queen of the Caribbean… 

Where Humpback Whales Meet Kiteboarding Junkies…

If you'd like to go whale watching with other kiteboarding guys & gals and are interested perhaps in fun downwind kitesurfing safari on the way back to Kitebeach Cabarete, contact us by emailing: 

kite surfing junky (at) gmail (dot) com  – remember to remove empty spaces etc.

We're also looking forward to your comment on this page with your ideas, questions and feedback!

Kiteboarding | Cabarete | Samana