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There's something about growing up in South Florida that connects you to the ocean. Maybe it's the countless summer (and fall and winter) days spent in it or the fact that if you weren't at the beach or on a boat, you were most definitely wishing you were. When it came to deciding on a place to move, it was pretty much a rule that it had to be on the edge, somewhere where the beach would still be a part of our daily life. Good ole California has proven to have everything we needed and more… did you know that Southern California has more blue whales and dolphins and the best whale watching weather of anywhere on earth?!

Captain Dave, who was recently interviewed on Ellen, has been taking people out to see dolphins and whales since 1995 and now his Dana Point safaris are rated as the best in the nation! When we heard this we decided we had to check it out for ourselves, so this past weekend we headed over to Captain Dave's for our 9am signature safari:

Located at the Dana Point Harbor with free parking, snacks and coffee/tea for purchase, Captain Dave knows how to keep his early morning crew happy. As we waited for the foggy marine layer to pass and the catamaran to dock, we enjoyed the fresh sea breeze and pelicans passing by:

As Captain Dave's safari catamaran arrived, all 49 of us lined up to climb aboard. They gave us a low down on the recent sightings and tips on what to look out for on the ocean's surface. The front of the boat was especially sweet, with the netting of the catamaran making room for the chilly ocean spray to splash right through!

Shortly after bobbing around, our skipper started to spot some "foot prints" on the water. We all huddled to one side of the boat, then to the other, and low and behold, "there she blows!"

With close observation, we began to realize that this was a mom and baby Grey Whale pair! Naturally, mama whale was doing all she could not to be seen, as to protect her little one, but we still got some pretty good peeks. This was just the 4th calf they had seen all year!

After coasting next to the majestic pair for quite a ways, we then rode along the shores of Laguna Beach, catching glimpses of the golden coast, wild seals, sea lions and more:

While it wasn't one of their most outrageous whale watching days, as they have had days with 50+ whale sitings in one outing!, to us it was one of the most memorable experiences on the sea yet.

And to add to that morning's safari, once we were back on land we decided to meet up with some close friends, and hike to the "Top of the World!" Quite an ambitious name right? In its defense, this 2.5 mile hike up (5 miles roundtrip) was quite steep (trail head here):

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And the view made it totally worth it:

After that we decided to end the day with a frothy "cheers" at The Cliff, a restaurant located literally off of the cliffs of Laguna. This spot is worth visiting if only for the views alone, especially at sunset: