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On the lookout for gray whales The grays are headed north, and a Medford couple will help coastal visitors spot them By MARK FREEMAN Perched atop a coastal cliff and eyes scanning the horizon for short puffs of water, David Bone of Medford bubbles with glee as if it were his magical moment of 1991 all over again. While on a trip with fellow science teachers to Newport that day, Bone took a whale-watching cruise and got so close to one of the great mammals that the Iowa native caught a mystical glimpse into the whites of a gray whale's eye. "There's been so much written about the eye of the whale, that when you get to see it, it just grabs you," says Bone, 54. "These creatures aren't stupid. They're connecting with us, and when you experience it, it gets into your blood." Bone's blood will bubble again today and throughout next week as he returns to his Southern Oregon cliff perch as a volunteer helping hundreds of coastal visitors view gray whales now migrating off the Oregon Coast. Bone and his wife, Bea, are two veterans of the Oregon Parks Department's popular "Whale Watching Spoken Here" program, in which trained volunteers help visitors spy whales from key viewpoints all along the coast. Bone never tires of spotting the tell-tale spouts of water, seeing whales' tails lift out of the water to power themselves into a sounding dive or catching the occasional breaching of one into an aerial dance. Sometimes the only thing better than seeing one is viewing the awe on the faces of whale-watching rookies. Some tips to help you spot whales You don't have to ride a charter boat or rent an airplane for a good chance to spot gray whales now migrating north along the Oregon Coast. Here are some tips for viewing whales from land. Bring binoculars, warm clothes, comfortable shoes and rain gear. Even on sunny days, the coastal winds blow cold. Get high for a bird's-eye view, usually from tall cliffs and overlooks along Highway 101. Whales can be a few hundred yards to eight miles offshore. Scan an inch below the horizon for spouts, which are sprays of water 15 feet high. The spouts can sometimes be heart-shaped. Gray whales usually blow three spouts to gather air before diving, called sounding. Whales will stay underwater five to 20 minutes before reappearing for more breaths. They travel about 5 mph, so look north from the last place you spied a spout. Whales typically travel in pods of three or more, sometimes stopping to frolic and mate (usually involving some thrashing and slow rolls on the surface). Early morning is best because the winds tend to be light and the ocean calm, and you won't be looking into the western sun. "There's an adrenaline high when you see these whales jump out of the water and breach," Bone says. "Some people have never seen the ocean before, and the excitement of their first whale is contagious." The spring whale-watch week coincides with the annual migration of gray whales from the lagoons of Mexico to Alaska's Bering Sea, where the huge mammals will spend the summer. The whales, which run 30 to 50 feet long and weigh 20 to 40 tons, are blackish-gray mammals with whitish patches caused by clinging barnacles that die and fall off when the whales reach colder waters. They pass Oregon each fall and spring, feeding on plankton during their trips. Mothers and calves, as well as adult males and females without calves, will be heading north past Oregon now through early June. State parks officials historically spread whale-watching volunteers out along the coast, assisting visitors with their viewing and keeping in contact with donated cellular telephones so whales can be tracked. Last spring, 1,893 whales were officially "sighted" by 15,492 whale-watchers assisted by a host of volunteers, with the Bones being two of the best despite their inlander status, says Mike Rivers, who runs the program for the state parks department. As a Butte Falls High School science teacher, David Bone has a rich background in biology and instruction, while Bea Bone's "magnetic and enthusiastic personality" make them a fine tandem, Rivers says. "These whales are some of the biggest, most exciting and charismatic animals in the world," Rivers says, "and (the Bones) are as ideal a couple as you can get to get that message across." Where to find helpers Trained whale-watching volunteers such as David and Bea Bone of Medford will be at eight locations off Highway 101 between Crescent City, Calif., and Coos Bay. Volunteers will be on hand from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. today through March 30 at the following locations: Crescent Beach Overlook - in Crescent City, Calif. Harris Beach State Park - north of Brookings. Cape Ferrelo - north of Brookings. Cape Sebastian State Scenic Corridor - south of Gold Beach. Battle Rock City Park - in Port Orford. Cape Blanco Lighthouse - north of Port Orford. Face Rock State Scenic Viewpoint - south of Bandon. Shore Acres State Park - south of Charleston. The Bones' volunteerism began five years ago, when Bea Bone dragged her husband to a whale-watching workshop to prepare for helping in the program, and they've stuck to it ever since. They anchor the Cape Arago State Park site south of Charleston, and this year will be joined by five Butte Falls students in Bone's zoology class. David Bone says he's seen as many as 60 whales during one three-hour stretch two years ago, but sometimes he can go a day without a verified sighting if the weather is poor. He carries several props with him as well: scale models of gray whales; chunks of measured rope to show their body lengths; and even a piece of fingernail-like baleen that the whales use to filter food from seawater. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.