The video opportunity of a lifetime presented itself Monday in the form of a whale spout, then another, as Payton Landaas watched from the patio of his parents’ home overlooking a famous Southern California surf spot.
“I knew how rare this moment could be so I ran to get my drone,” Landaas, 18, told For The Win Outdoors.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRP5B-bn25s]
Moments later he was capturing aerial footage of a 25-foot gray whale swimming toward and beneath unsuspecting surfers as they waited for waves at Doheny State Beach in Orange County.
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As viewers can see, the whale surfaces once inside the lineup, then approaches 20-plus surfers as they sit lazily on their boards. One young surfer turns around and spots the whale, then paddles away as the leviathan passes beneath him.
“The whale was inside the lineup, which wouldn’t have happened any other time of day due to the tide,” Landaas said, explaining that the morning high tide allowed the large mammal to swim close to shore.
Many of the surfers did not seem to see the whale, but Landaas’ footage affords a unique perspective revealing the graceful movements of such a large cetacean.
Landaas, a resident of Capistrano Beach and a senior at San Juan Hills High School, had just launched Stealth Photos and lists himself as owner and chief drone pilot.
The whale, likely a juvenile looking for food on the sandy bottom, is somewhat of a stray.
The southbound gray whale migration, from feeding grounds off Alaska to breeding areas off Mexico, does not peak off Southern California until January.
–Video and photos are courtesy of Payton Landaas/Stealth Photos