ENCINITAS, Calif. — What started as a quiet morning paddle turned into a breathtaking encounter with one of the ocean’s rare giants.
UC San Diego philosophy professor Craig Callender was paddling with his group, the North County Paddlers, from Cardiff State Beach when something caught his attention about two and a half miles offshore.
“We were headed back and then I just decided to keep going out,” Callender said. “I saw a ton of bait and thousands of birds, and lo and behold, there’s this big whale popping up, feeding.”…