These festivities are no fluke

A handful of coastal communities in Southern California will mark the celebrated migration of the California gray whale with festivals offering an assortment of themed recreation and eco-minded activities. Many thousands of the leviathans are parading through local waters on a northbound journey to arctic feeding waters after mating and giving birth in the lagoons of Baja California, Mexico. This weekend’s Dana Point Festival of Whales and Channel Islands Harbor Celebration of the Whales Festival will each offer whale-watching cruises, sea life exhibitions, live entertainment and other peripheral amusements. Similar festivals in Malibu and Santa Barbara will follow later.

* Dana Point Festival of Whales, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and March 12-13, in and around Dana Point Harbor. Free; event prices vary. www.festivalofwhales.org. (949) 496-1094 or (888) 440-4309.

* Channel Islands Harbor Celebration of the Whales Festival, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, Channel Islands Harbor Boulevard and Victoria Avenue, Oxnard. Free. www.channelislandsharbor.org. (805) 985-4852.

* And on future weekends: Point Mugu State Park Whale Festival, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. March 13, at Sycamore Cove, 9000 W. Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu. (805) 488-1827. Santa Barbara Whale Festival, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. March 27-28, State Street and Stearns Wharf, Santa Barbara. www.sbwhalefestival.com. (805) 897-3187.