Humphrey

Humphrey was a famous humpback whale who repeatedly swam into the inland waters of California. He made national headlines by getting lost in San Francisco Bay and traveling miles up the Sacramento River.

Humphrey notably swam inland and got lost twice, first in 1985 and again in 1990. Both incidents required massive, large-scale rescue operations by marine biologists and the Coast Guard to guide him back to sea.

In his first stranding, rescuers used a technique of playing the sounds of humpback whales feeding to draw him downstream. They combined this acoustic luring with physical barriers of pipes to block his path up the river.

After his second successful rescue from the Sacramento River in 1990, Humphrey was guided back to the Pacific Ocean. He was later positively identified by his tail fluke markings swimming in the waters off Half Moon Bay in 1991.