A dead whale that washed ashore at a beach in Encinitas was confirmed to be “Wally,” the whale that keeps floating toward the Southern California coast.
The whale washed ashore Grandview Beach on Saturday, Encinitas lifeguard Brian Ketterer said.
Wally first washed ashore Dockweiler Beach June 30 and was towed out by lifeguards the next day, ahead of the Fourth of July holiday. Just a week later, the carcass drifted toward San Pedro and then Newport Beach, and has repeatedly drifted toward the shore despite being towed away multiple times.
The female whale is between 10 and 20 years old and over 40 feet long, and has been the subject of many viral videos the past couple of weeks.
Ketterer said lifeguards tried to use a bulldozer Sunday to get rid of the carcass, but the tide was too high.
Crews disposed of Wally on Monday morning and planned to take the carcass to a landfill.