August 6, 2011 (Updated December 6, 2022)

The Day That I Saw Whales.

by Anne Mauney, MPH, RD

33 comments

Yesterday, I fulfilled one of my #1 life goals: see a whale in person.

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Yesterday when Kris, Lu, and I were at the beach, we started talking about dolphins and sharks (it is Shark Week right now, after all — only my favorite week ever, no big deal). That topic brought us to whales. Kris said that she had randomly gotten a gift card for a whale watching trip from a friend for her birthday. “When the heck am I going to use that?” she said. I turn to her, trying not to flip out. “Do you realize it’s basically my life dream to see whales in person?!?!!?!?!?” Kris: “Um, really?” Me: “Gahhhh!!!! Whales!!!!” Kris: “Um… want to go while you’re here?” Me: “@#$(*@#($@*(#$@!!!!”

She took that as a yes 😉

Thanks to the wonders of the internet, we had our trip booked and were at the Boston harbor the next day at noon, ready to rock. Win.

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The trip was about 3 and a half hours long and took us way out into an area called Stellwagen Bank, which is a 842-square mile stretch of open water at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay. According to our whale watching company’s brochure, it’s apparently the most famous whale-watching destination on the East Coast, renowned for its heavy concentration of humpback, finback, and minke whales.

It was a long ride out (over an hour), but very scenic (and windy)!

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And then, we arrived. Almost immediately, we started seeing minke whales, which are small whales that look kind of like larger dolphins. And then… the big boys arrived.  

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Hello, Mr. Humpback! 

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There were a TON of them and they were all feeding literally right next to our boat in a big group. Coolest trip EVER! I have to admit I was skeptical we would actually see any.

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How awesome are these photos of the whale opening its mouth?!

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It was seriously SO freaking cool. These pictures don’t do it justice at all! The whales were SO big it was crazy to see in person.

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Kris, thanks for making my life complete 😉 

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I’m off to brunch with Kris and then heading to the train to spend the rest of the weekend with miss Tina and her husband Mal — so excited! We’re going out on their friend’s boat today and have big plans for a blogger run and brunch tomorrow. I heart vacation 🙂

Ta-ta for now, friends!

Have you guys ever gone whale watching? Do you have any random life goals? Another one of mine is to swim with dolphins 🙂 I’m obsessed with the ocean, obviously.

- anne

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33 comments
  • Caitlyn
    The pictures of the humpback are intense! It looks like he (or she?) is gargling water!
    Reply
    • Anne P
      Haha it kind of sounded like it was!
      Reply
    • Anne P
      There was a high school trip on the boat we were on, haha. Like half of them got seasick. Fail!
      Reply
  • Sophie
    Oh wow I am so jealous of you right now! We were meant to go whale watching on holiday in Spain but they cancelled at the last minute because of the wind :-( Looks like you had an amazing time though, brilliant photos!
    Reply
    • Anne P
      I tried to go back in 2003 when I was studying abroad in New Zealand but they cancelled because of storms. I was so disappointed!
      Reply
  • Mandy
    One of my lifelong dreams is also to swim with the dolphins! One of those dreams that has yet to be fulfilled, but someday!!
    Reply
  • Kris S
    haha, love the windy picture of us, heh :)
    Reply
  • Carly
    I am SO jealous!!! I went on a whale watch once in Boston... and we saw NO WHALES!!!!
    Reply
    • Anne P
      That's totally what I thought would happen!
      Reply
  • K
    Great photos! I saw a whale once down in the Outer Banks. It was randomly swimming close to shore by the pier that we just happened to be on at that very moment. I didn't have my camera with me but it was pretty awesome! Some random drunk guy even gave me and my boyfriend $2 so we could go out onto the fishing pier to get a closer look!
    Reply
  • MegaNerd
    Seriously, cool. I'm jealous! I want to see whales!!!
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  • Molly @ RDexposed
    This is definitely one of those experiences that you can't even describe or imagine unless you're there. I'd like to experience it at some point!
    Reply
  • Louisa
    I want to see whales! But I have had a very cool experience. Various members of my extended family and I went out kayaking in an inlet, between the big island and the little island of Tybee Island, Georgia. We made it out about halfway between the islands, and suddenly, all around us...dolphins. A whole pod of them. Mothers, babies, dad and all. Some of them came almost close enough to touch, and when you're sitting basically at water level, you can see them tilt their heads enough to actually look at you. They seemed curious, and swam with us for perhaps ten minutes. We found out later we were a little lucky- protective daddy dolphins have been known to tip boats. It was still one of the most breathtakingly wonderful moments of my life.
    Reply
    • Anne P
      Oh my gosh. That's incredible!
      Reply
  • Renie
    How exciting for you. Beautiful scenery.
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  • Errign
    I'm a New England girl, so I've definitely been whale watching, along with duck tours and all sorts of silly other things like that. I forgot how beautiful whale watching is though, thanks for sharing!
    Reply
    • Errign
      Ohhh I forgot to say what one of my life goals is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_Traverse
      Reply
      • Anne P
        Whoa. That sounds so cool/intense!
        Reply
  • DHP
    Awesome pics, Anne. Fantastic. A day of a lifetime. Thx for capturing and sharing it!
    Reply
  • chandra
    OMG!! I've been obsessed with sea animals since I was a little girl (thanks Disney & The Little Mermaid) and whales are one of my favorites! I'm just in awe of their size and beauty - I can't imagine seeing them in the wild! AH!! So cool. :)
    Reply
  • Jen
    Holy freaking crap, I"m so jealous!!!!! Best pictures I have seen today!!
    Reply
  • Pat Elsberry
    Wow!! You captured some awesome pictures! The one of the whale with it's mouth open is the best!! While I still lived in Boston I went whale watching once when my sister came to visit. We took a boat out of Gloucester and although there were lots of whales to be seen on the trip (so cool!) the water was so rough going out I ended up in the restroom and "green" for the rest of the day!! :) Would love to try it again sometime to have a better memory whale watching!
    Reply
  • Jill in Chicago
    Ooh you need to head to Maui in mid-February when they are mating -- CONSTANT humpback whale sightings! And my boyfriend and I heard them 'singing' while laying on the beach. It got to the point where we would see a fin and be like 'yawn, there's another one.' :)
    Reply
  • Lisa
    Great whale photos! I've never been whale watching--which is a travesty because I grew up in Seattle. Someday I will do it!
    Reply
  • Katie G.
    SO COOL!!! I love random days like that! One of the things on my list was to "pet a dolphin" and I got the opportuinty last year! I mentioned my dream to my dad's girlfriend and it turned out that her niece was a dolphin trainer at the Baltimore aquarium! Me, my sister and two friends got to go to the dolphin show on a Sunday afternoon for free, and then go behind the tanks and out on the training platforms to pet the dolphins, do hand motions with them, and feed them fish! It was so awesome, my face hurt afterwards from smiling so much! And the trainers took pictures of us during the entire experience! :) :)
    Reply