Any experience with whale watching? Please share what you know.

My son is obsessed with whales right now so we are thinking of doing one of the Cape May whale watching trips. I've been told that the dolphins always follow the boat so no matter what he'll enjoy it, but I'd like to increase his chances of seeing something bigger. What time of year is best? Time of day? Anything we should watch out for? We're looking at the Cape May one because we will have a two year old and infant with us so driving to Block Island is out of the question.

We've done the Cape May whale watcher trips since the mid-1990s - usually you see dolphins, but I've never seen any other type of whale on the trips. One did go out over the Delaware Trench, but even then, no large whales.

The trips are fun, though. Last week, there was a sizable pod of dolphins off of Stone Harbor Point - there must have been a school of some feed fish there, because there were pelicans flying over Hereford Inlet, too.

I've also seen dolphins from the Cape May-Lewes Ferry, and that's a nice trip to take, especially if you have younger kids - there's an enclosed cabin with good viewing as well as seating on the outer decks.

eta: Have never encountered rough seas on the Cape May whale cruises. Took a whale and puffin cruise up out of Bar Harbor, Maine and everyone on the boat (except my 8-year-old son) was seasick. Haven't been able to get our daughter back on a boat since, and she's now 30! Unless it is a very stormy day, it should be fine around Cape May.

Trouble with whale watches is that if you see only the fins and perhaps part of a side, adults get excited. My kid was bored on our Cape Cod whale watch. Prior to her birth, husband and I did whale watch in Bay of Fundy. That was incredible. Whales breaching. Swimming under our boat. Not very helpful to what you are looking for. Maybe someone else can make positive suggestion.

I went once in Cape Cod and while we did see whales that was a brief part of a very long trip on quite rough ocean that resulted in many people, including me, getting quite ill for hours and hours. I wouldnt recommend that particular experience (might be different in Cape May).

I do recall seeing a whale off the national park in Cape Cod, P-town. There was a morning program led by a ranger. We were on the shore, listening to her and watching the ocean. She told everyone it was ok to watch the ocean while listening to her if we wanted.

So I took out my binoculars and affixed them to the monopod and scanned the ocean. Suddenly, the lens went black as a whale appeared and then disappeared through the binoculars.

That would have been in early November.

Just about everywhere there is whale watching there is a 'season' when the probability of seeing one or some is higher.....and, sometimes there is a period where the sightings are much, much more frequent than normal. You definitely would need to schedule your trip at least during one of the normal 'seasons'. I've not done it in this area, but where I have done it the boats often have a policy that if you don't see a whale you get to go out again for free and try your luck. If you are going down for more than one day, schedule your trip for the first day so you could go out again the next day.

You can "like" Cape May Whale Watcher on Facebook, and follow them on Twitter. They post pictures often, and it might give you a sense of what to expect on a trip.

Another dolphin/whale boat out of the Cape May area is the Silver Bullet speedboat. I've seen them out while I've been down there. Their link is: http://www.silverbullettours.com/details.html

Might be a bit adventurous for an infant, but you can check out their website, too.

If you are in the Cape May area, I really recommend the Skimmer Wetlands Safaris cruises. It's a very stable catamaran-type boat and they do nature cruises of the back bays - one year there was a dolphin in the bays up behind Wildwood Crest and we were able to get some very nice views of it. They also have a website and are on FB. Some days they sail out of the marina in Wildwood Crest, other days out of the Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor. They always stop and the naturalist lets people see what is in the local waters and they have a touch tank on board so kids can handle the crabs/clams/sea squirts/algae/whatever. Their FB name is Skimmer Salt Marsh Safari.

(edited to correct typo)

We went on whale watching trips from Bar Harbor twice and both times saw quite a few whales. Some from the distance, such as fin whales and close up humpbacks that breached and cavorted for us it seemed. One was a mom and a baby. Both times our younger one got sick even though it was not rough and despite taking seasickness pills. For a closer up experience with a whale I recommend the Mystic aquarium, which has beluga whales. I think you can pay extra to spend some time swimming with and feeding the whales. I think the aquarium entrance fee buys you two or 1.5 days worth of time. They also have a tank of rays that you can touch.

ETA: We were told during our trips that summer was a good time for whale watching as many whales migrate from the equatorial areas to feed in the cold nutrient rich waters of the Atlantic. During the winters they migrate back to the Equator.

I have only done a whale watch cruise in Maine, but I will add a comment that no one else has addressed, which is about sunscreen. When you're out on the boat, it can feel like you're not getting a lot of sun because it's cool in the ocean breeze. But the sun is still there and still strong. I got the worst sunburn of my life on that whale cruise. Slather on lots of sunscreen. Lots.

My hint would be to bring jackets on a Maine whale watch - it gets pretty cold way out there.

In over 20 summers vacationing at Cape May, we never took a whale watcher boat as we were told that there are never any whales this far south, but what we almost always take is the Big Blue Sightseer Boat, docked in Wildwood on the 2 hour tour of Cape May.

Yeah, my dad took my sister and me on a whale watching boat out of Portland ME about 30 years ago in the middle of winter. My sister and I have NEVER gotten along. Really. They had blankets inside for anyone who got cold. We were so fricking cold that we never even stepped foot on deck but instead stayed inside andhuddled together for warmth under one of the blankets. That was probably one of the only days my sister and I ever got along so well in our entire lives. I think I'll save that trip for when my son fails his midterm exams or totals the car or does something else deserving of punishment.

It's too far to go with young children, but when they are a bit older, you should add this to your bucket list: http://www.australia.com/en/articles/nat-whalewatching.html

And, admittedly, this is an article that came out publicising the 2014 Australian season, but it'll also give you more of an idea of what we have to offer...

http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/travel/destinations/2014/06/top-10-whale-watching-spots-in-australia/

I agree about wearing jackets, even if the weather is sweltering. A few years ago, I went on a dolphin watcher at Cape May and froze while wearing a sweatshirt. Others got on the boat in skimpy tee shirts and shorts and were later seen shivering and miserable.

I had wanted to take the whale watcher, but was told they never saw whales so I took the dolphin cruise instead. I wondered why they even have a whale watcher, if everyone says they never see whales. Who goes on that?

During the dolphin cruise I saw many dolphin. The tour leader gave a narrative, focusing on dolphin sex, that was as salty as the sea. Not sure what the many family groups thought of that, but it was kind of funny.

cape May is a nice experience for dolphin watching. We did a sunset cruise last year. We "chased" a whale and only saw its spout, the boat ride was an extra hour longer than planned because of this. It was fine, not great, just fine. For a breathtaking experience, go out of Gloucester, Mass. Saw many different whales. The Boston Aquarium also does one. It's a bit longer of a boat trip because it leaves from Boston, winds up in the same place as Gloucester. This is the right time of year to do it.

If you end up heading to Boston, stop by the whaling museum in New Bedford! I think. It has a ton of whale stuff but it might also focus a lot on... well, whaling.

Maybe ignore this comment.

We went to Cape May today. As planned we told our son we were going out to see dolphins. When we got there we were told there were reports of whales in the area. I figured it was just hype to make the customers happy. It wasn't, we saw two humpback whales. Well, I saw one briefly, as I spent most of the trip laying down to avoid getting seasick as I stupidly forgot how bad I am affected by motion sickness. I did see a few dolphins frolicking. I missed the large herd of approximately 1,000.

We were happy with the trip, but for the future we will wait until the boys are older and no longer need 1:1 supervision and then my husband will take them on the boat while I stay safe on shore getting a manicure or reading a book or doing some other activity that doesn't involve trying not to puke

You are a good Mom.

For those who cherish riding the waves at sea, Provincetown whale watches are great. I have heard thuds underneath. Don't know what they were! The boat goes fast at times. You can feel the spray, and often catch the (not so lovely) odor of the binkies, humpbacks and other species.

spontaneous said:
We went to Cape May today. As planned we told our son we were going out to see dolphins. When we got there we were told there were reports of whales in the area. I figured it was just hype to make the customers happy. It wasn't, we saw two humpback whales. Well, I saw one briefly, as I spent most of the trip laying down to avoid getting seasick as I stupidly forgot how bad I am affected by motion sickness. I did see a few dolphins frolicking. I missed the large herd of approximately 1,000.
We were happy with the trip, but for the future we will wait until the boys are older and no longer need 1:1 supervision and then my husband will take them on the boat while I stay safe on shore getting a manicure or reading a book or doing some other activity that doesn't involve trying not to puke

Well, sorry you get so seasick, but it's great that they actually got to see the whales.

What was the name of the tour? We are headed down this week. Might be fun to take the kids.

I am interested also

Dramamine has been my salvation in more situations than you can imagine.

I had purchased Dramamine the night before, but as it was last minute (the car broke down the day before and the whole day was shot) I was only able to find the dimenhydrinate formula, not the newer meclizine formula. If (big IF) I ever try to do this again I will first go to the doctor and get a script for a scopoderm patch. That is supposed to work better than either formula of dramamine.

This is the company we went with. http://www.capemaywhalewatch.com/index.php I have not gone with any of the other whale boats so I can't say if they are better, worse, or the same as the other options available down there. I will say that the woman doing the guided tour gave a lot of information on the animals we were looking at, it wasn't just "Look, there is a dolphin on the left." She explained breeding ranges, migration routes, how as mammals dolphins and whales nurse their young, how dolphins are born with lanugo, etc. At the end of the tour the captain mentioned that she had a degree in marine biology. I don't know if this is true of all their tours or not. I also recall they had a touch tank on the top deck that they opened up on the way back. I didn't see it myself though. They did have a galley on board where they sold soda (including ginger ale), alcoholic drinks, food, ginger candies (didn't help), sea bands, etc.

ETA: I have a five year old, a two year old, and a six month old. On their website they said that strollers were welcome and even recommended for younger kids. My experience is just leave the stroller at home. The baby slept in it for awhile, but not even half an hour and for the rest of the trip it was just folded up in a corner. Strollers are also not allowed outside, they must be inside the cabin.

None of these are my pictures, they were all taken by formerlyjerseyjack.

I greatly prefer Bonine for seasickness. Works better without any of the drowsy side effects. I also wear those acupressure bracelets when I go in a cruise and never have an issue. For future reference.

Bonine and the new formula non-drowsy Dramamine are made of the same drug, meclazine. The original formula Dramamine was dimenhydrinate which worked, but knocked you out. However, scopolamine (delivered by a patch) is Rx only but it works better than meclazine or dimenhydrinate. Double blind studies have shown this.

When we went on our cruise I used meclazine and ReliefBand (it is like the accupressure bracelet except it emits an electronic pulse) and I was just okay. I did this because I was breastfeeding at the time and meclazine is class B while scopolalmine is class C. The last day I just couldn't take it any more and decided to switch to the patch. The difference was profound.

For someone with light motions sickness, or if you forget to get to the doctor in time to get a Transderm Scop patch, Bonnie or non-drowsy Dramamine will work, but for the best results the patch is really the way to go.

I went on a whale watch in Newfoundland, and I was so sick that if the whale had come up to the boat and serenaded me, I would not have felt good enough to be impressed. Apparently, there were many whales. It took about 2 hours after the tour ended before I felt good enough to get up from the parking lot asphalt. I should add that it was the wild, open ocean, and the smallish boat was rocking and reeling

Went on a few in Boston and saw a few whales. We did the whale watcher in Cape May a few years ago and were told it was very unlikely we'd see any whales. Dolphins, yes.

If we are fortunate enough to take another cruise, I will make sure to get the scopolamine patch for Jim. He gets so seasick I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. Nothing the ship's doctor had worked for him at all. Since my family owned a very small sailboat when I was growing up, it's really lucky that I was blessed with an iron stomach. Of course, now I get seasick on dry land on a regular basis, and have a prescription for meclizine. Go figure.

Nice photos, Jack.