Juneau - early june - whale watching?

[Peggy Sue]

Hi,

 

We are considering taking a whale watching cruise in Juneau .. Our cruise departs 5/28 .. In New England, whales return to our waters by late June .. curious if anyone has taken a whale watching cruise in late May/Early June and how much activity did they see? It requires a 3-4 hour investment of our shore time, and we don't arrive in port until afternoon...so we are on the fence about doing this. We have ejoyed excellent whale watching from MA .. and not so excellent..where we only saw a couple of whales for a short period of time....So, jsut wondering how active the whales are in early June and if other wild life is also out and about ..

 

Comments about your personal experiences greatly appreciated!!

 

One last question -- Anyone attend the lumberjack show in Ketchikan? My 75 year old father will be joining us, and I thought this might be something he would enjoy... but didn't know if it was a "tourist trap" type of event.

 

Thanks!

 

Peggy Sue

[Coral]

I have cruised 3x during the end of May and first week of June. All 3x, we saw plenty of whales but one time, we were very lucky and saw a lot of orcas (the other 2x we only saw humpbacks). Here are some pics of the orcas with my digital (slow delay so I missed a lot):

 

juneau

 

You will always see whales but it is hit or miss if you see a lot or if you see orcas.

 

The lumberjack show is a cheesey tourist trap. Very young kids will enjoy it. It is probably a good place to hang out if it rains because it is covered. You can book this the day of the show - so you can hold out until the end if you need be - here are some pics:

 

lumberjack show

[starr52]

Coral.. I loved seeing your pictures!!! We are going on NCL Spirit on June 4th. Booked with Orca Enterprises and are very excited. I see that you went on the Guard Lighthouse tour. Was it worth the money??? Interesting??

Thanks

Pam

[Budget Queen]

Yes you are in season for Alaska Whale watching. But I always go out of Gloucester on the multi day research trips offered by CORE. Just superb sightings on the South Channel with so many whale behaviors- almost boring. :) Last trip I was on the upper deck of a 3 deck ship and all around me, humpbacks, bubble net feeding, breeching, spy hopping, for as far as the eye could see. :)

[Flintstone]

Coral...your pictures are awesome!!

 

Thanks for sharing!!

 

Deb

[Coral]

I see that you went on the Guard Lighthouse tour. Was it worth the money??? Interesting??

Pam

 

Our group was pretty board on the Guard Lighthouse tour and the group before us didn't like the trip either. Though someone wrote a glowing report about this trip last year (I did it 2 years ago).

 

It is a relaxing trip of seeing houses along the water and then you circle Guard Light house and then return back. We did see eagles but not any more than walking around in Juneau or taking Orca's van to Auke Bay. I have tried a number of excursions in Ketchikan (I haven't tried any float planes) and really haven't been pleased with any of them compared to other ports.

 

Glad you liked the whale pics :)

[whale-watcher]

Plenty of whales in early May last year...

[whale-watcher]

Budget Queen -- do you have a web address for the CORE trip? It sounds amazing!

[Budget Queen]

http://www.coreresearch.org/

 

 

I have gone on their trips for several years.

[akh40]

Your pictures are great! Thanks for sharing. The Mendenhall Glacier ones are spectacular. They're the kind of pictures I'm hoping to take when we cruise on RCCL Radiance in June. Are you a professional photographer? I just have my trusty digital camera, and I've already purchased extra memory! :) Thanks again for sharing your pics.

 

Amanda in Boise

[Coral]

Are you a professional photographer? I just have my trusty digital camera, and I've already purchased extra memory! :) Thanks again for sharing your pics.

 

Nope - not a professional photographer - I support faculty and staff computers at a small university. I used an inexpensive digital camera for the pics (Kodak dx6440). Glad you enjoyed the pics.