Harv and Marv cancelled

[Linda the Book Lover]

The owners or at least one of them is stil around. his daughter wrote a wonderful book about Orcas and we saw and met her as she was going towards the dock area. I agree with frugaltravel sometimes it is a business change of company holders. Personally we had a great trip and would book with them again. Once again I am sorry for the disappointment of the OP because I know how disappointing it must have been for their group.

[tellubob]

I was in Juneau on June 18th and used Orca Enterprises. Juneau had really bad weather the day before including thunder and lightning. They pulled all boats out of the water that day.

 

We were heading back in about noon when water really started kicking up so I wouldn't doubt that afternoon tours could have been cancelled.

How big was your boat? Was your captain worried? After checking the website for Harv and Marv, it seems our captain had only been in charge for a year and was only 19, so was short on experience being a solo captain and maybe maturity was a factor...

[iceleven]

I was on that boat as well. Jayleen was the captain. It was too rough for the smaller boat. On the way back the bow was going underwater so we transferred to the larger boat. I agree, it was not handled well.

 

We were on the west side of Douglas Island and the whale watching was superb although as you mention, it was difficult to take photos.

 

I've been on H&M's boats before and with Jaleen as pilot. I have absolute confidence in her as a pilot. That girl really knows the waters around there and for her to want to transfer her guests to another boat, she had good reason to do so and I am confident she made the best choice for them.

 

I am on the San Francisco bay 2-3 times a week in a small craft and I know only too well how quickly the weather can change the water conditions, even with clear skies. Even without white caps there are times there are swells that are even more difficult to maneuver in.

[aloisia]

Our whale watching tour was also cancelled on June 17th. We had reserved with another private company but it`s my understanding all tours that afternoon were cancelled because of the lightening & wind. It was disappointing but completely out of everyone`s control.

Overall, the weather last week was unbelievable.... warm and sunny most of the time. :)

[tellubob]

I've been on H&M's boats before and with Jaleen as pilot. I have absolute confidence in her as a pilot. That girl really knows the waters around there and for her to want to transfer her guests to another boat, she had good reason to do so and I am confident she made the best choice for them.

 

I am on the San Francisco bay 2-3 times a week in a small craft and I know only too well how quickly the weather can change the water conditions, even with clear skies. Even without white caps there are times there are swells that are even more difficult to maneuver in.

She exuded confidence on "OK" waters and was very enthusiastic and pleasant. If I videoed her during our ordeal, you might lose confidence in her. I am on old ICU nurse, and she had the look of someone who was trying to remember what she learned, but had never had to do this before, and was panic stricken. A captain in calm waters is completely different than a captain in a crisis. She knew she didn't have the skill to get back to harbor, so she decided to have us abandon ship, but everyone else out there did have the skill, and she was dissing another company that had problems the day before. Funny what happens when it happens on your watch. The other responder to this thread that was on our boat was someone I never met, and he was sitting in front watching the water wash into the front, so he knows what he saw. Jayleen had trouble remembering port from starboard, and what down current meant. She should have instructed her passengers to don life vests. She made many mistakes, and we hope she has learned form this experience, but if I was doing another whale watch, I would want to know who was piloting, and what their experience was. As I said to BudgetQueen...lesson learned. Glad I got to celebrate my birthday the next day...

[mytime53]

I wasn't there, haven't been out with them, don't know the whole story, etc. But I DO know that if you have water rough enough to want to transfer your passengers, life jackets should be on. And transferring passengers boat to boat in the open water...am I understanding that correctly? Without life jackets on? Ouch!

[Glaciers]

I wasn't there, haven't been out with them, don't know the whole story, etc. But I DO know that if you have water rough enough to want to transfer your passengers, life jackets should be on. And transferring passengers boat to boat in the open water...am I understanding that correctly? Without life jackets on? Ouch!

 

Yes. One couple did asked if they could put them on and did. We all should have but we weren't advised too. tellubob's post is spot on.

Edited June 24, 2013 by Glaciers

[iceleven]

She exuded confidence on "OK" waters and was very enthusiastic and pleasant. If I videoed her during our ordeal, you might lose confidence in her. I am on old ICU nurse, and she had the look of someone who was trying to remember what she learned, but had never had to do this before, and was panic stricken. A captain in calm waters is completely different than a captain in a crisis. She knew she didn't have the skill to get back to harbor, so she decided to have us abandon ship, but everyone else out there did have the skill, and she was dissing another company that had problems the day before. Funny what happens when it happens on your watch. The other responder to this thread that was on our boat was someone I never met, and he was sitting in front watching the water wash into the front, so he knows what he saw. Jayleen had trouble remembering port from starboard, and what down current meant. She should have instructed her passengers to don life vests. She made many mistakes, and we hope she has learned form this experience, but if I was doing another whale watch, I would want to know who was piloting, and what their experience was. As I said to BudgetQueen...lesson learned. Glad I got to celebrate my birthday the next day...

 

Jayleen has co-piloted with her father since she was a kid (she's now a junior in college) and has been piloting her boat solo for a couple of seasons. I doubt she was as "green" as you described. There is a possibility she knew something and didn't share it with the rest of you. The fact that she felt you would be safer in another boat was a good call. Was it a larger boat she put you into? Did anyone stick around to see if she got in safely?

What I don't doubt is your concern and real fear under the circumstances. I believe you when you say mistakes may have been made. However, I still have confidence in her and would hop aboard her boat again this August when we return to Juneau. I won't let a person get into my boat without putting on a PFD (life vest) just as I won't let a person in my car without a seat belt.

[iceleven]

I also forgot to mention that Jayleen lives with her father on an island and has to use her boat to get to the mainland and I'm pretty sure she has had many experiences in bad weather. I don't know Jayleen nor her father nor any of the other crew. We found her fascinating and asked a lot of questions.

 

The young people in Alaska do not grow up as pampered kids do in the lower 49. They have more responsibilities with more challenges. She handled the boat with absolute confidence in waters that were quite choppy.

 

I'm really sorry those of you had such a bad experience. It must have been quite frightening. My husband and I can say our experience with Harv & Marv was one of the highlights of all our trips to Alaska. We saw more whales than we could ever have imagined. And we saw lots of bubble net feeding. I really wish all could experience this as we did.

[BaileyandBella]

We were on a whale watching that day and it was very rough. We were with "Juneau Whale Watch".

[subtchr]

The experience sounds very scary. I'm very glad everyone is safe.

 

We were extremely lucky today to have perfect conditions for our trip with Jayleen. A few pics:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[WVBill]

OP here -

We're back home now and after reading your inputs I have had time to reflect.

 

I have little doubt, now that the seas were too rough for our tour with Harv & Marv (we did have their largest boat, the MV Alaskan booked for our 11-person group).

 

We were to dock at 2:00 and pickup was to be at 2:30 and Callie sent me the cancellation notice at 1:47. I immediately called Callie and she repeated what she had put in her e-mail. "We had to cancel due to severe weather on the inside passage. You will get a full refund." She did add that "some of the big boats are still going out." By then, the ship's excursion desk was closed so I had no chance to book through the ship.

 

My lingering issue is that she offered no help in re-booking with "a big boat". It would have been good customer service to say "We can't take you, but I've contacted XXX and they are still going out on their big boat and I can get you'r party of 11 on whith them if you would like."

I mean all of these operators must know all the other operators. Callie must have known how much we were looking forward to this. I had sent her pictures of the T-shirts I made up for our group that said "Juneau Whale Watching - 2013".

 

We were just left twisting in the wind.....:(

[tellubob]

I am so sorry to hear about your disappointment in light of your clear enthusiasm for the whale watch. As said earlier in this post, we were on the morning abandon ship trip. I agree with your take on customer service. When we got back to the dock, when we finally found a rep, their response was either a casual..."Oh yeah, that happens"(Then why aren't they better prepared?) or a "Hmmm". No apology, no hope you are ok. Found it interesting in another post that the people on a rough ride were given vouchers for the Mt. Roberts Tram, and we were offered nothing.

 

I suspect the larger boats were booked already that day. In the interest of customer service, Callie could have at least offered to make a few calls. Many people rave about their customer service, but the folks at Harv and Marv need to learn how to give good customer service in less than ideal conditions.

[kle50]

How big was your boat? Was your captain worried? After checking the website for Harv and Marv, it seems our captain had only been in charge for a year and was only 19, so was short on experience being a solo captain and maybe maturity was a factor...

 

We were on the Odysea, one of the bigger boats out there. I'm guessing about 30-40 people? Capt. Larry is apparently one of the first whale watch captains in Alaska. He has lots of years of experience...20-30 if I remember correctly.

 

The only indication of concern he had was for the smaller Orca Enterprises boat that also was out. We ran interference for them in the choppy waters.

 

To be honest, we'd been out quite a while because the humpbacks were bubble net fishing and it was spectacular viewing. I think we would have been heading in anyway even if whitecaps weren't starting to appear.

[Glaciers]

I've been on H&M's boats before and with Jaleen as pilot. I have absolute confidence in her as a pilot. That girl really knows the waters around there and for her to want to transfer her guests to another boat, she had good reason to do so and I am confident she made the best choice for them.

 

I didn’t question her decision to have us transfer. I was up front and the water was completely over the bow and the last straw was when the wave went up over the cab with some falling into the stern.

 

We were to dock at 2:00 and pickup was to be at 2:30 and Callie sent me the cancellation notice at 1:47. I immediately called Callie and she repeated what she had put in her e-mail. "We had to cancel due to severe weather on the inside passage. You will get a full refund." She did add that "some of the big boats are still going out." By then, the ship's excursion desk was closed so I had no chance to book through the ship.

 

This is the second year I’ve used Harv and Marv and Calllie has provided exceptional customer service. She has called other operators in the past to try to accommodate folks. Allen Marine operates a couple of the larger boats but my understanding is that they can only be booked through the cruise line. It is very unfortunate that you weren’t able to go out since you live so far from Alaska but I’m not sure Callie could have done anything for that large of a group that late in the day.

 

Steve was also out in his boat for H&M and he was the first over to us. He’s been doing this a long time and it was nice to see him around. I would go out with him anytime. Last year on the way out Steve gave us a good overview of what we might expect while whale watching. Jayleen primarily told us about herself.

 

I did receive an email from Jayleen that was a nice follow-up. She indicated that she learned of an injury after returning to the dock. Have to wonder if it was reported to the CG. It may be required if the injury required professional medical assistance.

[cruisinlawn]

With all the aforementioned, which Harv/Marv Captain would one suggest we request? We're doing a private charter for six which include parents (late 70's). We have been with Jay whom is now behind the scenes along with Pete so they are out. Suggestion, recommendations? TIA

[frugaltravel]

With all the aforementioned, which Harv/Marv Captain would one suggest we request? We're doing a private charter for six which include parents (late 70's). We have been with Jay whom is now behind the scenes along with Pete so they are out. Suggestion, recommendations? TIA

 

Do a search for Harv & Marvs and you will find good reviews for pretty much all their captains, including Jayleen. I am not sure if one incident means someone should never go with that captain again. If anything, it was probably a huge learning experience for her and my guess is she would handle it different and perhaps even better than another captain who might come up against a similar situation in the future without having gone through it in the past.

 

First of all I would probably ask Harv & Marv which captains you have a choice between. Some might not be on duty that day, or maybe not during the time frame you booked. I would not eliminate Pete or Jay altogether - they do captain the boats sometimes, just not as much as in the past.

[Linda the Book Lover]

My personal experience has been positive when using any company recommended by others on Cruise Critic. We usually ask for the names listed on the thread but have enjoyed other drivers etc. whose name was not mentioned. We all want the best experience possible. I hope you follow frugaltravel's advice. Wishing you as wonderful an experience as we had with Harv & Marv.

[tellubob]

I've weighed in earlier on this thread. I would go with a captain who was on top of things in all conditions, which would rule out Jayleen in my mind until she has more experience with unexpected/dangerous conditions that concern passenger safety.

[cruisinlawn]

Spent a flawless evening with Jayleen and yes we would not hesitate to go with her again. She handled everything fine and has many successful years ahead. Look forward to our next visit:)

[rain1018]

we went with harv and marv on august 3!! we had shawn as our captain and rhianna was helping tell about the area and wildlife!! it was a fabulous time!! so personable and we saw so many humpbacks bubble net feeding!! they were so nice! great knowledge, we searched for wildlife on land and sea!! saw tons of sea lions, humpbacks, i would totally recommend them!

 

i know the family from our cruise that went with them after us got to see orcas as well!

[Miss Dot]

Although it is a beautiful 79 deg plus day here in Juneau, H&M cancelled the highlight of our cruise supposedly it was too rough. I told some locals that. Taxi driver checked his radio and no reports of rough weather I ended up disappointing my entirt 16person family because I had so highly touted H&M Today I am EXTREMELY bummed. How do I make this up to 16 people. Checking on WW out of Ketchikan.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

Oh gosh, did you ever get another explanation? Was there another company you could have done as a walk up? We are planning to use them in June; now I have to wonder😳

 

What part of West Virginia are you from? I'm in Nitro (Putnam County)

[travgurl]

So sorry your trip got canceled. We are booked with Harv and Marv next July. But after reading this I will definitely come up with a back up plan, just in case we need. I am responsible for booking this for 10 people. I guess a good back plan would be tour Mendenhall glacier and the Mount Roberts tramway. Thanks for sharing what happened.

[Linda the Book Lover]

The OP posted in 2013...it was disappointing to the poster however a good deal of time has passed. Many of us had great positive experiences in that same year.

 

travgurl -- I am hoping a back up plan won't be needed and you enjoy your tour with this company.

[travgurl]

I certainly agree with you Linda the Book Lover. I really am looking forward to this trip after reading all of the wonderful reviews online. So, I will think positive and look forward to the exciting adventure!