We recently went on a whale watch trip sponsored by the Oceanic Society out of Half Moon Bay. The boat (Salty Lady), though newer and quite clean, nevertheless was way too small for the number of passengers--fifteen would have been a better number. The ship's rules confined us to the stern or to seats inside which were immediately grabbed by those boarding first and never abandoned for the entire trip. Upon arriving at the pier, some red flags began to wave...there didn't appear to be any other whale watch companies on the dock and I started to wish I had done more homework. The “naturalist” signed us in and mentioned that some college students would be coming along (more people crowding the boat) to do surveys. Although the staff assured us that some grey whales had been seen "recently," we saw absolutely nothing on this trip except some marine birds. Three hours of sitting on a hard bench and not one sign of any fish or sea mammal. We understand that there are no guarantees of a whale sighting, but one would expect something...a porpoise maybe or a dolphin. To while away the time, the “naturalist” went on a rant several times about the evils of plastic in the ecosystem (some of that is expected on these expeditions), but her shrill diatribe shaded into leftist politics which we did not appreciate. If you travel to the Bay area and wish to go whale watching, do yourself a favor and go to Monterey Bay; they have fantastic trips featuring large boats, knowledgeable crews, and a strong likelihood that you will see something worthwhile.

We took the 3-hour (9-12) whale cruise recently and saw somewhere around six whales. The staff was very friendly and informative and the crew of the ship was outstanding. I would highly recommend this experience if you can fit it into your schedule. You won't regret it!

Four of us went whale watching Saturday, it was so much fun.
we will be doing it again.
Get some friends and give it a try, it makes a great day of fun.