This is the best day I have ever spent ~ really!! It takes a long time to sail back and forth to the Farallons, but it was worth it -- we saw humpbacks, seals, sea lions, jellyfish, albatrosses . . . and all of it made me grateful to be sharing the planet with such special creatures. The captain of the Salty Lady knew where to go, our Oceanic Society guide was a fountain of knowledge, and I am hoping to go again next year...

We boarded the Salty Lady near the San Francisco Yacht House in the Marina on a brilliant, warm and calm autumn morning, and my first impression was how small the 56' boat is. There were ~30 passengers and 4 crew, including the 2 naturalists that accompanied us. The cabin has 4 booths that seat a total of ~8 people, and everyone else has to remain outdoors for the entire day. Two toilets are available as well as a small galley area with coffee and tea service.

When the boat is in the Bay and just outside the Golden Gate moving fairly slowly, you can move about using handrails. But once the captain revs up the engine to cross the open ocean to the Farallon Islands 27 miles away, the ride is very rough, and you're glued to your spot for well over an hour. It's not possible to walk around without risking a fall. There are 2 rows of benches in the back deck, but still not enough seating for everyone. The passengers on one side were getting soaked by sea spray, so everyone crowded over onto the other side. On the west bound trip, I stood aft facing the wake with sea spray lashing at my back and had to grip the rail tightly with both hands to keep my balance. My back side, which had faced into the wind, was quite wet and cold by the time we arrived at the islands, but I didn't dare to try and move from my spot on the rail. I had not worn waterproof pants and shoes, so I was rather soggy.

Fortunately, the wind was mild, and our time circumnavigating the islands for about 1.5 hours was pleasant. The on board naturalists were both very knowledgeable about the history of the islands and all of the mammals and birds that inhabit the islands and had each accompanied many tours to the islands. The captain maneuvered the boat constantly so that people on both sides can get a good view. While at the islands, we also had time to eat the sandwiches and snacks that we had brought along and use the loo - none of which you'll be able to do once the boat is chugging across across the open ocean.

I brought 2 cameras, one with a long telephoto lens, and one with a wide angle lens, and was able to get many great pictures of the sea lions, birds, seals and rocky islands.

The ride back to the Bay was a little less rough, and I did manage to get a seat on one of the benches, but still had to endure being lashed by sea spray for well over an hour. One entire side of my body was soaked with salty water, so I guess I was the "Salty Lady"!

The only whale sightings that day were several humpbacks just outside the Golden Gate; we saw none during the ocean passage or at the Farallones. The captain did manage to maneuver the boat so we all got a good look each time whales were spotted. I didn't get a lot of good photos, though because the ship and the whales are constantly moving, so there is a tendency to get a blurry photo of frothy water where the whale just dove !

Crossing back under the GG Bridge on a beautiful autumn day is always a great experience, and also gave me a chance to partially dry off before the tour ended.

The tour should really be advertised as a Farallon Islands round trip, rather than a whale watching tour, since there are limited prospects of sighting any substantial number of whales. Additionally, they should accept only enough guests as there are seats on the boat. It was really hard to move around at any time without bumping into someone, and equally challenging to get a good spot at the rail for decent photographs. They do use this boat for sport fishing trip as well, and the cooler takes up a good chunk of deck space.

I can now say that I'm among the tiny percentage of local residents who have actually been outside the Golden Gate !

Once in a lifetime trip today under the Golden Gate Bridge and to Farallon Island. We were lucky enough to see the rare sight of multiple bait balls with up to 8 humpback whales per ball, heaps of leaping sea lions and tonnes of seabirds!

It’s advisable to take a boat sickness tablet before this trip as it gets very choppy and not enough seating for all on the trip. Multiple people were vomiting on our trip for a few hours including myself so please be warned!

Totally worth the effort though this trip was incredible!