Accommodations for Ogunquit Whale Watching
We’re still in the cozy clutch of midwinter here on the coast of Southern Maine, but before you know it spring will be in the air. Some of that season’s harbingers happen to be one of the enormous kind.
Beginning in April, the Gulf of Maine waters that make our great blue backyard here in Ogunquit see the return of the largest creatures in the world: whales. From then into early fall, a cruise offshore often turns up glimpses of these tremendous creatures, here relishing the productive abundance of the North Atlantic’s summer depths.
With an Ogunquit.com getaway to the Gorges Grant Hotel, the Juniper Hill Inn, the Cottage at Acorn Lane, or the Milestone (the latter two currently closed for the season), you’ll be nicely positioned to seek the leviathans with one of the many companies along our coast that offer scenic cruises.
The Summer Whales of Maine
Multiple species of baleen whales seasonally congregate in the Gulf of Maine. They include the graceful and acrobatic humpback whale, immediately recognizable by its pale winglike flippers, long and knobby nose, and generally black-and-white coloration. Humpbacks, which feed primarily on schooling fish and the small crustaceans called krill, are known for their spectacular breaches and mighty flipper and tail slaps: They are just about the most exuberant of the great whales in their movements.
Another commonly seen whale is the finback, a “rorqual” that is exceeded in size only by the blue whale: Finbacks may reach 80 feet or more in length. Like other rorquals, they are sleek and highly streamlined giants, and—despite that staggering size—rank among the fastest of whales.
Speaking of the blue whale—a creature that may span 100 feet from nose to flukes and weigh more than 150 tons, larger than the largest dinosaur—it’s also occasionally seen in the summer months by whale-watchers. So is the minke whale, at “only” about 30 feetlong a comparatively small rorqual when compared to its enormous relatives the blue and finback.
An exceedingly rare sight is the North Atlantic right whale, much stockier than the abovementioned species; this critically endangered beauty passes through Maine between wintering waters of Florida and summer range in the Labrador Sea.
Besides these baleen whales, you may luck out on a Gulf of Maine spring-through-fall cruise by seeing other cetaceans such as orcas, pilot whales, dolphins, and perhaps even the titanic sperm whale.
Whale-Watching Cruises
As a guest of ours at an Ogunquit.com hotel or inn, you’ve got a slew of different options for guided cruises; just about any—including the varied itineraries offered by Finestkind Scenic Cruises right out of Perkins Cove—has the potential of turning up a whale during the right season. In nearby Kennebunk, Maine, First Chance Whale Watch leads specific whale-watching outings aboard the 87-foot Nick’s Chance, skippered by Captain Gary and accessing the feeding territory of finbacks, humpbacks, and the other baleen giants.
Take advantage of Ogunquit.com hospitality this summer—remember, you can save by booking directly with us—and consider trying for a firsthand look at some of the mightiest animals in the world in their natural stomping grounds off our gorgeous shores!