What should folks bring on a whale watch? We also see different species of toothed whales, so Atlantic white-sided dolphins, occasionally common dolphins, harbor porpoises, and seals as well. The last few years, we’ve been seeing more of those. They’re federally protected, so we stay 500 yards away from them just to give them extra space. In the springtime, we do occasionally see the North Atlantic right whale. Where we are in the Gulf of Maine, there’s about 1,000 well- known humpbacks, and we’ll see anywhere from 200 to 400 different individuals throughout a summer at Boston Harbor City Cruises. Howes: Typically, we’ll see the humpback whale. Which type of whales are people going to see on a Massachusetts whale watch? So a couple tons of sand lance a day, if not more. Howes: A humpback whale will eat about 500,000 to 1 million calories a day. There are other types of prey, but sand lance is one of the keystone species at Stellwagen Bank. Howes: Particularly in Stellwagen, it tends to be the sand lance. Stellwagen Bank is a great place for them to find that food. It brings the whales, wildlife, all sorts of sea birds. So that creates the perfect ecosystem for other prey to come. There’s a lot of nutrients in cold water, which the Gulf of Maine - that’s the general area where we are - has. So nutrients get rushed up to the surface and then you mix it with sunlight. What makes Stellwagen such a prime whale watching spot?Ībout 15,000 years ago, glaciers produced a big cut of sandy kind of plateau under the water and that creates something called upwelling. So it’s a long kind of narrow plateau under the water and that’s kind of right in the middle of Massachusetts Bay, about 20 to 30 miles from Boston. It’s a sanctuary grounds about 800 square miles and it’s 21 miles long. Howes: The most activity tends to be the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. We start the end of March, and we go all the way through the middle of November. In Boston, though, we have a little bit longer of a season. Howes: For the majority of boats, it’s typically May through October. Here are a few things to keep in mind this season. We asked Howes everything folks need to know about going on a whale watch. “So we should really appreciate that they’re still here and we get to see them in general.” Now it’s a tourist operation to watch them and enjoy them,” Howes said. “Less than 100 years ago, whales were still being hunted. There are many opportunities for whale watching across Massachusetts, in destinations such as Boston, Cape Cod, Gloucester, New Bedford, Newburyport, and Plymouth, she said. What you’ll find on the 38 stops along the Massachusetts Whale Trail
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