Cape Ann Whale Watch

Cape Ann Whale Watch We provide the best whale watching in New England as it's an awe-inspiring experience which every human being should have the opportunity to appreciate.
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Cape Ann Whale Watch in Gloucester, Massachusetts provides guaranteed whale sightings for every whale watching tour out to Stellwagen Bank, a national marine preserve about 12 miles off the coast of Gloucester deemed one of the "Top 5 Whale Watching Destinations in the World" by the World Wildlife Fund due to the wide variety of whale species whom migrate to the coast of Gloucester, Massachusetts

every year to feed on the abundant natural resources. We make it a very special event. For over 35 years, Cape Ann Whale Watch has been dazzling whale watching enthusiasts with sightseeing tours aboard the largest, fastest and most elegant whale watching vessel in Massachusetts, north of Boston, Massachusetts aptly named "The Hurricane II" due to its immense size and speed as it descends upon its destination. Cape Ann Whale Watch's patrons have the opportunity to spend a lot more time with the whales than with other whale watching companies in Gloucester MA since "The Hurricane II" gets to the whales' feeding grounds with much more expediency as well as traveling home faster, therefore more time is actually spent observing whales including but not limited to Humpback Whales, Minke Whales, Northern Right Whales, Pilot Whales, Northern Right Whales, S***m Whales, Sei Whales, Blue Whales (The Largest Whales in the Seven Seas yet seldom seen around Gloucester MA), Fin Whales, Atlantic White Sided Dolphins, Harbor Porpoises and whole host of other fascinating marine creatures as we deliver the best whale watching excursion in Massachusetts. "The Hurricane II" boasts 115 ft length with over 400 ft of whale watching room from the railings of the upper and lower observation decks for optimum whale watching conditions. There is a heated, furnished indoor cabin with a full service galley serving hot meals, snacks and cold beverages as well as a fully stocked bar with local brews, popular beer, wine and mixed drinks. Cape Ann Whale Watch is truly the finest whale watching tour in the Boston MA area offering the highest level of quality, comfort and service at the cheapest, most affordable price suitable for any family entertainment budget whether on vacation or a day trip. We offer AAA discounts on the adult tickets. We also offer reduced rates for seniors, children and military families. We go where the whales go. Our vessels communicate with each other as to the location of whales so we will go anywhere to see them on the North Shore or South Shore of Massachusetts including off the coast of Boston, Massachusetts: Salem MA, Newburyport, Cape Cod, Hampton NH, Rowley, Rockport MA, Danvers, Peabody, Swampscott, Revere, Winthrop or wherever else the whales may roam.

Etch-a-Sketch has made her arrival!
01/24/2025

Etch-a-Sketch has made her arrival!

Wow. it is Etch a Sketch from the Gulf of Maine last documented here in 2019.

We just got the word that Grommet has been spotted! Thank you Eve Reznickova and Whale Samana!
01/22/2025

We just got the word that Grommet has been spotted! Thank you Eve Reznickova and Whale Samana!

01/10/2025

We at Cape Ann Whale Watch are saddened to learn the passing of Capt. Sebby Lovasco from 7 Seas Whale Watch. Capt. Sebby was one of the “original” whale watch Captains out o’ Gloucester! He was right there with the likes of Frontierro, Douglass, Danikas, Cunningham, Hill, Sears, Buotte, MacDonald and Silva!! Sebby was a true gentleman and a true professional mariner. He was a great colleague to work with out on the ocean and (despite being business competitors), at the end of the day he would be the first one to invite all the other Captains down to the Privateer for a cold beer!!

Capt. Sebby will certainly be missed on Stellwagen Bank this summer, especially by our own Capt. Johnny, Tina & the entire crew aboard the Hurricane II.

Sail on Sebby & rest easy, Capt! Enjoy watching whales from above with our mentors, Capt. Fred, Capt. Bill, Capt. Jerry, and Mike Linquata!

01/02/2025

Woohoo! The whales are arriving!

As we say farewell to 2024, I leave you with this beautiful piece. We hope to see you in 2025!We wish all of you a peace...
12/31/2024

As we say farewell to 2024, I leave you with this beautiful piece.
We hope to see you in 2025!
We wish all of you a peaceful and happy new year.

How To Be A Whale is a half-hour, bioacoustic listening journey - a soundscape of many hundreds of scientific recordings woven together into a story told through the lives of seven different whales and dolphins. Released ahead of World Ocean Day on June 8th, it is a celebration of a world that most....

From our family to yours, we wish you a happy holiday season & best new year!
12/26/2024

From our family to yours, we wish you a happy holiday season & best new year!

12/16/2024

LAST MINUTE GIFT IDEA ✨

CAWW gift cards make the perfect holiday gift! Give Jim a call in the office, or send us an email to get your last minute gifts taken care of!! 🐳

12/11/2024

Check out this video made by our own JJ Mullen this summer. JJ was a 2024 intern on the Hurricane II and captured a day in the life aboard the boat.
Has this video piqued your curiosity? Do you have a chunk of time to commit during 2025? Are you passionate about the natural world? Are you a lifelong learner?
The new 2025 Field Research and Environmental Education internship description will be posted on our website SOON; in the meantime, please feel free to reach out to our Educational Director, Tina McMahon Foley, @gmail.com with any questions you might have. Please share this with friends and family that may have an interest as well. ~Tina

One of our greatest challenges is how to help passengers that have no connection with the ocean find something relateabl...
11/20/2024

One of our greatest challenges is how to help passengers that have no connection with the ocean find something relateable to their life, so in turn, they develop a desire to protect.

11/12/2024

Our 2024 season was out of this world! The number of species of marine life that we encountered this year was unbelievable. To be in the presence of the largest creature on our planet was one of the most humbling experiences of my life; what a gift from nature! The uniqueness of each trip left me in awe and challenged some of my established beliefs ~ every scientist's dream!

However, there is so much more to whale watching ~ the comradery between the crew, exposing first time whale watchers to the wonders of the sea and catching up with returning customers, experiencing 'ah-ha' moments with the 'regulars' who are a pod family, the office staff who makes a buck list dream a reality, and Nick and Jim that give us this unique opportunity each year.

During a recent interview, I was asked, "What is your most favorite aspect of being a naturalist?"

That's easy...helping people reconnect to nature.

I hope you enjoy the video recap...it was a challenge to capture the essence of the season in images ~ I often tell passengers to put down technology and just be present. The memories your brain creates encompass all the senses.

My wish to all of you is that you find ways to be present in the moment and take in the natural wonders of our world.

I look forward to introducing you to the marine life of the Gulf of Maine in the 2025 season!

Be well, Tina

11/02/2024

FINAL CALL!!! The last trip of our season is tomorrow at 1:30pm, with only a few spaces left. There are still an abundance of whales out there, so we are looking forward to ending the season with a bang!

Here are a few photos from yesterday's awesome trip. Such a fun day! A few of the many whales we saw were Handstand, L...
10/29/2024

Here are a few photos from yesterday's awesome trip. Such a fun day! A few of the many whales we saw were Handstand, Lichen, Valley, Frost, Patchwork, Cacophony and Rope. NH

**All images were captured using telescopic lens and in compliance with Whale Watching Guidelines. In addition, Cape Ann Whale Watch contributes its data to the Center for Coastal Studies, who curates the Gulf of Maine Humpback Whale catalog.**

10/28/2024

Our passengers today who braved the bitter cold (and even a fluttter of snow as they waited to board the boat), along with choppy seas were rewarded with the most awesome trip! Not only did we have lots of whales but most of them were so active showing us the many of the behaviors we all hope and love to see. There were whales breaching, chin breaching, tail breaching, flipper slapping, pairs of whales flipper slapping together and even a pair of humpbacks double breaching-YIKES!! Watch as we approach a pair of humpback whales flipper slapping when all of a sudden a second pair of humpbacks do a double breach right behind them. That's a sight I have never seen! We watched in anticipation that the breaching would continue, but it didn't happen. What did happen (which I didn't get on video), the two whales that had breached both began to flipper slap! Imagine seeing 4 humpbacks all flipper slapping! We believe flipper slapping or pec slapping is a form of commnication. If so, these whales were talking up a storm.
Such a wonderful day. NH

10/28/2024

It’s officially the final week of our 46th season!! Fall whale watching never disappoints, so be sure to hop on one of our available trips!

We will be sailing:

Monday 10/28 @ 10am
Tuesday 10/29 @ 10am
Wednesday 10/30 @ 10am
Saturday 11/2 @ 130pm
Sunday 11/3 @ 130 pm (final trip!)

Hope to see you onboard 👋🏼

October 24th... A long overdue post! Fall whale watching has been breathtaking, exhilarating and thrilling. We continue ...
10/27/2024

October 24th... A long overdue post!
Fall whale watching has been breathtaking, exhilarating and thrilling. We continue to see male-female associations and the dynamics between them creates a curiosity that leaves us wanting more!

On Thursday, we had several associations milling about; however, we only were able to identify Fan and Zodiac. I loved seeing these two, a perfect example of how different and unique humpback flukes can be. Fan is considered a type 1 fluke, nearly all white with a few rake marks (evidence of a killer whale attack) and Zodiac, a nearly all black fluke (type 5). Type 5 whales are my Achilles' heel, very few unique markings visible, and often we need to examine the trailing edge of the fluke to help with identification.
We are in the last week of our 2024 season - call today to book your reservation. 1-800-877-5110

**All images were captured using telescopic lenses an in compliance with Whale Watching guidelines In addition, Cape Ann Whale Watch contributes its data to the Center for Coastal Studies, who curates the Gulf of Maine Humpback Whale catalog.**

10/21/2024

I love fall whale watches! The lighting is different, the temperature is different (cold) and even the whales are different. In the past 2 days we have seen many whales that we haven't seen yet all season! More about that later.
Of all the whales we saw today this was one we didn't get an ID on-it never fluked to reveal the identity. It did however, entertain the passengers by doing some awesome flipper slapping. Even our mascot "Crew", the captain's boxer, enjoys watching surface activity. He stands up putting his paws on the railing and watches the whales antics. Check it out!
One whale we identified was a CAWW favorite named Owl. She is easily identified by the deep gouge on her back that actually puddles water as well as her beautiful fluke with white patches on both tips of the fluke with dark circles looking like Owl eyes.
As for the other humpbacks found today-they were all new additions to our sightings list-Boathook and Quarternote, Lichen and Rope, and Jigsaw. This brings up some interesting questions. Where were these whales all season? Are they whales that spend most of their time in the more northern feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine and are beginning to make their way down to the mating/calving grounds in the warmer southern waters? Two of these whales, Rope and Jigsaw, I have never seen in my 21 years on the water. Rope has been around since the 1980's and I have never seen him before! He was traveling with Lichen who is also a 1980's whale. I have seen Lichen only 3 times in all these years - Oct 24, 2007, Oct 14, 2014 and Oct 21, 2019. Quaternote I have only seen once before on Oct 20, 2009. The more time I spend on the water the more questions I have. That's what makes whale watching so much fun! NH

**All images were captured using telescopic lens and in compliance with Whale Watching Guidelines. In addition, Cape Ann Whale Watch contributes its data to the Center for Coastal Studies, who curates the Gulf of Maine Humpback Whale catalog.**

Whales, Foliage & Weather! Fall whale watching is in full swing! We are experiencing unbelievable encounters with the w...
10/18/2024

Whales, Foliage & Weather! Fall whale watching is in full swing! We are experiencing unbelievable encounters with the whales foraging on the feeding grounds before they begin their winter migration. The weather forecast looks great for this weekend and fall foliage is at peak and can be spotted as we journey to the feeding grounds. We have limited availability on our 8:30/1:30 trips this Saturday and Sunday...what are you waiting for? Give us a call today to book your reservation!
1-800-877-5110

Address

415 Main Street
Gloucester, MA
01930

Opening Hours

Monday 7am - 7pm
Tuesday 7am - 7pm
Wednesday 7am - 7pm
Thursday 7am - 7pm
Friday 7am - 7pm
Saturday 7am - 7pm
Sunday 7am - 7pm

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Videos

A day in the life of an intern
A day in the life of an intern

Check out this video made by our own JJ Mullen this summer. JJ was a 2024 intern on the Hurricane II and captured a day in the life aboard the boat. Has this video piqued your curiosity? Do you have a chunk of time to commit during 2025? Are you passionate about the natural world? Are you a lifelong learner? The new 2025 Field Research and Environmental Education internship description will be posted on our website SOON; in the meantime, please feel free to reach out to our Educational Director, Tina McMahon Foley, @[email protected] with any questions you might have. Please share this with friends and family that may have an interest as well. ~Tina

2024 Season Recap
2024 Season Recap

Our 2024 season was out of this world! The number of species of marine life that we encountered this year was unbelievable. To be in the presence of the largest creature on our planet was one of the most humbling experiences of my life; what a gift from nature! The uniqueness of each trip left me in awe and challenged some of my established beliefs ~ every scientist's dream! However, there is so much more to whale watching ~ the comradery between the crew, exposing first time whale watchers to the wonders of the sea and catching up with returning customers, experiencing 'ah-ha' moments with the 'regulars' who are a pod family, the office staff who makes a buck list dream a reality, and Nick and Jim that give us this unique opportunity each year. During a recent interview, I was asked, "What is your most favorite aspect of being a naturalist?" That's easy...helping people reconnect to nature. I hope you enjoy the video recap...it was a challenge to capture the essence of the season in images ~ I often tell passengers to put down technology and just be present. The memories your brain creates encompass all the senses. My wish to all of you is that you find ways to be present in the moment and take in the natural wonders of our world. I look forward to introducing you to the marine life of the Gulf of Maine in the 2025 season! Be well, Tina #discovergloucester #gloucesterma #gulfofmaine #jeffreysledge #whales #whalewatching #dolphins #getoutside #nature

Once in lifetime!
Once in lifetime!

Our passengers today who braved the bitter cold (and even a fluttter of snow as they waited to board the boat), along with choppy seas were rewarded with the most awesome trip! Not only did we have lots of whales but most of them were so active showing us the many of the behaviors we all hope and love to see. There were whales breaching, chin breaching, tail breaching, flipper slapping, pairs of whales flipper slapping together and even a pair of humpbacks double breaching-YIKES!! Watch as we approach a pair of humpback whales flipper slapping when all of a sudden a second pair of humpbacks do a double breach right behind them. That's a sight I have never seen! We watched in anticipation that the breaching would continue, but it didn't happen. What did happen (which I didn't get on video), the two whales that had breached both began to flipper slap! Imagine seeing 4 humpbacks all flipper slapping! We believe flipper slapping or pec slapping is a form of commnication. If so, these whales were talking up a storm. Such a wonderful day. NH

An interesting day on the water
An interesting day on the water

I love fall whale watches! The lighting is different, the temperature is different (cold) and even the whales are different. In the past 2 days we have seen many whales that we haven't seen yet all season! More about that later. Of all the whales we saw today this was one we didn't get an ID on-it never fluked to reveal the identity. It did however, entertain the passengers by doing some awesome flipper slapping. Even our mascot "Crew", the captain's boxer, enjoys watching surface activity. He stands up putting his paws on the railing and watches the whales antics. Check it out! One whale we identified was a CAWW favorite named Owl. She is easily identified by the deep gouge on her back that actually puddles water as well as her beautiful fluke with white patches on both tips of the fluke with dark circles looking like Owl eyes. As for the other humpbacks found today-they were all new additions to our sightings list-Boathook and Quarternote, Lichen and Rope, and Jigsaw. This brings up some interesting questions. Where were these whales all season? Are they whales that spend most of their time in the more northern feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine and are beginning to make their way down to the mating/calving grounds in the warmer southern waters? Two of these whales, Rope and Jigsaw, I have never seen in my 21 years on the water. Rope has been around since the 1980's and I have never seen him before! He was traveling with Lichen who is also a 1980's whale. I have seen Lichen only 3 times in all these years - Oct 24, 2007, Oct 14, 2014 and Oct 21, 2019. Quaternote I have only seen once before on Oct 20, 2009. The more time I spend on the water the more questions I have. That's what makes whale watching so much fun! NH **All images were captured using telescopic lens and in compliance with Whale Watching Guidelines. In addition, Cape Ann Whale Watch contributes its data to the Center for Coastal Studies, who curates the Gulf of Mai

What a day!
What a day!

I struggled in deciding whether or not to post this video. The seas had a pretty good swell and lots of choppy waves on top of that-whitecaps everywhere!! These are not conditions to take a nice video. In addition to that our boat was moving as I was shooting this. It's hard to shoot a video when you are trying to just keep your balance. My goal for posting videos has always been to share with you all the the many exciting things we get to see. So grab your Dramamine and check out these three humpbacks doing a TRIPLE BREACH (even though I only got the splash of the third breach)!! I've seen many single breaches, a couple of double breaches but this is my first triple breach! After the triple breach there is still more fun things to watch. I hope you enjoy this. NH

Where is my calf?
Where is my calf?

It was an interesting day out there today. If you follow our posts you know that early in the season we had lots of sightings of Clamp and her new calf. They left the area for a couple of months mid season and have recently returned. I remarked in a recent post how just how big the calf has gotten. We saw them together just this weekend. Today we ventured out to Jeffreys Ledge and once again found Clamp....but no calf! We stayed with her for over an hour with no calf in sight. No cause for alarm...as calves get older they become more independent and can venture away from mom for longer periods of time. Soon all moms and calves will split and the calf becomes completely independent. I have seen that happen as early as late August. Could this calf have just gone on an adventure and will come back to Clamp? Or have they saparated? Who knows and only time will tell. Clamp's behavior today had lots of surface activity-tail breaching, lobtailing and a few of her special tail "waggles". Surface activity is usually a form of communication between whales. Was Clamp's activity trying to tell her calf "I'm here, come to momma"? Who knows? I can't wait to get back on the water to see if the two have reunited. Here is Clamp doing some "communicating" NH

Noisy nap
Noisy nap

Our first encoounter yesterday was a mom/calf pair of humpback whales. It's been a couple of months since we've seen Clamp and her calf and it was such fun to see just how much that calf has grown since the beginning of the season. They were napping when we arrived-a behavior called logging. The calf napped at the surface while Clamp hovered just below the surface. They were surrounded by a pod of Atlantic white sided dolphins! Dolphins are noisy little critters, constantly communicating with eachother by squeaks, clicks and whistles. Imagine trying to nap with all that chatter going on? The neon green you see in the video are Clamp's white pectoral flippers just below the surface of the water. Watch as both mom and calf come to the surface to take a breath surrounded by the dolphins! We left them napping to check out some other whales in the area and found Satula, who was taking 20 minute dives and another humpback who was doing some flipper slapping. We did a short "drive-by" to see if Clamp and the calf had woken up-but they were still snoozing. A great day on the water! NH

Ravine and Dross "chilling out"
Ravine and Dross "chilling out"

The seas are finally starting to calm down a bit! Today we found Ravine and Dross, 2 female humpback whales, who have been hanging out together for the past couple of days. They appeared to me to be just relaxing after days and days of dealing with chaotic seas. They stayed pretty much in the same spot and seemed to be just enjoying riding over the swells. Ravine gave us a spyhop (checking us out), showed us her huge pectoral flippers, and treated us all to a tail breach as we were ready to leave. Ravine is on the left and Dross is on the right. I thought you might enjoy watching these two just chilling out. NH **All images were captured using telescopic lens and in compliance with Whale Watching Guidelines. In addition, Cape Ann Whale Watch contributes its data to the Center for Coastal Studies, who curates the Gulf of Maine Humpback Whale catalog.** #discovergloucester #gloucesterma #whalewatching #whales #bluewhale #nature #dolphins #getoutside #educationisthemostpowerfultool

Flipper slapping
Flipper slapping

It was a beautiful day on the water today. As we approached the feeding grounds where the whales have been sighted recently, we got a report that there were 2 humpbacks very active at the surface. They had been flipper slapping for half an hour. It's always "iffy" to head towards surface active whales-you just never know if that behavior will continue. We decided to check them out! We were so happy we did. We found 2 humpbacks, Bounce and 3.14, and 3.14 did not dissapoint. He was slapping his one ton pectoral flippers onto the surface of the water to the delight of all the passengers. Shortly after we arrived, the pair decided that all that surface activity entitled them to take a nap. This is a behavior we call logging-where the whale either floats on the surface of the water (looking like a log) or just below the surface, slowing down its breathing rate and shutting down half of it's brain. Whales don't sleep like we do-part of their brain has to stay awake to remind itself to breathe and to be aware of its surroundings. Watching whales sleep is not exactly the most exciting thing to see but it always takes my breath away! Just knowing that they are aware that this huge boat is right next to them and they feel comfortable enough to take a snooze as we watch is just so awesome. It was way past time for us to leave the whales and start heading for home -then they woke up! Watch as Bounce goes down for a dive and 3.14 starts flipper slapping again as if waving us farewell.

August 24-26 whale watching
August 24-26 whale watching

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Our Story

Welcome to Cape Ann Whale Watch in Gloucester, Massachusetts! As we enter our 42nd year of whale watching, we can guarantee that we will provide you with the best whale watching experience in New England! From the second we leave our dock, you are provided with a full harbor tour, full of Gloucester's maritime history. Once we get to Stellwagen Bank, a national marine preserve, about 12 miles off the coast of Gloucester, you will be amazed by the variety of marine life we encounter. Stellwagen Bank is deemed one of the “Top 5 Whale Watching Destinations in the World” by World Wildlife Fund, due to the wide variety of whale species whom migrate to the coast of Gloucester each year to feed on the abundant of natural resources.

“The Hurricane II”, the largest and fastest whale watching vessel north of Boston, gives patrons the opportunity to spend a lot more time with the whales than other whale watching companies in Gloucester since The Hurricane II gets to the whales' feeding grounds faster therefore, more time is actually spent observing! These whales include, but not limited to Humpback Whales, Minke Whales, Northern Right Whales, Pilot Whales, Northern Right Whales, S***m Whales, Sei Whales, Blue Whales (The Largest Whales in the Seven Seas yet seldom seen around Gloucester MA), Fin Whales, Atlantic White Sided Dolphins, Harbor Porpoises and many other fascinating marine creatures!

"The Hurricane II" boasts 115 ft length with over 400 ft of whale watching room from the railings of the upper and lower observation decks for optimum whale watching conditions. There is a heated, furnished indoor cabin with a full service galley serving hot meals, snacks and cold beverages as well as a fully stocked bar with local brews, popular beer, wine and mixed drinks. Cape Ann Whale Watch is truly the finest whale watching tour in the Boston MA area offering the highest level of quality, comfort and service at the most affordable price suitable for any family entertainment budget whether on vacation or a day trip. We offer AAA discounts on the adult tickets. We also offer reduced rates for seniors, children and military families.

Remember, we go where the whales go, and we guarantee it to be an aw-inspiring experience for you and your family!