Date visited: January 23, 20016
Price: $20 for adults, $10 for children (ages 3-11) and seniors (over 65)
This was a special cruise and is not something they do regularly in the winter. During the spring, summer and fall they have cruises scheduled regularly.
Twenty degree weather and an impending winter storm; what better conditions for a harbor cruise. Ironically, that statement could not be more accurate.
We were greeted by gulls and rough seas when we arrived at the wharf.
As we made our way on to the boat for and they announced the cruise would be a three hour tour (in retrospect, that Gilligan’s Island reference should have been a bad omen), I was surprised by how roomy, comfortable and modern it was. The three story boat had booths on the sides of the cabin area and ample seating.
Even before we left the wharf I took some shots of the bay. You can see Logan Airport in the distance in some of the photos.
As the boat left the bay, I took some obligatory photos of the skyline.
I had to bundle up (and hold on tight to the railing) for the shoot. I was surprised at how well I handled the overly active ocean. I’ve never been particularly fond of roller coasters, wavy oceans or anything that moves to and fro quickly. But, I did fine. The only time I felt a tinge of sickness was when a fellow traveler described his own feelings of sea sickness (gee, thanks random stranger). But, that quickly passed.
There was a variety of sea life, although the choppy waters made it difficult to photograph all of them. DCR (Department of Conservation and Recreation) officials were on the boat with binoculars on the lookout for wildlife and other points of interest and announcements were made whenever a bird or other animal was sighted.
I did photograph this Eider as he swam with friends.
and a few other elusive birds.
Even though it was a cruise for wildlife viewing some of the best views were of the harbor and the islands.
This is Spectacle Island. Spectacle Island was made entirely from the dirt from the huge construction project known as the “Big Dig”. it is much prettier during the summer.
These are some photos of Boston Light. Boston Light is the first Lighthouse in America. It is still working today.
The Deer Island Waste Water Treatment Plant began operations in 1995. It is clearly the jewel of Boston Harbor. Prior to the construction of the sewage plant, sewage from Boston’s treatment facilities had contaminated shellfish after the sewage had been released. Lunch, anyone?
These structures are what is left of the bridge to Long Island (not the one in NY – we didn’t go out that far). It was dismantled recently. Personally, I think they should keep them. They make for a good background for photography.
Below is a slideshow of some of the other shots from my cruise. It was very windy and the sea was pretty choppy. I tried to capture this in the photos.
Finally, I found a cute furry animal named Bailey to photograph when I disembarked from the boat.
See below for videos of the cruise to get a better idea of just how windy it was.
Winter Wildlife Cruise – Long Wharf
January 26th, 2016 at 5:00 pm
Great photography for the tough conditions, well done. I’ve never been to this city, looks like a very nice city and area to visit. The sea is looking rather angry, good size rollers out there. Nice work!
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January 26th, 2016 at 6:02 pm
Thank you, John! It was a challenging shoot but I had such a great time anyways!
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January 26th, 2016 at 5:17 pm
What an interesting post. I look forward to these. 🙂
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January 26th, 2016 at 6:02 pm
Thank you very much!
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January 26th, 2016 at 7:12 pm
🙂
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January 26th, 2016 at 6:52 pm
Great post and it looks like, that you had a good trip 😀
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January 26th, 2016 at 7:05 pm
Thank you, Irene! It was so much fun. Very cold but so much fun.
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January 26th, 2016 at 9:33 pm
God, that looks so bloody cold but a lovely view of the skyline!
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January 27th, 2016 at 12:57 am
Thank you! It was cold but it didn’t bother me too much because I was so focused on my photography.
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January 26th, 2016 at 11:26 pm
We did the trip last June, it was a lovely day, but thats looked more exciting, certainly looked really choppy….such a lovely city 🙂
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January 27th, 2016 at 1:00 am
I would love to do it again when it’s warmer out. Yes, it is such a beautiful city!
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January 27th, 2016 at 5:07 am
Pretty choppy water that day, and cold! To see the Eider though that would be worth it for me. It’s still on my Life List.
I did a trip like this out of Half Moon Bay to the Farallon Islands outside of San Francisco Bay. We saw some neat sea birds that day, but no Eiders! 🙂
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January 27th, 2016 at 11:12 am
Yes, it was very cold and choppy. But I really was able to block that out since I was concentrating on looking for and photographing the wildlife and ocean. It must have been so much fun going out to the bay in San Francisco. Did you see any seals or sea lions?
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January 27th, 2016 at 3:32 pm
You know if I did I don’t recall. I see those quite often since I’m over on the coast quite often only living 30 minutes or so from it.
I was more interested in the birds especially Puffins! There was a lone Gannet I was thrilled to see, and an Albatross, and a few other birds that I saw that were on my life list which are now struck off. 🙂
You want to see seals? Come now to see the Elephant Seals! They are massive and entertaining.
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January 27th, 2016 at 3:43 pm
I’ve actually been out to California. My sister lives there. Saw some seals at pebble beach. It’s beautiful there.
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January 27th, 2016 at 3:51 pm
Carmel, and Big Sur are gorgeous! How wonderful that you were able to visit your sister and the area too. I don’t get to that area as often, but love it when I do.
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January 27th, 2016 at 2:14 pm
Nice photos – we went on a calm, sunny day in summer, was interesting to see how changed the place looks in different weather
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January 27th, 2016 at 5:02 pm
Thank you, Alex! It does look a lot different during the winter. I can’t wait to go again later this year when it is warmer.
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January 27th, 2016 at 10:41 pm
You are a braver person than I am! That water looks rough. Great photos, though!
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January 27th, 2016 at 11:50 pm
Ha ha, thank you, Ann!
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January 28th, 2016 at 1:16 am
I thoroughly enjoyed my tour through your eyes, and given the roughness of the water, I am truly truly thankful for it! Though it was cold, there is something cleansing and invigorating in brisk air. I love a lighthouse! Some of these captures remind me of home and childhood, thanks for that my friend.
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January 28th, 2016 at 3:22 am
Thank you! Lighthouses are beautiful. It’s amazing they are still around through all of the storms and they still work! The brisk air is refreshing, especially if you’ve been inside all day. The air on the ocean is even more refreshing. It’s so beautiful looking out on the ocean and seeing only water and the occasional island and lighthouse. It really can make you feel so far away from your land-based issues. It puts you in a completely different frame of mind.
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January 28th, 2016 at 3:42 am
It really makes me smile reading your thoughts expressed here; I can feel the energy of your gratitude for nature and that is a gift for myself as a reader. I can relate to the ocean being so vast, dotted only as you say, by a small island or lighthouse. That was my view growing up. Yes, I wholeheartedly agree it can feel like you’re on another planet, or at least, completely away from it all, when one is lost in nature…and it is often in being lost within nature, that we find ourselves.
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January 28th, 2016 at 11:27 am
I think we all need an escape, whatever that is (as long as it is not hurtful or detrimental to you or others). It could be sailing or reading or writing a blog!
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January 28th, 2016 at 3:39 pm
I couldn’t agree more with your thoughts! And yes, all three things mentioned are perfect, in addition to exploring nature, amidst the trees and rocks, surrounded by streams and rivers and such…heavenly escape.
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February 1st, 2016 at 11:15 pm
It’s a real joy to see wild Eider duck. Especially close up from a boat.
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February 1st, 2016 at 11:17 pm
Yes, I lucked out with that photo. As you could tell it was pretty rocky on the boat and I was on the other side of the boat when I heard someone identify the eider. I scurried over to the other side and started clicking away. Thank you!
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