Humpback Whale Photography Trip

Over the last ten years, the west coast of British Columbia and especially the Queen Charlotte Islands have seen a huge growth in humpback whale populations. From mid April to mid June, when the water is still cold and the krill are at the surface, large numbers of humpbacks feed in the in-shore waters around Gwaii Haanas. Athough there is a chance you will see these majestic creatures anytime of year, the large groups of lunge-feeding and tail-flicking whales tend to dissipate around mid June.

The Moresby Explorers Ltd. is now offering a specialized early season trip designed for photographers, both professional and amateur, who have a keen interest in getting some great whale shots. We will spend our days aboard one of our Hurricane Zodiacs searching out and photographing humpback whales in the area between Louise Island and Burnaby Island. Although we may have a chance to visit some of the abandoned Haida Village Sites and the hotsprings, we will be spending most of our time aboard a small open boat, possibly in windy and rainy conditions. We will spend the nights in our warm and comfortable floating lodge with great food and a world class view. The lodge has enough electricity for loading photos on laptops and charging camera batteries.

This season, on both of our advertised Humpback Whale Photography Trips, Isabelle Groc, a professional photographer will be on board. Although she will hopefully be very busy photographing whales during the day, she would be happy to share some tips and tricks in the evening. Isabelle's website is www.TideLife.com

We would like to note that it is illegal to harrass marine mammals. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada has set up whale viewing guidelines which include not approching or positioning a vessel closer than 100m from a whale. Although the whales are welcome to approach our vessel, and they sometimes do, we will abide by the guidelines.

How you should dress:
Because we use open boats it can be very cold and sometimes wet. You should wear warm, layered clothing, preferably synthetic (like fleece) or wool, and if possible avoid cotton as it is very cold when wet. We suggest you bring all the warm clothing you have as you can always leave some in the van if your guide thinks you have to much. You should also bring a warm hat, sunglasses and gloves.

You may bring your own raingear, but we also provide heavy raingear and gumboots for everyone.

Your photography gear should be in waterproof cases and you are fully responsible for keeping it dry.

Gear List:
We have very limited space on the boat, so all your non-photography gear should fit in a daypack.
-Warm clothing
-Warm hat
-Sunglasses
-Gloves
-Bathing suit
-Towel
-Sandals (to walk between the pools)
-Water bottle
-Change of clothes
-Personal effects
-Photography Gear
-Binoculars (optional)
-Snacks (optional)
-Alcoholic beverage (to have with dinner, optional)
-Gratuities (If our staff exceeds your expectations, optional)

Schedule