9 hr Seward Wildlife cruise (Capt's choice)

[louis_greene]

<p>I did the 1/2 day cruise and liked it (out of Seward). My sister is coming up to AK and wants to do a cruise. Her husband is a photog (so am I). She found the 9hr Captains choice cruise they gear to photographers.<br>

Anyone here ever do it? My concerns are, a smaller bost (worse in bad weather- will be late August) and being on a bost for 9hrs. ANyone have any thoughts of this longer cruise on a smaller boat geared to "photographers" verse the regular half day cruises out of Seward?</p>

[bob_flood1]

<p>I didn't do a dedicated photo cruise, but I took an all day (8-9 hour) cruise in the Kenai Fjords. It was a single hull boat, and it bobbed around pretty good. I got a little green on the way back to Seward late in the day. A catamaran is more stable. Late August is probably still good weather (that's when I was there). The problem is the wave action caused by the routine small swells reflecting off the rock islands these boats get close to for viewing puffins, seals, eagles, etc. The closer the boat gets to the island, the stronger the rocking gets. The double hull of a catamaran doesn't get moved around as much.<br>

The general tour boats take a larger number of people, all of whom are vying for space along the railing, and it can get pretty competitive. Keeping a watchful eye for upcoming opportunities and moving to the preferred spot before the general public helps, but doesn't work for whales. When they pop up without warning, everyone rushes to see. A smaller boat devoted to getting shooting opportunities for everyone would have to be better. You can also expect a lower-to-the-water viewpoint that will help with otters and birds in the water.<br>

My wife is not a photographer, so our cruise also accomodated her. If I had gone alone, I'd have chosen a photo tour over the general tours.<br>

BTW, I recommend that you take your sis to Denali in late August - the tundra is the most amazing color at that time of year. Even if the weather is awful, the color is fantastic.</p>

[jim_ducey]

<p>I was there in late August and its a good time to visit. National Geographic runs some tours that are great for wildlife photos but they are expensive<br>

JimDucey</p>

[dan_westland3]

<p>I've done the captain's choice tour 3 times and it is well worth the money. The boat is 40'+, so it's really not all that small, but small enough to get into areas that the large boats cannot. There were 15-20 folks on the tours when I went and about half of those being serious photographers. No problems getting a good spot to shoot and the captain was very good about positioning the boat for the sake of photographers. Great opportunities for humpbacks, Killers(not sure in August), Dall's porpoises, Stellar sea lions, harbor seals, and birds. Also stops to watch/listen to a calving glacier. The 9 hours flies by and really shouldnt be a concern. A 300mm+ lens is essential. I used a 100-400 which worked well. Never tried any of the larger tours and cant comment on those, but would highly recommend this one.</p>