Humpback Whale Watching on Vancouver Island

It’s time to start talking about the largest frequent whale inhabiting the waters of Vancouver Island. Humpback whales are easily identified by their humps and long flippers. Based on global estimations, the population of humpback whales is 18,000 to 20,000. Humpback whales' migration is seasonal. In other words, they feed in temperate cooler waters since food is scarce in warm waters, and they will come back to warm regions for reproduction. They are migratory. However, there’s an exception. In the Arabian Sea, humpbacks live year-round and never leave the area which means no humpback whale migration. Unlike killer whales, mama humpback will stay with its calf for a year and nurse it and then the calf will leave. Long ago, Humpback whales have the largest population in the waters around BC. However, commercial whaling was their end. Starting from 1903, coastal whalers came to the coasts of Vancouver Island and started killing humpbacks for commercial whaling. It continued until 1966 when humpback whales were introduced as an endangered species and banned killing or hunting them. Now, after half of a century, they started to return to the waters of British Columbia. People would call it the “Humpback Comeback.” The funny thing is the humpback whale song. In other words, they are the singer whales. That may be why people seek the location to go whale watching in which humpback sighting is assured with the bonus of humpback whale song. These magnificent whales would sing for about 10 to 20 minutes with low vocal registers, different frequencies and amplitude. Gender doesn’t have a role in their singing ability. Both male and female whales sing; however, males are louder. They even have some kind of vocal groups, and scientists would say that males do the singing to hit on females during mating season. Who knows!? Considering the facts that we already mentioned, it can be claimed that humpback whales are funny marine creatures, and they are worth knowing about. Vanisle Wildlife team is proud to say that it is able to operate whale watching tours in which humpback sighting is guaranteed. Stay with us to tell you more about the details of and humpback whale watching on Vancouver Island.

Humpback whales are species found in all oceans. the humpback whale migration is long and annual which ranges from where they feed in cooler areas to subtropical and tropical waters where they mate and calve. Once females conceive, the pregnancy period of a humpback whale lasts for about a year, then the newborn calf stays with its mother another year before leaving. In summer, mothers with several-month-old calves can be spotted on the feeding grounds. Of course nothing more than a humpback whale breaching can make your whale watching trip delightful.

Humpback whales usually feed in the inlets; thus, it is possible to see them in Barkley and Clayoquot Sound. In general, we can claim that any land leading to the southwest of Vancouver Island can be a good place to see some humpback whales breaching.

Whale watching tours are not customized to view only humpbacks. However, since humpbacks are migratory, if you want to spot them while you’re on a whale watching cruise, the best time to book your tour is April to October, right when they come to the tropical waters of Vancouver Island to calve. When you start your whale watching journey sharpen your ears to get the humpback signals, their song. Otherwise, you may notice them by the dark-coloured hump they carry on their backs.

Customize you whale watching tour on Vancouver Island and include sighting humpback whales. Remember that your request is in professional hands.

When visiting Vancouver Island, one of the must-do activities is whale viewing. Whales are recognized as the island's guardians since they reside in each coordination's waterways. Whale watching is a year-round pastime on Vancouver Island if no specific subspecies are sought. Our whale watching experiences on the pristine Vancouver Island start at $145 for adults and $85 for children, regardless of the species of whales. We have an offer for students with proper IDs, which is great news. For about $125, they can have a great day observing whales.

We'll be sitting here all day if we start talking about the advantages of hiring a tour guide for your whale-watching excursion. To begin with, whale watching trips are nearly always conducted from the deck of a boat, around 90% of the time. As a result, you'd need someone with a boat to carry you to the middle of the ocean to view the sea giants. Even if you have a boat, you'll need an experienced captain to guide you and inform you when the ideal time to see whales is. It's worth noting that if you possess a boat, you might not know how far you can go, and you might be surprised.