A Town of 900 People is an Introvert’s Dream
Again, my wife found the best tour that I could imagine. We had originally booked a sea mammal cruise excursion. I’m sure it was great. Instead she booked a tour with Hoonah Whale Tours. Owned and operated by husband & wife Joardan and Maraiya. Both were born and raised in Juneau where they spend the school year with their four children as Joardan works as a commercial fisherman. In the summers they live in Hoonah, where Joardan’s grandfather first migrated from Norway giving whale watching tours on a small 15-person boat. As promised, there were plenty of whales to see.
June 15, 2026 The slow dorsal roll
June 15, 2026 Then the back sinks
June 15, 2026 As the tail rises
June 15, 2026 And heads back under
June 15, 2026 Amazing tail breaches all day
This was clearly a whale watching tour so the majority of the people on the boat were there to see whales. I get it. But on the way to spot whales we passed sea otters, seals, and sea lions. I could have been just as pleased to see the smaller sea mammals, but we just kept trucking by. Then, on our way back to the harbor, Joardan took us to what my wife named the Otter Banks.
Finally, we stopped by a buoy to hang out with some sea lions.
After the sea lions, we headed straight back to the harbor. Everyone went back into the boat. My wife and I stayed on the bow and let it all sink in. We’ve seen, perhaps some of these same, whales in Maui numerous times and it’s always an awe-inspiring experience. The same way that we have seen blow-hole spouts from the lineup while surfing, we were watching spouts in the distance from the boat.
The views weren’t too different from being surrounded by whales, Maui, Molokai, and Lanai. Only colder and cloudier. But amazing none-the-less. As a sea-loving wildlife photographer I was in paradise. This is what I shot on the way back to the harbor and on the walk back to the ship in Hoonah.
If you would like to purchase one of the photos below, order a print from my Art & Print Shop.
