Travel for Life: Vancouver Travel

Friday, August 18, 2017

Vancouver Travel—Whale Watching

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Based on Google Search results, the following two locations near Vancouver are top whale watching spots in North America:

Vancouver Island, British Columbia

An estimated 85 orcas live in the waters around southern Vancouver and the southern Gulf Islands.

San Juan Islands, Washington

Later I have watched the below video and found out about Vancouver Whale Watch located in Richmond, British Columbia.

Video. Orca whale watching close encounters Vancouver Island (YouTube link)

Here is a travelogue that chronicles my whale watching experience in a beautiful summer morning. As the photos reveal, there is no whale spotted on that day. However, the whole trip was still very rewarding and the tour company also gave us a free pass with no expiry date for future whale watching.

How to Get There

To reach Steveston Fisherman's Wharf, you can transport:

From YVR

Take Canada Line Skytrain heading for Waterfront
Exit at Bridgeport Station
Transfer to Canada Line heading for Richmond-Brighouse

From Vancouver City

Take Canada Line Skytrain heading for Richmond-Brighouse (not YVR-Airport)

For both routes, you can:

Exit at Richmond-Brighouse Station
Transfer to Bus 410 (see bus map above; click to enlarge)

Check out bus schedule here. But, don't rely on the time.

Exit at Steveston Fisherman's Wharf

Photos

Below photos (click to enlarge) were taken on 07/30/2017. In the morning, it was cloudy. But, during the day, it turned sunny (temperature: 28°C). Before the tour, I have decided to visit the nearby Garry Point Park first. Boy! I was glad that I have made that decision and been rewarded with some gorgeous views of shorelines.

Around 8:30 am, I walked from the Park to the Fisherman's Wharf. There were already a crowd of tourists there. However, I was able to book a trip on the Express (a 45 passenger zodiac style vessel). The whole trip on the water took about 4 hours.