Early morning cruise on a speed boat in Monterey

Early morning cruise on a speed boat in Monterey

It’s early morning and I’m on the docks of Monterey Bay on a cold and dreary looking morning.  Unfortunately, I had signed up for the first boat cruise around Monterey with Fast Raft Marine Tours. We are doing an exploration of the area, some whale watching and checking out whatever marine life that will come out to greet us this morning. Take a look at this fabulous whale watching tour in Monterey for more inspiration.

 

Cruising Monterey Bay

Cruising Monterey Bay

 

Why take a cruise on Monterey Bay?

Getting out on the bay to explore all the marine life on the bay and seeing the coastline and landscape from a water views gives a different perspective and look to the shoreline and panoramas. It’s fun to enjoy the water views and go on a rafting experience and on the lookout for whale watching in the area.

 

The harbor at Monterey Bay

The harbor at Monterey Bay

 

We meet our captain, a marine biologist named Kate Spencer, who is taking us out on this fast speed boat along with give giving us tidbits of information regarding grey whale migrations, feeding habits of sea otters and quirky characteristics of other marine life.  After a few safety instructions and placing on our life vests, we slowly cruise from the pier and immediately see a whole herd of harbor seals underneath the docks and piers in semi sheltered areas – funny that you sometimes don’t have to go really far to see marine life in Monterey Bay.

 

Harbor seals find sheltered spots at the habor

Harbor seals find sheltered spots at the habor

 

 

 

Hanging out at Monterey harbor

Hanging out at Monterey harbor

 

We finally start cruising at a faster pace outside of the harbor area and I start feeling more salt water sprays on my face – refreshing but at the same time I’m covering my camera lens so I don’t have to repeatedly clean the lens which doesn’t really help. The ride is fairly tame overall since I opted more for a slower cruise with others who want to take it easy and enjoy taking photographs of wildlife and the coastline along with hearing some background to the marine life in the bay that we may come across.

 

 

Paddling with harbor seals on Monterey Bay

Paddling with harbor seals on Monterey Bay

 

 

This is a strange scene above, we pass a lot of seals with their fins and tails up in the air to dry them off, which apparently helps with keeping them warmer and circulation flowing. The area is filled with marine life – otters, seals, a variety of marine birds – but we didn’t seem to come across any of the migrating whales that pass through the area at this time of the year. No worries, the coastline is beautiful and there’s enough wonderful vistas to enjoy on the ride, along with hearing Kate share more interesting facts about Monterey Bay and the active marine life living in the bay.

 

 

Hangout spot for the seals

Hangout spot for the seals

 

 

 

Coastal views of Monterey Bay

Coastal views of Monterey Bay

 

 

Kate ended up cranking the speed up a few knots and taking some fast spins on the raft, including some rapid turns and a tight 360 degree turn just to spice up the ride and make it a fun experience on the water. And before you know it, it’s already time to head back into port from our short tour and say goodbye to my new travel friends that I have hung out with for the past four days.

 

 

Monterey Bay Aquarium from the water

Monterey Bay Aquarium from the water

 

 

 

 

 

Arriving back at the harbor with wildlife nearby

Arriving back at the harbor with wildlife nearby

 

Did you enjoy cruising Monterey Bay for Travel Photo Mondays? Thank you for visiting us today, please share your fun experiences below in the comments if you did something cool in Monterey

 

If your visiting Monterey, check out these other posts below

Enjoying Monterey and Pacific Grove

A visit to Monterey Bay Aquarium

Weekend getaway to Carmel by the Sea

Exploring Point Lobos Reserve

Road trip to Big Sur in Monterey

Exploring quirky Moss Landing in Monterey

 

Conclusion to cruising Monterey Bay

Being out on the bay and enjoying nature and Monterey Bay is a fun way to explore the coastline and landscape of the Monterey region.

Thank you Fast Raft Marine tours for the fun ride and Monterey Convention and Visitor’s Bureau for hosting me for this visit, all opinions and writing are my own and I had a great time.

 

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