Whale Watching

Humpback whales migrate to the warmer coastal waters for a few months each year to mate and give birth.  Okinawa is one of the places they tend to congregate to.  During the months of February and March, whale watching tours are very popular.  We decided to take such a tour and go see the humpback whales in person.  We booked the tour through the Kadena ITT (they offer busing and a tour guide/translator, along with the cost of the boat). 

It took us about half an hour to get to the port in Naha.  We boarded a little 2-decker boat and headed out to sea.  The weather was gorgeous; partly cloudy and in the 70s.  It took us 20-30 minutes to get to the area where the whales were.  We got to see multiple pods in the 2 1/2 hours we were out on the ocean.  In order to see the whales, you have to look for their plume.  Once you see their tails flip up and then down, you know that they are diving deep.  They can stay under the water for up to 30 minutes!  Out of the 2 1/2 hours we were on the ocean, we had about 10 minutes (combined) of whale watching.  The tour guide said it was a very good day and we were lucky to see so many pods. 

Getting ready to head out!

Family picture

About 1 1/2 hours into the tour Caleb got sea sick.  He felt a bit better after "feeding the fishes" but elected to stay in the back part of the boat with Jack.  Once we got back to land, he lost his paleness and was back to his usual self!

We got some great video of the whales.  Check out the video at: https://youtu.be/rhovBLLG0YI