Pelagic Trips New England Pelagic Trips Pelagic Trips Outside New England Taking Your First Pelagic Trip Birding On Whale Watch Boats Chum

There are two ways to see seabirds:  scanning the ocean  from coastal promontories or taking what is usually called a Pelagic Birding Trip on a boat. While the term pelagic refers to the open ocean, most of the so-called pelagic trips are confined to the continental shelf.

Organized Trips - New England Area
Area bird clubs sponsor trips. These trips include dedicated trips where the club charters a boat and trip participants are all birders. Whales and other marine animals may be seen on these trips, but the object will be to find birds.   There are also trips where the group joins a commercial whale watch or fishing trip. On these trips not all participants are bird watching and if the boat finds a whale it will probably stop for a long time.  Whale research organizations sponsor trips for Cetaceans on which you can also see birds. For a listing of these organized trips for the current year see  New England Pelagic Trips.

Do it yourself trips
If you happen to be in Boston or on the Cape and want to see pelagic birds, you can take your own trip on a whale watching boat. There are commercial whale watch trips every day from April to late October which leave from ports from Maine to Provincetown on Cape Cod.  . Commercial party fishing trips run a lengthy season and you might combine bird watching with a little fishing. To plan a trip on a whale watch do an internet search for a suitable boat.. Please read the section on birding on whale watch boats to better understand the benefits and limitations.