DISCOVER THE ADVENTURE
WHALE WATCHING TRIPS ALOFT

What will you see from a plane, a helicopter, or a zeppelin? Perhaps it will be the whole length of a single whale - or maybe even a whole pod of whales! It's called a bird's-eye view for a reason...

An Insider Tip: Where ever you're visiting in Northern California, check with your hotel concierge or the local Visitor's Bureau to see if there are any local pilots who offer whale watching trips aloft - you may be pleasantly surprised!

Find the best prices on NorCal hotels at HotelsCombined, where you can compare pricing from over 30 hotel-booking websites:

Flightseeing for Whale;
(CC) Einalem

All tours include a personalized narration from their experienced local pilots who are very knowledgeable about the area, the coastline, and the wildlife.

Zeppelin NT;
(CC) Jan Wedekind

Airship Ventures offers a truly unique experience! Flightseeing from a Zeppelin!

That's right, a blimp!

They operate a Zeppelin NT airship, appropriately named Eureka, out of Moffett Field near San Francisco, and out of North Oakland, and Monterey!

Although there are currently no formalized whale watching trips aloft
on the Eureka, this exciting company assures me it would be very easy to accommodate those who want a Jonathan Livingston Seagull look at the behemoths!

St. George Reef Lighthouse Tours have been active since November 2009. What does that have to do with whale watching trips aloft, you ask? Lots, as it turns out!

St. George Reef Lighthouse was built between 1882 and 1892 on a small rocky outcrop that's only 17 feet above sea level and sits six miles out to sea!

The only realistic way to get there is by helicopter and that's where the whale watching comes in...

S.G.R.L.P.S. - St. George Reef Lighthouse Preservation Society - has just been granted permission to offer helicopter tours of the island and the work they are doing to preserve this historic lighthouse. These are the parameters:

• They'll operate once a month on a Sunday
• The helicopter will leave the Crescent City Airport several times a day, starting at 9 a.m.
• Whale watching can occur as opportunities arise on the way out and on the way back
• It's also quite likely you'll see whales from the island
• The tour of the lighthouse and the renovation work that's being done will take about 1 1/2 hours

A rare opportunity to get a little history and do some whale watching at the same time!

Looking for more whale watching options? Check here for starters:

Wondering how to go about a whale watching trip?

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