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Shetland
Seabirds & Seals
Sundside Bressay Shetland ZE2 9ER Contact: Dr Jonathan Willis Telephone: 07831 217 042 Email: info@seabirds-and-seals.com Type of vessel and trip: Dunter III of Bressay is a 12-metre vessel, purpose-built to cruise in comfort to Shetland’s seabird cities and seal colonies – and to give wheelchair users access to these wonders for the first time. Likely species to be seen: Gannets, guillemots, kittiwake, puffin, razorbill, black guillemot and great skuas.
John O’Groats Wildlife Cruises
Contact: Ivor Thomas
Telephone: 01955 611353
Email: ivor@jogferry.co.uk
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Moray Firth
Ecoventures
Harbour Workshop Victoria Place Cromarty IV11 8YEContact: Sarah Pern
Telephone: 01381 600323
Email: info@ecoventures.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: Dolphin cruises on custom-built ribs taking up to 12 passengers (2 hour trips and charters on request).
Likely species to be seen: Bottlenose dolphins and harbour porpoise, seals and other general wildlife.
North 58° Sea Adventures
Findhorn Marina Findhorn Moray IV36 3YEContact: Pippa Low/Simon Paterson
Telephone: 01309 690099
Email: adventure@north58.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: Explore the wonders of the Moray Firth with North 58° Sea Adventures. We run trips to suit everybody; trips out on our custom built RIBs offer a unique combination of adventure, exhilaration and the joy of close encounters with the marine life and incredible scenery.
Likely species to be seen: Grey Seals, Harbour Seals, Porpoise, and Bottlenose Dolphins seen regularly. Common Dolphins, Minke Whales, Basking Sharks are often seen in the summer months as visitors to the area. Various marine bird life.
Gemini Explorer
Hawthorn Cottage Main Street Urquhart Morayshire IV30 8LGContact: Peter Hizzett
Telephone: 07747 626280
Type of vessel and trip: Come and enjoy the famous Moray Firth Dolphins, wildlife and stunning coastal scenery on a Moray Firth dolphin trip and marine tour, sailing 3 times daily aboard the beautiful 72ft ex-Clyde class live aboard lifeboat, The Gemini Explorer.
Likely species to be seen: Bottlenose dolphins, minke whales, harbour porpoises seals and other general wildlife.
South-East Scotland
Seafari Explorer
North BerwickContact: Colin Aston
Telephone: 07850 882304
Email: colinaston199@gmail.com
Type of vessel and trip: This is a brand new 55 passenger catamaran which offers wildlife viewing trips April to October.
Likely species to be seen: Minke whales, dolphins, seals and puffins. Last year a humpback whale was spotted.
Inner Hebrides
Sea Life Surveys
Ledaig Tobermory Isle of Mull PA75 6NUContact: James Fairbairns
Telephone: 01688 302916
Email: info@sealifesurveys.com
Type of vessel and trip: 2 – 7 hour wildlife and whale-watching cruises, private charters and package holidays aboard one of two vessels departing from Tobermory on the Isle of Mull.
Likely species to be seen: Minke whales, basking sharks, harbour porpoise, common and grey seals, white-tailed and golden eagles and common dolphins are all sighted regularly during the summer months, as well as a variety of seabirds. Occasionally Risso’s dolphins, bottlenose dolphins and killer whales are also seen.
Clachan Seil, near Oban
Contact: David and Jean Ainsley
Telephone: 01631 571010 (day) / 01852 300203 (evening and weekends)
Email: info@sealife-adventures.com
Type of vessel and trip: Three, four and five hour whale and wildlife trips aboard the purpose built 900 horsepower “Porpoise II” on the West Coast of Scotland near Oban in Argyll.
Likely species to be seen: This is a hot spot for porpoises, dolphins and minke whales and basking sharks. Bird watching highlights include sea eagles, golden eagles, and puffins. Meanwhile otters, seals, and deer can be seen along the shore.
Craignish Cruises
Ardfern by Lochgilphead Argyll Scotland PA31 8QNContact: Lindsay Johnston
Telephone: 07747 023038
Email: lindsay@craignishcruises.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: Two, three, four hour, and day whale and wildlife cruises on board our latest extremely sturdy, and capable offshore power boat “ Venturer”
Likely species to be seen: Our area of operation is an important feeding hot spot for a number of species including porpoise, minke whales, basking sharks, dolphins, a multitude of sea birds including puffins, also sea eagles, golden eagles, otters, seals and deer can be seen along the shoreline.
Seafari Adventures
Seafari Adventures (Oban) Easdale nr Oban Argyll PA34 4RF
Contact: Carolyn Perkins
Telephone: 01852 300 003
Email: oban@seafari.co.uk
Seafari Adventures are Oban’s 5* Visit Scotland marine wildlife tour operator. Based in the conservation area of Easdale, 16 miles south of Oban we have a fleet of powerful RIBs which are purpose designed and built to ensure you maximum viewing opportunities.
Type of vessel and trip: Our Wildlife Tours depart throughout the day visiting the Gulf of Corryvreckan, home of the World’s Third Largest Whirlpool. Our two hour nature spectacular is set amongst the many islands in the area. The scenery is spectacular with both woodlands and cliffs. All Seafari boats are high speed Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boats purpose built for wildlife and nature watching. Boats are driven by one of our highly experienced skippers and crewed by a qualified wildlife guide.
Likely species to be seen: Porpoise, dolphins and whales feed in these food rich waters along with many seals and the occasional otter. There are deer on the islands and seabirds in the skies which are also home to both the white tailed sea eagle and golden eagle. Using our cabin RIBs we are able to offer tours to the whale feeding grounds in July and August and day tours to Iona, Staffa and the local Puffin colony.
Outer Hebrides
Hebridean Adventures
Contact: Linda Wallace & Paul Sharman
Address: 22 North Beach, Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, HS1 2XQ
Telephone: 07871 463755
Email: info@hebrideanadventures.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: MV Monadhliath is a fully-converted former offshore fishing vessel specifically designed now for carrying passengers to observe whales, dolphins and other marine and coastal wildlife via our bespoke raised viewing platforms with seating, and for live-aboard cruising and charter thanks to the cabins below deck. We can carry up to 12 passengers on our half and full day trips, and up to 9 on our overnight cruises. Monadhliath is also certified by the Coastguard to carry passengers up to 60 miles offshore in complete safety.
We offer 1, 3 and 5 night wildlife cruises, plus half and full day trips, along with occasional hosted and themed trips such as a wildlife photography cruise or an Isle of Skye/Ring of Bright Water cruise. We are always interested in talking to groups and trip leaders who might like to charter the boat for such a trip of any length around the Hebrides and use as a mothership type operation. Just call or get in touch.
If you are not keen on boats whatever the weather, then we also offer a land-based wildlife minibus tour from Stornoway too. This can often include a trip to the well-known cetacean-watching hotspot on Tiumpan Head if conditions are good for some shore-watching too.
Likely species to be seen: In terms of cetaceans then harbour porpoise, common dolphin, Risso’s dolphin and minke whales are the most common species that we come across. However a wider range of other whale and dolphin species use this area to feed in or travel through so you can never be exactly sure what might pop up from the various species of beaked dolphins to humpback whales and even orca too. Our longer cruises obviously increase the chances for more unusual encounters as we can cover more ocean in our search. Seabirds are then also a highlight and puffins, guillemots, razorbills, gannets, shags, kittiwakes, fulmars, skuas and gulls are great to watch, as are the growing numbers of white-tailed sea eagles that we regularly see around the Isle’s of Lewis and Harris.
Sea Trek
Miavaig Pier, Uig, Isle of Lewis, HS2 9HWContact: Lynne & Murray McLeod
Telephone: 01851 672469
Email: murray@seatrek.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: Wildlife cruises on a rigid inflatable – takes up to 12 passengers (day trips).
Likely species to be seen: Risso’s and white-beaked dolphins, minke whales, harbour porpoises and basking sharks.
Misty Isle
Sealadh na Mara Elgol Isle of Skye IV49 9BLContact: Anne Mackinnon
Telephone: 01471866288/222
Email: anne@mistyisleboattrips.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip/likely species to be seen: We will be operating 3 boats for the coming season and various wildlife is spotted from all three. The vessels are; Misty Isle, a 42ft open wooden launch and Heather Grace a 30ft wooden launch which both specialize in trips to visit Loch Coruisk and the common seal colony. The third boat is a fast Cygus Cyfish 33 which will be running trips to Rum and Canna to see the puffins and to look out for cetaceans etc.
North-West Scotland
Gairloch Marine Life Centre and Cruises
Gairloch Marine Life Centre and Cruises Charleston Harbour Pier Road Gairloch Ross-shire IV21 2BQContact: Ian French
Telephone: 01445 712636
Email: info@porpoise-gairloch.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: One and two hour wildlife cruises on the 31′ MV Starquest. The wildlife information centre also includes photographic displays of local wildlife, identification guides, films and sightings data.
Likely species to be seen: Harbour porpoises are the most frequently encountered marine mammals, on which survey work is conducted. Other cetacean species seen include minke whales, common and white-beaked dolpins. There are also grey and common seals to be spotted.
MV Sheerwater
Arisaig Marine Ltd The Harbour Arisaig Inverness-shire PH39 4NHContact: Susan Grant or Graham MacLellan
Telephone: 01687 450224
Email: info@arisaig.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: Departs daily from Arisaig Marina. Booking is essential. Trips to the islands of Eigg, Muck or Rum.
Likely species to be seen: One of the UK’s best locations for seeing minke whales and harbour porpoises. Risso’s dolphin, Atlantic white-sided dolphin, bottlenose dolphin, killer whale and basking shark have also been seen.
Hebridean Whale Cruises
Gairloch Chandlery Gairloch Ross-shireContact: Verle van de Bossche
Telephone: 01445 712458
Email: veerle_hwc@hotmail.com
Type of vessel and trip: Wildlife watching trips from Gairloch around the seas of Northwest Scotland onboard MV Kerry.
Likely species to be seen: Minke whales, harbour porpoises, killer whales, many species of dolphins including Risso’s dolphin, common dolphin and bottlenose dolphins, as well as many species of seabirds.
North West Cruises
Contact: Jody McNeil
Telephone: 0795 481765
Email: northwestcruises1@hotmail.co.uk
Type of vessel and trip: 1 hour trip ~ Short cruise inside Loch Gairloch; 2 hour ~ to the mouth of Loch Gairloch and west side of Longa Island looking out into the Minch; 3 hour ~ Recommended for seeing whales and dolphins, takes you out into the Minch towards Rhona and west to the Isle of Skye. Full day charters available by arrangement.
Likely species to be seen: Minke whales, harbour porpoises, killer whales, Risso’s dolphin, common dolphin, bottlenose dolphins, as well as many species of seabirds.
Summer Queen Cruises, Ullapool
Contact: Noel Hawkins
Telephone: +44(1854) 612472
Email: Cruises@SummerQueen.co.uk
