Whale Watching on Cape Ann at the Seaward Inn

It was just after Labor Day in the Fall when guests were enjoying a tantalizing breakfast in our dining room overlooking the ocean when suddenly one guest shouted, " Look, look out there", pointed to the sea, got up from the table and ran out to our landing. Others also scurried from the their tables and rushed to see the spectacle presenting itself outside. There were dozens of seagulls screeching while hovering and diving into a boiling sea of small feed, probably mackerel or herring. Amidst this frenzy of noise and activity there were three Minke Whales breaching and diving into this phenomenal feeding activity. What an incredible sight! It is not unusual to see schools of fish come close to shore, but Minke Whales so close you could almost touch them is quite rare.

This brought back thoughts of a book I read about the Sea Serpent of Cape Ann that eluded fishermen and residents for years in the area. It too chased the herring. Last sighting of the 80 to 100 foot creature that I recall reading about was June 12, 1914 near Thacher's Island, not far from the Seaward Inn, although there have been reports of other more recent sightings. However, probably the best documented sighting was in July of 1886 by Albert W. Tarr off of Gully Point which is right where the Seaward Inn sits and most likely the very same spot where these Minke whales were breeching. Another interesting point is that Nancy, the current owner of the Inn is also a Tarr, I wonder if a direct descendant..

It was said that the sightings of the Sea Serpent ceased with the decline of large schools of herring. Perhaps with the resurgence of the herring so will the sightings of the elusive Sea Serpent return once again. What a great experience this phenomenon must have been for our guests, especially those who do not live near the ocean! The following morning Nancy invited some of the guests to join her for a swim off the rocks in the very same place where all this excitement had taken place the day before.

This is just one of many moments to remember experienced by our guests at the Seaward Inn.

I will be using this blog to share more of those special moments with you, our guests and our readers.

Rose Marie Leal
Seaward Inn