Boat Adventures for Families in Northern Maine

Maine’s northern coast is known as Downeast Maine because it reaches farther east than any other point in the mainland United States. It’s also known as a destination for families who love salt-water adventures.

Boats in the harbors of Eastport, Lubec and Milridge wait to take families to see whales and puffins or to sail around the continent’s biggest whirlpool. Other seaborn adventures include trips on a working lobster boat to haul traps, and tours that include scenic lighthouses and the rocky coast from which they guide ships away.

Family-owned Eastport Windjammers whale-watch cruises from Eastport include a lot more than whales. Along with seals and porpoises, passengers usually see bald eagles. The boat stops to haul a lobster trap or two. Kids love to see them kicking as they learn a bit about sea life beneath the surface. Tours also pass Old Sow, the world’s second-largest whirlpool.

To get up-close and personal with this natural wonder, take the Old Sow Whirlpool/Whale Watch trip with Downeast Charter Boat Tours in Lubec. Captain Ralph explains the phenomenon as kids count the “piglets” — smaller whirlpools that surround it. For more whale watching and a lobster boat demonstration, choose the Whale and Nature tour, where an onboard naturalist points out cormorants, loons and guillemots and tells seafaring stories as you cruise the scenic coast past East Quoddy Head Lighthouse.

On a cruise with Robertson Sea Tours, in Milbridge, you’ll cruise around another lighthouse and get close to a colony of puffins. Looking a lot like stuffed toys, these rare birds are sure to please the kids. Petit Manan Island is a sanctuary for Atlantic puffins and other seabirds, and the Kandi Leigh circles close enough to the island so passengers can watch and photograph the birds. If you’re more interested in seeing a lobster boat in action and getting in some whale watching, take a three-hour lobster cruise with Captain Robertson.