Apparently regular whale watching in Maine is a right of passage for New Englanders. I like boats, and I like whales, so naturally I wanted to partake in the open ocean festivities. Kyle and I booked a whale watching tour with Cap’n Fish out of Boothbay Harbor and spent the majority of the day hunting for whale spouts with Kyle’s aunt, uncle, and cousin. Now, I preface this next part with a reminder that I’m from Florida and have been privileged enough to spend many afternoons on boats of all shapes and sizes. About ten minutes into our tour, a small feeling of physical discomfort transformed into full-blown seasickness, which was unfortunate considering all our collective Dramamine was left at the family cabin– and for some unbeknownst reason, no member of the boat crew had any either. Praise the Lord I never leave home without my ZonePerfect bars, which have proven themselves many times to be the perfect emergency snack for all walks of life.

After over half an hour of wallowing in the ship’s galley, Kyle basically force-fed me a cold glass of ginger ale followed by the much-needed protein in a ZonePerfect Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough bar. Thankfully, ZonePerfect bars always keep my hangries at bay (pun intended) and allow me to enjoy little wins throughout the day, like not throwing up during a four-hour whale watching tour. Once I was able to stand back up on two feet without running to the restroom, I snapped some fun photos from the whole whale watching in Maine experience. Head to the bottom of this post for full outfit details!

As for the quality of whale watching in Maine, our voyage with Cap’n Fish out of Boothbay Harbor had marine sightings of Humpback, Finback, Minke, Right, and Pilot Whales, although most were Finbacks. We also got to see quite a few dolphins, too! As you can imagine, photographing any large animal at exactly the right moment is difficult, especially when this particular region of whales don’t actually jump out of the water. They arch their backs for deep dives, which expose their rather extraordinary fins and coloring, and their “V” shaped spouts can rise as high as 20 feet. Such an incredible thing to see first hand!

We also got to see some of Boothbay Harbor’s most gorgeous marine scenery, like the Inn at Cuckolds Lighthouse. This offshore lighthouse is going at the top of my Maine Things bucket list. As you can see, it’s a tiny inn on a completely private island, so you can reserve a suite or splurge and reserve the entire private island. Unfortunately, since they’re literally located in the middle of the bay, they’re only open from late May to late September. Sign me up for the romantic package, plzZ.

Again, I’m sincerely thankful to my recently purchased box of ZonePerfect bars for saving the day (you’re alright, too, ginger ale). I’ll never the house without one in my bag, regardless of if I’m on land or water. You can score a 5-pack box of ZonePerfect Cookie Dough Nutrition Bars from Walmart for under $5. If cookie dough isn’t your cup of tea, I highly recommend trying their chocolate mint and salted caramel brownie flavors, too. They’re seriously delicious, and each bar has between 10-15 grams of protein per serving.

Sleeveless Turtleneck: J.Crew Factory, $50 (on sale) | Jeans: Target, $30 | Boots: Hunter, $140 | Watch: Michael Kors (Similar), $250

Have any of y’all been whale watching in Maine– or anywhere for that matter, before? How was your experience?

_{I have been compensated by ZonePerfect for this post; however, I am sharing my own thoughts. All opinions are my own.}