The best chance to see birds while on a boat near Victoria is on the Coho
Ferry, between Port Angeles and Victoria. Standing right at the prow, you
are in a wind shelter which allows good viewing while remaining fairly warm.
There is usually 1-1/2 hours of good birding on a trip.

On my whale trip, the zodiac went so fast that you more or less just held on
while travelling from one place to another. No opportunity for birding
except when the boat is stopped at a whale site.

----- Original Message -----
From: "John & April Cocanower" <cocabirds at wtez.net>
> My wife and I will be visiting the Vancouver and Victoria areas the last
> week of May and have been considering taking one of the 3 hr whale
watching
> tours out of Victoria. While the whale watching would be the main focus,
> we're wondering how worthwhile the birding might be on this type of tour.
> Would we see birds that we wouldn't see on the ferry trip between
Vancouverand
> Vancouver Island? Also, since there seems to be quite a number of tour
> operators, can anyone recommend a particular tour operator that might be
> a better choice for birders?
> Thanks,
>
> John Cocanower
> Cypress, TX
> cocabirds at wtez.net
>