Sunset Cruise and Seal Watch with Blackhawk Fishing

Experience the best of coastal Connecticut with a sunset cruise and seal watch with Blackhawk Fishing out of Niantic, Connecticut. This unique trip offers stunning evening views and up-close sightings of local seals in their natural habitat. Whether you’re a local or just visiting, it’s the perfect way to spend an evening on the water.

About Blackhawk Fishing

Blackhawk Fishing is a family-owned fishing charter out of Niantic. The charter offers top-rated fishing trips for all skill levels, from first-timers to seasoned anglers. With a professional crew, fast boats, and daily trips, it’s one of the best ways to experience Long Island Sound. Whether you’re after porgies, bass, or just a great day on the water, Blackhawk delivers. The crew is passionate about fishing, and they’re great about making sure you have a great day out on the water.

In addition to these fishing trips, they also offer a sunset and seal watch cruise. This is typically done on Saturday evenings in the warmer months. It’s a great way to spend an evening out on the water and it’s really family-friendly. I love this cruise so much that I’ve done it three times.

Getting There

Blackhawk Fishing is located in Niantic not far from downtown. It’s in a bit of an odd spot that can be a little confusing to find if you’re not familiar with the area.

The dock the boat leaves from is located in Cini Park, which is off of Route 156. The best way to get here is taking I-95. I’d recommend getting off at either Exit 72 or Exit 74. With the construction going on in East Lyme, I’d recommend taking Exit 72, which is the Rocky Neck State Park exit. If you take this exit, you’ll take a left towards Niantic and it’s a straight shot down 156.

If you take Exit 74, you’ll turn on to 161 and then you’ll need to turn left on to 156 when you get to downtown Niantic. But, this is where the construction is, so I really would recommend taking Exit 72 over Exit 74.

When you pull into Cini Park, you’ll go all the way down past the parking attendant shack. You can park anywhere in this lot. The docks are located at the mouth of the Niantic River. If you’re facing the Niantic Bay Boardwalk entrance and the train tracks, Blackhawk Fishing is located to the left.

When you get to the docks, go to the ticket booth and check in. When you check in, you’ll get wrist bands. Then, you’ll get into the line for getting on to the boat.

The Boat

The Black Hawk boat was custom built for party boat fishing. It’s fast, clean, and comfortable. There are two floors you can sit on. The first floor has indoor seating with tables and there’s also a small galley where you can get snacks and drinks. There’s also bench seating outside on the first floor along the sides of the boat.

The second floor offers bench seating and open views of the water. This is typically where I sit. If you’d like to sit on top, you’ll need to make sure you get to the dock early. Only 25 people can sit up top.

What To Expect On The Cruise

As I mentioned earlier in the post, I’ve been on this cruise three different times. With that being said, each time I’ve gone out has been unique.

The first trip I took was in August of 2024. This trip was what the trip is usually like. We went out to Little Gull Island in New York to look for seals. We did see a couple of seals relaxing on some rocks. It was pretty awesome.

In addition to seals, Little Gull Island is home to Little Gull Island Lighthouse. I love lighthouses, so this was an awesome bonus for me. I had no idea this would be something I’d see on the trip. I took one of my favorite lighthouse photos on this trip because we got to watch the sun setting behind the lighthouse.

After the sunset, we went to see a couple more lighthouses. The first one we saw was Race Rock Lighthouse, which is by Fishers Island, New York. This is a unique granite lighthouse that is a local favorite.

After, we went over to New London Ledge Light in the dark. I’d seen this lighthouse plenty of times up close on a boat during the day, but this was my first time seeing it at night. It was unique getting to see this lighthouse at night, especially because it’s supposedly one of the most haunted lighthouses in New England.

The second time I booked this cruise was in May of 2025. The day it was scheduled, the water was extremely rough, so there was a change of plans. We ended up taking a trip up the Thames River where the water was calmer.

On our way to the Thames River, you have to go by Waterford, Connecticut so we got to see Harkness Memorial State Park and Seaside Sanatorium from the water. I’ve been to both parks more times than I can count and for me, it was really cool getting to see them from the water. It offered a whole new perspective.

After we made our way past Waterford, we made it to New London and we were able to see New London Harbor Light, which is both the oldest and tallest lighthouse on Long Island Sound. Viewing this lighthouse from a boat is the best way to see it!

Before we entered the Thames River, we got to see New London Ledge Light. I’ll never bore of seeing this unique lighthouse.

As we made our way up the Thames River, there were plenty of points of interest to look at. On the New London side of the river, you can see Fort Trumbull, the Shaw’s Cove Train Bridge, and of course, the city of New London.

On the Groton side of the river, you’ll see the monument tower at Fort Griswold State Park. And by the mouth of the river, you can see Avery Point Lighthouse.

My third, and most recent trip, was in July of 2025. For that trip, we went out to Gardiners Point Island in New York. This island is small and it was once part of Gardiners Island (it’s separate now due to rising sea levels). There are ruins of Fort Tyler on the island.

When we got to the island, there was one seal on the island along with a lot of birds such as gulls and cormorants.

While there weren’t a lot out of the water, we saw a ton of seals in the water! We got to watch them swimming around and popping their heads up out of the water. They were so much fun to watch. Some of them were really curious and came pretty close to the boat.

When we were done seal watching, we headed towards Orient Point, New York. We were sailing right at the sunset and it was a great one. I got a great shot of the sun starting to go down with Orient Point Lighthouse in the distance.

Soon, the sun went into the clouds as it got lower. Eventually, we ended up at Orient Point Lighthouse. We got fairly close, which made for some great photo opportunities!

Not far from Orient Point Lighthouse is Plum Island lighthouse, which is also in New York. We didn’t get close, but I used my telephoto lens to take a picture of it. There are a handful of lighthouses with this exact design, including Sheffield Island Lighthouse and Morgan Point Lighthouse in Connecticut.

Is This Cruise Worth Taking?

Yes!! There’s a reason why I’ve taken it three times already. Any time I see this advertised and I don’t have something planned, I immediately book it. I really love doing this sunset cruise and seal watch that much. You really can’t beat an evening on the water with seals, lighthouses, and a great sunset.

While each of my three trips were all very different from each other, I’ve loved them all. The crew is always great and there’s no bad views, no matter where you end up on your trip. I would do this cruise every single week if I could.

Know Before You Go

• Wear or pack layers. Even if it’s warm on land, it will usually be about ten degrees cooler out on the water. And, since it’s a sunset cruise, you will be out on the water after the sun sets and it will get even colder.
• Pack sunscreen. It’s always a good idea to wear sunscreen when you’re going to be out on the water for any extended period of time.
• Bring binoculars. While there’s a chance the seals will be close to the boat, there’s also a chance they won’t be. Binoculars can help you see the ones that are a bit further away.
• Bring a telephoto lens to get the best pictures. I was able to get the photos I did because I had my camera with a very large 150-600mm lens on it. The setup I used was a Canon EOS 90D with a Tamron SP 150-600mm lens.
• There are snacks and drinks available on the boat, but you can also bring your own food and drinks. The first time we went on, people had packed coolers with drinks and some people brought pizza. The last time I went on, people had brought sushi to eat while we cruised. There are a ton of places in downtown Niantic you can grab take out from to bring on to the boat.
• There are bathrooms on the ship. They’re located at the back of the ship.
• Bring cash. If you’re looking to tip the crew, you will need cash. The crew works hard to make sure that you have a great trip, so I’d recommend tipping them.

Ready To Book?

Looking to book this fun cruise? You can book online on Blackhawk Sport Fishing’s website. It’s quick and easy to book and you’ll get a confirmation email once you’ve purchased!

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