SurfWhisperer (operated by Silkway LLC) Seattle, Washington | Lake Union and Lake Washington

Last updated: September 4, 2026

Plans change. We get it. We also run one private boat with one captain, so every booking takes a slot no one else can use. This policy explains exactly what happens in every situation, so there are no surprises on either side.

1. Acceptance of This Policy

By booking a session, tour, charter, gift card, or season pass with SurfWhisperer, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to this policy. This policy is part of your booking agreement and is presented to you before payment is taken.

If you do not agree with these terms, please do not complete your booking.

2. Booking and Payment

1. A booking is confirmed only after payment is received in full and you receive a written confirmation from us by email or text.
2. Holding a date without payment does not create a reservation. Dates are released without notice until paid.
3. All bookings are private. You are reserving the entire boat and the captain’s time for your scheduled window, whether one guest attends or the full group attends.
4. Every participant must sign our Participant Waiver before boarding. Participants under 18 must have a waiver signed by a parent or legal guardian, and a parent or legal guardian must be present at check in.

3. How to Cancel or Reschedule

To cancel or reschedule, you must notify us in writing by one of the following:

• Text message to 206-591-3837
• Email to surfseattle8@gmail.com
• Cancellation through your Square booking confirmation

Timing is calculated from the moment your written notice is received by us, using Pacific Time. Voicemails, social media comments, direct messages on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok, and verbal statements to the captain are not valid notice.

We recommend texting, because it gives you a timestamp you can point to.

4. Cancellation by the Guest

Amounts refunded are calculated on the total amount paid for the booking.

At our sole discretion, and as a courtesy rather than an obligation, we may offer a non-expiring credit instead of a refund in cases of documented emergency. This is a one-time accommodation and does not change this policy for any future booking.

5. Rescheduling

1. You may reschedule your booking once, at no charge, if we receive written notice 7 or more days before your scheduled start time.
2. The new date must fall within the same operating season and is subject to availability. We cannot guarantee that your preferred replacement date will be open.
3. A second reschedule request, or any reschedule request received less than 7 days before the start time, is treated as a cancellation under Section 4 and is subject to the same refund schedule. Within 7 days, a reschedule may be offered at the captain’s sole discretion as a courtesy, and does not cancel or reduce any amount retained under Section 4.
4. Rescheduling does not extend, pause, or reset any of the cancellation deadlines in Section 4. Deadlines are always measured against your original booking date and time.

6. Arrival, Late Arrival, and No-Show

Pickup point. When you book, we send you a guide through the booking system and by text. The guide contains your departure location. You must read it. If you are booking for a group, you are the organizer, and it is your responsibility to forward the guide to everyone coming with you and to make sure they have read it.

1. Please arrive at the pickup point listed in your guide 15 minutes before your scheduled start time. Waiver signing, safety briefing, and gear fitting happen during that window, not during your time on the water.
2. Your session starts at the scheduled time, whether you are on board or not. The boat, the captain, and the fuel are committed to your window.
3. Late arrival does not extend your session. If you arrive late, your session ends at the originally scheduled end time. No refund, credit, or partial refund is issued for time lost to late arrival.
4. We hold that pickup point for 15 minutes past your scheduled start time. If you have not arrived and have not reached us by text or phone within those 15 minutes, the booking is recorded as a no-show and no refund or credit is issued.
5. If you contact us within the 15 minute window and confirm you are close, the captain may, at his sole discretion, wait longer. Any additional wait time is deducted from your time on the water. This is a courtesy, not an entitlement.
6. Going to a different pickup point than the one listed in your guide is not our responsibility.
7. If any member of your group does not arrive, the session proceeds as scheduled for those present. No refund or price reduction is made for absent guests.

7. Changes to Group Size

Our sessions and charters are priced for exclusive use of the boat, not per person. Reducing your group size after booking does not reduce the price and does not create a refund or credit.

Increasing your group size must be approved in advance in writing and is limited by the vessel’s licensed passenger capacity. We do not exceed that capacity under any circumstances, for any reason.

8. Cancellation or Early Return by SurfWhisperer

The captain holds a United States Coast Guard license and is solely and finally responsible for the safety of everyone on board. The captain has sole discretion to cancel, delay, shorten, or end a session early when conditions or circumstances make it unsafe, unlawful, or not reasonably possible to proceed.

This includes, without limitation:

• Lightning, thunderstorms, or severe wind
• Large or unsafe chop, wake, or vessel traffic conditions
• Wildfire smoke or air quality advisories
• Fog or visibility that makes safe navigation impossible
• Harmful algae blooms, water quality advisories, or public health closures
• Closure or restriction of Lake Union, Lake Washington, the Montlake Cut, or the locks by the Coast Guard, Seattle Police Harbor Patrol, Seattle Parks, or any other authority, including event closures such as Seafair
• Mechanical failure of the vessel or its equipment
• Illness or incapacity of the captain
• Any other condition the captain reasonably judges to be a safety risk

If we cancel before departure, you may reschedule at no charge to any available date, or receive a full refund if we cannot agree on a workable date.

If we return early after departure for any of the reasons above, you receive a prorated credit for the unused portion of your session time, valid for any available date. Cash refunds are not issued for sessions that have already begun.

9. Conditions That Are Not Grounds for Cancellation

The following are normal Seattle boating conditions and are not grounds for a refund or a free cancellation:

• Overcast skies, clouds, light rain, or drizzle
• Cool air or cool water temperature
• A guest changing their mind, feeling nervous, or deciding not to get in the water
• Seasickness, hangover, fatigue, or lack of sleep
• Traffic, parking difficulty, or transportation problems
• Schedule conflicts, work commitments, or travel changes on the guest’s side
• Personal disappointment with wave size, weather, or session outcome

We provide wetsuits and we run in a wide range of weather. If you are unsure about conditions, text us the day before and we will give you an honest read.

10. Safety, Conduct, and Refusal of Service

The captain may refuse boarding or end a session immediately, with no refund or credit, if a guest:

• Refuses to sign the Participant Waiver
• Appears to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs
• Brings alcohol, illegal substances, or weapons on board
• Refuses to follow the captain’s safety instructions
• Behaves in a way that endangers themselves, other guests, the crew, the vessel, or other lake users
• Misrepresents the group’s size, ages, or swimming ability
• Attempts to bring an outside captain or operator on board

We do not permit any person other than SurfWhisperer’s licensed captain to operate the vessel, under any circumstances.

11. Gift Cards

A SurfWhisperer gift card is a dollar amount, nothing more. You choose the amount. It does not contain rides, sessions, or a specific service.

1. The value of a gift card never expires. There is no expiration date, no service fee, no dormancy fee, and no inactivity fee. Unused value stays yours indefinitely, as required by Washington’s gift certificate law, chapter 19.240 RCW.
2. Gift cards are freely transferable. Give the code to whoever you like.
3. The person holding the card chooses the service and the date themselves, and applies the card toward the price. If the service costs more than the card, they pay the difference. If it costs less, the remaining amount stays on the card.
4. A gift card may be used toward a season pass.
5. Gift cards are not redeemable for cash and the purchase is final sale.
6. When a gift card is used to book, that booking is subject to this entire policy, including the cancellation terms in Section 4.

12. Season Passes

A season pass is a dated product for one specific season, similar to a ski pass. It is sold in 1, 2, 3, or 5 rides for a named rider, and it is valid June through September of the year printed on the pass.

1. A season pass is not a gift card, a credit, or a stored balance. It carries no dollar value, cannot be redeemed for cash, and has no remaining balance to spend on anything else.
2. Rides must be scheduled and taken within the season printed on the pass. Any rides not taken by the end of that season expire. They do not roll over to the following season, and they are not refunded. Booking your rides in time is your responsibility, and we recommend scheduling them early in the season.
3. The rider is named at purchase or before the first ride. Once assigned, the pass is not transferable to another person. You may buy a pass as a gift, and the recipient is named as the rider.
4. Pass pricing, discounts, and benefits apply only to the season printed on the pass, and are not carried into any later season.
5. A pass booking is subject to this entire policy. A late cancellation or a no-show on a pass booking uses up that ride, exactly as it would consume a paid booking.
6. Rides we cancel do not expire. If you had a ride booked and we cancelled or cut it short for weather, smoke, water conditions, mechanical failure, or any other reason on our side, that ride is returned to your pass. If the season ends before we can reschedule it, that ride carries into the following season. This applies only to rides that were booked and then cancelled by us. It does not apply to rides you simply did not book before the season ended, which expire under paragraph 2. Rides on a season pass are not refunded in cash under any circumstances.
7. Season passes are valid for our regular Seattle sessions only. They do not apply to destination tours, meaning wakesurfing trips we run on other lakes and other locations around Washington State. Those trips are booked and paid separately, and a pass ride cannot be applied toward them.
8. Season pass purchases are final sale and non-refundable, subject to paragraph 6.

13. Private Charters, Corporate Events, and Group Tours

Larger private, corporate, and group bookings block significant dates and require dedicated preparation. These bookings may carry separate written terms, including a longer cancellation window and a non-refundable deposit. Where separate written terms are issued and accepted, those terms control. Where they are not, this policy applies in full.

Destination tours. Trips we run on other lakes and locations around Washington State involve travel, trailering, launch permits, and a full day committed to one group. They are booked and priced separately, they cannot be paid for with a season pass ride, and they may carry their own cancellation window, which we confirm in writing at booking.

14. Promotions and Special Offers

Promotional rates, seasonal specials, packages, and collaboration bookings may carry their own terms, which are communicated at the time of booking. Unless stated otherwise in writing, discounted and promotional bookings are non-refundable and non-transferable, and may be rescheduled once under Section 5.

15. How Refunds Are Processed

1. Approved refunds are issued to the original method of payment only. We do not issue cash or refunds to a different card or account.
2. Refunds are typically processed within 5 to 10 business days after approval. The time it takes to appear on your statement depends on your bank or card issuer, not on us.
3. Non-recoverable payment processing fees charged by our payment provider may be deducted from any partial refund.

16. Payment Disputes

If you have a concern about a charge, contact us first at surfseattle8@gmail.com or 206-591-3837. We answer every message and we resolve issues directly.

Filing a chargeback or payment dispute for a booking that was delivered as described, or that was cancelled by the guest under terms accepted at the time of purchase, is a breach of this agreement. We respond to all disputes with the booking record, this policy, the timestamped confirmation, and the signed waiver.

17. Why These Terms Exist

Every SurfWhisperer booking reserves the entire vessel, the captain’s licensed time, fuel, equipment, and a specific window on a short seasonal calendar. When a booking is cancelled on short notice, that slot almost never gets refilled, and the loss is real but difficult to calculate precisely.

Our season runs roughly May through September. Weather, daylight, and lake conditions cut that down further, which leaves a small number of usable days each year. Bookings are typically made well in advance, so a slot released on short notice is very unlikely to be refilled.

The amounts retained under this policy are the parties’ good faith estimate, agreed in advance, of the reasonable value of that loss. They are not a penalty. They reflect committed costs, lost opportunity, and the limited number of operating days available in a Pacific Northwest season. These terms are in line with standard practice among captained charter and watersports operators.

18. Governing Law

We operate under a United States Coast Guard license. Federal law requires that our vessel be operated only by our licensed captain and limits the number of passengers we may carry. Those limits are not ours to waive, for anyone, for any reason.

The dollar value of our gift cards never expires and carries no fees. Washington’s gift certificate law, chapter 19.240 RCW, requires that, and we agree with it. Season passes are a different product: they are dated to a single season, as explained in Section 12.

This policy is governed by the laws of the State of Washington and by United States federal maritime law where it applies. Any dispute arising out of a booking with SurfWhisperer shall be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in King County, Washington. Nothing here limits any right you have under the Washington Consumer Protection Act, chapter 19.86 RCW.

19. Changes and Severability

We may update this policy at any time. The version in effect on the date of your booking is the version that applies to that booking. If any provision of this policy is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions stay in full force.

20. Contact

SurfWhisperer | Silkway LLC Seattle, Washington | Lake Union and Lake Washington Departure location is listed in your booking guide.

Text: 206-591-3837 Call: 808-990-7006 Email: surfseattle8@gmail.com

Related pages: Participant Waiver | Gift Cards & Season Passes