(April 15, 2017)  Blue sky, warm sun, steep green slopes, electric blue water, and black and white whales.  That was the scene beheld by our guests today aboard the M/V Sea Lion.  Against the backdrop of Lummi and Sinclair Islands, transient orcas made steady headway up Rosario Strait.  Whale watching captains who had arrived before us observed seal munching and excited vocalizations, but by the time we glided in, the animals were back on the hunt.  We paralleled the impressive...

Approximately fifteen killer whales stunned spectators when the animals scoffed at the directional predictions of the crew and instead burst to the surface just behind the M/V Sea Lion.  After regaining our breath, we paralleled the tightly-packed posse as they transited south along the westside of Saturna Island, British Columbia.  The light was perfect and afforded many a classic photo of orcas surfacing in series, puffing salt spray into the air.  Rarely do we see such a well...

(April 13, 2017) The M/V Sea Lion was briefly admitted into the T101 brotherhood today.  Just north of Patos Island our guests found themselves keeping pace with a pod of three full-grown bulls.  From our vantage point on the aft deck, we could clearly see the details that allow scientists to identify and name individual animals.  While many were busy hooting with enthusiasm for the close encounter, I studied the pattern of black scrapes on the animals’ left saddle patch, and at the...

Can I take just a moment to brag?  This morning, when Captain Mike was likely still in his orca print onesie dodging dreamtime flotsam, I was watching orcas from the deck of a Washington state ferry.  Between all of the naturalists, captains, and their associates, there are a lot of eyes on the water, and to be the first to report a killer whale sighting is an honor that has thus far evaded my collection.  Well today I checked it off my list, even though it was not a result of...

Of the three days so far in April, the M/V Sea Lion is batting 100% in terms of whale sightings. Yesterday was a spectacular day on the water, definitely in my top five of trips ever… It’s not even summer! Captain Mike, Naturalist Andrew, and I elected to head north out of Friday Harbor, and then decided to travel around the north end of San Juan Island towards Haro Strait. We had a bluebird day and there was wildlife everywhere.

The tour started with some awesome...

Today Captain Pete, Kayak Guide Jordan and I headed out on another tour on the M/V Sea Lion. We have been having some excellent weather lately, and it has been a true pleasure to be out on the water. Leaving Friday Harbor we headed North through San Juan Channel towards Spieden Island.

In Spieden channel we had an awesome encounter with some foraging Steller’s sea lions. There were at least twenty of the huge pinnipeds in the water! The animals were surfacing around the very active...

Captain Pete, Kayak Guide Jordan, and had a great trip on the M/V Sea lion to kick off the month of April. As we left the harbor we had overcast skies that soon turned into blue sky trying to peek out. We headed north towards a report of orcas just south of Vancouver, and at the edge of our range. Leaving the dock it was our best bet to show our guests whales.

We had about an hour and a half worth of motoring to get up to where the whales had been reported. There is no “usual” travel...

Yesterday the M/V Sea Lion had an amazing encounter with three family of Bigg’s killer whales, also known as transient killer whales, traveling in San Juan Channel. It was such a treat to have such active whales so close to the harbor, and definitely not an everyday occurrence!

Captain Mike, Emily, and I left Friday Harbor with a full boat of guests under sunny skies. We headed north as the whales had been reported earlier in the morning by members of the Pacific Whale Watching...

Friday, March 24th, turned into a fabulous day on the water!  Captain Mike, guests aboard the M/V Sea Lion, and I were hopeful that the cool spring day would turn something up, and we were not disappointed!  During this early season, we usually leave the docks with no reports.  I did not let this fact discourage me, because we are members of the Pacific Whale Watch Association and know of all sightings in the area in real time.  I had my fingers crossed for cetaceans in the San Juans...

We had a wonderful early spring day out on the water. Gray skies and a little Pacific Northwest liquid sunshine never stop us from finding wildlife and having a great time. With nine hearty souls aboard the M/V Sea Lion left Friday harbor and headed North.

We spotted harbor porpoises on our way up towards Spieden Island, getting some looks at their well-camouflaged backs and dorsal fins in the small waves.  As we reached Green Point Captain Mike and I were delighted to find some...