Happy Memorial Day! Today's whale watch and wildlife tour took off just as Friday Harbor's Memorial Day Parade was ending, and our introduction was punctuated by rifle blanks firing and finished up with a canon fire! How much more of an exciting start to a tour could you ask for?

As we turned away from the dock, the sun on our skin and the crystal calm waters stretching below us, we were happy to be notified about a group of transient killer whales moving south off of Point Roberts...

Sea Lion had some grand adventures today! But, don't we always? Today was unique in that we saw two very different, solitary whales. One lone humpback, which is not an unsual sight, was seen cruising through the Strait of Juan de Fuca near Hein Bank. Humpbacks are typically solitary creatures; they don't hang out with their squad at the local bars or bond with their families over lunch. So, it was expected that we see this massive baleen whale chilling on his or her own several miles...

The last two days have been spectacular working on M/V Kestrel, and have truly made me appreciate the capabilities of the vessel.

On Friday Captain Mike and I took our guests over towards the city of Victoria to find a pair of humpback whales travelling out to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. WE enjoyed watching those incredible creatures surface and fluke-up, raising their giant tails in the air, as they traveled. Humpback whales are a fairly recent re-addition to the Salish Sea...

It’s been an excellent year for Transient Killer Whales so far, and today was no exception! Recently there’s been a number of family groups hanging around the San Juan Islands, and we’ve been venturing up to Boundary Pass almost on the daily. Today we left the dock with similar reports and started our trek north.  

On the way up we stopped by a tiny rocky island just off of Waldron Island to look at some harbor seals that were hauled out on the banks. Harbor seals are a super yummy...

What an absolutely beautiful day in the Pacific Northwest! M/V Sea Lion left the dock early this afternoon with the sun sparkling on the water and a light breeze blowing - perfect conditions for whale watching. Instead of turning north today, we veered south, enjoying stunning views of the southern tip of San Juan Island on our way across the Straight of Juan de Fuca. We were in search of some transient killer whales that had been spotted earlier this morning. 

Along the way, we were...

Wow! Yesterday (Saturday) was unreal! We were out on a morning tour in Canadian Waters viewing Orcas from J & K pods! It was a stunning morning on the water...a little fog to the south, otherwise clear skies & calm seas all around the islands. Both J & K pods were heading south from the Gulf Islands on their routine swim following salmon through these waters. We had great views as groups of whale would surface to breathe...and we could hear the blows (hot moist air) being...