The arrival of fall brings a lot of changes to the Salish Sea and the San Juans. Garry Oaks start to turn rusty brown, the air cools and the wind picks up, and seabirds start morphing into their winter plumage. Fall also brings the arrival of new species that spent the summer busy in the open waters of the Pacific Ocean. Amongst these are the Dall's Porpoise, a small black and white cetacean known for its social nature. 

We had already circumnavigated most of San Juan Island...

Things are certainly starting to change around our little island! Summer still seems a little bit hesitant to leave, occasionally poking it's head around the corner and reminding us of the warmer days of July and August. But September has arrived in full swing, bringing with it beautiful orange and red leaves, roadsides decorated with those that have already parted from their former branch homes, and plenty of foggy, wet mornings. 

These are some of my favorite times of the year up...

Have you had the opportunity to go whale watching in the San Juan Islands? Chances are, if you have and were able to spot some of our beloved Southern Residents, you've heard the naturalists call them by name. How in the world are they able to tell these beautiful creatures apart from one another? They are all black and white! Yes, true, but they also have their very own version of an orca fingerprint! We're able to identify and distinguish our 83 Southern Residents based on their...

On Sunday, Captain Mike, myself, and Hannah set out on yet another sunny adventurous day in the Salish Sea. It was a wee bit windy down south, so we headed north to search within and on the northern edge of our little archipelago here. We skimmed past Orcas Island and Waldron Island two of our taller islands and definitely the ones with enormous coniferous trees hanging on desperately onto the rocky cliffs that rise from the dark blue waters. We approached the Patos Island lighthouse...

Coffee, coffee, coffee...we might flee to the island to get some peace and quiet, but this is one thing we definitely don't want to escape from! Fortunately, San Juan Island is home to a few nice little places to get some good coffee and find some good company, and you'll notice we have a very enjoyable absense of any chain out here. No golden arches, no green Starbucks logos, no Safeways or Fred Meyers. You need to look local to find your caffeine fix, but don't worry, I've got you...

If you're planning on coming out on a whale watch with us, you've probably already heard of a few different ways to get yourself to this gorgeous island. Although San Juan Safaris does offer a Whale Plane Package (a float plane from downtown Seattle right to the Friday Harbor Marina), many visitors choose to take the Washington State Ferry from the adorable coastal town of Anacortes, Washington.

For first-time ferry-goers, the system put in place for transporting yourself to Friday...

We had a beautiful, full day of whale watching on the M/V Sea Lion yesterday. With three trips planned, we had the opportunity to spend the day all around the islands in search of our marine mammal friends. On our morning trip, we made a turn down south, basking in the views of Griffin Bay, Cattle Point, Cape San Juan, and American Camp before arriving near Eagle Point. Surprise, surprise...Spirit and Solstice were in the area! This mom and adult son pair have been foraging for...

The best part about whale watching with San Juan Safaris? Every single day is different out here! New routes between islands, amazing views of different types of wildlife around every channel...it always keeps us on our toes and it's what makes our whale watches more than just a boat trip. It's an adventure!

Yesterday we had an opportunity to head up north towards Cherry Point, near the town of White Rock in B.C., to view a pod of transient killer whales. It looked to be an...

Fourth of July on San Juan Island is like no other. Hundreds of people flee the city life to head to this little island to experience the parades, fireworks, picnics, fun runs, and various other festivities that are offered on the July 4th weekend. Both Roche Harbor and Friday Harbor have an impressive array of events for the entire family to enjoy. Some favorites? The log-rolling and donut eating contests are a favorite in Roche! Even if you choose not to participate in the powdered...

Did you know that our transient killer whales are also known as Bigg's killer whales? Dr. Michael Bigg was instrumental in pioneering killer whale identification research throughout the 1970's and 1980's, revealing the very distinct populations of orcas and also bringing to light the realization that the numbers of orcas in these popoulations were relatively low. Before Bigg, it was generally assumed that there were massive amounts of killer whales in the ocean and that they all ate...