Kelly | M/V Kestrel | Sunday, June 8th 2025 | 2:00 PM

Our first truly HOT day of the season! A perfect day to be on our high speed vessel the M/V Kestrel. We quickly made our way interisland, following the ferry route past the mouth of East Sound and eventually into the open Rosario Straight. Our first stop was for harbor seals scattered about Peapod Rocks, lounging in the hot sun. Next, we continued North East investigating a report of 7 Killer whales identified as the T124B's. When first...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | June 7th, 2025 | 2:00 PM 

Kestrel departed Friday Harbor this afternoon in search of wildlife, and we certainly got what we hoped for! Today’s trip had the most species of marine mammals I have seen in a single trip, all under the most perfect weather conditions. We began by traveling south in San Juan Channel, stopping at Goose Island to see cormorants and admire Cattle Point Lighthouse. The skies were so clear today that we could also see Mt. Rainier in the...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | June 6th, 2025 | 12:30 PM 

Today was another beautiful day on the water for our afternoon Classic Whale Watch. We left Friday Harbor and began traveling east between Lopez and Shaw Islands in search of wildlife. We had some reports of killer whales further east, so we cruised interisland, through Peavine Pass and towards Lummi Island. As we got into Rosario Strait, we got to see a cool marine layer of fog over the water, but luckily this didn’t impede our visibility...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | June 3rd, 2025 | 2:00 PM 

We had quite the adventure on our afternoon Adventure Whale Watch today, full of lots of wildlife and exploration! We began by heading north up San Juan Channel, and quickly found a group of harbor seals near Yellow Island. As we continued north, we soon saw a few boats near Saturna Island and ended up among a group of three Bigg’s Killer Whales. This turned out to be three members of the T100 matriline, and they were slowly traveling east...

Kelly | M/V Kestrel | Monday, June 2nd 2025 | 2pm

Best humpback day of the year? I'll say it! We B-lined it for the reported location of 2 humpback whales in the Straight of Juan de Fuca. Taking a left outside Friday Harbor and heading south down San Juan Channel. We made a quick pit stop at Goose Island, covered in harbor seals, gulls and cormorants. Perfect glassy sea greeted us as we made our way in the Straight. The humpbacks had already been identified as Pop Tart and Sandstorm. After a few...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | June 1st, 2025 | 12:30 pm 

Our first trip of the month set the standards high for June! We left Friday Harbor on our Classic Whale Watch today heading east along the ferry route. The interisland cruise gave us lots of opportunities to look close along the shorelines and spot for wildlife. We continued east for some time until we reached Rosario Strait and could see Anacortes in the distance. Soon enough, we saw a number of black dorsal fins at the surface in two...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | May 31st, 2025 | 2:00 PM 

This afternoon’s Adventure Whale Watch left Friday Harbor in high spirits as the skies cleared and gave us a beautiful, sunny cruise up San Juan Channel. Our first stop was at White Rocks, where we saw two bald eagles and a number of harbor seals! We got great looks at the many varieties of colors of the seals, and even saw a few swimming in the water around the island. We then continued our travels north, past Waldron Island and towards...

Kelly | M/V Kestrel| Tuesday, May 27th 2025 | 2pm

It's days like to today that truly feel like the Salish Sea is just teaming with marine life. We were treated to almost non-stop wildlife on today's Adventure Tour. We took a right out of Friday Harbor only to instantly have a guest point out a bald eagle on Turn Island. We quickly realized there were 3 bald eagles in the area, two adults and one juvenile.  One of the adults was right on the waters edge, picking away at a fish with his razor sharp...

Kelly | M/V Osprey| Monday, May 26th 2025 | 2pm

We took a left outside Friday harbor and were instantaneously treated to a look at a bald eagle sitting in the trees by Friday Harbor Labs. This area always seems to be a hotspot for these impressive raptors. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a nest close by, tucked away in the evergreens. We stopped for some quick looks at harbor seals lounging on the rocks next to Jones Island, always delighting us with there ever so elegant sausage bodies. 

Movi...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | May 25th, 2025 | 2:00pm

Today’s 2pm Adventure Whale Watch headed out of Friday Harbor in search of whales under sunny skies. We began heading south in San Juan Channel, spotting harbor porpoises and a few harbor seals before making a quick stop at Goose Island to view cormorants and the Cattle Point Lighthouse. We continued south west through Cattle Pass towards the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and eventually saw a few other boats ahead of us among a group of Bigg’s...