Haleigh | M/V Osprey | 06/08/2021 | 12:30pm

Today’s trip was spectacular! We departed North out of Friday Harbor through San Juan Channel. We traveled into President Channel where we spotted vessels gathered near the Canadian Border and Patos Island. The currents were flowing and rippling due to active upwelling - the process of nutrient-rich, cold water being pushed from the seafloor up towards the surface. The Salish Sea is full of phytoplankton and nutrients that support the...

Olivia | M/V Osprey | June 5th, 2021 | 12:30pm

Leaving the dock today, our Captain decided to push north towards some whale rumors creeping in from Speiden Channel. This made the easy decision to move north through San Juan Channel in hopes of seeing some large, black and white dolphins before they swam into Canada. With Covid-19 border restrictions still in effect, we are unable to view any whales in Canada as of right now, meaning we work as hard as possible to navigate around...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | April 23rd, 2021 | 13:00

Kicking off the weekend, Captain Pete decided to start the trip by heading inner island through Upright Passage, eventually turning south into Lopez Sound. Just off Coleville Island, we spotted a large spout as it shot above the surface of the water. This spout belonged to a Gray Whale that was feeding in about 80 feet of water. This baleen whale feeds on about 2,400 pounds of food every day during the summer feeding months here in the...

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 04/17/2021 |5:00pm

I would call this second Sunset Tour of the season a success! It felt like it was already mid-summer with sunny skies and calm seas.

Captain Pete and I took Sea Lion out of Friday Harbor and headed south down the San Juan Channel, exploring the coastlines until we reached one of my favorite locations in the San Juans: Cattle Point! The beautiful lighthouse on the point sat illuminated by the lowering sun.

We then approached rocks jutting out...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | March 29th, 2021 | 13:00

M/V Sea Lion was chartered by an all-female crew today! Captain Sarah and I set out to have one of the craziest and most exciting days this 2021 season in the Salish Sea! We immediately left the dock with reports of Killer Whales in the vicinity. Not just any Killer Whales, though, there were rumors of SIX different families of Bigg’s Killer Whales- averaging around 22 transient orcas uniting on the upper west side of San Juan Island...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | August 28th, 2020 | 13:30

It was a flawless day out on the water this afternoon. Captain Pete and I were lucky enough to inform our passengers that we were leaving the dock with a rumored whale report in the area, which already made it a special day. What was even better? The rumor was that the whales were just south of Jones Island, right in San Juan Channel. Who on our boat has good karma?! Scooting up to Jones Island, we caught sight of those black dorsal...

Olivia | M/V Kestrel | August 16th, 2020 | 14:00

Our entire Adventure Trip today was one unexpected moment after another! Heading inner island, we started the trip feeling a warm wind [it was the hottest day all summer, after all] and headed south through Rosario Strait. Scanning the blue waters, we suddenly spotted a baleen dorsal fin! Turns out, we had a solo Minke Whale lunge feeding through the bait balls. This was a first Minke Whale sighting for all our passengers which made it...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | August 11, 2020 | 13:00

It was an exception treat this morning leaving the dock. We had reports of Bigg’s Killer Whales within our area that swam in quickly from Victoria early this morning. They moved up so far and fast, that leaving the dock they were milling near the south western part of San Juan Island. In order to give our passengers, the best possible opportunity to view Transient Orca, we decided to head straight for this family before they moved too...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | August 4th, 2020 | 17:30

After seeing the T018 family group of Bigg’s Killer Whales on our 13:00 trip, Captain Sarah and I were determined to see them before they moved out of range in order to provide our sunset passengers with the same opportunity. This meant a very quick dock talk and off we went heading north through San Juan Channel, crossing up President’s Channel, and aiming for Sucia Island. On the southeast side of Sucia, we saw the large dorsal fins...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | August 4th, 2020 | 13:00

Captain Sarah and I were jazzed that we were able to tell our passengers we were leaving the dock with reports of Transient Orca in our waters. We immediately aimed for the previously known location of these whales in hopes to give our guests the best possible chance of seeing them as we could. This led us to north Rosario Strait, passing a Bald Eagle perched in the pines, just northeast of Orcas Island near Barnes and Clark Islands.

W...