Lauren | M/V Osprey | Saturday, April 26th | 12:30 PM

Today’s tour was a testament of how much can change in an instant in the world of watching whales. Out here we are at the will of the wildlife, and although we prefer it that way, the whales have a funny way of humbling us humans and our plans.

We left the dock with a report of two Bigg’s Killer Whales by Moresby Island. Moresby Island is a Canadian Island located just northwest of Turn Point Lighthouse on Stuart Island. Turn Point is famously...

Kelly | M/V Osprey | April 23rd, 2025 | 2pm

The gorgeous spring weather had everyone in a wonderful mood as we left Friday Harbor and took a left up San Juan Channel.  A quick stop at Sentinel Rock gave us wonderful looks at Harbor Seals, taking full advantage of the real estate that low tide provides. We continued west, quickly crossing over the border and entering Canadian water. Blows in the distance! A group of 8 killer whales were ahead, hugging the coast of Brethour Island. These whales...

Kelly | M/V Osprey | April 19th, 2025 | 12:30pm

The sun began to peak out from behind the clouds just as we turned left out of Friday Harbor. Heading up San Juan Channel, past Flattop Island and into Boundary Pass we investigated a humpback whale report. After a moment of searching in the general area, the whale appeared! A small slinky humpback came up for a breath. His pattern was to come up for a couple quick breaths and then down on a long dive. These dives ranged from 5 to 11 minutes. One...

Lauren | M/V Sea Lion | Friday, April 11th | 12:30 pm 

Today’s Classic Whale Watch and Wildlife Tour was filled with diverse wildlife, seeing many different species during our 4-hour tour. Immediately as we exited Friday Harbor we were greeted by a group of foraging Dall’s Porpoise! Although not rare, we are not greeted by the presence of Dall’s all that often, making it an extra special tour every time we have an encounter. Dall’s Porpoise are often dubbed, the second coolest black and white...

Olivia Esqueda | March 22nd, 2025 | M/V Sea Lion | 2:30pm Charter

This afternoon was such a special treat out on the water with the Orca Behavior Institute’s Biggs 201 Class. Lucky for us, we were able to leave the dock about 10 minutes early, which worked in our favor since we had a whale report flirting with the line of the range our vessel could travel in the allotted timeframe to get folks back for the 6:25pm ferry!

We immediately started traveling south through San Juan Channel keeping San...

Kelly | M/V Sea Lion | March 10th, 2025 | 12:30pm
 

Excitement was in the air as we left the harbor on our first tour of the 2025 season! The sky was an overcast grey but at least the forecasted rain was holding off. No whale reports just yet…so we were fully in scanning mode. Our first wildlife encounter was almost instantaneous. A bald eagle soaring overhead suddenly took a nosedive entrapping an unlucky fish in its talons. Gulls swarmed around the commotion as the massive raptor flew off and...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | August 27th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Today’s afternoon trip was certainly one to remember! We left Friday Harbor with an excited group of passengers and started our search for whales to the east. As we followed along the ferry route between the islands of Shaw, Lopez, and Blakely, we got some looks at a bald eagle and adorable harbor seals swimming through the channel. We maintained our course to the north east following up on some reports of whale activity, and as we rounded...

Kelly | M/V Kestrel | August 26th 2024 |10AM

We took a left outside Friday Harbor and pointed north up San Juan Channel. First stop, Flattop Island, one of our national wildlife refuges. Almost immediately we laid eyes on a group of harbor seals resting on the rocky shoreline. After cruising down the north side of the island for a few moments, we noticed a full grown bald eagle perched in the trees. 

Next stop, killer whales! We took a sharp left turn and cruised through Spiedan Channel to...

Kelly | M/V Sea Lion | August 26th, 2024 | 5:30PM

We left Roche harbor and cruised into Spieden channel on our 2nd to last sunset tour of the season. The weather had finally cleared from the the morning rain and the sun was peaking out from behind the clouds. We made our way to the northeast side of Spiedan island and quickly cruised through the Cactus Islands. In this small island cluster, we found a group or harbor seals and a pair of bald eagles perched in the evergreen trees. We then turned...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | August 25th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Summer weather came back today as we departed Friday Harbor under sunny skies! We took a left out of the harbor heading north in San Juan Channel, and quickly caught up with a group of Bigg’s Killer Whales traveling close by! This family of four turned out to be the T075Bs, consisting of mom Pebbles and her three calves born in 2015, 2017, and 2021! We enjoyed our sunny cruise up the channel with them as they traveled along the shoreline on...