Side Breach and Straight Ahead Orca Whale by Sosha Mathew

Lone Orca Whale Off San Juan Island at Sunset, by Sosha Mathew

Snoozing Seals and Gulls, by by Sosha Mathew

From our Sunday, August 1, 2010 Tour. These will be entered into our photo contest. Thanks Sosha!

Finally it looks like the fog may be clearing. We still had a foggy morning but it quickly cleared out and turned into a beautiful day. This afternoon was a true safari. We started off by observing some harbor seals basking in the sun...it's rough being a harbor seal! Then we moved over to whale rocks to observe a couple of stellar sea lions.  These amazing creatures can weigh between 1500-3000 lbs depending upon the sex of the animal. Sea lions are capable of "walking" on land using...

Today we traveled north towards Stuart Island.  Captain Mike stayed in close communication with the other whale watching vessels; he received many reports that the whales were in that area.  Our spirits rose with anticipation!  Shortly after we departed Friday Harbor we spotted a bald eagle soaring high above San Juan Island.  As we neared Stuart Island the orca whales were traveling south down Haro Strait.  We traveled parallel to the direction they were heading along the west side...

The afternoon reports were in.  There were ten to fifteen orca whales spotted near Stuart Island.  We traveled north and encountered the orcas near Turn Point.  Turn Point is the very northwest piece of continental land in the United States!  Captain Mike slowed the boat as we approached the misty blows of the orca.  The whales were traveling very close together, heading north towards Pender Bluffs on South Pender Island.  Not only were they in a large group, but they were showing...

In the San Juan Islands, we are blessed with an abundance of wildlife. We are one of 7 places on Earth with a high population of orcas. Almost every single day for the past two weeks we have seen them off the west side of our very own island, San Juan. The west side of the island is where the land based whale watching park is located. Like a stationary sentinel, it watches the orcas foraging off the cliffs below.  We are one of the few places in the world where you can see 'black and...

Meaning that it was calm and relaxed and just a chill day on the water.  L pod is known for being a little more relaxed in their activities and that energy carries over to the whole trip.  A calf did treat us to a goodbye breach though.  Our cruise started out with some excitement when a bald eagle flew over the M/V Sea Lion just after we pulled out of our slip.  Despite the sea gulls that were trying to chase it away the eagle dropped down to the water, talons extended, and pulled...

What a beautiful day it was out today! Lately the Orcas have been cruising the west side of San Juan Island so when the reports came in today of whales over by Lummi island I was really excited. Whales and somewhere new to see! Lummi Island is located just off of Bellingham. We barely made it out of Friday Harbor before we encounter Dall's porpoise frolicking in the wake of boats passing by. The adorable black and white porpoise are often found riding the bow of boats. After a few...

Softly we sat and watched the whales about 700 yards away from us. At first we could only see white wake, their bodies like boats zooming through the water. As we waited, their dorsal fins began to loom in the distance. We followed them as they swam parallel to us west along the south side of Stuart Island, reuniting with their pod at Turn Point Light House.  It was a slow but satiating afternoon as we watched the orcas loll about the land, hugging the shore. Bright, sunny, peaceful...

Ok, not really, but wouldn't that be cool.  We did spend time with the orcas though and had a lovely afternoon on the west side of San Juan Island.  There was Ruffles, our big old male, some of his other J pod mates and lots of swimming going on.  Not every encounter with the orcas is a circus of breaches and spyhops, but any day that we spend with them is a good one and good days is what we are all about.

Even days without orcas are good days, because there is always something...

It was a cool and blustery overcast day in the San Juan Islands today, but that did not stop us from spending time with the orcas.  On the west side of San Juan Island, from Kellet Bluff to Lime Kiln Point State Park, we tracked several orcas through the surf.  Of the animals that we were able to identify there was L26 "Baba", her daughter L90 "Ballena" and her grandson L92 "Crewser" who is a sprouter male.  The orcas are a matrilinial society, which means that the oldest female in...