It was busy out in San Juan Channel today with the 44th annual Shaw Island Classic Yacht Races, but it was definitely a great day for a sail and even a whale watch! For many of the sailors out there and our lucky guests, we were afforded some incredible looks at our Transient Killer Whales. Only ten minutes out of the harbor and we were already watching the Transient Orcas making their way back towards Friday Harbor. At one point they took a quick turn towards the inside passage of...

Saturday morning started a little rainy, and windy with no reports of whales. Naturalists Chelsea and Caitlin were a little concerned as we were leaving Friday Harbor. But soon after leaving we got a radio call from some whale watching boats that were out earlier and there were some transients in Rosario Strait heading toward Decatur Island! Hurray! We haven't seen transients in quite some time so we were excited. Transients killer whales are the ecotype that feed mainly on marine...

After the amazing encounters that we had yesterday, I wasn't sure the trip today would be able to compare, but boy was I wrong! When we first headed out, we had an awesome surprise: a  juvenile humpback surface a couple hundred yards in the distance by Roche Harbor. It went about feeding and showing us lovely fluke patterns. The Humpback ended up circumnavigating San Juan Island. These whales can eat up to two ton of food a day! It didn't take us long before the M/V Kittiwake was...

Today started off dark and rainy; however, as we left our Friday Harbor location in search of killer whales, the sun started to peak through the clouds. The day was starting to look beautiful, and as we rounded the corner of Cattle Pass, you could clearly see the snow-capped Olympic mountains. The only thing that could make this scenery better was a tall black dorsal fun slicing through the water.

It wasn't too long before what we were all hoping for became a reality when members of...

M/V Kittiwake departed with positive reports of Resident Orcas! Our 13 guests and myself were very excited due to the fact they have been gone for a few days. Captain Mike headed straight to the Orcas that were heading north in Boundary Pass. Once we got on scene we could see all the blows and lots of splashing, right away I knew we had a playful group. We were right in the middle of Boundary Pass when the Orcas decided to split. At that moment we had a large adult male surface near...

With dense fog rolling into Friday Harbor, Captain Mike, the guests, and I headed north toward reports of Resident Orcas in Boundry Pass. The fog made everything very quiet and it was interesting to see the Islands through the wisps. Luckily, once we motored into Boundry Pass, the fog cleared and we were left with blue patches of sky and glassy waters. Once on scene, we were pleased to find that there were a plethora of whales in the area! We first viewed the L-12 matriline, and...

It was a feast today for the T-30's, a group of marine mammal-eating orcas known as the Transient Orcas. The M/V Sea Lion motored out of Friday Harbor with perfectly still seas to meet up with six transient orcas hanging out North near the south side of Saturna Island in Canadian waters. Upon first looks it seemed as if the whales were in their usual foraging patterns, coming up for quick breaths and then going on deeper dives foraging for marine mammals beneath the waters surface...

Today The M/V Kittiwake wasn't going to let a little thing like distance get in the way of seeing killer whales! Reports had Transient Orcas heading west near Discovery Island off the coast of Victoria, Canada. It was going to be quite the trek to get to these whales, but Captain Jim is never one to pass up on a challenge. On our way to the scene, we were able to spot some Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, and even two Minke Whales. All this wildlife along the way would have made for...

M/V Kittiwake, Captain Jim, and myself had a busy day! We had early morning reports of our Resident Orcas moving south in Haro Strait. Our guests were very excited to hear the news and begin our trip.
Along the way to the Orcas, we were lucky to see Harbor Seals and Steller Sea Lions! On Whale Rocks there were two large male Stellers that jumped into the water and another that was laying on the rocks! Since these guys are known as Grizzly Bears of the ocean, it was awesome to see...

With the grey clouds clearing Captain Mike, Tyler, the guests, and I left Friday Harbor heading north towards Speiden Channel. Just off the south west end of Speiden Island, we encountered a Humpback Whale mother and her calf! Humpbacks are sometimes spotted in the Salish Sea during their migration north. The San Juans provide a nice protected area for these huge travelers to pass though.

A short way a way, in the Haro Straight off of Sydney Island in Canada, we ran into two...