Big Slap! Wild Tail Slap by Herb Hartman
Marine Naturalist Ashley by Herb Hartman
Marine Naturalist Ashley by Herb Hartman
Four Orcas Fishing by Herb Hartman
Four Orcas Fishing by Herb Hartman
Solo Orca Whale by Herb Hartman
Solo Orca Whale by Herb Hartman
Three Traveling Orca Whales by Herb Hartman
Three Traveling Orca Whales by Herb Hartman
Male Humpback Hawaii Herb
Head Lunge Hawaii Herb
One Orca Whale with Mountains by Herb
Saddle Patch of Orca Whale by Herb
Marine Naturalist Lauren of San Juan Safaris by Herb
Mature Bald Eagle in Flight by Herb
Mature Bald Eagle in a Tree by Herb
Sally and Casey Whale Watching Naturalists by Herb
Look for a Herbs photo of Mama Humpback carrying her baby on her rostrum (nose). Thanks Herb!
Well we are all becoming overly familiar with the Canadian waters these days. Reports were in that once again the Orcas were near the coal docks but it was music to our ears to hear they were at least headed south our direction. It was a beautiful day for a boat ride so we didn't mind the extra time it took to reach the whales. The whales were spread out in many small groupings and very active. We saw many breaches and lots of tail slapping. It's always exciting to see but even more...
Sunday, July 18th, 2010 was an evening to remember. The crew aboard the M/V Sea Lion never thought they would be so deeply touched in the presence of the orca whales. We spotted at least 12 members of the L-pod traveling in small groups of 3-5 near Eagle Point. The calm waters on the west side of San Juan Island made for perfect viewing conditions. Adult and juvenile whales were hauling their large, glossy bodies out of the water left and right. Breaching, spy hopping...
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...
The reports were in, telling us to search near the west side of San Juan Island for a group of L-pod orca whales. We arrived at False Bay shortly after departing from Friday Harbor. A cross-cultural crew of guests from Singapore to Kentucky adjusted their binoculars and were ready to see our famous Southern Resident Orcas. Their dreams of visiting the remarkable San Juan Islands this summer had finally become a reality. From the sunny deck of the Sea Lion we saw a tall, glossy...
Today was a unique day. Most of the 23 people aboard the Sea Lion were part of a wedding party. The funny thing is, no one told me a couple was getting married on board. It was innocuously written in our reservation book. When I asked the pastor if he needed the space cleared of people for the ceremony he said to me "These are all our guests." And he didn't just mean the people they'd brought with them. There were several guests in the cabin who didn't even realize two people were...
L pod! Transients? L pod? Transients!
It was a confusing day with orcas today. With L pod having been spotted the day before in Haro Strait, when orcas were first seen off the Southern end of San Juan Island everyone assumed it was the Residents again. The whale watch fleet was deployed, as were the various researchers, to spend time with our famed orcas. What a surprise it was then, especially to me since I had just informed our boat load of guests all about the local pods...
Today we departed Friday Harbor having heard word a gray whale was passing right on through the San Juan Channel! This was exciting news, because not is it a relatively uncommon event to see a gray whale in the waters around the San Juan Islands, it is even more unusual for a gray whale to pass by Friday Harbor.
With extra time on our hands, we left the harbor, stopped on by O'Neill Island and saw some bald eagles and passed by Speiden Island to view some exotic deer and sheep...
It is GORGEOUS here this morning. We will be pulling away from the docks at 1:00 from now until October 2. June 12 starts our additional "Sunset Orca Whale Watching Tour" at 5:30 pm. At that time of the year it stays light until 10 PM.
No official orca report YET today, but J pod of orca whales have been in the area recently, so we are feeling pretty good about today's tour.
Stay tuned for the naturalists report this evening. Over and out for now, Colleen
