Kelly Klein | M/V Osprey | June 10th, 2026 | 12:30pm

We had truly backyard Biggs today aboard the M/V Osprey! Not but 5 minutes after motoring out of the harbor we slowed our speed to 7 knots and approached a group of killer whales identified as the T100's including:

T100/Hutchins — female, born around 1979

• T100C/Laurel — male, born in 2002
• T100F/Estrella — born in 2014

We watched this group of three transit in a zig zag pattern making their way slowly up San Juan Channel. Laurel's (T100c) 6 ft tall...

Kelly Klein | M/V Osprey | June 9th, 2026 | 12:30pm

Unusually high winds for June here in the San Juan's was not going to stop us from seeing whales! We hastily left Friday Harbor, took a left and continued north up San Juan channel. Slipping into Presidents Channel and eventually Boundary Pass we spotted dorsal fins in the distance. 7 Killer whales total including: 

• T123/Sidney — female, born in 1985
  • T123A/Stanley — male, born in 2000
  • T123C/Lucky — female, born in 2012
  • T123D/Darcy — female, born in...

Lauren Tschirhart | June 6th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30 pm

Our Classic Tour aboard the M/V Osprey departed Friday Harbor and headed south in San Juan Channel. We cruised towards Cattle Pass and made our first stop at Whale Rocks where we usually have luck finding the largest species of sea lion in existence. Stellar Sea Lions are found in the North Pacific Arc and males can top out at a whopping 2,400 pounds! That’s like taking two large grizzly bears from Yellowstone and shoving them into one...

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Osprey | June 7th, 2026 | 12:30pm

Once this tour left Friday Harbor, we went South down San Juan Channel. We had a beautiful view Cattle Point Lighthouse which sits at the southernmost point of San Juan Island, then got some looks at both Harbor Seals as well as Steller Sea Lions! We made these stops quick though because the race for whales was on immediately after leaving these pinnipeds! We entered some strong currents just outside of Cattle Pass as we wrapped around the...

Lauren Tschirhart | June 5th, 2026 | M/V Sea Lion | 5:30 pm

Last night was our first Roche Harbor sunset cruise of the season, aboard the M/V Sea Lion. I’d say we kicked off our sunset season with a bang, as we spent the evening observing a whopping 17 Bigg’s Killer Whales! My first major T-Party of the year. A T-Party is when you have three or more families of Bigg’s (or Transients, hence the  “T”) Killer Whales traveling together. This T-Party was a huge shock to us, as these whales all linked...

Olivia Esqueda | June 3rd, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30pm

We had a small, but amazing group of folks on the water with us today which made the trip feel very special! We headed north through San Juan Channel with a slight chill in the air, transiting through Spieden Channel and cutting up across the north Haro Strait. This brought us right past Turn Pt Lighthouse (with views of Mount Baker in the background!) and aiming for Swanson Channel. This big body of water brings us north into a series of...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 30th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30 pm

We often say that every day, and more accurately every hour is different out here on the Salish Sea. These animals are constantly moving in and out of the region, so you truly never know what you’re going to see. Today was the perfect example of that. We are in constant communication with other Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA) vessels, so we knew there were no orcas sighted anywhere in our range yet today. It’s not every day we see...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 25th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 1:30 pm

Just like humans, killer whales are visually all unique from one another. Also like humans, sometimes they have uncanny resemblances to one another. There are two whales in the Coastal Bigg’s population that are fairly hard to tell apart. Those whales are known as T123/ Stanley and T060C/ Yelnats, hence the name. Yelnats is Stanley spelled backwards. When identifying killer whales, you want to look for three types of distinct markings to...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 24th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 1:30 pm

Today I got the opportunity to see something I have never knowingly observed before, which was a Stellar Sea Lion pup! Before getting into why that is such a rarity, let’s start from the beginning.Our Classic Whale Watch & Wildlife tour departed Friday Harbor and headed towards the ferry route. We crossed San Juan Channel and cruised through Upright, eventually making our way through Peavine Pass on the north side of Blakely. Once we made...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 23rd, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30 pm

I cannot begin to express how excited I was leaving the dock today. It felt like a Memorial Weekend Miracle! All six members of the T065A’s were spotted traveling together in Rosario Strait. The T065A's were my first ever favorite family. They were around quite a bit the summer of 2021, my first year living on San Juan, and they totally stole my heart. Back then, it wasn’t as rare to see the entire family group together. All the boys in...