Elle | M/V Osprey | June 30, 2022 |12:30PM

Today we took a long trip up into Canada. After leaving Friday Harbor, we passed Speiden Island where we slowed down to look at its baren southern side, weathered by southerly winds. In the tops of the trees and soaring above us, we saw four bald eagles, likely two mating pairs, prompting us to start a bald eagle tally for our trip. As we neared the northern end of Speiden Island we passed a haul out of harbor seals resting in the sun. Our...

Elle | M/V Osprey | June 29, 2022 |12:30PM

Today we took a trip to Canada! We left Friday Harbor towards reports of Bigg’s Killer Whales near Victoria on Vancouver Island. We headed north, then west through Speiden Channel. As we approached Sidney Island, we started to see tall, black dorsal fins in the distance. We headed slowly towards them and came across a total of six whales. Brothers T128 and T125A, Flotsam and Jetsam were quickly identified by the deep notch in Jetsam’s nearly...

Maxx K. | M/V Osprey | 06/26/2022 | 12:30pm

    Today was hotter than hades! No doubt about it, summer is officially here. 

    Osprey slowly put putted its way out of Friday Harbor, north through the San Juan Channel and around again into Presidents Channel. A family of Biggs Killer Whales known as the T036A’s had been picked up right outside Friday Harbor a few hours before and had already made it to Sucia Island, north west of Orcas. 

    The T036A’s were a new family to me, being...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | June 25, 2022 | 5:30 pm

Summer is finally here! We’re experiencing our first string of warm, sunny days now that the end of June is nearing and the whales were here for it, too! For today’s Classic Wildlife and Whale Watching tour, sunset edition, we left the dock to see the sun glowing on the water in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We detoured through Castle Island and McArdle Bay, a pristine inlet of steep cliffs, towering trees, and calm seas on the south end...

Another day of fun just off the dock here in the San Juans! We took a left out of Friday Harbor and headed north up San Juan Channel. Our first stop was Flathead Island, a protected nature preserve here in the San Juans where we often see a variety of pelagic birds, pinnipeds and intertidal species from the shoreline. During our shuffle along the banks we observed a bald eagle perched atop a tree, its iconic white head contrasted beautifully against the green tree tops. The bald...

Elle | M/V Osprey | June 23, 2022 |12:30PM

Today we had a beautiful day out on the Salish Sea. It was sunny and warm with calm seas and very little wind. We started the day with reports of a family of Bigg’s killer whales just north of John’s Pass in the San Juan Channel. We arrived at the family, which we later identified as the T123s, just off of Stuart Island and cruised alongside Sydney (T123), Stanley (T123A), Lucky (T123C), and Darcy (T123D), as they headed northwest together...

The only Monday blues for today’s tour was the gorgeous blue sky over San Juan Island. We started off the day hearing chatter of sightings down South, so we headed out of Friday Harbor in search of whales. Before getting too far, a Steller sea lion surprised our guests by appearing close to the boat, giving us a great start to our wildlife tour. This surprise encounter was closely followed up with a harbor seal haul-out not too far away, creating a great opportunity to compare two of...

Lauren | M/V Osprey | 06/19/2022 | 12:30 pm

From Saturna Island to Sanctuary Zones followed by a stop at Spieden, our Sunday was packed full of spectacular wildlife!

Shortly after our journey began, we slowed to view a bald eagle perched up high on a treetop. As we continued north, we cruised around White Rock to get a look at some hauled out harbor seals. Harbor seals are extremely important to our ecosystem here, as they make up 70% of our Bigg’s killer whale’s diet. We couldn’t...

Lauren | M/V Osprey | 6.18.2022 | 12:30 PM

It was my first day back to work after a week-long vacation and I had whales on my mind. I truly miss them when I’m gone, and I felt especially eager to show our guests all the San Juans has to offer. As M/V Osprey left the dock, we got word that Bigg’s killer whale family the T123s were in the area. The T123s are “frequent flyers,” or should I say swimmers, here in the Salish Sea. They are one of the families I’ve seen the most thus far...

Maxx K. | M/V Osprey | 06/17/2022 | 12:30pm

    Traveling inter-island is always a great time. It’s fun to wind the vessel through all the nooks and crannies that partition one island from the next. Each passing typically guarantees many glimpses of eagles and pelagic birds along the rocky shorelines. Furthermore, there’s always plenty of harbor seals hoisted out of the water and away from the looming threat of Bigg’s killer whales. 

    The crew was ecstatic even before boarding as...