Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 23rd, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Happy Monday from the M/V Sea Lion! We began our afternoon by heading south, excited to explore San Juan Channel and search for wildlife. Our first stop was at Goose Island near Cattle Point on the southeast side of San Juan Island. We got great looks at one of my favorite marine mammals, the harbor seal, as well as lots of cormorants and other sea birds along the rocks. It’s always a great sign to see this kind of activity in our...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | September 22nd, 2024 | 2:00 pm

Our afternoon brought us on another great adventure in the Salish Sea! We left Friday Harbor under cloudy skies, and quickly made our way north as we had some exciting reports in the Strait of Georgia in Canada. We made a quick stop to look at a group of harbor seals on some islands in San Juan Channel, but soon continued on to the north. As we neared the Canadian border, the rain began to pick up but we were not deterred! We continued...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 21st, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Today’s Classic Whale Watch was another perfect September day on the water! We left Friday Harbor with reports of some whale activity to the east in Rosario Strait, so began our trip by heading in that direction. After traveling interisland and seeing great views of Shaw and Lopez Islands, we soon slowed down to approach the scene of some killer whales! As we approached, we could see there was a family of five Bigg’s Killer Whales...

Olivia Esqueda | M/V Sea Lion | Thursday, September 19th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Today was such a fun tour bringing in all the fall vibes. We started off our trip by heading south through San Juan Channel, stopping briefly off Turn Island to see a Sea Otter floating around in the bull kelp reef. This gave us an opportunity to chat about how the increased sightings of sea otters in the last few years all circles back to sea star wasting disease. We love conversations showing how everything is connected...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 20th, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Nobody could have predicted the crazy trip ahead of us as we left Friday Harbor on our afternoon Classic Whale Watch! We had reports of some killer whales traveling interisland, so we began by heading around Turn Island and stopping to look at some harbor seals before continuing east. We traveled in between Shaw and Lopez Islands, and soon saw a group of boats ahead of us rounding into East Sound of Orcas Island. As we approached the...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 17th, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Our Classic Whale Watch felt like Fall as we left Friday Harbor in overcast and cooler weather, but that certainly didn’t deter us from having a great day on the water! We left the dock and headed north, following up on a report of some killer whales. We traveled up San Juan Channel, following the western side of Orcas Island heading towards Patos Island. After a look at Patos Lighthouse, we rounded the corner and saw a few other...

Kelly | M/V Sea Lion | September 15th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Southward was the plan as we left Friday Harbor on our Classic Whale Watch and Wildlife Tour. A rumored report of killer whales in the Strait of Juan de Fuca was our destination, a long run on the ole M/V Sea Lion but we were determined to make it work! As we transited down San Juan Channel and approached Cattle Pass, guests aboard pointed out splashing in the distance! After slowing the boat to investigate, it became clear that the splashing...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | September 12th, 2024 | 2:00 pm

Today’s Adventure Whale Watch was an amazing, whale filled afternoon through the San Juan Islands. We had heard reports of multiple groups of Bigg’s Killer Whales in the area before leaving the dock, so we left Friday Harbor already excited for what we could find. We began by traveling interisland to the east, looping around Blakely Island to find our first group of whales. We got a quick look at a group of about four Bigg’s traveling...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 9th, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Today was a happy Monday aboard the M/V Sea Lion as we set out from Friday Harbor on our Classic Whale Watch. We had reports of a group of whales far in the north, so we headed in that direction up San Juan Channel to reach them. We traveled up the western side of Orcas Island, traveled a bit east, and then north between Sucia and Matia Islands. After a bit more travel north into the Strait of Georgia, we finally reached the scene of...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 8th, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Our Sunday afternoon Classic Whale Watch left Friday Harbor already hearing reports of whales close by in San Juan Channel, so we wasted no time heading in that direction. We traveled south in the channel, but didn’t have to go too far before we reached a group of Bigg’s/Transient Killer Whales. As we approached this group of eight individuals, we realized there were actually two different matrilines traveling together making this a T...