Here we are in the San Juan Safaris office overlooking Friday Harbor and another beautiful day.  The ceiling of rolling clouds let bursts of sunlight through before carrying them away to other honored spots.  Breezes are quiet, with just enough movement in the air to make the pennants and leaves flutter, and to encourage the birds to take to wing.  Orcas have been spotted in the area off-and-on this week and hopefully they will make an appearance for us today.  I am anxious to see...

5/5 Associated Press Washington transfers historic San Juan Island land by Associated Press OLYMPIA (AP) — The state Board of Natural Resources approved the transfer of 320 acres on San Juan Island to be included in the San Juan Island National Historic Park. The state land is adjacent to historic English Camp and includes a road used by British and American troops who jointly occupied the area until 1872. The Department of Natural Resources says the state will receive $3.1 million...

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

The weather was beautiful- sunny AND warm. Unfortunately, there was a raging wind. We had to cancel our trip and the ferries were either canceled or delayed. The weather tomorrow looks much better and we are running our scheduled 1pm trip.

Naturalist, Lauren Sands

What a first day back on the job! This is my third season working for San Juan Safaris. At the beginning of every season I can't wait to get back out on the water. Today was my first day back on the boat and I couldn't have asked for a more perfect welcome back! We departed Friday Harbor having heard word that the Southern Resident Killer Whales were off the coast of Victoria headed eastbound. Captain Craig informed me that rough seas might make an encounter with the orcas a no-go...

Plan a visit to San Juan Island this spring for a weekend filled with farm and food activities. This first annual event will include more than 15 farms and island restaurants serving locally-grown foods. Visitors can experience everything from the farmers' market and farm tours, to cooking classes and wine releases, to educational farming workshops. For a detailed list of activities, dates and times, click here. Just contact the listed farms and restaurants directly to book...

We had a small group today. Only 3 families and it felt like a private charter. I love our small groups even when the days are gray because I can connect to everyone and give people individualized attention. One family from Seattle had two adorable and well behaved girls.

We traveled north, past Speiden Island to Stuart Island. We timidly stuck our nose into Haro Strait along the west side of San Juan Island because we'd heard that the waves were building. They were so large off the...

Hello intrepid adventurers! As you know, some days are good, some days are bad and some are hard to define. Is it automatically a bad day if there are no orcas? What if there are whales or eagles or porpoises or just really lovely weather? What if you miss the ferry that you really wanted to be on, but you now get to explore the town of Friday Harbor and have dinner overlooking the water? There are many subtle shades of grey that make of the content of a day and therefore define...

The whale road that is. Well, world's largest dolphin road to be exact. That is right, today we saw orcas! A small pod of transient orcas was spotted on the east side of Lopez Island near a reef called Bird Rock. When we arrived on scene it was to find two males and 3-4 female transient orcas in an active feeding pattern. We did not get to see any confirmed kills, but they were definitely an active bunch with lots of diving and not much time spent at the surface. We were able...

This will be my last post of the season....we are now officially finished with all daily trips. My my how the summer has blown by! We'll still be running whale watching & wildlife tours for the next 3 Saturdays of October...the 10th, 17th, & 24th.

A wonderful way to end my season out here with Orcas still in the waters! A bit of a breezy day with whitecaps and chop, the wind out of the north, and the crisp feeling of autumn in the air. The Orcas were first seen coming south from...