Aly Liu | M/V Kestrel | Friday, July 31, 2026 | 2:00 pm 

Today was certainly among my top 3 favorite tours of the season so far. Let me tell you why.

The first stop of the day at Goose Rock in Cattle Pass did not disappoint; the rock was blanketed in pelagic and double-crested cormorants towards the top, and rock sausages (Harbor seals) on the bottom, all with Cattle Point Lighthouse in the backdrop.

Then, M/V Kestrel headed southeast towards Smith Island to reports of four Bigg’s killer whales...

Lauren Tschirhart | July 28th, 2026 | M/V Kestrel | 2:00 pm 

We had some out-of-town visitors in the Salish Sea today! Members of the CA027 matriline (aka the T135’s) were found traveling with a group of Coastal Transients. All in all, we witnessed 11 killer whales, from four different matrilines, enjoying the waters of Fidalgo Bay. Seeing California Transients in the San Juan Islands is a pretty rare occurrence. There is only one species of killer whale, but they are divided into different...

Kelly | M/V Kestrel | July 30th, 2026 | 2pm

Absolutely perfect summer day here in the San Juan’s as we departed Friday harbor and pointed east across San Jaun Channel. Tracing the ferry route up Presidents Channel and deep interisland, eventually spilling into the Rosario Strait. We began to slow the boat as we approached Sinclair Island, noticing many dorsal fins in the distance! This was a group of 8 Killer whales identified as the T36’s and the T37a’s made up of: 

• T036/Flapjack — female, born...

Lauren Tschirhart | July 24th, 2026 | M/V Kestrel | 2:00 pm

Our 2:00 pm Adventure Tour began by cruising south towards Turn Rock to see if we could spot our otter friend. There has been a sea otter hanging out in one of the kelp forests just outside of Friday Harbor for most of the summer. This otter was indeed all cozied up, wrapped in the kelp bed at Turn Rock. We got great looks at this cute critter, and also noticed a bald eagle perched on the top of a green navigational marker. Next we...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | July 27th, 2026 | 2:00 pm

Humpbacks, Killer Whales, Seals, Sea Lions, Porpoise, and a Sea Otter in one afternoon… Wow! It’s always amazing when we get to see any of the marine mammal species in our ecosystem, but extra special when we see most of them in one trip! We knew of a few whale reports before leaving the harbor, so we began heading towards the one furthest away from us with the plan to work backwards from there. Kestrel’s speed gives us so many opportunities...

Lauren Tschirhart | July 24th, 2026 | M/V Kestrel | 10:00 am 

Bigg’s Killer Whale matriline the T100’s is a family that frequents the inter-islands of the Salish Sea. For whatever reason, they have been spending an insane amount of time in Boundary Pass this summer. There is clearly something appealing about the waters around Waldron Island. Boundary Pass is the large body of water just south of Saturna Island. There are several different channels and passageways that intersect at Boundary...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | July 26th, 2026 | 10:00 am

I’ve been looking forward to a fun adventure into Active Pass for some time, and the rain today really made our trip extra exciting. When we departed this morning, there were not many reports yet in our region so we joined the search for whales. We made a stop at Turn Rock outside Friday Harbor to search for the otter, and while no otter this time there were harbor seals and a bald eagle! From here we continued on to the north, planning to...

Aly Liu | M/V Kestrel | Wednesday, July 22, 2026 | 2:00 pm 

It is certainly not every day that we are lucky enough to meet three different families of killer whales in the span of a few hours. Today was one of those days.

M/V Kestrel headed north up San Juan Channel and scanned the sea for any signs of wildlife, when a passenger at the bow pointed into the distance; sure enough, there were 9 black dorsal fins slicing through the water. Two families of marine-mammal-eating orcas displayed...

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Kestrel | July 21st, 2026 | 2:00pm

We headed North on this absolutely beautiful afternoon. It was the warmest day that we've had here in a few weeks, and the sun was shining with almost no clouds in the sky. The wind felt amazing on our faces once we picked up speed. We began this trip with a quick stop at White Rock, which is a small island that is often a popular Harbor Seal haul out location. We spotted dozens of them basking in the sun near the edge of the water. We even...

Kelly | M/V Kestrel | July 20th, 2026 | 2pm 

We turned left into San Juan Channel and made our way to White Rock, first enjoying looks at our ever so lovable harbor seals. Currently, we are in the middle of pupping season, and after close inspection we noticed many adorable pups lounging next to mom! Investigating a whale report, we turned northwest and made our way across the Canadian border and eventually next to South Pender Island. Two tall exhales arose from the surface! A pair of humpback...