[Sarah | 11/18/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm]

 On Sunday the M/V Sea Lion had one of those perfect fall trips that will sustain this whale nerd throughout the rest of the cold, rainy, dark, and long winter ahead! We set out from Friday Harbor with blue skies up above and the potential glimmer of a rumor of some killer whales in the area. In November, sometimes you have to trust your gut and follow up on rumors. We decided to head south to see what we could find.

Pointing towards the...

[Sarah | 11/17/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm]

On Saturday we had a whirlwind of a trip that left the crew of the M/V Sea Lion giddy! This late in the season, both Captain Brian and I agreed that we had experienced one of our top two trips of the season.

Leaving Friday Harbor we pointed west towards the city of Victoria in British Columbia. Stopping briefly in Cattle Pass at the south end of San Juan Island, we were able to get a look at a group of Steller’s sea lions socializing...

[Sarah |11/11/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm]

We had an amazing day to go exploring for wildlife under clear November skies on a picture perfect day here in the San Juan Islands. Leaving Friday Harbor we decided to head south toward Cattle Pass and Haro Strait on the search for wildlife.

As we made our way through the narrow channel between San Juan Island and Lopez Islands we approached Whale Rocks, and out of nowhere the exhales of a group of orcas rose above the surface! We watched...

[Sarah |11/10/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm]

We had a wonderful day out on the water enjoying mild November weather and great wildlife. Starting out the day we had some reports of whales far to the west, but as we left the harbor our plans changed with a report of whales far closer to home. Leaving Friday Harbor Captain Brian got a call from another boat that drastically altered our plans.

Instead of heading south and west, Captain Brian steered the M/V Sea Lion inter-island...

Sarah | 10/30/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00

Today we welcomed a small group of great guests on board the M/V Sea Lion for an exploration of the Salish Sea in search of wildlife. Autumn forecasts are so fickle here in the San Juan Islands, we had no idea what to expect until we left the dock. The water was glassy and we had peek-a-boo blue skies with low hanging clouds over the islands.

We headed north through San Juan Channel towards Canadian waters in Boundary Pass. As we worked our...

Sarah | 10/29/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm

We had a great trip on M/V Sea Lion, enjoying the sweeping scenery of the Salish Sea as well as great encounters with wildlife. Heading north out of Friday Harbor, we decided to point the boat towards the Outer Islands of the San Juans, and into Canadian waters. After some rain in the morning we were treated to a high clog ceiling and even some blue skies over smooth water.

With no reports of whales or other wildlife as we left the dock we...

Sarah | 10/28/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm

We had an amazing fall day on the water on Sunday’s trip. With a varied weather forecast we weren’t sure what we’d get out on the water, but for the most part we were treated to sun and beautiful cloudscapes. Captain Mike and I decided to head north out of Friday Harbor on the search for wildlife, as other boats in the whale watching fleet left their docks as well. This is an incredibly valuable network of communication that allows us to...

Sarah | 10/27/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm

This time of year you just have no idea what you’ll see out on the water here in the Salish Sea, and Saturday’s trip was a great example of the amazing array of wildlife you can see in a single trip!

After leaving Friday Harbor we started encountering wildlife. Almost immediately we encountered a pair of bald eagles and a Steller’s sea lion. After some great looks with the wildlife we continued north towards Canada. On the way we stopped to...

Sarah | 10/26/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm

On a stunning Pacific Northwest October afternoon Captain Mike and I loaded up a group of wonderful people who were excited to enjoy the Salish Sea. Mike and I decided to head north towards Canadian waters, and to divide and conquer with other whale watch boats out on the water. The San Juan Island whale watch fleet spread out as we left Friday Harbor, communicating with everyone else via radio!

We wove our way through the islands...

Sarah | 10/24/2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm

Captain Mike and I left Friday Harbor on a beautiful autumn day here in the Pacific Northwest. We elected to head south out of the harbor. At this point in the year there are fewer boats on the water, usually running one trip a day departing at around noon. This means that we rarely have any wildlife reports before leaving the dock, and reports start rolling in as boats spread out throughout the Salish Sea.

Mike steered down San Juan...