This Wednesday we had started out north with a super group of people. Captain Pete, Hannah, and I started out by looking for Transient Orcas that had been spotted near Mandarte Island just across the border into Canada. We followed them over the border for a little two nation tour. We watched this one family of transients spend a great deal of time socializing with each other until they turned quickly towards shore. They quickly organized to entrap and take down a Harbor Seal! These...

Did you know that our transient killer whales are also known as Bigg's killer whales? Dr. Michael Bigg was instrumental in pioneering killer whale identification research throughout the 1970's and 1980's, revealing the very distinct populations of orcas and also bringing to light the realization that the numbers of orcas in these popoulations were relatively low. Before Bigg, it was generally assumed that there were massive amounts of killer whales in the ocean and that they all ate...

Yesterday we left the dock with reports of humpback whales just south of San Juan Island, a short jog from Friday Harbor. On our way there, we happened upon dozens of harbor seals just off of Cattle Point and paused to watch them fishing for the small fish being carried in by the quick flood.

We then carried on for a few more miles until we reached the location that the humpbacks had been spotted in last. Baleen whales especially love feeding in the waters between San Juan Island and...

What a day! We spent the afternoon hanging out with some transient killer whales (some of the T46 family) off of the Salmon Bank at the southern end of San Juan Island. These whales appeared to be on the prowl, and it looked like the young 4-year-old orca, T46F, might have been getting some hunting lessons from his family. We saw members of this family the day before as well on the other side of the Straight of Juan de Fuca, where they were hunting a harbor porpoise. Adult males do...

What an absolutely beautiful day in the Pacific Northwest! M/V Sea Lion left the dock early this afternoon with the sun sparkling on the water and a light breeze blowing - perfect conditions for whale watching. Instead of turning north today, we veered south, enjoying stunning views of the southern tip of San Juan Island on our way across the Straight of Juan de Fuca. We were in search of some transient killer whales that had been spotted earlier this morning. 

Along the way, we were...

Today we mixed things up a little bit by going south instead of north. Capt. Mike, Alex, and I motored out into Griffen Bay, then into the big wide blue of the waters south of the islands. This is where the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Haro Strait, and Puget Sound all meet up. So there is a lot of deep water. More water though means more chances for whales! We headed south with amazing views of the Olympic Mountains and Mount Rainier around 100 miles away. After scanning for a while we...

Yesterday, Captain Pete, Sarah Cutting, and I set off on a classic Pacific Northwest day full of low hanging clouds, mist scarping the trees, and that filtered light that makes all the green in western Washington sing. We started off north and scooted by Flattop Island to look at some Harbor Seals lounging on the rocks and swimming in the kelp beds around this federally protected island. Next we headed further north towards Saturna Island in Canada, right where two major waterways...

Sometimes we forget that when going on a whale watch we are observing wild animals, in their natural habitat, performing their natural behaviors. This is what makes whale watches so exciting and unique, but it is also an added challenge. Every day our trips are dictated by the movement and whereabouts of wild animals, and seeing how orcas can travel up to 100 miles a day, each morning we start out with a blank slate and a large sea of potential.

Today’s trip brought us as far north...

There are two ecotypes of killer whales that inhabit the Salish Sea throughout the year – the transients and the residents. Killer whale ecotypes are both genetically and behaviorally distinct, meaning they don’t interbreed, they have different behaviors, they speak different languages, and they look slightly different. The main distinguisher between transient and resident killer whales is their feeding habits. While transient killer whales feed on marine mammals, resident killer...

On Friday we went up north! We started our daily search for cetaceans by heading up near Flattop Island to both look at some Harbor Seals and Bald Eagles on this Federally protected island and also look in several different channels to see if any whales could be spotted. None yet so we headed east now through one of my favorite channels in the islands, President Channel! It runs between Orcas and Waldron Island so our journey east was framed by steep wooded slopes on Orcas and...