Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

[7/21/17- M/V Kestrel- 10AM & 2PM]

We left Friday Harbor with the plans of heading South toward Puget Sound.  We got reports of transient killer whales towards that area and decided to look for some additional wildlife on our way down. 

We made one of our common wildlife stops, the whale rocks, where we found some harbor seals as well as a lone Steller’s sea lion.  Most of the Steller’s sea lions have all gone North to the beaches of Alaska for their breeding season.  However, some...

Lauren Fritz, M/V Sea Lion, 07/25/17, 1:30 pm & 5:30 pm Tours

There was lots of excitement this morning when we heard reports that J-pod, one of the Southern Resident Killer Whale pods in this area, was still hanging around in the Salish Sea. Earlier whale watching tours had spotted them cruising around out in Rosario Strait. We didn't know it at the start, but we would have the chance to see these amazing whales on both of our tours today! 

Naturalist Sarah and I made sure Sea Lion...

1. [Naturalist Erick D., M/V Kestrel, 7/24/17, 2:00PM]

Yesterday, Captain Mike and I took a great group of folks from Friday Harbor to search for whales and other wildlife! We first went south towards Cattle Pass and Whale Rocks. Whale Rocks are a collection of rocks south of Lopez Island. They are called such because they appear like whales rising from the waves not due to the presence of whales, but it is a super beautiful place! As the tidal flow ripped around the rocks we saw a...

[7/24/17- M/V Kittiwake- Kelsey, Naturalist- 11:30AM]

Today, we had a water taxi from Friday Harbor on San Juan Island to Orcas Island. What is so great about these is that the trips can be tailored to guests’ likings! For example, today we had whale reports in the area, so we made time to visit some whales and other awesome wildlife before heading over to the final destination. Flexibility made this trip pretty amazing!

We left Friday Harbor on M/V Kittiwake heading north. It wasn’t...

[7/22/17- M/V Sea Lion- Kelsey, Naturalist- 1:30PM]

To kick off the day, a drizzle of rain coated the island- some of the first rain in two months! Whoop! We were feeling refreshed as we departed Friday Harbor and San Juan Island in search of whales and other wildlife. Hopes were high and there was determination in our eyes. We were ready for whatever the day would bring us!

We turned south and went through Cattle Pass into the Haro Straight, and entering through the Straight of Juan...

[Sarah M. – 07/20/2017 – M/V Sea Lion – 05:30pm]

After a bit of a gray day in the San Juan Islands, we had a very welcome break in the clouds as we departed on our sunset whale watch from Friday Harbor. Out here in the Salish Sea your luck with wildlife sightings can change minute by minute, and yesterday was a great example of how the outcomes of previous trips can have no impact on sightings later in the day.

Captain Mike steered the M/V Sea Lion north out of the harbor towards...

Lauren Fritz, M/V Kestrel, 07/19/17, 2:00 pm Tour

Wow! We had quite the epic journey on M/V Kestrel today. Cruising across the bluest seas at our quick speeds really allowed us to make the most of the day. Humpbacks reported down south of Victoria in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, 25 miles away? No problem for the Kestrel! Captain Gabe and I decided to head straight down San Juan Channel and out into the Strait, stopping near Whale Rocks to check out harbor seals, beautiful bull kelp...

[Naturalist Erick D., M/V Sea Lion, 7/19/17, 5:30PM]

We left from Friday Harbor on our evening tour with a whole great group aboard the M/V Sea Lion. Captain Mike, Sarah C., and I started our search south. We passed Lopez and San Juan Islands through Cattle Pass. As we motored along we passed many Harbor Seals, Rhinoceros Auklets, and Pelagic Cormorants swimming and playing in the dynamic waters in between the islands. We ended up motoring pretty far through Haro Strait and a...

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[7/18/17 1:30 SL]

Finally! After weeks of radio silence from our well-known resident orcas, L Pod has finally made a much-anticipated appearance. Historically found in the Salish Sea for the entirety of the summer, resident killer whales are now becoming a rarity in this area. Seeing them around San Juan Island during today's trip was such a treat, and...

Lauren Fritz, M/V Sea Lion, 7/18/17, 6:00 pm Tour

Today's sunset trip was a real treat for those of us on M/V Sea Lion. As we pulled away from the dock in Friday Harbor, we were excited to venture out and meet up with some of our Southern Resident Killer Whales that had been sighted earlier near the southwestern side of San Juan Island. These whales were members of L-pod, one of the three Southern Resident Killer Whale pods that we see out here in the Salish Sea. J-pod and K-pod were...