Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Kestrel | June 8th, 2026 | 1:00pm

This tour left Friday Harbor in some rainy conditions, but braving the elements certainly paid off for this group! We saw a plethora of wildlife throughout this trip, and the excitement began just minutes after leaving the harbor. After we began traveling East, we quickly spotted a Bald Eagle perched on the top of a small rocky island. Conveniently, there was a Humpback Whale surfacing nearby which made our next transit very short. "Gretzky"...

Lauren Tschirhart | June 6th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30 pm

Our Classic Tour aboard the M/V Osprey departed Friday Harbor and headed south in San Juan Channel. We cruised towards Cattle Pass and made our first stop at Whale Rocks where we usually have luck finding the largest species of sea lion in existence. Stellar Sea Lions are found in the North Pacific Arc and males can top out at a whopping 2,400 pounds! That’s like taking two large grizzly bears from Yellowstone and shoving them into one...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | June 7th, 2026 | 2:00 pm

We had an epic adventure today as our search for whales took us all the way towards Whidbey Island, one of my furthest trips so far this season! We left the dock prepared for some winds and waves, but ended up in beautiful conditions throughout all of our travels. Our trek started by heading towards Lopez Island and following the coastline into Lopez Sound. All of these small island channels are great spots for possible whales and other...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | June 6th, 2026 | 5:30 pm

We went the distance this evening for my first sunset tour of the season! When we departed Roche Harbor, we did not have any specific sightings we were heading in the direction of. Based on water conditions and where boats had previously searched, we decided to head north and scan the outer San Juans and boundary waters. We hoped that some of the whales that had been north the night before were still sneaking around somewhere that way, and I...

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Osprey | June 7th, 2026 | 12:30pm

Once this tour left Friday Harbor, we went South down San Juan Channel. We had a beautiful view Cattle Point Lighthouse which sits at the southernmost point of San Juan Island, then got some looks at both Harbor Seals as well as Steller Sea Lions! We made these stops quick though because the race for whales was on immediately after leaving these pinnipeds! We entered some strong currents just outside of Cattle Pass as we wrapped around the...

Lauren Tschirhart | June 5th, 2026 | M/V Sea Lion | 5:30 pm

Last night was our first Roche Harbor sunset cruise of the season, aboard the M/V Sea Lion. I’d say we kicked off our sunset season with a bang, as we spent the evening observing a whopping 17 Bigg’s Killer Whales! My first major T-Party of the year. A T-Party is when you have three or more families of Bigg’s (or Transients, hence the  “T”) Killer Whales traveling together. This T-Party was a huge shock to us, as these whales all linked...

Aly Liu | M/V Kestrel | June 5th, 2026 | 2:00 pm 

Always trust your gut and follow your intuition, especially when it comes to predicting where whales will be in the Salish Sea (and choosing to come out on an adventure tour with San Juan Safaris). 

After departing the dock at Friday Harbor, we made our way down south through San Juan Channel and into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, when two massive splashes off our starboard caught our eyes…it was Split Fin and Strike, two humpback whales! “Split Fin”...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | June 4th, 2026 | 12:30 pm

Most of our passengers take the ferry from Anacortes to visit us in Friday Harbor, but it’s not every day that our search for whales takes us to Anacortes instead! We departed Friday Harbor and headed east, following up on some killer whale reports in that direction. We scanned this interisland route, admiring the shorelines and getting to see many of the small channels that wind together in our beautiful Salish Sea. As we crossed Rosario...

Kelly Klein | M/V Sea Lion | June 3nd, 2026 | 2:30pm

What a lovely opportunity for an extended trip on the water! Todays 7 hour private charter proved that more time does often mean more whales. We started our trip with killer whales just a 10 minute ride from our departure location, Roche Harbor. This family was identified as the T99's consisting of:

T099/Bella — female, born around 1984

• T099B/Holly — female, born in 2007
• T099C/Barakat — male, born in 2009
• T099D/Puck — male, born in 2015

• T099E/Qwiin...

Olivia Esqueda | June 3rd, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30pm

We had a small, but amazing group of folks on the water with us today which made the trip feel very special! We headed north through San Juan Channel with a slight chill in the air, transiting through Spieden Channel and cutting up across the north Haro Strait. This brought us right past Turn Pt Lighthouse (with views of Mount Baker in the background!) and aiming for Swanson Channel. This big body of water brings us north into a series of...