Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

WHAT'S YOUR 20TH ANNIVERSARY STORY? 2011 is People For Puget Sound's 20th birthday and we'd like to hear your story about Puget Sound and People For Puget Sound during the last 20 years” and looking ahead to the next 20.

Were you on the first Sound Voyage?

At the first Lobby Day in 1992?

Were you a Kid for Puget Sound? Did you volunteer during the early days of restoration and shoreline inventories?

Check out the stories and we'd love to hear from you.

Finally it looks like the fog may be clearing. We still had a foggy morning but it quickly cleared out and turned into a beautiful day. This afternoon was a true safari. We started off by observing some harbor seals basking in the sun...it's rough being a harbor seal! Then we moved over to whale rocks to observe a couple of stellar sea lions.  These amazing creatures can weigh between 1500-3000 lbs depending upon the sex of the animal. Sea lions are capable of "walking" on land using...

This morning about 6:15 AM our two geese were screaming. Bill (my husband and Brunch's (the male goose) best friend) went to the window to find a great, BIG, Golden Eagle sitting on the fence post of the goose 'safe pen'.  There it was just staring into the pen trying to figure out how to bypass the wire mesh "ceiling" that we had put on since it's last visit two years ago. (You remember when it killed and ate Gretta?)   Bill stepped outside, waving his hands and making loud ugly...

Fog is fascinating and something I miss about the Central Valley of California.  After driving in tule fog in the dark anything else seems like gravy.  (Meaning easy, not, as thick as.)  In the past few days though, the islands have delivered up some pretty good shows of fog.  Last night was absolutely surreal, what with us being on a boat floating around in something that resembled a dream since we could not see more than 100 yards in any direction.  Forget about seeing land.  It...

Today we traveled north towards Stuart Island.  Captain Mike stayed in close communication with the other whale watching vessels; he received many reports that the whales were in that area.  Our spirits rose with anticipation!  Shortly after we departed Friday Harbor we spotted a bald eagle soaring high above San Juan Island.  As we neared Stuart Island the orca whales were traveling south down Haro Strait.  We traveled parallel to the direction they were heading along the west side...

The afternoon reports were in.  There were ten to fifteen orca whales spotted near Stuart Island.  We traveled north and encountered the orcas near Turn Point.  Turn Point is the very northwest piece of continental land in the United States!  Captain Mike slowed the boat as we approached the misty blows of the orca.  The whales were traveling very close together, heading north towards Pender Bluffs on South Pender Island.  Not only were they in a large group, but they were showing...

Today we left Friday Harbor and headed south down the east side of San Juan Island through Cattle Pass. Cattle Pass is known for torrential currents because both Haro Strait and the Strait of Juan De Fuca converge demanding to be let through. In the midst of Cattle Pass we saw stacked nests of Double Crested Cormorants on Goose Island, Harbor Seals hauled out on Whale Rocks and a Bald Eagle fishing on Long Island.

The snow capped peaks of the Olympic Penninsula were clearly visible...

What a beautiful day for a whale watch!  Sunny, warm and calm waters. The whales were reported to be off the west side of San Juan Island but by the time we were off and running they had made their way up to Saturna island. These whales were moving really fast! Captain Mike positioned us just ahead of the leaders and far enough away from other boats to lower our hydrophone (our underwater microphone). Wow they were really making a lot of noise! The tide was changing and the whales...

"Soon we'll be making another run.  The Love Boat..."

These orcas are all about peace, l0ve and fish these days.  They have been more active than I have ever seen them before with the percussive behaviors, the amorous behaviors and the feeding behaviors.  It is fantastic and exactly what we want to see from our small population of endangered marine mammals.

Today we spent time with L pod, and while they were not as active in the splashing and feeding departments, they made up for...

Seeing the San Juan Islands is magical and seeing the orcas can be downright transcendental for some.  But, when you can pair those two things with a major milestone in a person's life it becomes a rare and unique moment that makes existence in this world a more glorious thing.  It also shines a light on one of the reasons why I have always chosen to live the impoverished lifestyle of a naturalist/wildlife rehabilitator/marine mammal rescuer/zookeeper.  Much as it is said that...