Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

The reports were in, telling us to search near the west side of San Juan Island for a group of L-pod orca whales.  We arrived at False Bay shortly after departing from Friday Harbor.  A cross-cultural crew of guests from Singapore to Kentucky adjusted their binoculars and were ready to see our famous Southern Resident Orcas.  Their dreams of visiting the remarkable San Juan Islands this summer had finally become a reality.  From the sunny deck of the Sea Lion we saw a tall, glossy...

What a pleasant surprise the gorgeous weather was today.  The sun was shining, it was warm and there were whales! What more could one really ask for? Except for the whales to be headed right in our direction,  and as it turned out they were!!   The plan was to head straight for the whales which were reported to be near Saturna Island just at the border between the United States and  Canada. Captain Craig informed us that we would not be making any stops so that we could make it to...

When: Saturday, June 12th, 2010 from 9am - 5pm

Location: Cama Beach State Park, Camano Island.

Additional parking and activities at Camano Island State Park.

Cama Beach State Park is hosting the region's first World Oceans Day Festival.

People For Puget Sound will have an outreach booth to generate support for the Smith/Minor Island Aquatic Reserve. Stop by to sign a petition of support and meet Rein Attemann, our Field Director.

The sun was shining, the waters were calm, the guests were smiling and life couldn't have been more peachy as we departed Friday Harbor. Summer feels like it is finally approaching here in the islands. In town tourists wander the streets, hopping in and out of shops. On the water whale watch boats, private boats, ferries, and the occasional tall ship meander through the channels, bays and straits. With things picking up here in town, the Kittiwake and the Sea Lion (both our boats)...

It was 1:00 p.m. when Captain Mike received notice of transient orcas on the north side of Orcas Island.  Just as we arrived near Clark Island, we spotted four transients traveling closely together.  The guests oohed and awed each time the whales surfaced the water as they reached for a breathe of air in unison.   Coordinating the timing of their breathes makes traveling in groups more time efficient.  Captain Mike stopped the boat and it was almost as if he had stopped time.  The...

It was a chore to find them, but I finally got to spend some time with J pod.  This season is starting out slowly and the orcas are still not back in the area full-time like we are used to.  That means that we spend a lot of time searching and seeing other wildlife on the way.  Today though we knew where the animals had been spotted, but once we got there it became clear why the reports had seemed so sporadic.  J pod was scattered in ones and twos over several miles with whale...

Captain Craig and I left Friday Harbor with a group of enthusiastic guests to explore the wonder the islands have to offer. Having only heard news of whales heading west past Trial Island (near Victoria) -which is too far for us to reach, especially in a rolly-polly Haro Strait - we headed north to see what we could find.

Today was an eagle-packed day. We saw mating pairs left and right, first at O'Neil Island, then on one of the Cactus Islands. We also saw eagles flying past islands...

Reports were in early of the southern resident J pod sightings around Active pass. While this is good news it can also mean that the whales may be just out of our reach should they continue north.  Active pass is in Canada so this meant we were in for a long haul. Luckily Captain Craig put the pedal to the metal and we made it out to see J pod! Although they were spread out we did get some close looks at an adult male and two sets of female calf pairs. The dorsal fin of an adult male...

Its been a prolific past 9 days marred by only been 1 day whale-less day. We've been blessed by humpbacks, transient orcas and resident orcas. For the past few days we've seen the easily identifiable T-40. Transient male dorsal fins can get up to 6 ft. tall and T-40 is all male. Born in 1961, the tip of his dorsal fin is dropping with age. It creates a natural umbrella handle or hook. Over the past few days he has been traveling with 2 companions, possibly both females or juvenile...

It must be since Capt. Hook just arrived!  That is right, we spent the day with good old Capt. Hook and, in this story, his jolly gals.  And we did not have to go more than twenty minutes down San Juan Channel before we met up with them.  Transient orcas T40, or Capt. Hook as he is affectionately known, and two females were traveling north up through Griffin Bay on the east side of San Juan Island today.  It was a quick trip from the dock for us and the rest of the whale watch fleet...