Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

Lauren Tschirhart | May 24th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 1:30 pm

Today I got the opportunity to see something I have never knowingly observed before, which was a Stellar Sea Lion pup! Before getting into why that is such a rarity, let’s start from the beginning.Our Classic Whale Watch & Wildlife tour departed Friday Harbor and headed towards the ferry route. We crossed San Juan Channel and cruised through Upright, eventually making our way through Peavine Pass on the north side of Blakely. Once we made...

Aly Liu | May 27th, 2026 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:30 pm

Today, we departed Friday Harbor with a boat packed to the brim and hearts full of anticipation for the awesome afternoon ahead. We began our long journey north through San Juan Channel and President’s Channel with spectacular looks of Mt. Constitution and Turtleback Mountain on Orcas. Koma Kulshan, also known as Mount Baker, was as stunning as ever in the distance. 

As we cruised northwest towards the boundary waters between Patos Island and...

Olivia Esqueda | May 26th, 2026 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:30pm

Today was genuinely such a beautiful day on the water, especially after a rainy morning! The sun came out as we headed north through San Juan Channel and made a brief stop at Spieden Island to check out some Steller’s Sea Lions. After watching these giant Pinnipeds roll around in the water, we continued on into Canadian waters following up on a report of orcas. 

Transiting past Moresby Island and ending up northwest of Sidney, near Salt...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 23rd, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30 pm

I cannot begin to express how excited I was leaving the dock today. It felt like a Memorial Weekend Miracle! All six members of the T065A’s were spotted traveling together in Rosario Strait. The T065A's were my first ever favorite family. They were around quite a bit the summer of 2021, my first year living on San Juan, and they totally stole my heart. Back then, it wasn’t as rare to see the entire family group together. All the boys in...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 22nd, 2026 | M/V Kestrel | 2:00 pm

Today was my first tour of the season aboard the M/V Kestrel. Our Adventure Whale Watch & Wildlife tour began by exiting Friday Harbor and heading north into San Juan Channel. We cruised into New Channel, on the northeast side of Spieden Island, and scanned for wildlife, but did not spot any critters. We continued on, crossing into Canadian waters, making our first official stop at Mandarte Island. Mandarte Island is home to the largest...

Abby | M/V Kestrel | May 24th, 2026 | 2:00pm

We left our dock today in Friday Harbor with a full boat, and reports of whales within our range. Today we headed interisland through Upright Channel, between Shaw and Lopez Island. We then cruised through Peavine Pass between Obstruction Island and Blakely Island. Once we exited that small passage, we saw some harbor seals hauled out on Spindle Rock. Not far away from Spindle Rock was a buoy with a pair of Steller's Sea Lions. It wasn't just any...

Kelly Klein | May 20th, 2026 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:30pm 

The whales decided to be Canadian today, so that's the direction we pointed on the M/V Sea Lion! We made our way south down San Juan Channel and into Cattle Pass, stopping briefly at Goose Island for looks at both harbor seals and a lone female elephant seal! Elephant seals are an extremely rare sight here in the San Juan's, I've personally only spotted them a handful of times in my 5 seasons on the water. We hastily passed the lighthouse and...

Lauren Tschirhart | May 16th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30 pm

San Juan Channel was feeling alive this Saturday afternoon. Today we had a rare occurrence, where we got to observe two different traveling groups of Bigg’s killer whales, in the exact same place, but during different times of our tour. That almost never happens! Let me explain… As we left the dock for our 12:30 pm Classic Whale Watch & Wildlife Tour, we got word that the famed T049A’s were spotted just north of Friday Harbor. We began...

Olivia Ellman | May 18th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 1:30pm Today's journey in our search for wildlife took us across the border to the Canadian side of the Haro Strait! Our first sighting was along Spieden Island where we found many Stellar's Sea Lions resting on the shoreline and swimming among the kelp. I am always amazed by the size of these animals, and love seeing them interact with each other. As we continued along Spieden, we got to see a bald eagle on a tree top, the first of many throughout...

Olivia Esqueda | May 17th, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 1:30pm

 

Another wonderful Sunday in the Salish Sea! We started our trip by heading north through San Juan Channel, spotting Harbor Porpoise just south of Flattop Island. Curving west into Spieden Channel, we continued west aiming towards the north Haro Strait and eventually aimed south around Battleship Island. 

After passing even more Harbor Porpoise, we came across a male Humpback Whale ID’d as BCX1795 “Scuttle” foraging close to shore just south of...