Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

Erin | M/V Kestrel | Sunday, July 14, 2019 | 3:00 PM

What a lovely trip aboard the M/V Kestrel this afternoon. We began our trip going north out of Friday Harbor because we heard that there was a gray whale travelling along the shoreline of Shaw Island! We were barely ten minutes into our trip when we saw a beautiful blow up at the surface. It was indeed a gray whale. The whale was travelling very quickly, but we saw it take 2-3 breaths at the surface and then go back down for 3-5...

Erin | M/V Kestrel | Sunday, July 14, 2019 | 11:00 AM

It was an absolutely wildlife-filled day on the water this morning. We began our trip heading south out of Friday Harbor. We made our way to Cattle Point and got a lovely view of the lighthouse. Then we went directly across the San Juan Channel to Whale Rocks and we saw over 20 harbor seals hauled out of the water! There were a few swimming around in the water as well. Not only were there harbor seals, but there was a Steller's...

M/V Kestrel | 11 AM | Naturalist Alexandria  | July 15th, 2019

What a great Kestrel trip we had today!  When we got onto the water we didn’t have any firm reports, but we knew that this was not uncommon.  We decided to head south and work our way down through San Juan Channel.

We stopped at Whale Rocks and got some adorable looks at harbor seals hauled out on these rocky areas.  There were a few that had gotten up to some higher areas on the rocks during high tide...

Piper | Sunday, July 14, 2019 | M/V Sea Lion | 1:30 PM

On today’s bright, sunny afternoon tour, Captain Pete, Jordan, and I took an awesome boat full of people into the Salish Sea to look for some whales and wildlife! Not very far outside of the marina of Friday Harbor we spotted a gray whale moving north through San Juan Channel! It’s quite rare for us to get gray whales this far north in the Salish Sea; when they are seen here, they’re typically spotted south near Whidbey Island...

Erin | M/V Sea Lion | Saturday, July 13, 2019 | 1:30 PM 

It was a sunny, lovely day in the Salish Sea. We began our day with no whale reports from other vessels in the area, so we went out on a true whale seeking adventure! We headed south out of Friday Harbor toward Cattle Point. On our way to Cattle Point, we got an excellent example of currents and upwelling. There were white caps and eddies right near Cattle Point, and there were birds feeding in the area. They were most likely...

Laura C. | 7/13/2019 | M/V Sea Lion | 5:30 pm

This evening’s whale watch was so much fun!  Our captain Pete manned the helm as we ventured south towards Whidbey Island to find a gray whale!!  It was so exciting to see such a beautiful whale on a sunset trip!  Gray whales sift through the ocean floor in search of benthic invertebrates, a primary food source.   This leviathan was solo today and showed us his/her fluke multiple times right before heading down on a dive!  We aren’t...

Piper | Saturday, July 13, 2019 | M/V Kestrel | 11:00 AM & 3:00 PM

On today’s trips aboard the M/V Kestrel Captain Gabe and I took two awesome groups of folks down southwest of San Juan Island in the Canadian waters off Victoria on Vancouver Island! Down there we got to check out two humpback whales on both trips! On our morning voyage got to see two adults swimming separately. The first was a report from another vessel and the second one was spotted by a guest with a keen eye! They...

Jordan | M/V Kestrel | 07/12/19 | 3:00pm

Today was such a good day! As Captain Pete and I set out of Friday Harbor, we headed south towards potential sightings of something cool near the Olympic Peninsula.

We headed south down through the San Juan Channel, passed Cattle Point and across the Strait of Juan De Fuca! Miles away from home, we spotted a couple boats in the distance. Then our orcas! Yay! Upon looking at the unique dorsal fin patterns and shapes and scratches, we identified...

Laura C. | 7-12-2019 | M/V Sea Lion | 1:30pm

We had an awesome day aboard M/V Sea Lion!  With bright sunshine, blue skies and calm seas our vessel headed north to Canadian waters!  Suddenly a pair of humpbacks were spotted near North Pender Island!  We saw their exhalations from quite a distance and were thrilled to see fluking from both individuals!  As they brought their tails up towards the sky, a waterfall of saltwater fell over the edge of their flukes and quickly dissipated...

Jordan | M/V Kestrel | 07/12/19 | 11:00

Luckily it was a nice warm day today even though it got pretty chilly out on the water! But It was a really nice trip.

Captain Pete and I set out of Friday Harbor and helped our fleet of boats search the sea for any whales. We headed up north through the San Juan Channel and up towards Waldron Island. Here we found a whole bunch of harbor seals! These guys were super adorable hanging out on the rocks next to a huge forest of bull kelp. They...