Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Osprey | June 23rd, 2026 | 12:30pm

This tour went North out of Friday Harbor towards a report of Killer Whales. We were even able to leave the dock a few minutes early which is always a nice start to a trip. After a beautiful transit through San Juan and President's Channels, we approached the T100 family at the very bottom of the Strait of Georgia. This family has been absolutely loving the San Juans this season, and they are quickly becoming one of our favorite matrilines...

Aly Liu | M/V Kestrel | June 22th, 2026 | 2:00 pm 

M/V Kestrel departed from the dock at Friday Harbor at 2:00pm today, and by 2:05pm we had sighted our first animal: a soaring bald eagle! We cruised in beautiful conditions up north to President’s Channel; the sea was a glossy emerald green reflecting the evergreen trees atop the San Juan Islands, and the skies were blanketed in cirrus clouds.

Captain Vaun and I jumped in excitement when we realized who was ahead; it was a matriline of orcas...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | June 22nd, 2026 | 1:30 pm

The Salish Sea has been full of so many whales in beautiful conditions, I cannot get enough of these dreamy days on the water. Today was another exciting trip, as we found a famous family of Bigg’s Killer Whales that I had not seen before! 

We left Friday Harbor and immediately found a bald eagle on the shoreline. This was an excellent start getting to see this beautiful animal sit nearby. We continued north, traveling through the Wasp...

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Kestrel | June 21st, 2026 | 2:00pm

This tour headed East out of Friday Harbor and began taking a similar route as the ferries do to get between San Juan Island and Anacortes. The only difference is that the M/V Kestrel is much quicker than those ferries, so it only took us about 25 minutes to arrive in Rosario Strait! We then travelled South for a few minutes and arrived on scene with a group of 10 Bigg's Killer Whales! This group was comprised of the T46B family which is...

Olivia Esqueda | June 21st, 2026 | M/V Osprey | 12:30pm

Today was a heartwarming trip through the Salish Sea. Passing many Harbor Porpoise along the way, and the mountains peaking out behind the haze and clouds, it was remarkably warm with calm seas as we headed north through San Juan Channel in the direction of Boundary Pass. Weaving through Spring Passage and President’s Channel, we ended up north of Waldron Island, coming across a matriline of three Bigg’s Killer Whales- the T100’s! This...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | June 20th, 2026 |10:00 am and 2:00 pm

Our morning adventure tours are always my favorite, as we get to be part of the first group of boats searching for whales. We departed Friday Harbor with some rumors of killer whales in the Canadian Gulf Islands, so we began by heading north to check it out. We cruised up San Juan Channel, made our way west into Spieden Channel, and stopped at Sentinel to see some harbor seals. Looking out across the Haro, there was some fog...

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Kestrel | June 19th, 2026 | 2:00pm

On this day there were several reports down in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, so we turned South and went that way immediately. Lucky for us, the weather and conditions down there were absolutely beautiful! The first whales that we encountered were quite a rare duo; T125A "Jetsam" and T128 "Flotsam"! These presumed brothers do not visit this area very often at all. In face, this was my first time ever seeing them! These two adult males are...

Levi Vandebunte | M/V Osprey | June 20th, 2026 | 12:30pm

This tour headed North out of Friday Harbor. We stopped for a great look at tons of Harbor Seals that were hauled out on a rock formation. Some of them were sleeping, while others were swimming around in the nearby water. From there, we only had a few minutes of travel to arrive at a family of Bigg's Killer Whales! We set our eyes on the T100s, which is a family of three. The family consists of mother/matriarch "Hutchins", son "Laurel", and...

Kelly Klein | M/V Osprey | June 19th, 2026 | 12:30pm

We left the harbor and continued south in San Juan Channel eventually making our way into Cattle Pass. We made a quick pit stop at Goose Island, one of our birding hotspots. Enjoying looks at the cormorant nests and a few scattered harbor seals on the shoreline. Making our way into a bigger body of water known as The Strait of Juan de Fuca, we were treated to crystal clear views of the Olympic mountain range, perfectly mirrored in the glassy...

Aly Liu | M/V Kestrel | June 18th, 2026 | 2:00 pm 

After departing the dock at Friday Harbor, Kestrel cruised south down San Juan Channel past Cattle Point Lighthouse on San Juan Island to Whale Rocks, a common Steller sea lion haul-out site in our region. 2400-pound male sea lions started our trip off with a bang by plummeting head-first into the water beneath them, allowing gravity to do the rest and create massive splashes. How dramatic they were!

We continued our journey southeast towards...