Levi Vandebunte | M/V Osprey | August 23rd, 2026 | 12:30pm
Bigg's Killer Whales have been absolutely loving Waldron Island lately, and today was no exception. Shortly before we left the dock, a fellow PWWA member vessel spotted a family of these whales circling the island. They likely were looking for Harbor Seals, which Waldron has no shortage of along it's shores. We made the transit North out of Friday Harbor and arrived to Waldron Island to see six black dorsal fins cutting through the surface of the water. It was the T49As! This family is one of the most popular in the region, and their mother/matriarch "Nan" is one of my personal favorite whales! She is 40 years old and is known for being an incredibly great mother. She's had seven calves in her life, and all of them are alive and well to this day! Her two eldest offspring have dispersed from the family, but she currently travels with her five youngest. Her fifteen year old son "Nat" has begun sprouting a quite tall dorsal fin. This fin will likely continue to grow for several more years, and could end up being up to six feet tall! All of the whales in the family are wonderful, but I especially love little "Nimbus" who was born just earlier this year. This is one of the most playful and splashy calves that I have ever seen, and I definitely noticed them getting some extra air-time while coming up for breaths today. These whales even stopped near a kelp bed at one time and started facing all different directions. We can't know for sure since it was brief, but they likely were either pursuing a prey item, or perhaps just being playful and swimming through the kelp. These whales love to do that since they are very tactile animals, and the kelp feels great on their bodies. We watched these whales make it to the Southern point of Waldron Island before saying goodbye and departing. We then made a stop at White Rocks and got some great looks at several dozen Harbor Seals that were hauled out of the water. We then cruised over to nearby Spieden Island which is just above San Juan Island. While we were admiring some huge Mouflon Sheep on the hillside, we were surprised by a Steller Sea Lion popping up just off of our right side in a kelp bed! These sea lions are not commonly seen in the summer months, especially at this specific location. There is almost always some of them at this spot in the fall, winter, and spring months though. This one may very well be the first of them to return for the colder months! This guy was quite big and likely almost a fully grown adult male. These sea lions can grow to weight up to 2,500 pounds, making them the biggest sea lions in the world! We got some great views of him then began moving down San Juan Channel. We returned to the dock and ended an awesome day out on the Salish Sea.
The IDs and details of the six Killer Whales that we saw are as follows:
Bigg's Killer Whales (6):
T49A "Nan" (F) b. 1986
T49A3 "Nat" (M) b. 2011
T49A4 "Neptune" (M) b. 2014
T49A5 "Nebula" (F) b. 2017
T49A6 "Charlie ll" (M) b. 2022
T49A7 "Nimbus" (?) b. 2026
This group of passengers was a joy to be out on the water with. We thank them for joining us this afternoon!
Wanting to see more photos from our trips? Visit our SmugMug page at: https://sanjuansafaris.smugmug.com/
More information about the Pacific Whale Watch Association: https://www.pacificwhalewatchassociation.com/