Lauren Tschirhart | September 27th, 2026 | M/V Kestrel | 2:00 pm
Today was our last public tour aboard the M/V Kestrel for the 2026 season! I was excited, but I was also feeling a bit melancholy. Not only is our Adventure Whale Watch and Wildlife Tour my favorite tour that we offer, but today was also my last day working with Captain Vaun before he heads off island for his winter travels. There was simply too much sentimental energy in the air to not have an epic day out on the water! The M/V Kestrel departed Friday Harbor and headed south to Turn Rock. We wanted to see if we could find our sea otter friend. After a few minutes of searching with no luck, we abandoned our sea otter mission and headed north in San Juan Channel. We crossed over into New Channel on the northeast side of Spieden Island and circled the Cactus Islands in search of wildlife. We saw an insane amount of harbor seals while cruising around and also saw a bald eagle! We made our way over the north side of Spieden and slowly made our way over to Battleship Rock. We were heading this way to view a family of Bigg’s Killer Whales known as the T019’s. Their individual designations are as follows:
- T019/Nootka — female, born before 1965
- T019B/Galiano — male, born in 1995
- T019C/Spouter — male, born in 2001
These three whales were also traveling with 19-year-old T065A3/ Amir. T019/ Nootka and T019B/ Galiano were super spread out, but T019C/ Spouter and T065A3/ Amir were traveling as a duo. These two boys were being very social with one another, often surfacing in unison in a tight pair. They were rolling around, clearly rubbing their bodies on one another. It was so cool to witness these boys bond with one another.
We got word that a humpback whale had been found traveling in Lopez Sound, so we decided to take an inter-island cruise to try and observe another species of whale. Our journey was successful.This whale, identified at BCY1552 is a juvenile humpback, who has been observed both in the Salish Sea and in the breeding grounds of Hawaii. This whale was working a shallow bank, likely foraging for fish. It was circling the shallow area over and over again. After further research, we realized this whale had a special story. Earlier this month, this whale was unfortunately found entangled in fishing gear near William Head on Vancouver Island. Luckily, through the work of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and Straitwatch, a disentanglement team was launched and was able to free the whale of the gear. A fellow Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA) vessel was the one who originally found the entangled humpback. This story is a great representation of how the whale watching industry can have a positive impact on marine life.
After a great encounter with our humpback friend, we departed Lopez Sound and headed back west towards Friday Harbor. As luck would have it, the T019’s were passing Friday Harbor as we were heading home. T065A3/ Amir had left the group, but we were able to get another look at the family of three. We watched as these whales headed towards Turn Island. Suddenly their behavior changed and we realized they began hunting! It was incredible to observe these apex predators at work. There is now one less harbor seal roaming around the Salish Sea… poor little pinniped. Thank you for providing nourishment for our orcas. May you rest in peace.