Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | Thursday, August 21st, 2025 | 12:30 pm
The conditions for our afternoon trip were once again perfect as we set out of Friday Harbor in search of whales and other wildlife. We began traveling south in San Juan Channel with reports of whales near Salmon Bank, so we were able to stop by Goose Island to see many harbor seals and sea birds as we neared Cattle Point Lighthouse. We pushed on towards Salmon Bank, getting stunning views of the Mount Baker, the Olympic Mountains, and then Vancouver Island in the distance. We followed along the bank and soon saw another whale watching boat in the distance that was with a group of Bigg’s Killer Whales. I was very excited by this report as this family had already been identified as the T49As, a family I have not seen this season yet! The 49As are a common Salish Sea sighting, and are now partially known for their youngest member T49A6 Charlie II who has an adorable underbite. I hadn’t seen this family since last summer, so it was exciting to see how much the three old Charlie II had grown and what else had changed for this matriline. The 49As typically travel as a group of five, with the two oldest sons of 49A Nan usually traveling separate from the family. We saw Nan and the other four of her calves, with 49A3 Nat standing out as a growing teenage male. We first saw them on Salmon Bank, but they quickly made their way to the coast along South Beach on San Juan Island. It always amazes me to see these animals travel so close to shorelines, and I am always hopeful that we’ll get to see some kind of hunting action if they happen to find a meal along the way. They traveled along the shore towards Cattle Point, and soon rounded the corner back the way we came, pointing towards Goose Island where we had seen so many harbor seals not long before… As they grouped up still tight to shore, we suddenly saw some direction changes and then an amazing spyhop as one of them poked out of the water and then slowly sank back down. From photos we captured, we think this was Nat based on the eye patch, but it was hard to tell for sure. The group continued to hang out in the area, likely searching for seals in the current. With the number of boats in the area, we decided to give more space and turn south for a bit to go see the Stellar’s Sea Lions at Whale Rocks. We enjoyed watching them splash around the rocks in the current, and it was great to see another species of pinniped also hanging out in the same vicinity as the whales. We turned back north after a little while to go get some last looks at the whales as they had also continued moving up San Juan Channel. Today was definitely unique in that we barely had to leave San Juan Channel for our entire trip, and was really special to get to spend so much time watching this favorite Bigg’s family show off their skills right along the San Juan Island shoreline. I’m hoping this family will stick around the next few days to get some more looks soon!