Levi Vandebunte | M/V Kestrel | August 10th, 2026 | 2:00pm
This day was a little breezy, and was a bit cooler than the past few had been. It almost felt a little bit like fall, which I personally love for whale watching! We pointed North out of town and moved up San Juan Channel, the wrapped around the top of the island and entered Haro Strait. This is the huge body of water directly West of San Juan Island. We moved down Haro for a few minutes before encountering the absolutely massive black dorsal fins of two adult male Bigg's Killer Whales. It was brothers T60D "Onca" and T60E "Lynx"! These two are some of the most well-known and beloved whales in the entire population. It is not super common for adult males to leave their mothers/family, but a few years ago these two dispersed from the T60 family together. Ever since then the two have been inseparable, and have earned the nickname "The Brothers" in this region. While they still visit their family from time to time, they almost exclusively travel with only the company of each other. These are some of my favorite whales in the population and I had not seen them since last summer, so I was stoked to say hello again! Their huge dorsal fins are roughly six feet tall, and easily stuck out amongst the waves of Haro Strait on this breezy afternoon. We watched these two perform several dives, then come up for a few breaths in between. Even with some choppiness in the water, we still got some awesome looks at their eye patches breaking the surface as they would take a breath. Eventually, we said goodbye to these Salish Sea fan-favorites and travelled North in search of more wildlife. We cruised by the coast of Henry Island and spotted an adult Bald Eagle perched in a Madrona Tree, as well as a Harbor Seal swimming just underneith it. Then we explored the South side of Spieden Island, which has a bizarre and interesting history. We spotted several Fallow Deer and Mouflon Sheep grazing on the hillside, as well as more Harbor Seals and another Bald Eagle! This coast almost always has wildlife to offer, and every single day can look quite different. We moved back South down San Juan Channel and ended our trip with a stop to a kelp bed near Turn Rock. This is the favorite spot of a Sea Otter that has taken a liking to the Salish Sea this summer. He was swimming around through the kelp and obsessively grooming his extremely dense fur. We even saw him wrap himself in kelp so that he wouldn't float away at one point. From there we returned back to Friday Harbor and said our goodbyes to put an end to an awesome day on the water!
The IDs and details of the two Killer Whales that we saw are as follows:
Bigg's Killer Whales (2):
T60D "Onca" (M) b. 2004
T60E "Lynx" (M) b. 2008
This group of passengers was a joy to be out on the water with. We thank them for choosing to spend their day with us here at San Juan Safaris!!!
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/