Kelly | M/V Osprey | April 27th, 2026 | 1:30pm
It was a fruitful day for whale reports here the in the Salish Sea, with multiple sightings to investigate in our general radius! Not to mention it was naturalist Abby's birthday! We do believe in birthday luck here at San Juan Safaris... To start our journey we took a right outside Friday Harbor and made our way south in San Juan Channel. As we maneuvered into Cattle Pass, a humpback whale came into view! We watched this graceful giant come up for a sequences of quick breaths just before dramatically arching its back and flipping up its 14tf tail fluke! After reviewing a photo of the tail, we were able to identify this whale as Gretzky (BCX1800). We then made our way east under the south end of Lopez Island and across Rosario strait. Multiple exhales came into view.....it was a certified T-party, a group of 19 Killer whales grouped together! Members included:
- T019/Nootka/Mooyah — female, born before1965
- T019B/Galiano — male, born in 1995
- T019C/Spouter — male, born in 2001
- T071B/Hood — female, born in 2000
- T071B1/Zengo — female, born in 2013
- T071B2/Tasli — born in 2018
- T086A3/Tyndall — female, born in 2011
- T086A3A/Tenakee — born in 2024
- T100F/Estrella — born in 2014
- T124A/Kittiwake — female, born in 1984
- T124A6/Kasuun — male, born in 2016
- T124A7/Kite — female, born in 2021
- T124D/Field — female, born in 1996
- T124D1/Salish II — born in 2014
- T124D3/Lupine — female, born in 2021
- T124D4/Dune — born in 2024
- T124A4/Sabio — female, born in 2010
- T124A4A/Strix — female, born in 2021
- T124A1A*/Sabine — female, born in 2024
The group had recently exited Deception Pass and was slowly making their way north on the strait. It was truly breathtaking to see so many dorsal fins rising from the water at once. Most of the group appeared to be resting aside from some rambunctious youngsters tail slapping at the surface. The other clear stand outs in the group were the only two adult males, Galiano and Spouter, with every surface showing off those massive 6ft tall dorsal fins. It is most certainty a tour I will never forget! Thanks Abby for bringing the birthday luck!
To see more photos from this tour head here:
https://sanjuansafaris.smugmug.com/42726-KK