Logan Stecker | M/V Kestrel | August 10th 2025 | 10:00 am
The morning search started with great success! Our boat followed along the shoreline of Friday Harbor searching for whales and we ended up encountering the T109As! This was quite the surprise having barely left San Juan Channel. We followed along as they explored the coast and passed Roche Harbor. The 1-year-old in the group (Weiss) was very excited and was breaching out of the water quite often! They were quite bubbly and a joy to watch as they swam alongside 4 of their siblings and their mom. This group has been quite a presence in the area, even being seen in the Friday Harbor ferry terminal two nights ago!
After our time observing the whales, we went up to Boundary pass to scan for more wildlife in the open waters that were quite calm and beautiful today. We watched Mt. Baker rise from the fog and backdrop Turn Point Lighthouse, the most Northwest point of the lower 48 states.
On our way to Friday Harbor, we stopped at White Rocks and looked at seals hauled out on the rocky shoreline. This is the tail end of their pupping season, and we got to watch quite a few young seals hopping about.
What a beautiful morning trip and an amazing success of a whale search!