Levi Vandebunte | M/V Kestrel | July 21st, 2026 | 2:00pm
We headed North on this absolutely beautiful afternoon. It was the warmest day that we've had here in a few weeks, and the sun was shining with almost no clouds in the sky. The wind felt amazing on our faces once we picked up speed. We began this trip with a quick stop at White Rock, which is a small island that is often a popular Harbor Seal haul out location. We spotted dozens of them basking in the sun near the edge of the water. We even spotted some small pups within the group! A couple of them were climbing up the rock out of the water, and it was a reminder of how limited their mobility is with their fused pelvis. From there we jetted over to Spieden Island, which has a bizarre history. We got looks at multiple Bald Eagles, Sika Deer, and Mouflon Sheep. One of the Bald Eagles was a juvenile, and did not yet have the bright white feathering around their head that a fully grown adult does. This made it quite difficult to spot them up against the trunk of a tree, but we eventually got some good looks. After that we went a bit further North to check out Turn Point Lighthouse. This sits on the West point of Stuart Island, and marks the most Northwest point in the Continental United States. We admired the unique rock formations, and got great views of several Pigeon Guillemots landing and taking off from the water nearby. A couple of them even had tiny fish in their beaks! After this we travelled back South, and were met near the top of Henry Island by three black dorsal fins. Bigg's Killer Whales! More specifically, this was the T100 family. This group of three is led by mother/matriarch "Hutchins" who is estimated to be born in 1979. She was accompanied by her 24 year old son "Laurel" and her youngest offspring "Estrella". We do not yet know the gender of "Estrella", but if they are a male we will see that dorsal fin sprout up in height in the next couple of years just like their older brother's did! We watched this family cruise by Roche Harbor, then move North and swim along the coast of Spieden Island. They then wrapped around the top of Spieden and began moving East. The lighting on the side of Spieden was immaculate, and resulted in absolutely beautiful surfacings from this family. This was my personal favorite part of the tour! After some amazing last looks, we departed the three whales and made our way back down San Juan Channel. We said our goodbyes on the dock and marked the end to an awesome afternoon on the water!
The IDs and details of the three whales that we saw are as follows:
T100 "Hutchins" (F) b. 1979
T100C "Laurel" (M) b. 2002
T100F "Estrella" (?) b. 2014
These passengers were an absolute joy to be out on the water with and we want to thank them for choosing to spend their morning 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/