Today was another beautiful day here in Roche Harbor. On our 3 hour paddle today we got to see several harbor seals in a bull kelp forest. We even had a curious seal pup come about 5 feet from our boats! We also got to see the circle of life in full motion with a pair of eagles feasting on a seal carcass on shore.
Kayak Guide Chris, San Juan Island Outfitters Whale Watch and Kayak Tours
You stay classy Roche Harbor
Yesterday we had an amazing day on the M/V Seahawk. For our morning trip we had a report of Residents to the north of Roche Harbor in Boundary Pass. I love trips into Boundary Pass, especially on clear days when you can see Mt. Baker in its entirety. We met up with K and J pods right off of the coast of Saturna and South Pender Islands in Canada. Oftentimes our trips cross into Canadian waters, but don't fret... you do not need a passport! We got to watch the Js and Ks...
Today was one of those real special paddles. We started our 5-hour trip heading north and viewing a pair of bald eagles and getting some up close looks at some harbor seals. We continued our paddle by heading south down the west side of Henry Island. As we continued heading south I noticed many boats in the same area gradually coming closer and closer. By the time we made to a place called Kellet Bluff the whales were right behind us. Jackpot. We found a nice...
Today we left Roche harbor and headed straight out into Haro Strait where we had reports of orcas in the area. We came across the K14's which include K14 (Lea) and her offspring K26 (Lobo), K36 (Yoda) and K42 (Kelp). We watching them for quite some time and enjoyed watching them all surface close together and in synchronization. We enjoyed watching the family for a while and then headed back through John's Pass. On the way through John's pass we saw a quite a few...
The beautiful sun sparkled on the water all day for us on our 5 hour circumnavigation of Henry Island today. The harbor seals were too many to count throughout Mosquito Pass and all along the west side of Henry Island. Some of the male harbor seals even delighted us with their mating dance, jumping out of the water and slapping their flippers on the surface. We had tons of fun talking about seaweed in the kelp forests, making bull kelp horns and even snacking on the...
Nestled in close to Pearl Island and just north of Roche Harbor, Posey Island can't help but draw families in for some intertidal zone fun. After paddling out to visit a kelp forest, we came back to Posey Island where the 5 kids and 4 adults had a blast exploring the shoreline. We uncovered crab after crab and popped lots of rock weed. The thrill of turning over rocks to find scuttling crabs was infectious; we all had to do it! We also inspected the underside of a chiton...
Today was an absolutely sensational day on the water. I have never had an encounter with Orcas like my guests and I had today! We had lunch near Open Bay and quickly got back in our boats in order to position ourselves alongshore in case the whales came our way. Sure enough, as we were in the process of rafting up, an Orca surfaced only several yards away. This Orca surfaced again and again, then our focus shifted to a line of 8-10 whales coming directly at us! Holding...
Today on M/V Sea Hawk we were lucky enough to see both ecotypes of orcas that we have in the Salish Sea. On the morning trip we saw a small group of transients off Stuart Island. The transients are the orcas that prey on marine mammals and typically feed on harbor seals in this area. They were traveling slowly but gave us all a couple close looks and there was a younger calf in the group so that was awesome to see.
On the afternoon trip we got reports of residents heading...
Today the M/V Sea Hawk left Roche Harbor for two trips! We ended up catching up with my personal favorite matriline in the entire southern resident community: the J16s, comprised of Mom, J16 (Slick) and her three offspring, J26 (Mike), J36 (Alki), and little seven year old J46 (Echo). We watched them come down from Turn Point on Stewart Island, the most northwesterly part of the continental US. They traveled down at high speeds, then spread out to forage! We also...
Today was another beautiful day in the San Juans. We ended seeing orcas on three separate occasions! We sat and watched the whales for about 15 minutes total. We also got to see some harbor seals and bald eagles up close as well. The water was smooth and the winds were calm. It was a picture perfect paddle.
Kayak Guide Chris, 5-hour Kayak Paddle, San Juan Island Outfitters Whale Watch And Kayak Tours