orcas

Tomorrow is the Autumnal Equinox! And even though this signals the true end to summer, this doesn’t mean that all the whales leave as all the humans have started to do. Whales actually travel through these waters all year round! Yesterday, though, still felt a little bit like summer. Captain Brian, myself and some wonderful guests took the M/V Seahawk south to search for the Southern Resident Orcas. They have been in the inland waters the past few days foraging for salmon...

  This afternoon, Captain Gabe and I set off from Roche Harbor with arguably the best dressed guests we've ever had on board. They had just had a wedding! Normally, I would have advised the ladies to change clothes before getting on the boat--just because the wind can be chilly. But this group came fully prepared, with carefully picked out and coordinated sweaters to go with the dresses, and blankets for all. Luckily though, we were having perfect weather with lots of sunshine and very little...

Sunday mornings, especially on holiday weekends, are my favorite times to be at Roche Harbor. The excitement in the air is palpable, usually the sun is shining in a bright blue sky, and we have the chance to welcome and host a group of very enthusiastic people.

This Labor Day weekend was no different. On our 11am departure we had a group of our Southern Resident Killer Whales reported off the Westside of San Juan Island. We were treated to an awesome encounter with members of two of the local...

Today, Captain Gabe and I took a super enthusiastic group out on the M/V Seahawk! We headed south along the west side of San Juan Island to look for the Southern Resident Killer Whales. These are the salmon eating ones that live in the north pacific and usually spend much of the summer inside the Salish Sea since salmon have to make their way through to find the rivers that they were born in. This year is a historically low salmon year so we have not seen the residents that much this summer, but...

Today we took the Seahawk up north to boundary pass, aiming for Patos Island to follow some potential orca reports. J pod was reported moving southwards from Point Roberts this morning, returning from their trip to Canada yesterday where they spend the majority of their day miles up the Strait of Georgia. Killer whales regularly travel 100 miles a day, and based on their movement since last night they may make today a hundred mile day!

When we approached Patos Island a...

Yesterday (Sunday), was another beautiful day out on the water in the San Juan Islands. It’s still summer here, hot and sunny, but there are signs of fall starting in the more northerly regions of the planet. Different birds species that breed and nest in the arctic regions are returning here in preparation for winter. Most notably (maybe just my favorites) are the phalaropes. These groups of birds are a little smaller than doves and hang around drifting mats of logs and...

Here in the San Juan Islands we are constantly surrounded by beautiful marine wildlife. Our waters are home to a wide diversity of marine mammals including four species of whales, two species of dolphins, two species of porpoises, two species of seals, two species of sea lions, and we also have the possibility of seeing two species of otters! With such a great array of species, we sometimes come across injured or dead wildlife on our tours or while wandering the islands...

The past few weeks things have been very busy here. Part of the Southern Residents have been in our waters for a few weeks foraging. The annual conference of orca fans, enthusiasts, and researchers called SuperPod has been in town, and the weather has finally started to feel like summer. Yesterday (Wednesday) Captain Gabe and I went south with a great group south along the west side of San Juan Island. It is called the Haro Strait and this deep trench leading northward is...

Summer is in full swing in the San Juans! The sun is shining, the residents are back, and flocks of happy vacationers are enjoying our beautiful scenery and wildlife every day. This afternoon we left Roche Harbor to a 70 degree day with calm seas and a good report of resident killer whales just off of Pile Point on the southwest side of San Juan Island. There's no better way to start your Sunday afternoon!

We headed out of Roche Harbor and through Mosquito Pass to get to...

Did you know that orcas, like humans are very family oriented? You have probably heard of ‘’pods before which is a word that usually describes a group of any species of whale, but in orcas especially the Southern Resident Ecotype, pods resemble large extended families. The smaller groups of orcas within these pods are referred to as matrilines. Matrilines consist of the matriarch (the oldest female) and her offspring, sometimes even several generations of offspring. This...