Orca Paradise

Today was the Kittiwake's (our other boat's) first day on the water. The Kittiwake departed at 12:30 and the Sea Lion at 1:00, so we had both our boats on the water today. J-Pod was foraging on the southwest side (near salmon bank) and both boats got an incredible show. The sun was shining, the air was warm, the sea was calm, and J-Pod was active! It was orca paradise out there on the water and our Memorial weekend guests had a one-of-a-kind experience.

The Sea Lion began our encounter watching three females, but then turned closer to shore to be with the Kittiwake and a group of orcas they were observing. J-28, J-26, J-14, and J-42 were all confirmed in this group and just as we were approaching the Kittiwake an orca exploded out of the water in one of the closest breaches we've had yet! The whale conveniently jumped right off the port side of the Kittiwake and in front of the Sea Lion, so all the San Juan Safaris guests got a great show!!! We believe it was J-26 who breached, but it happened so suddenly that we didn't get the greatest look at who it was. Like all SJS trips, we want our guests to gain an appreciation for our other wildlife as well as the orca. So after spending about 1/3 of our trip time with the orcas, we took our guests to Long Island to see a Bald Eagle nest, which the female was sitting in. We also took them to Whale Rocks to see Harbor Seals and Goose Island to see both varieties of cormorants and the gull's nesting grounds. All in all the trip was another success and we look forward to the three trips going out tomorrow. J-Pod has been good to us and we send them many thanks for such a great show!

Megan, Naturalist