South is the direction. The direction is south!

Today was a glorious day. It was warm in town and cool on the water. It made the sun much more bearable with the light breeze on deck. It was very pleasant, and the water was beautiful if a bit rough sometimes.

We went south past cattle point on San Juan Island today. Orcas were in small groups. Some of them were identified as from the k-pod family. We saw a female K-40 "Raggedy" and a larger male K-21 "Cappuccino" swimming together often. Today was a day for fishing. They would wind and dive down in place, feeding in the afternoon. The salty air and the orcas eating salmon made me want to eat my favorite sushi! Look out, Friday Harbor! I have a mission!

-Sarah, Naturalist

Another Satisfied Guest

Please send us your comments! We love to hear what a wonderful time you had with us!

Dear San Juan Safaris,

We were fortunate to join the Sunday, June 29 l:00 tour on the Sea Lion. We were so impressed with the knowledge,care and concern Captain Pete and Megan,the naturalist invested in the trip. We particularly appreciated the sightings of eagle, pelagic cormerants at the Bird Sancuary, plus the exotic wildlife on Spieden Island including mouflon sheep and deer. Harbor Seals and Dall's Porpoises splashed and entertained us while playing near the boat in their San Juan natural-water stage. Thank you for a very special sun-filled day!!

Sincerely,

Roberta Greer

T. Time

Photo: T14 Tail Slap from our sunset trip. Photo taken by our guest, a marine biologist, Adam U.

Yesterday was a beautiful 80 degree day! Our weather has warmed up substantially and is becoming more characteristically consistent. The past four days have been sunny, warm, and clear. Yesterday we had three trips go out and each was unique with what we saw.

The Kittiwake, our limited adult tour, had an extended trip so they could see as much wildlife as possible. These 14+ charters allow for more leeway with time and where we go. Yesterday the Kittiwake had a whale of a day and encountered a Minke Whale, the smallest of the fin whales, a Humpback Whale, and the Transient Orca T14. It's always exciting to see different whales and dolphins to compare their anatomy as well as behaviors.

The Sea Lion had two trips. Each trip gave us a wonderful encounter with the wildlife that call our islands home. We had some playful Dall's Porpoises on our first trip who used our boat for "target practice" as they zigged and zagged around the Sea Lion. We even saw a Dall's jump clear out of the water, something I've never seen before. Our sunset trip allowed us to see T14. T14 is a pretty famous Transient as he helped to put an end to live captures in the United States.

We have a few trips going out today as well... call to reserve a spot now!

Megan, Naturalist

Beautiful Mount Baker Views at Turn Point

The weather was FANTASTIC today. We travelled across sky blue water, while viewing beautiful Mount Baker behind Turn Point on Stuart Island. Being out on the water with clear blue skies and sunshine was great today, and according the forecasts the weather is only going to get better. SUMMER IS HERE!

-Ashley & Mike, Naturalists

Orcas and Herons

Photo: Two orcas surface during the first superpod of the summer on June 3, 2008. Photo taken from our boat, the Sea Lion, by guest and marine biologist, Adam U.

Today we traveled to the south of Lopez Island. It was sunny without being over bright, and the winds kept everyone awake. Our boats were full-and everyone was very happy today. There were a lot of families together, and it made me think of how much fun I have with mine. It was a little cold, but everyone brought the right kind of clothing and that makes all the difference!

The orcas were spread apart, so we could see different groups traveling with each other. There were several breaches, and we could hear them breathing. It was a mix of males and females, with the females the ones jumping out of the water. They may be smaller than the males, but they are just as dazzling. The guests thought so too.

On a small island with gulls there was a Great Blue Heron flying away. I haven't seen one for quite a while-there's no mistaking that pterodactyl outline against the sky. They are amazing creatures, so seeing one today (to me at least) was special!

The Kittywake was able to see the new K-pod family calf. I was jealous...baby orcas are just as cute as kittens! Then again, there's always tomorrow!

-Sarah, Naturalist

Touring the Islands with the whales!

There's nothing like being onboard a boat with the sun shining and a cool breeze blowing while circling all of San Juan Island and watching the Orcas travel along the entire west side of the island! We had a very peaceful and relaxing day on the water.

Met the members of K-pod out on the southwest side off of False Bay and got some great looks at that cute little baby again! Little K-42 (first spotted in just the beginning of June) was moving quickly, porpoising out of the water, trying to keep pace with the grown-ups!

The Orcas hugged the island's coastline the whole way, with onlookers from shore and kayakers getting great views too! The guests onboard were really impressed that we do stick to the whale-watching regulations and maintain the required 1/4 mile between ourselves and shore to give the Orcas their space. The pods were spread out traveling the whole time....a few occasional breaches and tail slaps and a wave of a flipper from a male! Moving offshore we sped up (we move away from the Orcas when we speed up as not to disturb them with extra engine noise) and caught up to a few of the trailing members of J-pod.

Once the whales passed we made our way around the north end of San Juan Island, past Roche Harbor took a look at a few harbor seals and soaring eagles near Speiden Island. Rounding to the east side of the island we felt a warm breeze blowing and checked out one last bald eagle perching at the top of a tree before arriving back in Friday Harbor. :)

Saturday, 6/21, SUNSET TRIP-- lots of action!!

In celebration of the summer solstice, our local resident orcas (J-pod, K-pod, L-pod) have formed a superpod!! It's a whale of a party! Well...no we don't really know what has brought them all together...but there they are off of the southwest end of San Juan Island...all spread out and swimming in smaller groups...up and down the coast! It's a perfect evening, the sun is shining through the clouds....the Olympic Mountains are looking scenic as ever to the south! And some of the orcas we're watching seem to be in high spirits!!
We see plenty of breaching, pec slaps, belly rolls, and spy-hopping!! There's a young calf and mother that spy hop nearby! So beautiful! And then we get quite the show....L-74, a 22 year old male is trying to mate with a female of the K-pod or J-pod. We're not sure who the lucky lady is, but it's not often that we get to see this in the wild! What an experience. Before we realize, it's getting late, and it's time to leave the Orcas as they swim north. It's not everyday that we get to see such a show. Nature at it's best!

-Jaclyn, naturalist

Saturday, June 21st -1pm trip- The whales are back in town!!

We left Friday Harbor at 1pm on Saturday with news that the K- & L-Pods (orca whales) were just off Lime Kiln Light on the west side of the island and they were making their way north! Capt. Pete started us off by showing us all an osprey in its nest in the tip top of a tree along the San Juan Island coast...then he wanted to "compare" architecture to a bald eagle's nest nearby. After checking out our local birds of prey we continued on around....as we make our way down the west side we hear that the Orcas have turned around! Go figure...wild animals...never following our schedule! Another one of those trips that just goes to show you that we never know what these whales are thinking!!
Turns out that another boat was with the J-Pod in Rosario Strait and they're heading south. By the time we catch up with the K-pod and L-pod they are very spread out and cruising to meet up with the Js. We get some nice views of those dorsal fins, a few breaches, tail slaps, as they parade by us onward. We leave the orcas knowing that they are most likely going to be socializing all together in what we call a superpod!!
As we head back home, we get a few great looks at some harbor seals hauled out and Capt. Pete gives us a quick lessons in the currents that we're experiencing off of Dead Man's Rock. All in all a fabulous trip and we circumnavigated San Juan Island!!

-Jaclyn, naturalist

More stories about the whales coming back from their time out at sea

After a trip earlier in the day watching the whales around Henry Island, Captain Craig and I headed out for a second trip. During this trip we and our guests followed the whales north and watched them head from Turn Point on Stuart Island up to the shores of South Pender Island. J42, the youngest Orca in J Pod (a family group of Southern Resident Community group of Orcas) was quite the playful young calf today. We watched J1, Ruffles, the eldest male in J Pod, and others travelling as a large group along the shores of South Pender Island. As they travelled there were tail slaps galore, and young J42 couldn't resist jumping fully out of the water at least 4 to 6 times, doing cartwheels and back flips like crazy. After a lazy afternoon, the Orcas were much more active this evening. It was a great full day of Orca sightings.

Ashley, Naturalist

The orcas of J-Pod return from their 2 days at sea!

A very calming day on the water today.....went over towards the northwest side of San Juan Island to meet up with the J-Pod of Orcas that have returned from their venture out to sea for the last 2 days.
The orcas were moving very slowly the whole afternoon....a few of the "leaders" of the pod were about a mile ahead while the rest of the pod was in a tight group all surfacing within seconds of each other to breathe. This is typical to see the orcas in a tight slow moving group when they are "sleeping". This is not the same as the way we sleep...but more of a resting state, they actually shut off half their brain while the other half tells them to surface and breathe! (Then at some point they will switch from one side of the brain to the other.) J-1 (Ruffles) was among this group! I love that big guy! Very cool to see them in this relaxed state. It seemed as though a few awoke because we saw a few calves breaching, as if to say "Mom, wake up, wake up!". We also noticed that L-57 (Faith) is still hanging out with the J-Pod...perhaps looking for a mate...spending some time alongside J-28 (Polaris)??
A truly beautiful day on the water observing Orcas with the snowcapped Olympic Mountains to the south and Mt. Baker and the Cascades to the east.

-Jaclyn, naturalist

A Day of Dalls!

While venturing around the Turn Point area, our boat came across a group of Dall's Porpoises. Dall's porpoises are one of two species of porpoises found in the San Juan Islands. The other type of porpoise is the Harbor porpoise, which is much more elusive than the Dall's. The Dall's porpoise is often mistaken as a baby Orca. However, the Dall's porpoise is much smaller than Orcas, they are around 5 feet in length. Oftentimes Dall's porpoise will bow ride alongside boats, which we were fortunate enough to experience today. The Dall's porpoises seemed to be all over the place in the Turn Point area, and different groups of them were bow riding along our boat as we travelled through around the point. We also saw numerous Bald Eagles, a group of over 83 Harbor Seals, and a Pelagic Cormorant rookery. Although no Orcas were spotted today, we had a wonderful day of wildlife viewing.

Ashley, Naturalist

South and Onward!

Today we went south past cattle point to southern Lopez. The waters were calm, and it was partially cloudy. These types of days I prefer, since the glare of the water is not overpowering, and the whiteness of the air makes the black dorsal fins of the orcas stand out and easy to locate. A few came close, and we were able to hear them breathing.

The families and adventurers who came with us today were very optimistic, and it made it a lot of fun to teach and enjoy nature together! We had a few young people who were excited and already very responsible. It made the trip even more exciting and all the more safe.

Interestingly enough, L-57 was traveling together with members of J-pod. Blackberry and Ruffles were easy to find among the other family and friends. The orcas were milling about and traveling without an obvious purpose. A few breaches in the distance completed our day of travels on the water.

-Sarah, Naturalist

The tails of the whales!

What an amazing afternoon! Another international crossing to catch up with our resident Orcas, the J-Pod, in the Gulf Islands, Canada. No worries, no passports needed on this trip! J-Pod was moving a little faster than expected, so we ended up passing Stuart Island, WA and moving towards N. Pender Island, Canada where the "trailers" (the trailing members of J-Pod) were hugging the coast moving nice and slow. We were able to have excellent views the whole time, due in part because these Orcas decided to show off a little for us. There were many tail slaps, as well as constant playing by the J-11 matriline (which includes her 3 offspring, J-27, J-31, J-39) and J-11's sister (J-19) and calf (J-41). (We think the whole J-11 subpod was there! And a few other unidentified members of J-Pod.) We had an extremely lucky day for all photographers onboard to snap some great shots of the whales spy-hopping, breaching and multiple belly rolls....maybe a training session for the younger pod members?? Either way we were all quite pleased with show of social behavior by the J-Pod!

-Jaclyn, naturalist

Bald Eagle Nest on San Juan Island

Took this picture this morning across the street from our house.
Missed the juvenile eagle asleep next to mom.
Dad must be near by.
Now that I am driving for whale watching, this is part of the stuff we show the eager passengers.

Captain Craig Melvin

After a collection of sunny days, I didn't think the weather could get any nicer. However, today's weather was the best weather I have experienced since I arrived on the island at the beginning of this month. This sunshine and warm weather made the trip up to Point Roberts an enjoyable adventure. We found J Pod heading south, making the trip even more enjoyable. We had some wonderful views of J1, Ruffles, as he passed by our boat. Today the orcas were travelling in a spread out group. Also, we had a probable sighting of J28, Polaris, and other female members from J Pod. Although it took us a while to get out to the orcas, the time it took was well it worth it after getting some wonderful sights of the scenery and of J Pod. One exciting orca behavior we got to watch was J1 feeding on some salmon.

It was a great day for a boat ride and an orca sighting adventure.

Ashley, Naturalist

Another Sunny Day of Whale Watching on the San Juan Islands

To repeat Jaclyn's excitedly proclaimed blog on Thursday, the sun was shining today! The wonderful weather was matched by equally wonderful wildlife sightings. Today, on the way toward False Bay to view the orcas we spotted a Tufted Puffin, a rare visitor to the San Juan Islands. Tufted Puffins are uncommon in the islands, and this sighting may be one of only a few this season. After this sighting we came across members of the L Pod, and further in the distance we watched a Minke whale porpoise alongside L Pod members. L 41, Mega, a male member of L Pod was spotted for certain. He was positively identified by his tall dorsal fin marked by a large nick in the middle. Other members of L Pod that may have been spotted are L 26, Baba, and L 90, Ballena.
While heading back to Friday Harbor we passed by Harbor Seals hauled out on Mummy Rocks. Also on a rock, we spotted a Bald Eagle. As a last wildlife viewing stop, we checked out Double-crested Cormorants and Pelagic Cormorants nesting on Goose Island.

By the end of the trip we had seen an abundance of wildlife. Today was a wonderful day to spend out on the water viewing them. Hopefully the weather today was a sign for the days to come!

Ashley, Naturalist

The L-Pod (Orcas) are back and meet up with J-Pod!

Another sunny day in the San Juans! Life is good. :) Got the good word that J-Pod (one of our local resident orca pods) was hanging out on the west side of San Juan Island today, northbound passing Lime Kiln State Park. Capt Nancy decided we'd intercept them by coming around from the north end of San Juan, since the wind was howling around the south end of the island. Well, don't you know the Orcas switch direction on us...and head south. Just then Nancy also finds out that the L-Pod is back!! Just off Victoria, BC and heading our way! (They were last seen about a week ago heading out to sea with the K-Pod.) Is this why J-Pod turned south?! When we meet up with them, there is a lot of excitement! The whales in J-Pod and L-Pod are socializing with each other (and we're waiting for confirmation if any members of K-Pod were seen)....a few fabulous breaches, lots of tail slapping, spy-hopping, and tons of belly rolls....looks like some flirting between the pods and mating! Despite the wind and waves, we had an awesome show...the whales were so active, and I think they were as happy to see each other as we were to see them!

-Jaclyn, naturalist

J-Pod Orca Whales heading north past Gulf Islands, Canada!

The sun is shining!! We had a perfect day on the water today! Sunshine aside, we got a report that the whales were scene along the west side heading north. By the time we departed they had made it past Turn Point and we intercepted them as they crossed in and past the southern end of South Pender and Saturna Islands. J-Pod sure has been moving! Another international trip, crossing into Canadian waters we were able to spend a solid 30 minutes or more watching J-Pod as they travelled northbound. The whales were steadily cruising but quite active again today! We were able to see a few breaches, lots of lobtailing, and one male who even rolled onto his back and showed us his belly and "waved" at us with his flipper! A beautiful day and beautiful show by the whales! With J-Pod so close by we said our goodbyes and had plenty of time to cruise back through scenic John's Pass and past Speiden to see harbor seals and bald eagles! Not much can beat a trip like today!
-Jaclyn, naturalist

Breaches Galore

Today was a long, but fabulous trip. We journeyed all the way to the coal docks, which are north of Point Roberts to catch up with J-Pod who has been out of reach the past two days. We were determined to get our guests to the whales and they made it for a great show! The animals were moving south and we met up with them just south of the docks.

J-Pod was in high spirits as they foraged around about 2 miles off shore. We witnessed multiple breaches by J39, Mako as he made his way with his mom J11. (Poor girl, she has no escape from Mako's wild ways.) We also had a sweet encounter with who we believe was J37, Hy'shqa as she breached just off our stern. The group was fishing, spy hopping, breaching, tail lobbing, and doing the "backstroke." Their show made our trip well worth it. Our guests gained an appreciation for them and their family and hopefully will work with us to protect the whales for future generations to see.

Megan, Naturalist

Think Positive Thoughts

Today began with no confirmed orca reports and rumors that J Pod was hanging out closer to the Pacific Ocean. Our guests were told to remain optimistic because we have a variety of marine mammals in the islands and we never know what could pop up.

The positive thoughts must have paid off because we got a report of a group of Transients hanging out near Iceberg (Lopez Island) and heading northwest towards us. We scooted down the west side of San Juan Island, after getting a quick look at the Mouflon Sheep on Speiden, in pursuit of the Transients.

We arrived on scene just south of Cattle Point to see four Transient orcas: one mature male, two females, and a calf. The group was later identified as the T30s being the mother T30 and her three offspring: T30A (the bull), T30B (the other cow), and the calf T30C. They were swimming around pretty eratically; chaging direction, grouping up, and splitting apart in no predictable fashion. They were swimming at about 4mph and were surfacing in intervals of about 7 minutes.

We observed the Transients for about 1/3 of our trip and spent the rest of the time looking at Mouflon Sheep, Dall's Porpoise, Harbor Seals, Pigeon Gillemots, Glaucus-Winged Gulls, Cormorants, and Bald Eagles.

This trip goes to show that good things come to those who wait....

Megan, Naturalist

Info on Transients from Orca Lab:

The Transient population of the Pacific Northwest has been identified as a distinct race. Their range encompasses the same waters as those used by the Resident Communities of Washington State, British Columbia and Alaska. No one understands how these two races developed, but most likely they have been genetically separated for many years. Physically, the two races are very similar but there are some differences. The top of the dorsal fin of Transient orcas tends to be more pointed than that of Resident orcas. Less obvious, the saddle patch ( the grey pigmentation along the side & behind the dorsal fin ) is further forward on Transients.

The real difference between the two races is in their behaviors and habits concerning their food preferences. Resident whales prefer a diet of fish, and in the summer months almost exclusively salmon. This is why we can predictably watch the Resident populations in key locations along the coast during the salmon season (when the salmon are travelling to the rivers to spawn). Transients, however, prefer to eat marine mammals. The Transients cruise the coastal waters in search of their prey. Transients have been known to feast on Harbour seals, Sea lions, Dall's porpoises, Harbour porpoises, Pacific Whitesided dolphins, Gray, Minke and other whales.

As the rain falls down

Today it lightly drizzled on our wilderness trip. The mist flickered and lifted off of small islands, with the sun gently hazed over. Our guests were enthusiastic and often remarked about their own experiences in the Pacific Northwest.

The bald eagles gave us quite a show! They were close to the boat, and one called out to us. We were able to see porpoises, and it was remarked on and debated about their intelligence level. Many of our guests were curious, and we were delighted to be able to help and try to make their time as enjoyable as we could.

Unfortunately, the whales were too far away for all the boats in the area today. We had an excellent adventure anyway, and the only thing that would make life better would be some hot chocolate!

-Sarah Naturalist

Lazy Day

Today was the perfect opportunity to take orca photos because they were logging around on the surface, making it easier to get a nice shot of them. We encountered J-Pod on the west side of San Juan Island just north of Lime Kiln State Park. They were heading north, but at a pretty lazy pace. Orcas don't sleep... at least not like humans. Humans shut down when sleeping, which works fine for us because our breathing is involuntary, or unconscious. However, orcas must breathe consciously, or they naturally hold their breath and must tell their body to breathe at the surface. If they slept like us they would suffocate. So they rest by logging together at the surface and going under as a group and coming up to breathe as a group... never going fully unconscious. Today we observed resting behavior, which was quite convenient for all of our aspiring photographers. It appeared that the Js were all grouped up for rest and affection, as some of them rolled around lazily rubbing each other, which is one of the ways they bond. It seemed like little J42 and her playmate J41, Eclipse, weren't in the mood to chill out and they were seen spy hopping and half breaching as if to beg their mothers to pay attention to them and keep moving.

We had a nice encounter with the orcas and then moved on to Speiden Island to see the Harbor Seals, Mouflon Sheep, and even a great Bald Eagle kill. The eagle was hanging out in a tree next to a nest and seemed to be eating a fish of some sort. Our guests really enjoyed the trip and got some awesome photos to remember it with.

Megan, Naturalist

Orcas near Point Robert, AGAIN

Today we had to travel quite a distance to find the whales south of Point Roberts, however, the time it took to get there was worth the trip. After our journey out, we found J Pod traveling towards the Rosario Strait. For much of viewing, we travelled alongside J26, Mike. Mike was much more easy to distinguish because of his large dorsal fin, male ocras dorsal fins can get up to six feet tall, much taller than females. Also, it was harder to identify the others traveling with him because they were at a further distance. After leaving the Orcas we stopped by White Rock to view a herd of harbor seals basking in the sun and a bald eagle sitting atop the rock. The harbor seals had warmed so much in the sun people actually saw steam rising from the seals backs when viewing them through binoculars. While cruising back to harbor, a few guests spotted harbor porpoises swimming along. All and all, it was a wonderful trip. At the end of the trip we had seen Orcas, harbor seals, bald eagles, harbor porpoises, and a variety of seabirds. After many days of rain, today's weather cleared up and heading into Friday Harbor we travelled along mirror-calm sky-blue waters.

Ashley Chapman, Naturalist

Trout Lake High Goes Orca Whale Watching

I took my high school biology class out with you a couple of weeks ago
and had a fantastic time. The kids couldn't say enough about the
trip--the boat, the naturalists, and mostly the whales were really
great. Thanks! I wasn't sure where to send photos for your contest
(this is the only email that I found on the website) so I've attached
them here. I had never seen breaching before (this is probably my
sixth or seventh trip), so when they did it over and over, I was
amazed. I hope it's OK to send fairly large photos. If you want the
whole series, I have six or seven in a row of a couple of different
breaches.
Here are the photos, and thanks again for a great trip. We'll
definitely use you guys again!
Dennis Anderson

Many thanks to Dennis. ;Yes - Fun@SanJuanSafaris.com is where to send your photos for the photo contest. Prize is a whale watching tour for two and the certificate can be transfered (given as a gift to someone else)

Breaking News

Below: photo of the Superpod by Erin Heydenreich of the Center for Whale Research

Hey guys,

I promised I'd give an update about the new animals to our waters, being the small Humpback and the newest member of K Pod.

In regards to the Humpback, which we've named Dot based off the large dot on the underside of the animal's fluke. Apparently Dot is not the animal reported off Vashon Island because that individual was there the same day we saw Dot here and is a bit larger than Dot. This means that our friend's story is still a bit obscure, but we're working on finding out where Dot came from and if anyone else has seen him/her.

Center for Whale Research Report regarding K42, the newest member of K-Pod spy hopping below (photo by Kelley Balcomb-Bartok of the Center for Whale Research). Notice the discoloring? This is common for new calves and a convenient way to pick out a new baby:

Staff confirmed that members of Kpod and Lpod were among the playful social groups, though it has not been determined yet if all the whales from the Southern Resident population were present. During the encounter a small calf was observed swimming in close proximity to sisters K14 and K16, both reproductive age females. Later in the encounter staff determined that the calf was indeed a new calf in K-pod, and observed the calf primarily travelling very near K14 and her older offspring K26 and K36.

Megan, Naturalist

Low Tide Critters

Over the weekend Tom, Joe & I paddled out on two 3-hour tours and were rewarded with fantastic wildlife sightings. That morning a number of critters like raccoons and a black fox had made their way down to the low tide line to paw at the exposed rocks in search of crabs and other tasty treats. Eagles were also plentiful that day, and that afternoon we saw one swooping low into the water very close to shore. A flash of brown caught our eyes and as we paddled closer we saw two river otters swimming at that same spot. Whether the eagle was hoping for some otter meat or was trying to snag their fish we don't know, but it was awesome to see two such beautiful animals up close!

Superpod + 1

Welcome back Ks and Ls!!!!!!!!!!!

Today was our first superpod of the summer! A superpod is when all three pods join together for socialization and mating. The rain didn't stop us as we headed out to Stuart Island to see Js, Ks, and Ls all travelling together. We saw multiple spy hops and tail slaps as they all grouped together for the first time after a long winter. The animals appeared to be in good spirits and nice and fat. We even saw a new calf, which appears to belong to K-14, Lea. Newbies are easy to distinguish due to their mottled coloring, wrinkles, and orangeish patches. This little one can't be very old and so we'll call today its birthday... which happens to be our office manager, Pat's, birthday! Happy birthday Pat and new little K baby!

Today was not only a treat to see the superpod, we also had a researcher guest on board in Adam U of the Center for Whale Research. He was able to get the inside info on the calf as well as provide us with a fresh outlook on the orcas and the studies involving the orcas. He also shared some of his great photos with us as well as fun whale stories.

We do our best to stay 100 yards away at all times, but sometimes the whales choose to come in and say hi. They came in to say hello today right off Turn Point as they surfed through the waves. (Don't worry, our engines were shut down!) We got nice looks at J-42 as she surfed with her mommy right past us with a male from L Pod as well as another J female.

Today was a fabulous trip. We saw a superpod, a new calf, multiple Bald Eagles, and all the Speiden fauna. It's hard as a Naturalist to hold some sort of composure when witnessing such a rare and incredible trip. I'll keep you posted on this new K animal and let you know how its doing throughout the summer. If mom is K-14, then this wouldn't be her first calf and hopefully we can keep this youngster around.

Megan, Naturalist

Play Time

Today was a longer trip on the water as we went through Peavine Pass and headed past Lummi and Cyprus Islands to get to J-Pod who was swimming around just north of Alden Bank. The trip was scenic and we got a great look at a Bald Eagle who hovered just over the bow.

We first made contact with J-Pod just off Birch Point, WA (on the mainland) and they were in high spirits. We saw cartwheel after cartwheel, spyhops, and belly flops. J-27 was quite popular today and our group got many nice photos of him as well as some excellent spy hops. Spyhopping is the act of coming out of the water vertically, and momentarily staying out of the water in a manner akin to a human treading water. A powerful individual can spyhop as much as half of its body out of the water. Spyhops may well be used so that the whale can examine its surroundings above the surface—for instance to look at prey species in the case of Transient Orcas. For this a spyhop may be more useful than a breach, because the view is held steady for a longer period of time.

There's something magical about seeing these animals jump and play in their own environment of their own will as opposed to doing tricks for a fish. Being on the water with wild orcas is truly a life altering experience.

Megan, Naturalist

More on our Humpback Friend

Humpback Whale Ventures Down Sound
By John Dodge The Olympian • Published May 28, 2008

Above: Humpback Whale fluke in Hawaii taken by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)

A humpback whale that has spent the past two weeks lingering near Point Defiance and south Vashon Island appears to be a young adult in no visible sign of distress, Cascadia Research researcher Erin Falcone said Wednesday.

Falcone, who spent part of Tuesday in Dalco Passage photographing the whale, said it appears to be in good skin and body condition. The marine mammal research organization was unable to identify the whale because it didn't show its fluke, or tail, which contains markings unique to each individual animal.

Cascadia, an Olympia-based nonprofit organization, has thousands of humpback fluke photos on file from a just-completed three-year study of the North Pacific whale population. The multinational study involving about 400 researchers revealed a humpback whale population of 18,000 to 20,000 individuals, compared with 1,500 in the North Pacific when whale hunting was banned in 1966.

As the population recovers, humpback whale sightings in Puget Sound have increased to about one a year, Cascadia founder John Calambokidis said. Occasionally, a humpback ventures into South Sound, including a juvenile humpback spotted north of Johnson Point in July 2006 and another young humpback seen in Budd Inlet and Dana Passage in September 2004.
Based on dorsal fin images, which are not as conclusive as flukes, the Point Defiance humpback appears to be new to the area.

It was first sighted near Port Madison on Bainbridge Island on April 12, then settled into Dalco Passage between Tacoma and Vashon Island on May 12, said Howard Garrett of the Orca Network.

The whale was seen diving and surfacing repeatedly Wednesday.

The humpback, one of the largest whale species and known for its complex songs, was common in Puget Sound in the 1800s, before commercial whale hunting, Calambokidis said.

Local populations were all but wiped out by whaling by the turn of the century, he added.

This time of year, 300 to 500 humpback whales congregate to feed off the northern Washington coast west of Cape Flattery, he said.

Naturalist Notes:

This sounds like it's the little one we saw yesterday. This article was published on the Orca Network http://www.orcanetwork.org/. We were curious about this particular animal's behavior and called our marine mammal research friends, Adam U and Jean Olsen, as soon as we confirmed it to be a humpback. They got a wonderful shot of the animal's fluke yesterday, which they sent in to the Orca Network and Erin Falcone for indentification. Hopefully by figuring out who this guy is, we can piece together more of its story. It is our goal that by being active in the whale watch industry, we may see things that can help biologists develop a better understanding of cetaceans and how to help them. I'll be sure to let you all know when we get an ID on our humpback. We have a trip going out this afternoon at 1pm, and if we're lucky we might see this animal again.

Megan, Naturalist

Whale of a Day

Today was absolutely perfect! J-Pod was foraging between Cattle Pass and Lime Kiln and were especially friendly to the Sea Lion, our 55' vessel. The guests had amazing looks at J-1 as he parallelled our boat for about 15 minutes. He, along with J-16 and her calf J-42 gave us a great show. J-42 seemed to be in high spirits as she breached multiple times in front of the boat. As we continued up the west side of San Juan Island, we got even better looks at J-27 (Blackberry) as he surprised us right off out port side! He hung out nearby for a few breaths before rejoining his family offshore. We also saw Princess Angeline and her daughter Tallequah, but no looks at Polaris, Princess Angeline's oldest daughter (and my favorite). As if looks at J-Pod, Bald Eagles, Harbor Seals, and Mouflon Sheep weren't enough... we also saw a juvenile HUMPBACK WHALE swimming in San Juan Channel. Captain Pete has been doing this for twelve years and this was the first time he saw a humpback in the San Juan Channel! This juvenile was such a shock that we called a group of marine mammal researchers to come out and photograph the animal in hopes of figuring its story out. We will keep you posted on what they find out. Either way, the humpback gave us a nice show as it parrallelled us heading north up San Juan Channel from Shaw Island to Yellow Island. We even got to see some deeper dives where the animal hoisted its back out of the water and lifted its fluke (tail), giving us some great photo opps. Today was a perfect day... it's always nice when the animals lend a hand/flipper!

Every day is full of surprises and you never know what amazing things you'll see when you book a trip with San Juan Safaris.

Megan Young, Naturalist