If you were considering Bell Air Charters From San Juan Island-Anacortes

You might be better off renting a car in Seattle and driving to Anacortes. Cheaper. Dependable.
Read this review:

http://quilldancer.com/2010/02/24/good-bye-bellair-charters-airporter-shuttle/Orca Whales

Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Another Baby Orca Whale in the San Juan Islands

Another baby orca!! L pod has a calf L114. The Southern Resident Killer Whales now have 89 animals. Yahooooooooo!


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Friday Harbor: I feel the Earth, Move, Under My Feet

Last updated February 20, 2010 9:12 a.m. PT

USGS reports small earthquake in Salish Sea

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Feb 20, 2010

FRIDAY HARBOR, Wash. -- A small earthquake has been reported in the Strait of Juan de Fuca between Victoria, B.C., and Washington state.

No injuries or damages have been reported, and the 3.3-magnitude underwater quake was too small to generate a tsunami.

The U.S. Geological survey says the temblor struck at 2:05 a.m. Saturday along the Washington-Canada maritime border. It was centered 10 miles southeast of Victoria and 16 miles south-southwest of Friday Harbor, Wash.

The USGS says more than 100 people in Victoria reported feeling the earthquake.

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Birding Festival Near San Juan Island Feb 20, 2010

Snow Goose Festival Link click here

Take a gander at Port Susan Snow Goose and Birding Festival
By Gale Fiege, Herald Writer
STANWOOD — The fifth annual Port Susan Snow Goose and Birding Festival is all about bird watchers.

Planned are informational speakers, educational presentations, guided tours to the Nature Conservancy’s Port Susan Preserve and Iverson Spit, and buses to take people to the fields where the snow geese and trumpeter swans are hanging out and eating.

... The festival is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Floyd Norgaard Cultural Center, 27130 102nd Ave. NW, Stanwood, and at the Four Springs Lake Preserve, 585 Lewis Lane, Camano Island.

More at

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Wind in Friday Harbor San Juan Island

You can see by the shape of the clouds how hard the wind was blowing around 1 PM. It is much stronger now - at least 40 MPH. The masts on the sail boats in front of our office are "rocking".
Good time to cuddle up to the fire place at your favorite island B & B.
Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Victoria Raw Sewage and Orca Whales

This story goes WAY back.
Many know that Victoria's sewage is dumped untreated into the ocean off Victoria.
Yes, there is an upwelling effect that mixes, minces and disperses the sewage, but, today there are so many pharmaceuticals and other chemicals in the sewage that most think treatment prior to dumping is essential to the health of the waters.

Looks like there is some movement on that front.

2/10 Victoria Times-Colonist
Feds to bring in sewage rules, another push toward treatment for Victoria
By Cindy E. Harnett, Times Colonist

Proposed national waste water standards for Canadian municipalities were released by the federal government yesterday, providing another push toward secondary sewage treatment for Greater Victoria.

"We are taking action to protect our environment for future generations," said Environment Minister Jim Prentice.

"It is not acceptable that we continue discharging untreated waste into our waterways."

The B.C. government has already ordered Greater Victoria to treat waste water currently pumped into the ocean after screening.

... The CRD plan is to start building sewage-treatment plants this year and have treatment in place by 2016.

If passed by Parliament following public consultation this year, the federal regulations will require Victoria to have sewage treatment by 2020.
Read the rest of this story by clicking here

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

West Coast Waves Growing

2/8 Victoria Times Colonist
West Coast waves getting bigger
By Judith Lavoie, Victoria Times Colonist

VICTORIA — West Coast waves are getting bigger, meaning greater threats of flooding or coastal erosion during storms, according to a new study.

The research, using data from buoys that have been in place off the coast of Oregon since the 1970s, was published in the journal Coastal Engineering.

Scientists from Oregon State University and the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries found coastal waves have been increasing by about 2.5 centimetres a year and storm waves by 10 centimetres a year. The difference in storm waves translates to a three-metre rise from 30 years ago.

But the biggest difference will be seen in projected 100-year wave events, said Peter Ruggiero, assistant professor in the university's department of geosciences and one of the study's authors.

The highest waves might now reach 15 metres compared with 10 metres in 1996, the study said. Read more here:

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Free Willy released on DVD

So the press release goes. . .
The fun and adventure are back! Fans of the Free Willy series will cheer this exciting family film about a baby orca who needs a friend and a girl who finds the courage to help him. After young Kirra (Bindi Irwin) leaves her Australian home to summer with her grandfather (Beau Bridges) in South Africa, she soon discovers a baby orca stranded in the lagoon near her grandfather’s rundown seaside amusement park. She names the lonely whale Willy – and embarks on a great quest to lead the little guy back to his anxious pod before her grandfather’s greedy rival turns Willy into a captive, moneymaking attraction at his slick theme park. A little girl, a little orca and big, big fun and adventure!
Escape From Pirates Cove

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Clean Water for Orca Whales

Major polluter tax bills introduced in Olympia

Posted by Jim Brunner

OLYMPIA -- The big environmental bill of the legislative session -- a proposal to triple the tax on oil, pesticides and other chemicals and devote the money to storm water cleanup -- was formally introduced today in the state House and Senate.

House Bill 3181 (and Senate Bill 6851) would triple the "hazardous substances" tax created by a 1988 voter initiative.

That could raise as much as $250 million a year to clean up polluted storm water that has been cited as the leading threat to the health of Puget Sound and other waterways.

Read more on clean water for whales here

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

more transient whales

More Transient whales yesterday around Victoria.
Have a beautiful and mild day in Friday Harbor today with just a light breeze. Fluffy clouds with a baby blue sky.
Had waterfowl on the pond this week end:
Canada Geese (of course) widgeon, (AKA squeeky ducks) snow goose, mallard duck my own Toluse Goose and African Gray Goose and throw in a Bald Eagle at the edge of the pond.


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Two Trumpeter Swans & Transient Orca Whales

One my way into town today there were two adult Trumpeter Swans in the pond by Trumpter B & B. Lovely to watch.

Transients from February 4th reportedly killed (and ate at least in part) a Minke whale.
More Transients yesterday near Race Rocks.

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

News on the T-100 transient orca whales

NOAA
Yesterday were successful in deploying satellite tags on T100B & T100C, and will be posting maps of their movements on the Cascadia Research website in the next few days.

These are the transient orca whales we usually associate with Canada.


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Transient Orca Super Pod

The "T 100's" have a new baby. Yesterday, Wednesday Feb 3, 2010,
There was aparently a good deal of vocalization going on - unusual for transients.
Late in the day 20 to 25 animals were reported in Oak Bay, Victoria.

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Clean Water for Orca Whales

OLYMPIA — The health of Puget Sound is a mixed bag of improvement and continued decline, according to a State of the Sound report issued Tuesday by the Puget Sound Partnership.

The partnership, created by the state Legislature in 2007 to help cure what ails Puget Sound by 2020, looked at 20 indicators to evaluate the condition of Puget Sound in its first status report.

Eight of the 20 indicators show a slip in health and seven others show improvement. Five others lack information to determine a trend.

... The partnership still needs to set Puget Sound cleanup goals and deadlines to really measure progress or lack of it, said Kathy Fletcher executive director of the conservation group People for Puget Sound and first director of the Puget Sound Water Quality Authority.

More at
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/1124384.html

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Director Of Friday Harbor Labs-GO

North Carolina February 12, 2010

"Big, Fast and Bulletproof: What One Biologist Has Learned From 300 Million Years Of Shark Evolution"**

Free lecture by shark expert and "Finding Nemo" technical advisor Dr. Adam Summers,
Assoc. Director of Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington

Friday, February 12^th
6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences
11 W. Jones Street, Downtown Raleigh

Space is limited. Reserve your free ticket now at https://tickets.naturalsciences.org

While you're there, get a sneak preview of the exhibit /Megalodon: Largest Shark That Ever Lived from 5-8 PM (opening to the general public the next day, Saturday, Feb. 13^th ).
/Megalodon/ preview discount pricing: $5 (adults), $3 (children, ages 5-11), Free for museum members.

Please reserve separate tickets for the talk and the exhibit sneak preview if you plan to attend both.
Lecture is recommended for guests 12 years and older.
Exhibit is recommended for everyone.

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

You Know It Is All Inter-Connected

LEGISLATURE 2010
Check in with the Environmental Priorities Coalition to get the latest legislative developments in the fight to fund storm water pollution prevention, make baby bottles safe, and sustain environmental protections in the state budget. To keep track of the bills People For Puget Sound is working on, go to our Legislative Updates. To get active, join our activist network. People For Puget Sound GO!

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©