Alexandra Morton-Whales and Salmon

Wild Salmon are sacred, the Get Out Migration
Vancouver Island, April 23 - May 8
The Get Out Migration is a call to action to make government aware that we want wild salmon to take higher priority than farm salmon. Farms belong on land. We will start walking from Sointula, at the north end of Vancouver Island, on April 23 and arrive in Victoria May 8. Hundreds of people have pledged to walk portions of the trip, there are events under planning every night (itinerary).
There are simultaneous migrations springing up in BC and other places in the world (See here). People are making salmon flags, placcards and artwork to carry as they join us on the way. On May 8 we do the final stretch from the Vancouver ferry to the Victoria Parliament Buildings.
This is an opportunity for every single person who wants wild salmon to make themselves visible to government. Unless we all stand up our fish will continuing dying of politics that no longer serve the people, nor our living world.
People are also taking action by signing our global petition for wild salmon, joining 20,000 people in signing the letter to the Minister of Fisheries, sending a card to westcoast Fisheries critic MP Fin Donnelly. And send us pictures of your wild salmon art and you.
The tragedy of the commons is common but if we all stand up we do not have to be this tragedy.
I look forward to seeing you downstream,
Alexandra Morton


I you have not read her book "Listening to the Whales and What They Have Taught Us"
you are in for a treat!
Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Finally! A sunny day in the San Juan Islands. Although we're situated in the rainy pacific northwest, the San Juan islands see more sun than Seattle, Washington or even Portland, Oregon. Which is counter intuitive, because in the Pacific Northwest, the further north you get, the more rain you stand to have fall on your head. Texas actually has more annual rainfall than Washington, but it comes in torrential downpours accompanied by amazing displays of thunder and lightning, like the Gods ARE fighting on Mt. Olympus. But here in the Pacific Northwest, its more as if an angel were crying; we receive a little rain each day, a slight suppressing drizzle that keeps the sky covered in a nimbostratus cloud.

The Olympic Peninsula, to our south features the temperate rain forest whereas, just 30 miles to the north, San Juan Island features cactus. The question is, how can you get such an ecological shift in such a short distance?? San Juan Island is surrounded by a protective ring of mountains, the Olympics to our south, the Cascades to our east and the Coast mountains to our north and west. The clouds occasionally get caught on the tops of these mountains, leaving us in a ring of sunlight. And that's the rain shadow. There's is nothing on this planet like being on the sea in the sun, where water reflects light like a mirror. Even the dorsal fins of the Orcas reflect the light. Today we saw 8 Transients, heading south, including a calf.

Orcas gestate for 16-17 months and nurse for about 2 years. A female only gives birth once every 3-5 years. The calves are born tail first to enable their survival, that way they don't drown during the birthing process. Like most mammals, including humans, the calves are excitable and curious. Often when a calf first learns to breach, it will breach over and over again as if to say to the world, 'This feels good!' We once had an Orca breach a few feet away from our boat, which is surprising considering their amazing powers of echolocation. They have an incredibly accurate sense of their surroundings.


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Transient Orca Whale Today

Our boat Sea Lion spent about 1/2 an hour with 5 transient orca whales today off Lopez Island.
Captain Craig told me they even made a kill while guests were watching. He said the water was clear and calm. Today it is about 50 degrees with a slight wind may be 10 - 15 knots.

Due to demand, we have added a tour Sunday, April 18 at 12:30 PM.
Get your reservations in now. 800 450 6858.

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Shetland Island and San Juan Island: Related?

Friday Harbor could soon have a new sister city — Shetland Islands, Scotland

Mar 05 2010, 11:33 AM

Friday Harbor could soon have a new sister city — Shetland Islands, Scotland.

A visit from Mark Burgess, a member of the Scalloway Community Council in the Shetland Islands, sparked a correspondence between Friday Harbor Mayor Carrie Lacher and Alexander J. Cluness, convener of the Shetland Islands Council (convenor is the equivalent of mayor). That led to an exchange of information about their respective communities, and now Lacher's formal invitation to establish a sister city relationship. Read on

PS we carry Mark Gardners San Juan Islands Books

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Orca Whale Regulations

Here is a letter that we sent to NOAA regarding the changes they wish to make in whale watching regulations around the San Juan Islands. If you too would like to see the regulations stay at 100 yards, the precautionary distance (and not a proposed150, 200, 300 or 400 yards) write to orca.plan@noaa.gov. by January 15, 2010.

To: NOAA

RE: Orca Regulations

January 13, 2010

I am reluctant to get excited about the surge of new orca calves, but I feel compelled to state the obvious.

Do you really believe now that boats have any thing to do with past declines in orca numbers?

Using the “science” you have shown me so far, we must now believe the more the orcas are watched, the more babies they will have.

It also seems that you are making decisions based on data collected five years ago which is currently not valid do to new state regulations in place.

What we need is more enforcement and

1. Vessels may not negligently be within 100 meters of the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW)
2. Vessels must avoid the established path of SRKW
3. Vessels must obey a 7 knot speed restriction year round from Eagle Point to Mitchell Point, along San Juan Island, out ½ mile

Anything imposed on the whale watching industry over the above, is not supported by science, isn’t rational and would be over reaching with no up side for the orcas.

Bill Wright

San Juan Safaris

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

J pod near San Juan Island for New Years Day!

J pod was spotted yesterday, January 1 off Race Rocks near Victoria. They were then spotted later off the west side of San Juan Island. Many folks heard them on the back of hydrophones off Lime Kiln State Park.

That is a great way to bring in the new year.


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

A Sensational Season!

What a season this has been. This is my first year working out on the boats and I love it. I always knew that I would be a good boat person and I am. I have turned into such a wharf rat, it is unbelievable. Even on days that I am not scheduled to be out, that is the only place that I want to be. At the end of the day, if there is still sunlight, then there is still time to be on the water. And it is not just the orcas that have made this such an outstanding experience, even though they definitely help.

No, this summer has been great for the crews on the boats, the staff in the offices, the captains, the guests, the orcas and the wildlife. The weather and the water have been a treat as well, and are what draw me to the boats anytime I have a free moment. It is the swaying of the docks and the shushing sound of the waves on the sides of the boats. Even the distress calls that have arisen this season. Both our own and other boats', like today.

It was a cold and wet day today, but what started out as a trip with no orca reports and a very good chance of no wildlife at all, turned out to be an exciting and invigorating time on the water. One of our fellow whale/wildlife watching boats was in need of assistance, so Capt. Brian, a captain on loan for the day, wasted no time in responding to the call. Luckily the issue was resolved before we got there, but we still took 13 people on to our boat and integrated them into our original tour. Which took a surprising turn for the best, when the formerly distressed boat came across a pod of transient orcas not 2 miles from Friday Harbor, on its way back to port.

Well, that was a boon for us. So we quickly changed direction and had a wet, but wonderful time with the orcas that are labeled as the T19s. There were 5-6 of them spread out and swimming every which way, but we did our best and offered our guests all that we had in terms of knowledge and expertise. The afternoon was a success and the visitors on the M/V Sea Lion could all say that they had seen orcas and been part of a high seas rescue!

Capt. Brian and Lauren were great and I thank them for the job that they did today. I would also like to thank all of our original guests for being so understanding and accommodating when we responded to the distress of our fellow boater. And to all of the people that joined us later, thank you for your enthusiasm and we were happy to have you aboard.

So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris, to all of you out there, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Hide and Seek

Luckily, we did not have to look too far today, although the orcas were being a bit cagey. Capt. Craig took us out of Friday Harbor at an exaggeratedly slow speed, because the Coast Guard had sent out a radio warning about a submerged house boat that was adrift in San Juan Channel. How something can be submerged and adrift I do not know, but we were on the lookout for it. That was just the distraction that we needed though. We were nearly to Turn Island and we had not gotten up to speed yet when the announcement was made that there were orcas on the west side of San Juan Island at Lime Kiln Point State Park. Wow, what a save; Jaclyn and I took it as an opportunity to run around the boat yelling for joy. Up until that point we were destined for the south end of the island to look for a whale of questionable lineage that was going down on 20 minute dives.

A quick u-turn got us headed in the right direction though, and away we went. As we looped over the top of San Juan Island and motored through the glass-like waters of Haro Strait past Henry Island, I noticed a disturbance in the water well off of our port side. I minute of looking with the binoculars and I spotted a lone orca quickly swimming in the opposite direction to us and unnoticed by any of the other whale watch boats. Capt. Craig once again initiated a slick u-turn and we played catch-up and watched as what turned out to be two orcas with a group of four more behind cruised between us and Henry Island.

With no other boats in our immediate vicinity, we had found the leaders in this orcas experience and we were perfectly situated to watch them all swim by, group after group. J1 "Ruffles", J2 "Granny", K42 "Kelp", K14 "Lea", K11 "Georgia", K26 "Lobo", J27 "Blackberry" and many more. There was baby breaching, adult breaching, tail and pectoral fin slapping and two huge cartwheels just as we left the area. The orcas were absolutely beautiful and our guests had a wonderful time on the water.

So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris, to all of you who love the black-and-whites, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!

~Tristen, Naturalist

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Here Comes The Sun Again

After what appeared to be the start of fall and winter, we are now back to the September weather that we are all so fond of. September really is the best month to see the islands and today was a perfect example of that.

I welcomed a lovely group of guests onto the M/V Kittiwake this afternoon and we headed off on our tour. The orcas were at the south end and west side of San Juan Island today, so it was difficult to decide where to go. Capt. Bill did a fabulous job though, and after taking us up San Juan Channel, past Spieden Island and through John's Pass, we arrived at Turn Point on Stuart Island just in time to see the orcas shoot off of it and out into Boundary Pass. They were in a rambunctious mood today too.

The orcas were traveling in two large main groups that were closely packed together with 30-40 animals in the area. They swam at a fast clip, but spent a bit of time tail slapping and lobbing as well as breaching. Especially, near a research boat that was taking breath samples, so it was motoring right alongside the whales. There was definitely a lot of high energy and it must have translated to the other species, since four Dall's porpoises shot past our boat leaving rooster tails behind them. They headed north and after several hundred yards dipped down and disappeared.

The orcas though, continued on across Boundary Pass and up Swanson Channel past North Pender Island. We watched as long as we could, but we finally had to say goodbye to the orcas and Canada and get headed back home. Along the way we stopped to see harbor seals at Ripple Rocks and a lone bald eagle on one of the Cactus Islands. The day was warm and sunny and perfect and I am so glad that I have taken the opportunity to live this life.

So, from all of us here at San Juan Safaris, to all of you travel bugs out there, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Tales of Whales

Some days are just not like the others and sometimes the orcas do things that we just can not predict. Yesterday, members of K and L pods swam up San Juan Channel between San Juan and Lopez Islands. That was only the second time this season that they have done that, and we were there to see it. They made it all the way to Friday Harbor before they turned around and headed back south. It was a lovely, mostly clear day and with the orcas traveling in two large, close groups it was easy to both see and hear them.

One of our young guests has had an adoption of "Moonlight" for a couple of years and he was anxious to see her. With so many animals around it was hard to tell at times which individuals were there, but he and I were both pretty sure that we saw her family. There was also "Flash", "Saanich", "Raggedy", "Cappuccino", "Ino" and many, many more.

It was a unique and interesting opportunity to see these animals right in and amongst our islands. No one can say why they choose to come through here, or why they usually do not. There is salmon in the area, as evidenced by the seals and sea lions that we see feeding on them. Even yesterday, in a little cove on Sentinel Island, there was a young harbor seal with a huge fish and lots of seagulls around begging for scraps. So food is available, but whether it is not plentiful enough, or if there is too much boat traffic it is hard to say what directs the orcas' paths to the outer channels and straits. Luckily for us and our guests on the M/V Kittiwake though, the orcas chose a different path this time and we were there to witness it.

So, from Capt. Craig, me and all of the crew at San Juan Safaris, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

The Sun Has Set

It was inevitable, but sad all of the same. Tonight was our last evening trip. We did not waste it though and we had a lovely group of guests out with us on the M/V Sea Lion. Even though there were no resident orcas tonight we still saw all kinds of wonderful wildlife.

As Capt. Pete toured us through the islands, we stopped time and again for harbor seals hauled out on rocks. Of course, there is always a method to Capt. Pete's madness and he was stopping at all of the places that a transient, or marine mammal eating orca, would hunt. The seals' cute faces watched us from the rocks and water as we glided by watching them. The pups are almost all weaned now and it is getting harder to tell the youngsters from the adults.

Bald eagles have had a good breeding season this year and all of our active nests have now fledged their chicks. With San Juan County having the highest density of bald eagles in the State of Washington, it is not surprising when you see them on each island that you pass. Ashley and I were kept busy spotting not only the adults, but the all brown juveniles as well. With the great evening lighting though, it was perfect for picking them out amongst the trees.

A loop out through Haro Strait unfortunately did not produce any Dall's porpoises, but the whole trip was heavily laden with sightings of harbor porpoises. Their little dark dorsal fins dotted the waters, especially anywhere that there were multiple currents mixing and churning. We did get a surprise though, when we came around the corner between the Cactus Islands and saw a Steller's sea lion. These guys are still supposed to be up in Alaska. This was probably a sub-adult male that just was not quite big enough or sexy enough to win any females. Hopefully next year will be better for him.

We closed out our evening with a cruise past Spieden Island. What an amazing way to end the most beautiful part of our season. The mouflon sheep, sika deer and fallow deer were out in herds. Every hillside and crevice was dotted with animals. They all mingled together, peacefully grazing on the dry summer grass. Several males from each species were out and the racks of antlers and horns were incredibly impressive. In our slow pass along the island, we also had chances to see the lion's mane jellyfish with it's blood red tentacles slowing sliding past the boat.

The sunset was a crowning glory to a last wonderful evening. So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris, to all of you that spent your evenings with us, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Orca Magic

Capt. Peter, Ashley and I spent the afternoon with "Spirit" and her boys today. A mother's love and authority are never in question and L22 gave a great demonstration of that. All was quiet and calm when we first arrived on scene. L79 "Skana" was doing his own thing and L22 "Spirit" was within sight, for us humans, but in her own space away from her son. They were moving at an exaggeratedly slow pace and "Skana" was above water for so long each time that he blew that we could see the small nick in the tip of his dorsal fin. The dives were long and there were some direction changes, but for the most part they seemed to be drifting with the currents.

Rather suddenly though, "Skana" and "Spirit" changed direction and sped up. They moved in side-by-side and were definitely traveling northwest. As we motored along trying to keep, we were surprised by another male orca that popped up right behind us. Nobody had seen him up until then. It was L85 "Mystery". He quickly joined the others, but then there was another and another! Suddenly we were watching a family of 5 orcas moving quickly through the waters on there way to somewhere important.

It is of course unclear to those of us above water how the decision to change direction and speed was made, much less who made it. But once the word went out, all of the family responded. With our resident orcas living in a matriarchal society, it makes sense that "Spirit" is the one that decides the who, how, when and where. It may be more diplomatic than that, but the decision was obviously agreed upon and/or followed by all involved.

We finally said goodbye to this proud family and wended our way back to Friday Harbor. Once at the dock we unloaded other proud families that had made many memories today as well as a connection with an intelligent and devoted species of the earth. So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Sleight of Flipper

In these vast, life rich inland waters you just never know what you are going to happen upon. Even when it is an orca. One of our fellow whale watch companies was off looking for minke whales when, lo and behold, there were orcas around. The first reports were of transient orcas. These mammal eating orcas look just like our fish eating residents, with just a few small morphological differences and a vastly different diet.

Capt. Nancy gave the guests on the MV Sea Lion the run-down as to what to expect, but as we were headed south the news came around that the orcas were actually members of L pod. What a surprise as we had already told everyone that all of the resident orcas were traveling through Active Pass in Canada. The news did not change our plans, of course, because we are looking for those black and whites regardless of the type.

A group of eight animals is what we found near the Hannah Heights area of San Juan Island. Passing on one side and then another, while others blew in the distance were L73 "Flash", L74 "Saanich", L54 "Ino" and one of her offspring. As we watched, the sun started to burn through the high fog and clouds and brought a lovely light to the afternoon.

As the day wore on Kathy and I enjoyed the company of our guests and found eagles and seals and lots of seabirds. We answered questions all of the way back to Friday Harbor and were sorry to see the trip end. So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris to all of you, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
P.S. - To the wedding party parents from yesterday, congratulations and we delivered orcas for the ceremony right on time!

~Tristen, Naturalist

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Echolocation

Our sunset trip was amazing last night. We traveled around the south end of San Juan Island toward the Lime Kiln State Park. K-pod had been sighted near the light house. As soon as we arrived we were able to identify K-11.

We shut off our engine and put our hydrophone in the water. The next couple of minutes were astounding. K-pod was being particularly vocal. It is currently understood that orcas use echolocation for communication, navigation and hunting.

The process of echolocation is fascinating. Orcas do not have vocal cords in their larynx, but are able to create sounds by moving in air sacs by the blowhole. The orcas send out these high pitched clicking sounds through their melon (fatty area on their head); these sounds then are thought to hit objects. The sound then “echo’s back”, sends vibrations through the lower jaw. It is believed that these animals are able to determine the distance, size, speed, shape and even direction of objects. It is also thought that an orca’s clicks can be heard up to five miles away by other orcas.

It’s always a great adventure with San Juan Safaris!

Naturalist Jeannette Miller
Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Black-and-Whites of a Different Color

Not all black and white creatures are created the same, as well we know. No one would mistake a zebra for an orca. But someone might mistake a Dall's porpoise for an orca. Especially if the orca is expected and the Dall's porpoise is not.

That was not exactly what happened tonight, but it was a surprise none the less. Capt. Denny and I knew we would probably not see orcas, unless we were to happen upon some transients. The last thing we anticipated though, was to see Dall's porpoises in San Juan Channel near Cattle Pass. What a shock to see black-and-whites that were not orcas. Especially since the Dall's have been mysteriously missing this season. There have been very few sightings, least of all in Cattle Pass.

Well, we quick turned around and cruised in circles until the porpoises hooked on to the boat. They rode the bow and splashed through the wake. Famous for the rooster tails that they spray from their dorsal fins when swimming at high speed, they left trails as they careened around the MV Kittiwake. When we shut down our motor and just drifted with the current, the porpoises continued to circle and dive under the boat. They slowly calmed down, until we could follow their bold black and white markings under the water and see where they were going to come up for a breath each time. They surfaced time and again next to the boat and at the stern and we could hear them blow each time. The experience was beautiful and moving and was definitely one of the highlights of the season.

Of course, the other wildlife not wanting to be outdone, a bald eagle dropped into the water near our boat and grabbed a large fish, which he then devoured on the rocks in front of us. The evening just hummed with wild lives and we were allowed to share in it. So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris to all of you memory makers out there, thank you and we will...

See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

San Juan Seal

Saturday, this seal pup was noticed in the early
afternoon just behind our San Juan Safaris offices
on the water front. We thought it could be the pup
of Popey - Friday Harbor's habituated female
harbor seal with one good eye.



Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Wow! What a day of Watching Whales!

Days like today reaffirm why I love my job - as if working out on the water, viewing amazing wildlife, and talking to all sorts of interesting people is a job that needs any reaffirmation - but anyway ... Captain Craig, Naturalist Kathy, a boat full of enthusiastic guests, and I left Friday Harbor aboard the MV Sea Lion and headed back in the direction many people had just come from - travelling, that is, the same route the ferry takes to get to us here on San Juan Island. The southern end of the island was reporting socked in in fog, making for less than ideal viewing conditions. Captain Craig had heard there were whales headed in that direction, but that there was also some orcas out in the Rosario Strait. We decided to head to the reportedly larger group of whales in a less foggy area (seems logical, eh?). As we passed through Thatcher's Pass, a pass between Blakely and Decatur Islands, we started to see whales thrashing and splashing in the distance.

When we arrived on scene, we travelled alongside a large group of animals travelling in a tight group. Whales in this group included Alexis (L12), and some, if not all of her children, including Mega (L41), a 32 year old male. This group turned out to be the whales that earlier had been headed south, but had turned around, apparently to meet up with a large group of orcas slightly to our north. We had some fantastic views of this group as they shifted their travel direction to head over to the other orcas!

After some wonderful views of the L-12 family, we didn't expect our trip could get any better! But, lo and behold the orcas decided to meet up and we witnessed something unique to the resident orca communities, but more common amongst the Southern Resident community - what appeared to be a greeting ceremony! This is where the two groups that are meeting up gather facing one another, then dive, mill, and appear to be greeting one another after some time of being apart. As the whales then began moving southward, they travelled close to shore breaching, tail-slapping, and also doing more cartwheels than I have likely ever seen in one day before.

To make a great day superb, the entire trip was filled with sunshine & smiles.
Ah, life in the islands!
Ashley, Naturalist







Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

ORCAS IN FRIDAY HARBOR???!?!!!

Wow! Yesterday (Saturday) was unreal! We were out on a morning tour in Canadian Waters viewing Orcas from J & K pods! It was a stunning morning on the water...a little fog to the south, otherwise clear skies & calm seas all around the islands. Both J & K pods were heading south from the Gulf Islands on their routine swim following salmon through these waters. We had great views as groups of whale would surface to breathe...and we could hear the blows (hot moist air) being expelled through the blowhole! A few breaches...tail slaps! After a great time with the whales, we were able to find a few bald eagles perched on trees and harbor seals lounging on the rocks. It was a perfect day!

Were we in for a surprise!! We were heading home when Captain Denny and I overheard our other vessel the Sea Lion talking to another captain about the whales. We looked at each other and wondered how can they already be there? They just left Friday Harbor not more than 20 minutes ago...we phoned the boat and to our disbelief L pod was in San Juan Channel!! More Orcas!! Right outside our home port of Friday Harbor. This happens on occasion (once a year?), but it is really unusual and such a treat!! Our guests were delighted! We were somewhat trapped from even getting into the harbor actually....the ferry even had to shutdown and wait for the whales to pass! There were a lot of boats out to also view the Orcas....it's important that we all remember during this excitement to disengage a vessel's transmission when within 100 yards of the Orcas, and whenever possible to be respectful and give them the 100 yards of space as required by law! Despite the boats, they sure seemed to be enjoying themselves...breach after breach and tail slaps as they continued south through the channel! Wow.

An unbelievable day with the whales!
-Jaclyn, naturalist



Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

Wildlife in the San Juans

What a phenomenal day for wildlife viewing in the San Juan Islands. We headed south in the San Juan Channel and then up the west side of San Juan Island.

We encountered L-pod off shore of False Bay. It was amazing out there. The water was so calm, we shut down our engines and listened to the orcas as they surfaced to breathe. Every encounter with the orcas is amazing but today was exceptional. Orcas everywhere.

On the way back to Friday Harbor we took a look at Long Island to see a Bald eagles nest. We also saw a beautiful mature bald eagle. We then saw some Harbor seals hauled out on Whale Rocks. Lots of pups were born this year and they are very adorable. And just when everyone thought we were done viewing wildlife we saw Harbor porpoises.

Another great adventure with San Juan Safaris.
Naturalist Jeannette Miller

Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©

North and South, J's and L's!!!

We had a whale-packed day out on the MV Sea Lion today! Captain Craig, naturalist Jeannette, and I cruised all over the islands. During our afternoon trip we made our way north to Turn Point on Stuart Island (the most northwestern point of the islands AND the most northwestern point in the continental United States!). When we arrived to Turn Point J Pod was cruising on past in one tight knit group, with a few members dispersed here and there. J-1 and J-27 where in the tight pack, but as we approached closer to Turn Point J-1 (Ruffles) separated a little from the pod to do his own thing. J pod is the most resident of the three pods that make up the Southern Resident Community (the community of orcas people are typically thinking about when they hear of orcas in this area), they generally come back into the islands waters' at least once a month every month of the year. They gave us quite a show but moved rather quickly northward, so as we made our way back to Friday Harbor we were glad to here there were other orcas located somewhere near the south end of San Juan Island!

We boarded the boat for the evening tour, and headed in the opposite direction from the afternoon trip. Southward bound we cruised, excited to see what whales were located off the south side. We caught up with the whales near Castle Island of the southern side of Lopez Island. They were (just like J pod in the afternoon!) in a one tight-knit group with a few outliers here and there. We saw L 78 travelling a bit separate from the group and a few others here and there, but for the most part there was a large group spyhopping, porpoising, breaching, etc etc. It was a wonderful show on glassy calm sun-lit waters!


Orca Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©