Posts Tagged ‘Humpback Whale’
Saturday, October 15th, 2011
No orca whale reports today, BUT as we pulled out of Friday Harbor the Captain received word of a humpback whale by Halibut Island, Canada. It took us nearly an hour to get to the location but there it was – a beautiful humpback whale. It looked as though it was feeding the entire time we were with it – almost ½ an hour. When it dove down, one could see many of the ‘knuckles’ on it’s back. Two of the many dives it waved it tail gently before disappearing into the water. Speaking of water, the depth of the water in that location was about 150 feet deep.
This was the last tour of the season.
I
We will reopen for whale & wildlife tours April 14, 2012. See you next year!
Naturalist, Colleen Johansen
Tags: Bald Eagle, friday harbor, Harbor Seal, Humpback Whale, Orca whale, Orcas, san juan island, seattle whale watching, Spieden Island, Stellar sea lion, whale watching near seattle
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Saturday, October 8th, 2011
Headed south down the east side of San Juan Island.A single mature bald eagle was spotted up in a tree. We paused to view it, then off it went. We went a bit further south, then stopped a rock outcrop with TONS of Stellars Sea Lions. Lounging, posturing, snoozing, swimming. They where piled up with scads of cormorants and a variety of gulls. You could smell that these animals were all fish eaters. (Hey, watch it, I kinda like that fragrance!) The boat sat with the engine off and twirled in the current. Pretty cool right at that spot in the water.
50/50 chance of seeing whales is what I gave it. BUT . . . It was a WHALE day for sure. We were on the west side of San Juan Island south of Lime Kiln, north of False Bay, about a mile from shore. A single male resident orca surfaced. Solo. We could not see any other whales for quite some time. The boat moved further north, then we began to see what looked like two females. While sitting with the engine off, after about 20 mintues, a female off our bow start slapping her pectoral fin. Over and over.she slapped. Almost as if waving to us. She kept this up for several minutes. I am not sure just how many orcas there were. They were all very s p r e a d out. None were breaching. None were surfacing. It seemed like heavy duty prey finding.
There was a report of Humpback whales 3 miles from us - closer to Canada. Off we went. There were a few other boats already on scene. Two humpbacks were swimming side by side in sync with each others movements. Another whale was solo. I kept expecting a fluke. Sure enough, when I was not looking, Shelly saw the tail. We stayed with these whales about 20 minutes. Then we turned and started homeward – southish. The orcas were still in the same area. Stilled looked like fishing and eating mode to me.
What a great “Tail End of the Season tour this was!
Naturalist, Colleen Johansen
Tags: Bald Eagle, Cattle Pass, friday harbor, Harbor Seal, Humpback Whale, j pod, K Pod, Lopez Island, Orca whale, orca whales, salish sea, san juan island, seattle whale watching, Southern Resident Killer Whales, whale watching near seattle, whale watching tour
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Tuesday, August 30th, 2011
Well, we just did the math. From August 1- 29 we have ran a total of 49 Whale Watches. Of those 49 trips we successfully located whales 47 times. And not just Orca, but Minke and Humpback Whales as well!! That is a 96% success rate at seeing whales on our trips.
On top of whales we have also been seeing Stellar’s Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoise, Dall’s Porpoise, and Bald Eagles on a regular basis. One day we even encountered an Elephant Seal.
Every day is different. We never know what exactly is going to happen. That is what makes everyday exciting!
Captain Mike
San Juan Safaris
Tags: Bald Eagle, Harbor Porpoise, Harbor Seal, Humpback Whale, minke whale, Orca whale, Orcas, Steller\'s Sea Lion
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Thursday, August 25th, 2011
After two whole days without orcas around (but with Humpbacks and Minkes!) our residents returned to the sound in full force.
There were lots of animals around on the way up to see the whales: harbor seals, harbor porpoises, and even a bald eagle! As for the whales, there were groups representing all 3 pods up in the area between Stuart and Pender Islands. When we came on scene the whales we were with appeared to be resting.
After about 20 minutes they suddenly turned around and sped up. There were whales everywhere. We were surrounded! As we prepared to leave the area a Humpback appeared, heading north. We had heard about the animal earlier in the day. We kept our distance and didn’t stop to watch the single whale, as it was entangled in fishing gear and there were boats around with the hopes of untangling it from the line.
Finally, on our way back we stopped around Speiden Island to view some mouflon sheep that were moving around right on the rocks near the water.
Laura and Kristen, Naturalists, San Juan Safaris
Tags: Bald Eagle, Harbor Porpoise, Harbor Seals, Humpback Whale, minke whale, Mouflon Sheep, orca whales, pender island, Spieden Island, Stuart Island
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Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011
Headed out between Shaw and Lopez Islands, past Orcas and out towards Lummi Island, we were in search of the ever-popular but very elusive (in the Pacific Northwest) humpback whale. Clocking in at an average 45 feet (school bus size) and 80,000 pounds, they are in the top ten largest animals to ever roam the Earth. Could we find one?
We saw boats out by Lummi, and continued towards them. And then, we saw a blow! And then another. But wait, there was another set of blows! We had not one but two humpback whales! As we continued to view the humpbacks, we noticed that one appeared a little smaller than the other; did we have a mother and almost-yearling calf? The larger whale would breathe for about 4-5 cycles and then fluke-up dive and then the smaller one would follow suite. Perhaps two juveniles, teens hanging out.
Inevitably, we had to go and headed to look for some harbor seals. Before we could get too far, though, we saw lots of small gray bodies porpoising (bringing part of their bodies up) out of the water. Harbor porpoises! We did also find our seals, several basking and several taking on the cold waters and swimming.
Serena, Naturalist
San Juan Safaris
Tags: Harbor Porpoise, Harbor Seal, Humpback Whale, Lopez Island, Orcas
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Thursday, August 11th, 2011
Thursday brought blue skies and calm seas. However, there were no reports of anyone seeing any Orcas in the Salish Sea. So we took the best lead we had and headed towards Victoria to try and find the elusive Humpback Whale.
On the way out we encountered lots of harbor seals bobbing in the tide and even a couple bald eagles soaring above the south end of the island. After those encounters we motored across Haro Strait toward Victoria. The last reports we heard were of two animals that had just ‘fluked up’ and gone for a deeper dive. So we slowly moved into the area, turned off the engines, and waited.
After only a few short minutes we had two mature Humpbacks surface not far from the boat side by side. We watched as they each took a few breathes, spouting about 15 feet in the air, and then getting great shots of a double fluke as the dove again. We repositioned the boat and waited for the next surfacing. As we scanned all the around, I heard passengers from another boat gasp in excitement and I turned just in time to see both Humpbacks completely breach out of the water!! Our other boat, the Sea Lion, was between us and the whales, but one of the Humpbacks got so much air that I could see it over the top of the other boat. It was Incredible! Humpbacks are some of my favorite whales in the world.
After all that excitement we headed towards home and found a giant male Steller Sea Lion hauled out on the rocks. Every day is different, and every day is a Safari!
Mike
Captain – San Juan Safaris
Tags: Bald Eagle, Harbor Seal, Haro Strait, Humpback Whale, Steller\'s Sea Lion
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Monday, August 8th, 2011
Very unusual sighting today…a humpback! It was right on the west side of San Juan Island. We motored around cattle point and saw a bunch of boats in one area. Everyone eagerly searched for what could possibly be nearby. Then we saw the spout followed by its large back. We watched for a while and were able to see it go down for two deeper dives, arching its back and exposing its fluke. Plus, when it exhaled, it sounded like it was wheezing because it made a high pitched, scratchy sound. It was just amazing!
That wasn’t all that we saw today. We saw a minke whale, not so far from where we spotted the humpback. There also were lots of harbor seals in the water and hauled out on the rocks. Plus, at least ten steller sea lions were on top of whale rocks. One of which was attempting to scratch his back using it hind flipper. And finally, we spotted three bald eagles on the way back into Friday Harbor. What an afternoon!
Kristen, Naturalist, San Juan Safaris
Tags: Bald Eagles, Cattle Point, friday harbor, Harbor Seals, Humpback Whale, minke whale, san juan island, Steller\'s Sea Lion
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Sunday, June 5th, 2011
What a day. If I go into every detail this blog could be of epic proportions. I’ll try to reign it in a little bit and we’ll see what happens.
It all stated with the nicest, warmest day of the year; the first day I have worn a t-shirt without several other layers over and under it (and that lasted until we picked up speed). Toward Cattle pass we could see Mt Ranier, tall, majestic, snow covered, and over 100 miles away. We headed out toward the Straight of Juan de Fuca on glassy, calm water. Behind us Mt Baker was illuminated as though from the heavens. We continued on toward Victoria. It was a perfect day for a nice, long drive.
After an hour of eye-straining binocular use a blow appeared in the distance. A large, dark body rose to the surface. We continued on in the direction we were headed. As we drew closer we could see that this was one of our more infrequent visitors. It was an animal I knew very well. My old friend the humpback whale. My second sighting of the season, the solitary giant was taking slow, frequent breaths at the surface. The first fluke up dive brought a hushed cheer from the enraptured group. Knowing the humpback’s penchant for lengthy dives I started to explain the incredible breath holding abilities of the species. Just then, as if to prove me wrong, the whale surfaced. More slow breaths and then another dive. Again the whale surfaced relatively soon after the dive. We stayed until the next dive and then turned back to begin our long drive home. On the way back in we spotted another black body at the surface. This time there was no visible exhalation, which could only mean…minke. Species number two. As we were moving in for a better look a second Minke surfaced about 200 yards off our starboard side. Surprise minke! Just when the day couldn’t get any better we spotted a pair of stellar’s sea lions hauled out on a buoy and a pair of bald eagles sitting on a rock near another pair of HUGE steller’s. We returned a little bit late, but ecstatic from out epic day on the water.
Laura, naturalist
Tags: Bald Eagle, Harbor Seals, Humpback Whale, minke whale
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Sunday, May 8th, 2011
First things first…
Happy Mother’s Day to all of the wonderful mothers out there who raise us to love and appreciate the ocean and all of the amazing things living in it.
We left the harbor as if on a sheet of glass. It was calm enough to see a ripple a mile away. We headed north and around toward Battleship Island in search of giants. The calm seas and lack of wind afforded us a quick and comfortable ride out into Haro Straight. As soon as we got past Battleship one of our smaller, younger passengers started yelling and jumping up and down. Whales!
The enormous exhalation and tiny dorsal fin were definitely not those of an Orca. What we had encountered was a much less frequent visitor to the islands.
The two Humpback whales took 3 small breaths and then rounded out their backs, curling down until their massive flukes lifted toward the sky. A cheer broke out from every boat within 2 miles. We waited. Ten minutes later the duo surfaced again. Again, 3 surface breaths and then a dive. We prepared to wait another 10 minutes but the pattern changed. The whales surfaced after only a few minutes had passed. They dove quickly but surfaced again a short time later. Each time we were clued in to their surfacing by the sound of their exhalations. Magical.
Once more the whales came to the surface, lifted their flukes and dove. A moment later we began to notice footprints in a neat little line off our starboard side. We knew they were swimming just below the surface. We shut down the boat and waited in anticipation. The footprints continued for maybe a quarter of a mile before the whales finally surfaced again. We watched as the dove and headed off toward Canada.
With plenty of time remaining in our trip we turned north toward Stewart Island. We pulled in close to shore to take a peek at a pair of bald eagles and were surprised by a Steller Seal Lion that popped up behind us. Then a Harbor Seal Surfaced as well. Suddenly we noticed a tiny animal scurry out of a little cave and slide down into the water. We watched as a River Otter swam along the rocks, looking for a snack.
More eagles (including 2 juveniles) and seals on the way back in. What a day for charismatic megafauna!
Laura
Naturalist, San Juan Safaris
Tags: Bald Eagle, friday harbor, Harbor Seals, Haro Strait, Humpback Whale, Steller\'s Sea Lion
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Saturday, October 2nd, 2010
Southern Resident Killer Whales. Photo courtesy of NOAA/NMFS
“Until we meet again.”
Well, it is sad to say, but today was our last daily trip. We still have a few Saturdays left, but this is it for the daily grind. It has been a season like no other, with the orcas being found along the coast of San Juan Island most every day. They still do not keep any kind of schedule and there is no guarantee of seeing them, but what a fabulous way to spend one’s days. We have racked up many miles on the M/V Sea Lion and M/V Kittiwake and were well rewarded for our efforts. There were minke, humpback and grey whales; harbor seals and Steller’s sea lions; harbor and Dall’s porpoises and orcas and babies. There were all of the exotic animals on Spieden island and more bald eagles and sea birds than you could shake a stick at. Then there was the all encompassing beauty and majesty of the San Juan Islands and the Pacific Northwest. As always, it was magnificent and our last day was a crowning jewel to the season.
We could not have asked for more. The weather was good and the orcas were near by. I was hoping that there was at least one family group to see, but instead we saw a whole mix of animals. K pod had seemed to have slipped away again, but once more they slipped back in and were traveling with J and L pods. That has been the theme of this summer, occasionally just a single family group from one of the pods was around, but more often than not it was a mixed bag from all three pods. With the excellent return of salmon this year, it appears, to my wondering eyes, that the orcas were well fed enough to spend more time socializing. They did not need to travel as far to hunt, so bonding and interacting became the focus of their energy.
The orcas were not the only animals that had the spotlight for the day though. Another boat happened upon a large pod of effusive Dall’s porpoises, so we went to see them play. Along with the help of another boat, we spotted the pod and, working in tandem, had the porpoises bow riding between the two boats. Passing from one boat to the other and splashing through the waves. You could see the bold black and white markings and hear the blows as they sped along, darting under the boats and then back out. The porpoises finally dipped under and disappeared, so we made our way back to Friday Harbor content with all of the time that we had spent with the fine creatures of this extraordinary location.
So, from all of us at San Juan Safaris, to all of you who made this a truly wonderful season on the water, thank you and we will…
See You In The Islands!
~Tristen, Naturalist
Tags: Bald Eagles, Dall\'s Porpoises, friday harbor, gray whales, Harbor Porpoise, Harbor Seals, Humpback Whale, minke whale, Orcas, san juan islands, San Juan Safaris, Steller's sea lions
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