Olivia | M/V Osprey | August 24th, 2024 | 12:30pm 

Luck was on our side today as we encountered two different species of whales in the Haro Strait! We left Friday Harbor and began our search for whales going south through San Juan Channel. As we neared Cattle Point we stopped for a look at some harbor seals and sea birds, which are great signs of our productive ecosystem out here!

We continued our travels to the north west following up on some earlier reports of various whales in the area, and as...

Olivia | M/V Kestrel | August 23rd, 2024 | 10:00 am 

Today's 10am trip really put the adventure in Adventure Whale Watch as we departed Friday Harbor in a mix of rain and fog! We began our search for wildlife by heading north along San Juan Island, turning southwest to explore Mosquito Pass and eventually the west side of the island. Despite the rain and cold conditions, we enjoyed the views of Lime Kiln Light House and pushed on towards Salmon and Hein Banks. While these areas did bring flat...

Olivia | San Juan Safaris | August 19th, 2024 

After a long hiatus while getting our NEW website up and running, our daily blogs are back! 

We will be documenting whale and wildlife sightings daily from all three of our vessels to provide a sneak peak of where we’ve been traveling and what wildlife has been visiting the Salish Sea- while hopefully teaching you something along the way. We will also be providing bonus material for extra education and conservation topics, and photos of course! 

Every...

Haleigh | M/V Sea Lion | October 7, 2022 | 12:30 pm 

As we set off for our Classic Whale Watching tour today, we ventured south in search of wildlife. We made our way through San Juan Channel through feeding Harbor Porpoises and flocks of birds. After we travelled through Cattle Pass, we heard the roars of Steller’s Sea Lions hauled out on Whale Rocks. Some of the large sea lions were thrashing in the water while others were posed atop the rocks with heads regally pointed high...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | August 11, 2022 | 12:30 pm

For Thursday’s classic whale watch tour, we departed southbound to scan the open waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca to find any whales and wildlife lurking about. Our search began scanning the shallow banks where nutrients pool at the surface due to topographically-associated upwelling. As the nutrients collect near the sunlight, photosynthesis occurs sparking massive phytoplankton blooms. What comes afterward is a reaction...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | June 4, 2022 | 12:30 pm and 5:30 pm

The start of the summer has shown off the Humpbacks returning to these waters. The presence of these Humpbacks is a reminder of the days these creatures feared the inland waters. Whaled out of the area in the 1900’s, Humpbacks were a memory of the past pre-human influence. As time passed and Humpback populations rebounded, thanks to the banning of whaling internationally, these large baleen whales slowly reentered these...

Maxx K. | M/V Kestrel | 05/13/2022 | 2:00pm

    Today was pretty dang close to perfect. It kicked off strongly as a good hour before Kestrel untied from the jetty, two bull Bigg's Killer Whales passed directly in front of Friday Harbor. I could see their tall six ft dorsal fins cut the surface of the water through my binoculars here at the office. 

    When we left the harbor for our adventure tour, we decided to save the whales for last. We opted instead to start by heading out into...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | March 31st, 2022| 12:30pm

What a day.

The last day of March unexpectedly delivered us stunning views out on the water! We set off with a small boat of 7 passengers ready to follow up on rumors of whales over in Rosario Strait. Deciding to travel inner island, we eventually found our way to the northeast side of Orcas Island. Not only was this a confirmed sighting of Bigg’s Killer Whales, but there were also multiple family groups traveling together! We were...

Haleigh | M/V Sea Lion | October 11, 2021 | 12:00 pm

Humpback whales have been sighted almost every day somewhere in the Salish Sea this fall. As we made our way south today, we were scanning for the large blows out in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Continuing in a southwest direction, we were hoping to follow up on some reported Humpbacks. Sure enough, we made it far enough to see the blows in the distance, just southeast of Victoria, BC. Multiple blows caught our passengers' eyes...

Haleigh | M/V Sea Lion | October 10, 2021 | 12:00 pm

For our Sunday afternoon departure, we departed from Friday Harbor following up on a report of two Humpback Whales along the West side of San Juan Island. We arrived on scene with these whales traveling north very close together. As they made their way, we got beautiful looks during each surfacing of their humps, notched dorsal fins, and white-marked flukes. One of these whales was ID’d as Vivaldi (MMX0128) for their fair white...