Fog, Steller Sea Lions and a Squirrley Family of Bigg’s Killer Whales

Maxx K. | M/V Sea Lion | 03/29/2022 | 12:30pm

    Today’s tour was wild. Sea Lion pulled out of Friday Harbor and veered south. Whale watching runs on rumors. Someone thinks they might have seen a blow on the horizon. They tell a friend. The friend tells a friend and before you know it we can confirm a congregation of five killer whales slowly making their way along the southern banks of Lopez island.

Naturally we...

The Day is Never Stale with a Bigg's Killer Whale

Maxx K. | M/V Sea Lion | 03/28/2022 |12:30pm

    I was beyond excited to be back on the water today, having taken the winter to spend some time back home with family in North Carolina. And let me tell you, while I love coastal North Carolina, it’s deeply unlikely that you’re going to be seeing many Killer Whales regularly over there. Needless to say, it felt absolutely phenomenal getting back out here, zooming through the islands and...

Olivia | March 18th, 2022 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:30pm

Today’s trip was so unexpected for March here in the Salish Sea. We were lucky enough to leave the dock with some reports of Bigg’s Killer Whales in Rosario Strait! With these whales moving south and being a bit further away, we headed inner island and down through Lopez Sound in hopes of seeing something black and white.

Slowly coming on scene, we spotted their black dorsal fins and misty spouts moving northwest of us about a half...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | March 16th, 2022 | 12:30pm

If I would have known leaving the dock today what I know now, there is no way I would believe it. We headed out just like any other spring day; a cold breeze guiding us towards the flirting sun in search of any Salish Sea wildlife. On M/V Sea Lion, we often start our trips with a tutorial on how to spot wildlife with each season and tips on what to look for. I prefaced with the fact that these shoulder seasons are often the most...

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 08/16/2021 2:00pm

Nturalist Haleigh and I joined captain Pete on the boat with our excited guests and headed out to see what we could find around the Salish Sea.

We headed north and crossed the border into Canada. Here we found Orcas!! Beautifully swimming around off the coast of Pender Island, we watched in awe as they searched for any prey that could be hiding within the rocks. It felt like a whole different world as we appreciated being able to boat in...

Haleigh | M/V Kestrel | August 09, 2021 | 10:00am

There are few days that begin like today. We left the harbor, excited and ready to search for wildlife around the islands. Being one of the first boats out on the water, we were in search mode. However, not long after we departed a report came in for some killer whales around our waters. We rerouted to follow along with that note. Sure enough, we found our first big wildlife of the day!

There were 4 Bigg’s Killer Whales traveling...

Maxx K. | M/V Sea Lion | 07/29/2021 | 2:00pm

    Today was wild, y’all. Captain Pete and I had no idea what to expect when Sea Lion left Friday Harbor. There were rumors of Bigg’s Killer Whales north of us off the south side of Lummi Island but as we know, whales stay rumors until you see them yourself! We carried on taking the inter-island route, up and over Lopez and through Obstruction Pass. We passed by numerous harbor porpoises during the journey as they surfaced for air in our...

Jordan |m/v Kestrel |07/08/2021| 2:00pm

Today was definitely one of my favorite trips of the season. Just want to start by saying thank you to all my wonderful guests! Your passion and intrigue made the trip even better!

The day began as Captain Eric and I headed East out of Friday Harbor, in between Blakely Island and Decatur and then out towards Anacortes. We sped past Anacortes and around Guemes Island. Here, we found Orcas!

We shortly identified them as the T34s and T37s! These...

Maxx K. | M/V Osprey | 07/07/2021 | 5:30pm

    Today’s sunset tour started like they often do: Osprey left Friday harbor in search of whales, following up on rumors of whales nearby. I was not prepared however for just how spectacular the trip would end up being. 

Rumors of killer whales led us north, through the San Juan Channel and into the Wasp Islands that separate the west coasts of Shaw and Orcas. Osprey then turned left into West Sound and towards the family of Bigg’s Killer...

What a beautiful day out on the water today! With the sun out shining and the warmth igniting our excitement, we set out for adventure.

Captain Brian and I and our guests headed out of Friday Harbor on our speediest vessel and booked it up north towards the promise of potential whales. We sped past Orcas Island and towards the Canadian border. Hoping the wildlife would stay over within American territory, we approached the scene.

As we slowed, we saw some blows! It was two orca...