Lauren | M/V Sea Lion | 9/20/2022 | 1:30 PM 

The boys are back… The boys are back… Bigg’s killer whales Onca and Lynx were back at it again, popping up on the westside of San Juan Island unannounced for the second time this week. Similar to our tour yesterday, we started our trip without any firm whale reports and planned to head south to scan for whales in Salmon Bank.  

Our 1:30 pm Classic Tour took a right out of Friday Harbor and headed down San Juan Channel. On our way down...

8/10/22 // MV Osprey // 12:30pm // Helena 

As we boarded MV Osprey we could hear booms of thunder in the distance. It was a chilly grey August morning as we waiting for a storm in the southern Strait of Juan de Fuca to blow east. Once we had our final numbers and confirmation of safe weather, we left Friday Harbor with our teeth chattering (okay, maybe just me because I mistakenly wore shorts!). 

The crew decided to head north up San Juan Channel as there were reports of orcas near...

Lauren | M/V Osprey | 6/13/2022 |12:30PM

M/V Osprey left the dock with sunny skies this Wednesday afternoon. We took a right out of Friday Harbor and headed south towards Cattle Pass. We slowed to view a bald eagle and some harbor seals before cruising over to Whale Rocks to see some Steller’s Sea Lions. After leaving the sea lions, we decided to follow up on a report of a humpback whale in Haro Strait. And just like that we went from “Hump Day” to “Humpback Day!”

Born in 2006,...

7/9/2022

Helena

MV Kestrel

2pm

The adventure tour this afternoon went north up San Juan Channel, through Speiden Channel and off the western coast of Stuart Island where we encountered not one but two Humpback Whales! This duo was actually a mother and her calf and the two were taking long (10-ish minute) dives heading south in the Haro Strait. 

The population of humpbacks migrating to the Salish Sea every summer are coming to their feeding grounds here. They will eat up to 3,000...

Laura / M/V Sea Lion / 5/20/2022 / 12:30PM

This afternoon was the first hint of summer in the Salish Sea!  We headed northbound on M/V Sea Lion and had our first bald eagle encounter of the day near the Cactus Islands.  We slowly cruised through this area soaking up the blue skies and sunshine and calm green water.  The channels were all combining in this area, creating a whirlpool effect.  Our harbor seals moved in and out of the kelp beds and hoisted their bodies on nearby rocks to...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | April 24th, 2022 | 12:30pm

Continuing our weekend stretch of beautiful weather, it made our decision to travel towards Vancouver Island that much easier. Shortly after leaving the dock, we received word that there was a Gray Whale over by D’Arcy Island. This excited us and off we went!

Scanning the islands and the waters along the way, we stopped at Spieden Island to check out the world’s largest sea lions! These Steller’s Sea Lions were not only snoozing and...

Laura / M/V Sea Lion / 4/15/2022 / 12:30 PM

Today was a wonderful experience out in the Salish Sea with a most exciting orca encounter!  We departed Friday Harbor with a morning report of Bigg’s killer whales traveling up the west side of San Juan Island, so we immediately went northbound in hopes of seeing them in the Haro Strait.  We stopped along Spieden Island to view over 50 active Steller sea lions hauled out on Green Point and swimming in Spieden Channel!  There were a couple...

Lauren | M/V Sea Lion | 4.1.2022 | 12:30 PM 

On Thursday, March 31st the single day record of Bigg’s killer whale sightings was broken in the Salish Sea. A whopping 72 Bigg’s killer whales were sighted! Needless to say, Captain Eric and I had high expectations going into Friday's trip. Killer whales can swim over 100 miles in a day, and just because they are in the San Juans one day does not mean they will be the next. Knowing these facts, we were still optimistic that we would get...

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...

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...