Olivia Esqueda | M/V Sea Lion | September 28th, 2024| 12:30pm

Saturday out on the water was SO fun! We headed south through San Juan Channel making a brief stop at Goose Island where we saw Harbor Seals, Double Crested Cormorants and Pelagic Cormorants before passing Cattle Point Lighthouse and exploring the Strait of Juan de Fuca. After transiting past heaps of Surf Scoters, we came across a large bait ball where we were able to see one of the few Minke Whales in the Salish Sea. However, we...

Lauren | M/V Kestrel | September 21st, 2024 | 2:00 pm

The T049 matriline owned the inter-island zone today. Reports were coming in with members from this famous family along multiple sides of Lopez Island. T049C was headed north in San Juan Channel, T049A1 was heading south in Rosario Strait and the rest of the T049A1’s (minus T049A2/Jude) were hanging out in Thatcher Pass! Captain Eric and I were excited to get on the water for this T049 family affair, but where to begin? T049C/Nielson made that...

Olivia Esqueda | M/V Sea Lion | Thursday, September 19th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Today was such a fun tour bringing in all the fall vibes. We started off our trip by heading south through San Juan Channel, stopping briefly off Turn Island to see a Sea Otter floating around in the bull kelp reef. This gave us an opportunity to chat about how the increased sightings of sea otters in the last few years all circles back to sea star wasting disease. We love conversations showing how everything is connected...

Kelly | M/V Sea Lion | September 15th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Southward was the plan as we left Friday Harbor on our Classic Whale Watch and Wildlife Tour. A rumored report of killer whales in the Strait of Juan de Fuca was our destination, a long run on the ole M/V Sea Lion but we were determined to make it work! As we transited down San Juan Channel and approached Cattle Pass, guests aboard pointed out splashing in the distance! After slowing the boat to investigate, it became clear that the splashing...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | September 3rd, 2024 | 12:30pm

We are officially running our daily classic tours aboard M/V Sea Lion which tends to be a favorite vessel of our naturalist staff. Starting off the day, it sure felt like fall as we headed south into the fog. After a brief stop at Goose Island to check out some Harbor Seals thermoregulating on the shoreline, Double Crested Cormorants nesting on top of the island, and Pelagic Cormorants drying out their wings, we headed into the Strait of Juan...

Elle | M/V Kestrel | 9/11/2022 | 2:00PM

Today's adventure tour headed south into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. On our journey towards the Olympic Peninsula, our passengers braved sea spray and choppy waters as we soared through the smoky haze. Just a few miles from Dungeness Spit, We witnessed a large group of Bigg's killer whales from the T34 family and the T37 family swimming quickly amidst the waves. We even got to see some porpoising, which is when a marine mammal launches itsself...

Lauren | M/V Kestrel | 8/16/2022 | 2:00 PM 

It’s not uncommon for us to begin our trip with zero whale reports, and today was no exception. We always tell our guests that every single day, at every single hour we essentially “start over.” That’s because none of the whales in the Salish Sea are tagged, and we don’t use any type of sonar to find them. We are a part of the Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA), which is a private network that works organically off eye sighting reports...

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...

Lauren | M/V Kestrel | 8/7/2022 | 10:00 AM

We couldn’t have asked for better boating conditions on our Sunday morning adventure whale watch and wildlife tour! It was predicted to be one of the warmest days Friday Harbor has seen all summer, which is a blessing for anyone cruising aboard M/V Kestrel. The water temperature of the Salish Sea sits at about 47 degrees year-round, and Kestrel is the fastest boat in our fleet. Traveling at a speed of 35 knots, she always ensures a breezy...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | July 31, 2022 | 12:30pm

As we headed off the dock on a beautiful warm day, we received an early report of Bigg’s Orca Whales… but they were running away from us. The T37A’s were making a run for it out the Strait of Juan de fuca, towards the open ocean. The only question was, could we get to them before they escaped? Captain Gabe yelled, “Full speed ahead!”, cranked the accelerator and the quest was afoot. 

We made our way through the bottle-necked channel...