Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 8th, 2020 | 13:30

The most fin-tastic trip yet! It was such a great day out on the water, I am still shaking with excitement! We headed towards the western side of Cypress Island to follow rumors of Bigg’s Killer Whales milling in the area. When we arrived on scene, sure enough, there were TWO families of transient orcas swimming around together, comprising of around 11 individuals! These were the T36’s and T37’s, happily reuniting for the day. They were...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 7, 2020 | 13:30

What a special day on the water with Captain Sarah and all our guests. We were able to leave the dock with rumors of Orcas on the west side of San Juan Island, which is always extra heart racing. The reason this particular trip felt special, was because these were not just any orcas; they happen to be J Pod of the Southern Resident Killer Whales. This critically endangered ecotype of orca was labeled the name ‘resident’ by their history of...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 5, 2020 | 17:30

They stayed! We received word that the family group of transient orcas we saw on our 1:30pm trip had started to porpoise south- fast! This made us nervous that we would not be able to have the same look at our favorite T65’s as we did previously. With our luck, they decided to stop and start milling around just south of Turn Island. Once we got on scene, we were the only boat viewing at that hour. This felt extra tranquil with the golden...

Laura | M/V Kestrel | 7/5/2020 | 2:00 PM

The Adventure Whale Watch and Wildlife Tour on M/V Kestrel was OUTSTANDING!  I am so excited to report that we found Bigg’s killer whales just minutes from Friday Harbor, traveling southbound from Spieden Island in San Juan Channel!  They turned out to be one of my favorite family groups, the T65As!  This family consists of 5 members, and T65A2 is a large male who is quite distinguishable in size from his younger siblings!  We had awesome...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 5, 2020 | 13:30

It was such a gorgeous day out on the water; by far one of my favorites this season. We left the dock with whale rumors in the area which is always a great way to start our trips. We kicked off our adventure by heading north through the San Juan Channel towards Spieden Island.  As soon as we arrived at the Cactus Islands, we had great black and white views of the T65A’s- one of our favorite family groups of transient orcas. We had such...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 4th, 2020 | 09:00 Charter

 Today was the most beautiful day on the water I have had yet this season. Good thing too because it was a holiday! We booked a 9:00am charter to head out in the morning in search of whales around the San Juan Islands. Being the first boat on the water this morning, it was our job to first scan and see what could be swimming around.

Captain Sarah decided to head south into the Strait of Juan de Fuca into the glassy, sunny seas in...

Olivia | M/V Kestrel | July 3rd, 2020 | 14:00

It was such a fun day out on the water with Captain Brian-who is also the owner/operator of our family run business. We call our zodiac trips an ‘Adventure Trip’ for a reason; Not only is our zodiac faster than M/V Sea Lion, it is also all exposed. On rainy days like today, it absolutely feels like an adventure as you are braving the Salish Sea and its weather trying to scope out wildlife.

We started off the trip leaving the dock with a...

Laura | M/V Sea Lion | 7/2/2020 | 13:30

    Today was a magical day on the west side of San Juan Island!  I am ecstatic to report K pod received the upmost welcome back as they made their way up and down the shoreline, foraging and enjoying their time back home!  There are 17 individuals left in this pod, and we were all able to see them spread out and moving through the water in their natural habitat, a heart-filled experience that hopefully we will be able to see again one day.  

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion| June 30, 2020 | 13:30

Today was such an exciting day as Captain Erick and I were able to bring our guests over towards the outer islands to see Killer Whales! Along the route, we passed three Bald Eagles soaring overhead near Lopez Island and throughout Upright Channel with those six-foot wingspans.

We initially were aiming for Cypress Island where the transient orcas were milling around in Rosario Strait. The great thing about these whales is that they are...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | June 28, 2020 | 13:30

Today as quite the adventure, and a well needed one at that! We started off the trip with the fastest introduction speech of wildlife and the Salish Sea that I have done to date. The reason for the rushed speeches as we set off was because there were whale sightings far away and heading north. Captain Pete was anxious to start our travels as soon as possible in order to give our guests that black and white glimpse they were itching to...