Olivia | M/V Osprey | June 11th, 2021 | 12:30pm

Let me preface this blog with saying: This was the BEST HUMPBACK WHALE EXPERIENCE OF MY ENTIRE LIFE.

We love the fact that more and more baleen whales are returning to these waters year after year and coming back with their young calves, who in turn return the following year as well. Once heavily whaled out of this area, it took a long time (this most recent decade, in fact) for these whales to start returning to our waters to feed. One...

Maxx K. | M/V Kestrel | 06/01/2021 | 2:00

I woke up this morning with one of those unexpected, unwarranted gut feelings that today was going to be awesome. Today we were going to see something really special. And that we did. 

We set out of Friday Harbor heading north. Like days prior, we were getting reports of whales off Saturna Island, hugging the US/Canadian border. 

Now historically, because of the Right of Free Passage, this would be absolutely no stress. However, given the...

What a great day today! The sun was shining, the ocean was sparkling and spirits were high. Captain Brian and I took the Kestrel out of Friday Harbor and towards norhtern waters.

We stopped by Speiden Island where we spotted two bald ealges! These birds always make me smile. They seemed really focused as they searched the water for fish. 

Then we continued through John's Pass where we found a huge group of harbor seals! They were all precariously perched on the rocks. Half in, half...

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 05/09/2021 |1:00pm

What a beautiful day!

Captain Pete and I headed out of Friday Harbor with all our new friends and headed north through the San Juan Channel. The sun was shining high in the sky, so it made everything look extra blue and gorgeous today. The water stood completely still and flat.

As we arrived at Waldron Island, we saw our first blow! The crystal-clear surface water broke as the first hump emerged. We found two humpback whales! In fact, it was...

Alexandria | Saturday, June 1, 2019 | M/V Sea Lion | 5:30 PM 

What a beautiful evening!  The sun was shining, our group was ready to get on the water, and water was beautiful and glassy- it was the perfect beginning to our sunset evening Class Whale Watch.

We boarded M/V Sea Lion, excited about such gorgeous weather and ready to explore the area to see what we could find.  We started heading north out of Friday Harbor and headed up San Juan Channel.  As we were working our way up...

[Naturalist Sarah C. 8/24/17 M/V Sea Lion 1:30 Departure]

An itty bitty humpback has been spotted perusing the waters south of Lopez Island for three days in a row now. This little whale nubbin obviously favors his chosen location, and it's an unusual one for massive baleen whales like him to be spotted in, much less observed feeding in for days on end.

Adult humpbacks are generally 40 to 50 feet long, the same lenght as a school bus! Juveniles like this just-over-one-year-old whale...

[Naturalist Erick D., M/V Sea Lion, 7/30/17, 5:30PM]

On Sunday, our sunset cruise was one of the most beautiful sunsets all summer. Captain Mike and I took our group of guests south in San Juan Channel towards Cattle Pass and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We first stopped and saw some adorable Harbor Seals hauled out on rocks along the shoreline of San Juan Island. These Pacific Harbor Seals are the most common marine mammals in these waters and stay here year-round. Even so, I still...

Lauren Fritz, M/V Sea Lion, 07/13/2017, 1:30 pm and 5:30 pm Tour

Today was an incredible day on the water. M/V Sea Lion ran two tours out of Friday Harbor today, each with some spectacular sea and weather conditions and some great sightings of killer whales, harbor seals, bald eagles galore, and an exploration of some unique aspects of our marine ecosystem out here in the Salish Sea - like our amazing bull kelp forests and nutrient-dense waters. I've compiled and editted some of my...

There are two ecotypes of killer whales that inhabit the Salish Sea throughout the year – the transients and the residents. Killer whale ecotypes are both genetically and behaviorally distinct, meaning they don’t interbreed, they have different behaviors, they speak different languages, and they look slightly different. The main distinguisher between transient and resident killer whales is their feeding habits. While transient killer whales feed on marine mammals, resident killer...

We pushed off from the dock today with a full boat, feeling chilly but hopeful. It wasn’t long before we got reports of humpbacks in Active Pass within the Southern Gulf Islands in Canada, so we headed north out of Friday Harbor hoping to get a look.

On our way out of San Juan Channel, we got some quick looks at some harbor seals and an adult bald eagle before we crossed into Canadian waters and heard some more good news – the pair of humpbacks we were approaching were Big Mama and...