Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | July 2nd, 2025 | 12:30 pm

Killer Whales are all unique and identifiable based on different markings on their dorsal fins, saddle patches, and eye patches, but some are definitely more distinct than others. T63, known as Chainsaw, is one of the most distinct whales in our Bigg’s population, and anyone will know why as soon as they see him. On today’s afternoon tour, I was thrilled that we got to see this iconic whale along with multiple others! We began our trip...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | June 29th, 2025 | 2:00 pm

San Juan Summer weather was finally back today and the sunny, warm, clear conditions provided the perfect backdrop for our amazing afternoon on the water. There has been lots of whale activity around the islands this week, and today was no exception. Before leaving the dock we knew there were a number of whale reports to the north, so we began heading that way. We spotted some harbor seals on a small island on our way up San Juan Channel...

Kelly | M/V Osprey | Sunday, June 29th 2025 | 12:30 PM

Goodbye Junuary! Hello proper summer weather! The sun was out and beating down as we left Friday harbor and set course up San Juan Channel. The breeze felt amazing as we picked up speed- instantly cooling everything down. Just outside presidents channel, we began to slow our speed to under 7 knots. In the distance...dorsal fins came into view! 4 distinct fins began to emerge from the water belonging to none other than... the T123's! Including...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | June 27th, 2025 | 2:00 pm

Our afternoon adventure trip could not have gone more perfectly if we tried! We set out of Friday Harbor already having whale sightings close by, so we zoomed up San Juan Channel and soon found ourselves with a Humpback Whale in Spieden Channel! This individual was slowly traveling east not far from shore, and we enjoyed some beautiful looks at the surface and a few fluking dives. This sighting was the perfect start to our trip as our...

Kelly | M/V Osprey | Friday, June 27th 2025 | 12:30 PM

As the years progress, we are seeing more and more Biggs Killer whales in the Salish Sea! This means that with every year, we are introduced to new Biggs killer whale families as they start to explore this nutrient rich interisland sea. One of these new families to me is the T46C's, one of two families we encountered on todays Classic Tour!

We started the trip turning north up San Juan Channel and into Spiedan Channel, stopping briefly to look...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | Friday, June 20th, 2025 | 12:30 PM

Today’s Classic tour gave us a beautiful cruise through San Juan and Spieden Channels. We began by heading north out of Friday Harbor, and searched along the coastlines for wildlife. Once we turned West into Spieden Channel, we soon saw  boats in the distance near Henry Island that were with a group of two different Bigg’s Killer Whale matrilines! Based on photo ID, we knew these were the T65Bs and T75Bs. We have seen these families...

Kelly | M/V Osprey | Tuesday, June 17th 2025 | 12:30 PM

We started our trip with a right turn outside Friday Harbor and pointed south down San Juan Channel. Not long after departing, we began to slow the boat, 8 Killer whales we reported essentially in our backyard! This group was identified as the T75B's and T65B's including:

• T065B/Chunk — female, born in 1993
• T065B1/Birdsall — male, born in 2011
• T065B2/Nettle/Corvis — born in 2019
• T065B3/Rook — male, born in 2023

• T075B / Pebbles — female, born in...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | Monday, June 16th, 2025 | 2:00 PM

Our afternoon trip was full of wildlife as we traveled among many of the San Juan Islands. After stopping to view some harbor seals on one of the Wasp Islands, we continued traveling along the western side of Orcas Island through President’s Channel. We suddenly saw a bald eagle dive into the water, and begin swimming to shore! Once the eagle emerged from the water, it revealed its catch of a large salmon. The eagle hauled the salmon...

Kelly | M/V Osprey | Saturday, June 14th 2025 | 1:00 PM

We had no time to waste! The only whales reported in our area were very far away in the Canadian Gulf Islands. We took a hard left out of Friday Harbor and pointed north up San Juan Channel. We enjoyed the gorgeous scenery as we slipped over the border and into Canadian water. Some guests were lucky enough to catch a few looks at harbor porpoise as we crossed Boundary Pass and entered Plummer Sound. Thankfully, we heard from other boats in...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | Saturday, June 14th, 2025 | 2:00 PM

During our afternoon trip on Kestrel, we got to cruise around the Canadian Gulf Islands and spend time with two different families of Bigg’s Killer Whales! We left Friday Harbor and headed north up San Juan Channel. Shortly after crossing the Canadian border, we stopped near Saturna Island to view a group of harbor seals resting on a small island. We then continued northwest to catch up with a group of whales that had been reported...