Laura C. | 6-28-2019 | M/V Kestrel | 11:00am

This afternoon was an awesome day to spend on the water!  Captain Gabe drove M/V Kestrel north and stopped along Spieden Island to see some cool wildlife, including bald eagles and harbor seals!  We continued onward and were so excited to find TWO Bigg’s killer whale families traveling together near Saturna Island!  Passengers watched this active group gathering at the surface with calves splashing around and coming fully out of the water...

We left the dock again today with very little information about wildlife sightings and a fresh crew full of expectations for the day. Should we go north or south from Friday Harbor in search of wildlife? It's a question that we sweat over in the business. The Salish Sea is a big place, with animals that roam as they please, and our range limited to just a 3-4 hour time frame.

We decided to go south, as we had rumors of orcas spotted off Victoria earlier in the morning. We also had...

3:00 PM: 20+ Southern Residents spread out in Haro Strait from False Bay to Lime Kiln State Park (48°27.57N 123°04.48W). Members of J and K pod including Grandma Samish (J14), Mother Hy’Shqa (J37) newborn J49, Deadhead (K27) and brother Scoter (K25). Widely spread, yet exceedingly active; breaching, spyhopping, lobtaillng and porpoising in every which direction.

Naturalist Tara, San Juan Safaris

Members of J-pod, K-pod, and L-Pod where traveling together again today out in Rosario Strait just southwest of Lopez Island; coordinates 48°24.051N 122°50.23W. Within a few minutes of reaching the area, the Sea Lion (our boat) was surrounded by whales on all sides! It didn’t matter in which direction we looked everyone was bound to see the whales surface. And man did it seem like they were in their realm!! We saw almost every behavior possible; from spyhopping to lobtailling to...