Today started off gray and rainy.  We got everyone suited up in rain jackets and blankets as we started down San Juan Channel.  We definitely took some spray over the side and the rain was getting everyone sitting up on the bow.  But we had a hardy group of people on board that were ready for the adventure.

We stopped just outside of Friday Harbor to check out quite a few Harbor Seals hauled out on the rocks and got an added bonus of a Bald Eagle perched in the middle of everything. ...

Summer seems to have left the islands as quickly as it arrived, but the animals are still around!  We headed out in to Haro Strait this afternoon and came across a group of Transient Orca.  The Residents haven't been seen in a day or two, but the Transients were a great encounter.  The mature male of the group had a huge dorsal fin which gave our passengers a very big target to photograph.

On the way home we added another cetacean to our check list when we came across a nice group of...

Transient killer whales were the big sea creatures in town today!  We filled up the Sea Lion vessel with eager passengers and went out to the Rosario Strait just past Orcas Island in search of ocean life.  In the distance, we could see a splash then a white cloud indicative of whale snot (a blow) and then a black fin.  After another minute, two more whales surfaced and then a female and a little orca.  But wait?  Was that another two orcas 400 yards away from the group of five?  Why...

Well, we just did the math.  From August 1- 29 we have ran a total of 49 Whale Watches.  Of those 49 trips we successfully located whales 47 times.  And not just Orca, but Minke and Humpback Whales as well!!  That is a 96% success rate at seeing whales on our trips.

On top of whales we have also been seeing Stellar's Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoise, Dall's Porpoise, and Bald Eagles on a regular basis.  One day we even encountered an Elephant Seal.

Every day is different.  We...

It was easy, maybe too easy, finding killer whales today. We headed up north from Friday Harbor, and just east of Spieden Island we encountered both K and L pods. They were everywhere around us! Breaching, spy hopping, and tail slapping. After watching them for a while, we headed back south towards Cattle Point. We saw harbor seals, Steller sea lions, and a juvenile bald eagle. Then, as we headed back into the harbor we encountered the killer whales again! And they were still being...

After two whole days without orcas around (but with Humpbacks and Minkes!) our residents returned to the sound in full force. There were lots of animals around on the way up to see the whales: harbor seals, harbor porpoises, and even a bald eagle! As for the whales,  there were groups representing all 3 pods up in the area between Stuart and Pender Islands.  When we came on scene the whales we were with appeared to be resting. After about 20 minutes they suddenly turned around and...

It was bright and sunny as we headed north out of Friday Harbor. On this trip, the first thing we encountered was harbor seals hauled out on a rocky island. Next we spotted a few killer whale dorsal fins off in the distance. Everyone got excited as we scoped out the area. As the boat turned there was a large pod of orcas, over twenty whales close to each other surfacing and breathing. Then, all of a sudden one breached, then another next to the first one, then a third after the...

Something rare occurred today; killer whales surprised us by coming up not only next to our boat, but a couple swam under our boat! Let me start from the beginning… we left Friday Harbor heading south, stopping to see some harbor seals hauled up on rocky areas. We also went around whale rocks to see the steller sea lions that were hauled out, but not only were there some on the rocks, two giant individuals came out of the water, walking up the rocks at the same time!

We then headed...

Southward from sunny Friday Harbor quickly led us to dense fog with visibility at maybe 100 yards (maybe) just before Cattle Pass.  Armed with radar, the captain navigated us through the pass and over to Whale Rocks where we found seven large stellar sea lions and numerous harbor seals hauled out, warming up and napping.  Even in fog, the air was warmer than the 50 degree waters around the San Juan Islands!

Battling our way through more fog, with other boats appearing and...

Thursday brought blue skies and calm seas.  However, there were no reports of anyone seeing any Orcas in the Salish Sea.  So we took the best lead we had and headed towards Victoria to try and find the elusive Humpback Whale.

On the way out we encountered lots of harbor seals bobbing in the tide and even a couple bald eagles soaring above the south end of the island.  After those encounters we motored across Haro Strait toward Victoria.  The last reports we heard were of two animals...