Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 08/19/2021 2:00pm

So nice to get out on the boat!

Captain Pete and I grabbed our guests and headed out to sea. We heard whispers of something exciting happening over in Canada so we headed out to find out what the commotion was about.

We headed south and passed cattle point lighthouse as we rounded the southern point of San juan and headed west. Looking at a map, the Canadian border zig zags across the islands so the city of Victoria is actually south west of...

(April 15, 2017)  Blue sky, warm sun, steep green slopes, electric blue water, and black and white whales.  That was the scene beheld by our guests today aboard the M/V Sea Lion.  Against the backdrop of Lummi and Sinclair Islands, transient orcas made steady headway up Rosario Strait.  Whale watching captains who had arrived before us observed seal munching and excited vocalizations, but by the time we glided in, the animals were back on the hunt.  We paralleled the impressive...

Today was one of those days that comes maybe but once a summer here in the Salish Sea, and Captain Mike, myself and some lucky passengers were fortunate enough to see some incredible examples of our local wildlife.

We left the dock at exactly noon (despite a slightly tardy naturalist) on the trusty Sea Lion and headed South out of Frdiay Harbor through the San Juan Channel. As soon as we left the harbor, the show began with sightings of some harbor seals and about six playful harbor...

Today Captain Gabe and I left the dock on the Kittiwake with a boat full of excited passengers, sun in the sky and reports of something a little different than our average tour: Transients (cue dramatic music)

Transients, unlike the Southern Resident Killer Whales who subsist mostly on King Salmon, spend their time actively hunting other marine mannals. Here in the Salish Sea, their favorite snack is Harbor seals.

As we left Friday Harbor we headed South through the San Juan Channel...

It was busy out in San Juan Channel today with the 44th annual Shaw Island Classic Yacht Races, but it was definitely a great day for a sail and even a whale watch! For many of the sailors out there and our lucky guests, we were afforded some incredible looks at our Transient Killer Whales. Only ten minutes out of the harbor and we were already watching the Transient Orcas making their way back towards Friday Harbor. At one point they took a quick turn towards the inside passage of...

It was a feast today for the T-30's, a group of marine mammal-eating orcas known as the Transient Orcas. The M/V Sea Lion motored out of Friday Harbor with perfectly still seas to meet up with six transient orcas hanging out North near the south side of Saturna Island in Canadian waters. Upon first looks it seemed as if the whales were in their usual foraging patterns, coming up for quick breaths and then going on deeper dives foraging for marine mammals beneath the waters surface...

Long trek to get to the whales today. Earlier reports had transient, our marine mammal-eating orcas, near Captains Pass heading Northeast towards Active Pass. By the time M/V Sea Lion got there from Friday Harbor the whales were at the mouth of Active Pass. Although this was a long trip to the transients, it was also well worth it! Traveling through the Canadian Gulf Islands is always a favorite of our staff and passengers, because of the sheer cliffsides and the narrow passages...

With the sun on our backs, Captain Craig, Naturalist Aimee, and I headed north out of Friday Harbor. Earlier in the morning we had received word of a group of Transient Orcas in the area, and we were eager to catch up to these beautiful animals! We arrived on scene with a trailing group at the south west end of Stuart Island. The trailers consisted of four whales that were traveling north toward Turn Point. At Turn Point we were joined by another group and had at least nine Transient...

With the grey clouds clearing Captain Mike, Tyler, the guests, and I left Friday Harbor heading north towards Speiden Channel. Just off the south west end of Speiden Island, we encountered a Humpback Whale mother and her calf! Humpbacks are sometimes spotted in the Salish Sea during their migration north. The San Juans provide a nice protected area for these huge travelers to pass though.

A short way a way, in the Haro Straight off of Sydney Island in Canada, we ran into two...

What an exciting day on the water! For the afternoon and evening trip, we got to hang out with some pretty speedy transient orcas. The afternoon trip started out foggy but Caitlin, Captain Mike, and I had high spirits. We came upon the group of 4 transients south of San Juan Island and they were showing behaviors typical of a hunting pod. Their movements were swift and they spent a considerable amount of time submerged between breaths. Traveling northward toward Lopez Island, the...