Lauren Fritz, M/V Sea Lion, 7/18/17, 6:00 pm Tour

Today's sunset trip was a real treat for those of us on M/V Sea Lion. As we pulled away from the dock in Friday Harbor, we were excited to venture out and meet up with some of our Southern Resident Killer Whales that had been sighted earlier near the southwestern side of San Juan Island. These whales were members of L-pod, one of the three Southern Resident Killer Whale pods that we see out here in the Salish Sea. J-pod and K-pod were...

Isn't it fascinating how tied to their families orcas are? By mom's side for life...I'm sure some human moms wish this were the case for their own children. As part of a matriarchal social structure, newborn calves will stick close to Mom and nurse for their first year of life, eventually becoming weaned. But, unlike, say, a humpback whale, these calves don't go off on their own after a year or two. They're going to stay with mom for life. She's the leader of the pod, and the...

Orcas – no secret – are amazing animals that constantly leave us in awe, with powerful cognitive abilities and massive brains that house extraordinary intelligence. Sometimes, we can’t help but feel an intense connection and sense of understanding with these amazing black and white mammals that swim through the waters of the Salish Sea. As highly social animals, they remain in very tight-knit family groups, learn constantly from each other, practice cooperative hunting and food...

Today M/V Sea Lion chartered a wedding group early on leaving from our Friday Harbor location. It was a little foggy as we headed out the San Juan Channel and into Cattle Pass, but that soon lifted just in time for our party to see some dorsal fins in the distance! It was soon to be one of the best wedding presents for the bride and groom to be!

Or Orcas were foraging along Eagle Point, off the West side of San Juan Island. Captain Brian and I quickly identified the whales as our...