Whale, whale, whale! Today was another fun day out on the water with a delightful charter group! I have really been enjoying the guests we have hosted lately, especially on our charter trips when I can really sit down to get to know people.

Today Captain Brian and I set out on the M/V Kittiwake’s first trip of the 2016 season, and what a trip it was! We left Friday Harbor and headed north up through San Juan Channel past Yellow Island, Jones Island and Waldron Island. We also got a...

Yesterday all of our stars aligned. During April, cetacean sightings have historically been a bit hit or miss… whales here one day and then gone the next. Lately we have had a lull in whale sightings, but we have still been out enjoying the beautiful weather and ample wildlife of spring in the Salish Sea.

We left the dock with no good report of orcas; no one in the Pacific Whale Watch Association’s spotting network had spotted anything. About 30 minutes off the dock, Captain Mike...

The Salish Sea around the San Juan Islands is considered to be the premier location in the world to see killer whales in the wild. Your average whale watcher will look out across our beautiful water and say that they are looking at some really nice black and white orcas. This is true, but there is so much more going on!

The orcas that we primarily see in this area can be split into two very distinct groups, known as ecotypes. These ecotypes are not only genetically distinct...

Today was one of those days that only happens once in a season- sunny September skies, flat calm ocean water, wildlife everywhere, great guests... oh, and did I mention orca whales that seemed to be breaching out of the water every thirty seconds?!

Let's start at the beginning! Today the M/V Sea Lion left Friday Harbor and headed north into Canadian waters once again. Today however, we were in search of the mammal hunting orcas known as transients, or Biggs Killer Whales. We really...

It’s not often that we get to choose between viewing Bigg’s Killer Whales or Southern Resident Killer Whales on the same trip. That was the case today. I wish we could spread out this luck for the guests who didn’t get to see any killer whales on their trip. For a time during peak summer, we were striking out trip after trip, at a time when killer whale sightings should have been at their peak. That unpredictability is part of the fun of viewing killer whales in the wild.

So what did...

There have been some subtle changes in the Salish Sea of late. Common murres have been flooding in, little phalaropes are again congregating at current lines, and it seems that another Steller’s sea lion adds itself to the slumberfest at Whale Rocks each day. In the coming days and weeks other migratory waterfowl like loons, grebes, and scoters will arrive from northern breeding and feeding sites. We’ve recently ended our sunset tours because darkness was beating us to the docks. All...