Erin | M/V Kestrel | Friday, August 16, 2019 | 3:00 PM

What an incredible afternoon of viewing wild animals in the Salish Sea! We left south out of Friday Harbor and headed toward a report of a large family of killer whales near Victoria. We went through San Juan Channel and rounded past Cattle Point lighthouse, which marks the southernmost point on San Juan Island! We entered into the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the weather was absolutely beautiful! The seas were calm and the sun was...

Erin | M/V Kestrel | Saturday, August 10, 2019 | 11:00 AM 

The rain didn't stop our wildlife sightings this morning! We left Friday Harbor with no firm whale reports, so we decided to head south to see if we could find anything for ourselves. We stopped past a neat place called Whale Rocks. All around us we could see evidence of upwelling, and there was even a baitball nearby! A baitball is when birds are gathered at the surface of the water because of the presence of baitfish...

Olivia | August 9th, 2019 | M/V Sea Lion | 1:30pm

It was a gorgeous day on the water today as Captain Erick, Co-Naturalist Erin and I headed south with our passengers through the San Juan Channel. We caught word of a lone male Orca traveling near Victoria, B.C. and decided to make the trek southwest to see if we could view one of our favorite Bigg’s Killer Whales. On our way there, we passed heaps of Harbor Porpoises and bait balls, making it an entertaining trip through the Strait...

Laura C. | M/V Sea Lion | 8/6/2019 | 5:30pm

Our evening wildlife cruise aboard M/V Sea Lion was spectacular!  We all anxiously made our way out of Friday Harbor as quickly as possible because we heard reports of orcas traveling south from Boundary Pass to Stewart Island!!  It is so exciting to hear of whales traveling so close to home!  On our way north we made a quick pit stop to see a splashing Stellar sea lion in full feeding mode around a bait ball!  The birds were the first...

Laura C. | 8/3/2019 | M/V Kittiwake | 11:00am

We all had an outstanding day on M/V Kittiwake!  With morning reports of minke whales feeding south of Cattle Point on Hein Bank, we anxiously headed south to check out the action!  On our way we stopped along some tiny islands to see some harbor seals and their pups!  These adorable animals were enjoying the sunshine and cool ocean temperature today!  Scanning the area above, we were excited to see a bald eagle perfectly perched over all...

Leaving the harbor aboard M/V sea lion with captain Pete and naturalist Piper, we were headed East today to check out some transient orcas! Although a bit smokey out, the visibility was good and the sun was still shining. On the bright side, the sunlight through the smoke gives the water a beautiful orange tint making whale sightings even more epic. Headed inter island towards the north side of Cone islands, we were excited to see our summer transient orca residents- the T65As whom...

[Naturalist Erick D., M/V Kestrel, 7/26/17, 2:00PM]

On Wednesday, Captain Gabe and I took a full boat of excited folks along on the M/V Kestrel to go look for some marine wildlife.  That day it was a bit windy down south so we headed north to go look in Boundary Pass, Haro Strait and in between the southernmost of the Southern Gulf Islands just across the border in British Columbia.

Our First stop was to look at some Bald Eagles around Sentinel Island. There was one perched...

(6/28/17 - Kittiwake 12:00 PM Departure)
Today M/V Kittiwake went out for a private charter with Amy, Steve and their Evergreen guide Justin, and what a delightful group they were! We moseyed to Hein Bank, a common feeding ground for the larger baleen whales in the area, and looked at other wildlife along the way. We stopped to see some harbor seals hauled out. Those pups should start appearing on the rocks anytime now. After getting that load of cuteness we continued on towards...

    Yesterday, our little heat wave finally broke so we are back in the safety of 60˚-70˚F. Captain Pete, Kelsey, and I headed out south to go find some wildlife. The Salish Sea is a mix and a crossroads of some many different things constantly changing with the seasons so every day is so different. The Salish Sea is a intersection of the Pacific Ocean, large rivers running from snowcapped mountains, and the land. The ingredients along with seasonal weather changes mix differently...

Today, like most days, the Salish Sea was demonstrating the full potential of this incredibly unique ecosystem. Captain Mike, myself, and the excited passengers aboard the Sea Lion were fortunate enough to bear witness to some incredible activity that is a sure sign that Autumn is upon us.

We headed South out of Friday Harbor after leaving the dock on a hot tip that there were some large marine mammals spotted South of Lopez island in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

On our way down the...