Leaving the harbor aboard M/V Sea Lion Captain Pete, naturalist Alexandria and myself were excited to get out on the water and see what orcas were hanging around East Point! We had received a report of transient orcas up that way earlier and I️ was eager to see them after about two weeks of focusing on the resident orca pods. We decided to head up the San Juan Channel and into Boundary Pass getting the beautiful views of the Canadian Gulf Islands on one side and the Northern islands...

[Thursday, 8/9/18, 5:30PM, M/V Sea Lion]

On our sunset tour on Thursday we left with a smaller group to go find some wonderful wildlife later in the day. We headed out during my favorite time during the summer. A few hours before sunset when the sky is turning all golden and orange. M/V Sea Lion took us south through San Juan Channel through Cattle Pass. We took a quick stop to see some Harbor Seals on Whale Rocks. These blubbery friends are the most common marine mammals in the...

Jordan | August 8, 2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 1:30 trip

What a wonderful day out on the water! The skies were clear and blue and the water was especially gorgeous. Captain Pete, Mariana and I headed out of Friday Harbor with reports of a whale up in Canada!

So, we headed up through the San Juan Channel and boated along the east side of Stuart Island and past Turn Point, the most northwestern point in the continental U.S.! Then we traveled across Boundary Pass and into Canadian waters up...

Leaving the harbor with a full boat Captain Mike, Alexandria and myself were excited to get out on the water and see what orcas were hanging around the San Juan Channel! It’s really a treat and a weight off our shoulders when the whales are right outside the harbor since sometimes we must travel two hours to even catch up to them! With high spirits, we headed North up the channel hugging the east side of San Juan island. About two miles up the coast, we saw some faint spouts coming...

Jordan | July 30, 2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 1:30 trip

Today’s trip started out with sunny skies and excited guests as we left Friday Harbor for our 1:30 trip on our Sea Lion vessel. Captain Pete, Naturalist Rachel and I heard reports of some whales far up in Canada. Luckily, they were headed south towards us, so we headed north to meet them! We boated up through the San Juan Channel and through Boundary Pass alongside the west side of Waldron island as we entered Canadian waters and...

[M/V Sea Lion- 7/31/18 5:30 Sunset Trip Naturalist Alexandria]

What a beautiful day we had on the water today!

Our guests eagerly boarded M/V Sea Lion for Wildlife and Whale Watching trip!  Naturalist Mariana and myself, along with Captain Mike were very excited about what the day might hold!

As we got on the water Captain Mike received report of orcas in Haro Strait.  We excitedly headed in that direction as we kept our eyes peeled for more wildlife in our area!

As we got into Haro...

Jordan | July 26, 2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 5:30 trip

As the sun started setting in the sky, it cast shadows everywhere making everything look even more beautiful. Captain Pete, Naturalist Rachel and I set off on our vessel towards reports of whales on the other side of the island! So, we set off.

Out of Friday Harbor, we headed south down the San Juan channel, through Cattle Pass and Cattle Point lighthouse. We rounded the corner and headed straight up the west side of San Juan through...

Jordan | July 26, 2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 1:30 trip

The sun was out and shining as Captain Pete, Mariana and I headed out on our Sea Lion vessel towards the promise of a great whale day. We headed south through the San Juan Channel and passed through Cattle Pass. Here we stopped briefly to watch some harbor seals playing in the waves and bounding between huge stalks of kelp. A few were flopping about on the rocky Whale Rocks while others idly watched. They were super cute.

Then we...

Jordan | July 24, 2018 | M/V Sea Lion | 5:30 trip

What a fantastic day out on the water! As the sun went down, the hot day cooled off a bit and made our ride incredibly pleasant as the sun cast picturesque shadows across the landscape. Captain Pete and I heard reports of whales down on the southwest side of San Juan Island.

So, we headed south through the San Juan Channel, past Cattle Point lighthouse and headed into the Salmon Bank where we found a small group of Southern Resident...

M/V Sea Lion was all boarded and ready to go along with Captain Pete, naturalist Jordan and myself. The sunset trip was sounding like a good one already with a report of southern resident orca within our range. The only problem was, we didn’t know whether to head south or north to get around to the West side of the island from Friday Harbor. We were hesitant that if we went one way versus the other, they would keep moving the opposite way and away making it harder for us to catch up...