[8/7/17- Kelsey, Naturalist]

There is a vast expansion of seabird varieties here in the San Juan Islands that we can see on any given trip. We’ve got Common murres, Rhinoceros auklets, Pacific loons, Pelagic Cormorants, Glaucous-winged gulls… just to name a few! Some of the more rare birds are Marbled murrelets, Arctic terns, and on occasion- TUFTED PUFFINS.

There have been very few trips this season where puffins are spotted, but whenever we have had the rare chance to see one, we...

[Sarah M – 08/03/2017 – M/V Sea Lion – 01:30pm & 05:30pm]

Yesterday the M/V Sea Lion had another pair of great trips in the Salish Sea. Even though we are still experiencing smoky conditions, the wildlife sightings have been off the charts amazing and unaffected by the atmospheric conditions.

01:30pm Afternoon Classic Whale Watch

Wildlife

On our afternoon trip we left Friday Harbor and headed south towards Cattle Pass, encountering harbor porpoise and harbor seals as we cruised...

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[8/1/17 5:30 Sea Lion]

Yesterday morning a family group of transient killer whales was spotted on the east side of Cypress Island heading south towards Anacortes. Identified as the T37's, this group was tracked as they hunted and milled slowly...

[8/1/17- M/V Sea Lion- Kelsey, Naturalist- 1:30PM]

Ya know what days are the best? Days with orca whales and their babies breaching and feeding amongst calm seas with sunlight and warm weather and perfection… yes, it almost seems too good to be true. But, today was one of those days!

Coming up into Canadian waters, M/V Sea Lion and guests came up on the T37A family group of transient killer whales! A group of strong, independent sisters and mothers and a grandmother, this group of 8...

[Naturalist Erick D., M/V Sea Lion, 7/30/17, 5:30PM]

On Sunday, our sunset cruise was one of the most beautiful sunsets all summer. Captain Mike and I took our group of guests south in San Juan Channel towards Cattle Pass and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We first stopped and saw some adorable Harbor Seals hauled out on rocks along the shoreline of San Juan Island. These Pacific Harbor Seals are the most common marine mammals in these waters and stay here year-round. Even so, I still...

[Naturalist Erick D., M/V Sea Lion, 7/29/17, 1:30PM]

Yesterday Captain Gabe, Kelsey, and I headed out with a boat full of great folks to go look for some marine wildlife outside of Friday Harbor. We started by going north through San Juan Channel and soon into Presidents Channel between Orcas and Waldron Islands. We then saw a blow in the distance!

It was a pretty big blow, and as we approached we saw that it was a Humpback Whale! It was swimming towards us so we turned around a...

[7/29/30- M/V Sea Lion- Kelsey, Naturalist- 5:30PM]

The group of passengers on today’s M/V Sea Lion sunset trip were bumped up to Level Expert Whale Watchers, because they sighted their own whale that no one had seen all day! We do not use sonar or fancy equipment to find whales and other wildlife in the sea when we are on our trips, so we need everyone putting their eyes to the water and looking for cool animals. Today’s group did just that!

We were headed from Friday Harbor on San...

[7/28/17- M/V Sea Lion- Kelsey, Naturalist- 1:30PM and 5:30PM]

Sunny skies and whales in the forecast- it was turning out to be a beautiful July afternoon! Our first group departed on M/V Sea Lion from Friday Harbor on San Juan Island and headed north through San Juan Channel and President Channel. We reached Sucia Island and the top of Orcas Island, and lucky us, TWO family groups of transient, or mammal-eating, orca whales were around, just three miles apart!

We arrived on scene...

[Sarah M. – 07/26/2017 – M/V Sea Lion – 05:30pm]

Today’s sunset whale watch from Friday Harbor was one for the books. With glassy waters and beautiful islands, the night was already off to a great start. Add in a late afternoon report of killer whales and the night got even better!

We left Friday Harbor and headed north towards Boundary Pass, which separates the San Juan Islands in the United States from the Canadian Gulf Islands. There we found the T046 family group of Bigg’s...