Erin | M/V Kestrel | Sunday, July 14, 2019 | 3:00 PM

What a lovely trip aboard the M/V Kestrel this afternoon. We began our trip going north out of Friday Harbor because we heard that there was a gray whale travelling along the shoreline of Shaw Island! We were barely ten minutes into our trip when we saw a beautiful blow up at the surface. It was indeed a gray whale. The whale was travelling very quickly, but we saw it take 2-3 breaths at the surface and then go back down for 3-5...

Erin | M/V Kestrel | Sunday, July 14, 2019 | 11:00 AM

It was an absolutely wildlife-filled day on the water this morning. We began our trip heading south out of Friday Harbor. We made our way to Cattle Point and got a lovely view of the lighthouse. Then we went directly across the San Juan Channel to Whale Rocks and we saw over 20 harbor seals hauled out of the water! There were a few swimming around in the water as well. Not only were there harbor seals, but there was a Steller's...

M/V Kestrel | 11 AM | Naturalist Alexandria  | July 15th, 2019

What a great Kestrel trip we had today!  When we got onto the water we didn’t have any firm reports, but we knew that this was not uncommon.  We decided to head south and work our way down through San Juan Channel.

We stopped at Whale Rocks and got some adorable looks at harbor seals hauled out on these rocky areas.  There were a few that had gotten up to some higher areas on the rocks during high tide...

Piper | Saturday, July 13, 2019 | M/V Kestrel | 11:00 AM & 3:00 PM

On today’s trips aboard the M/V Kestrel Captain Gabe and I took two awesome groups of folks down southwest of San Juan Island in the Canadian waters off Victoria on Vancouver Island! Down there we got to check out two humpback whales on both trips! On our morning voyage got to see two adults swimming separately. The first was a report from another vessel and the second one was spotted by a guest with a keen eye! They...

Jordan | M/V Kestrel | 07/12/19 | 3:00pm

Today was such a good day! As Captain Pete and I set out of Friday Harbor, we headed south towards potential sightings of something cool near the Olympic Peninsula.

We headed south down through the San Juan Channel, passed Cattle Point and across the Strait of Juan De Fuca! Miles away from home, we spotted a couple boats in the distance. Then our orcas! Yay! Upon looking at the unique dorsal fin patterns and shapes and scratches, we identified...

Jordan | M/V Kestrel | 07/12/19 | 11:00

Luckily it was a nice warm day today even though it got pretty chilly out on the water! But It was a really nice trip.

Captain Pete and I set out of Friday Harbor and helped our fleet of boats search the sea for any whales. We headed up north through the San Juan Channel and up towards Waldron Island. Here we found a whole bunch of harbor seals! These guys were super adorable hanging out on the rocks next to a huge forest of bull kelp. They...

Olivia | July 10th, 2019 | M/V Kestrel | 11:00am

We had the most adventurous ‘Adventure Tour’ yet this season! Gearing up for the trip, Captain Brian decided to take a risk and head towards our only Killer Whale reports down in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, almost bordering Haro Strait. On our way south near Cattle Point, we stopped at Whale Rocks to view Harbor Porpoises (which we saw right at the dock) and many sea birds such as Cormorants. Here’s where the adventure truly began! It...

Laura C. | 7-9-2019 | M/V Kestrel | 11:00am

A picturesque mountainous scene was in store for all aboard M/V Kestrel today!  The weather along the Salish Sea turned swells and whitecaps of the Pacific Ocean into transparent glass, creating a mirror image of all the beauty surrounding our vessel.  This sparkling emerald liquid was a nice contrast to the rocky snowy edges of Mount Baker and northern jagged mountain ranges.  Our boat sliced a clean cut through the water as we made our...

Olivia | July 8th, 2019 | M/V Kestrel | 3:00pm

Perk of being on the 3:00pm tour, is that our 11:00am has already scoped out the area to know where our potential whale sightings are. Captain Pete and I were confident on seeing both Humpback Whales and Killer Whales up in Boundary Pass, so we started off by heading north through the San Juan Channel to find them! We ended up near the same family group as this morning, the T65A’s, and watched as they milled around and provided us with...

Olivia | July 8th, 2019 | M/V Kestrel | 11:00am

Captain Pete and I started off the trip by heading north towards Boundary Pass where we caught word of some potential whale sightings. On our way there we decided to stop at White Rocks and catch a glimpse at some Harbor Seals. Did you know that anywhere from 10 days to 2 weeks after they give birth to their pups, the males swoop in to breed all over again? Ouch. Am I right, moms? 

As we continued further up peeking into Boundary...