June 9th, 2022

Abby Dahl

12:30pm Osprey

We boarded Osprey on a typical, rainy northwest afternoon. Cruising out of the harbor, we turned northbound and entered the San Juan Channel. Reports loomed of a humpback whale mother and calf heading through Boundary Pass, so we thought we’d give it a go, scanning for orcas along the way as the misty air hung in a still balance amidst a lush island backdrop.

We cruised along while harbor seals seemed to drift in and out of sleep on the rocky...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | June 8, 2022 | 12:30 pm

Today’s Classic Whale and Wildlife excursion began like most days out on the water, a few reports guiding our direction but no guarantees for what wildlife we’d find. The early-on reports directed us north up San Juan Channel towards feeding grounds known to host feeding Humpback Whales. As we made our way along Orcas Island, through President's Channel and past Waldron Island, a report of Bigg’s Killer Whales came in only 15 minutes...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | June 4, 2022 | 12:30 pm and 5:30 pm

The start of the summer has shown off the Humpbacks returning to these waters. The presence of these Humpbacks is a reminder of the days these creatures feared the inland waters. Whaled out of the area in the 1900’s, Humpbacks were a memory of the past pre-human influence. As time passed and Humpback populations rebounded, thanks to the banning of whaling internationally, these large baleen whales slowly reentered these...

Maxx K. | M/V Osprey | 06/01/2022 | 12:30pm

    Humpback whales are just the coolest. Here in the Salish Sea we have a “Humpback Highway” of sorts; these massive 45 tonne animals will travel in through the Juan De Fuca and will often then take a hard left up and through the Haro Strait, through Boundary Pass and often again up and around towards the north. What truly blows my mind the most is that these animals will make this trek year after year, taking the same specific turns...

Maxx K. | M/V Osprey | 05/19/2022 | 1:00pm

    We had a full boat of guests today on our 1:00 departure out of Friday Harbor, and let me tell you, it was a BEAUTIFUL day. I might even go so far as to say it was almost warm. Summer is officially on its wayspie and today was the perfect sampling. 

    We started up north through the San Juan Channel where we then rounded up and over the north side of Spieden Island. I’m obsessed with Spieden Island, not only because the non-native...

Olivia | M/V Osprey | April 23rd, 2022 | 12:30pm

On our first Osprey trip of the season and the sunniest day of the week, we decided to head south in an effort to see some orcas down by Victoria, B.C. The beauty of this day could not be matched as we continually motored through glassy seas past bellowing Steller’s Sea Lions, swimming Harbor Seals, feeding Harbor Porpoise, and tons of curious birds.

It was a good thing we had sun-soaked skies and lots of peaceful views, because those...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | August 21, 2021 | 12:30 pm

Today’s classic whale watching adventure led us on a beautiful ride through the islands. We began heading interisland, sandwiched between the lush Orcas Island and Lopez Island. Following a report of some killer whales near Anacortes, we knew we were in for a nice boat ride with a sweet surprise. 

Slowing down to move through Peavine Pass, we noticed harbor porpoises swimming through the rippling waters. We continued through the...

Jordan | M/V Osprey | 08/20/2021 5:30pm

Everyone on board this evening was incredibly lucky as we were blessed with one of the best whale watches of the season to commemorate our last sunset tour of the season!

Captain Gabe, Olivia, Solan and I headed out to sea on m/v Osprey. As soon as we made it out of the harbor, one of the other captains from the Pacific Whale Watching Association (PWWA) let us know that they found orca whales! It turned out that there were whales just a few...

Haleigh | M/V Osprey | August 14, 2021 | 5:30pm

With intense fires burning throughout the west coast, smoky skies are spreading hundreds of miles. Here in the Salish Sea, the burnt skies finally reached us. As we departed for our sunset tour, the amber haze made the islands feel like a new place. The golden reflection from the fiery sun glimmered off the water’s surface. Seeing such intense sunlight also meant good conditions to find the reported Bigg’s Killer Whales traveling...

Today was great!

I was incredibly excited when I first heard that the T18s were in the area. This powerful pod consists of 4 massive whales: Two adult males and 2 females. The pod is led by the matriach and grandmother named "Esperanza" followed by her daughter "Nootka" and her two grandchildren "Galiano" and "Spouter." This family is known for splitting into pairs consisting of one of the huge males and one of the females. And that's just what we saw today!

As the crew (Naturalist...