Traveling east between Orcas and Shaw Islands and then south along Lopez, we emerged in the Rosario straight.  Despite starting in beautiful and warm Friday Harbor sunshine, we quickly became encompassed in a cool low-lying fog bank (but still at least giving us 225 yards of visibility).  Looming off our starboard side was another whale watching vessel, stopped, watching, waiting.  With a quick radio call to them, we learned that they were waiting for whales off of their port side...

It started raining at exactly 1:00.  We slogged out of the harbor under a giant black cloud that seemed to cover only San Juan Island.  The farther away we got, the more sun we saw.  Finally, headed southeast over the top of Lopez Island and down the east side, we moved out from under the cloud and into the sunshine.  Guess who was waiting for us in the sunshine?  Orcas.  Resident orcas.  Lots of them.  We found them in Rosario Straight.  They were spread from the near side of the...

With storm clouds and rain to the north, we started heading south towards Cattle Pass.  Word on the quiet ocean: Minke whales were in the neighborhood.

Passing several plump harbor seals hauled out off Cattle Point, we motored out to Salmon Bank and then Hein Bank, areas known for schools of herring and, subsequently, birds and marine mammals feeding on the abundant food source.  A female and calf Minke whale were seen by other vessels in the area.  At Hein Bank, we spotted several...

The orcas and humpbacks were conspiring against us today.  They were all 20 miles or more from Friday Harbor and were heading further west.  Not a good combination for a successful whale watching tour.  Luckily for us the minke whale were cooperating, so we went and spent time with them.  Afterward we had a lovely cruise around Lopez Island, where we visited quiet coves and glassy waterways all chock-a-block full of seabirds.  All of this was just what the cruise director...

The whale road that is. Well, world's largest dolphin road to be exact. That is right, today we saw orcas! A small pod of transient orcas was spotted on the east side of Lopez Island near a reef called Bird Rock. When we arrived on scene it was to find two males and 3-4 female transient orcas in an active feeding pattern. We did not get to see any confirmed kills, but they were definitely an active bunch with lots of diving and not much time spent at the surface. We were able...

Some days are just not like the others and sometimes the orcas do things that we just can not predict. Yesterday, members of K and L pods swam up San Juan Channel between San Juan and Lopez Islands. That was only the second time this season that they have done that, and we were there to see it. They made it all the way to Friday Harbor before they turned around and headed back south. It was a lovely, mostly clear day and with the orcas traveling in two large, close groups it was...

It was a double round-trip for those guests coming from Anacortes today. We loaded them on the boat in Friday Harbor and then motored through Upright Channel and Thatcher Pass to get to Rosario Strait right outside of Anacortes. There was some fog again today, but it was well inland and offered a nice soft background for viewing the orcas. And orcas there were.

J pod was all there travelling in two tight family groups down the strait. The four big boys, both calves with their...

What a day! There were Orca families zooming everywhere with breaches, tail slaps and spyhops galore. We saw auklets and harbor seals and even a bald eaglet in the nest with his parents standing guard in nearby trees. The sun was out and the waters were calm and our guests on the MV Kittiwake could not have been more fun.

Capt. Craig and I took a lively group of visitors through Friday Harbor and down the east side of San Juan Island. Just past Turn Island we stopped to see some...

As spring advances towards summer here and the days become longer in the San Juan Islands, we at San Juan Safaris shift into our evening sunset tours along with the lengthening sunlight. This particular Saturday marked our first late tour of the season and it was a glorious one. The sun shone through a clear sky, but the wind made jackets a necessity, especially out on the water. As Capt. Peter maneuvered us out of Friday Harbor and I talked with the guests aboard the MV Sea Lion we...