Kelly | M/V Sea Lion | March 21sh, 2024 | 12:30pm

After pouring all morning, the rain finally lifted as we motored out of Friday Harbor and into San Juan Channel. The sun was even peeking out from the overcast sky and the water was flat calm. We certainly did not have to travel far today; whales were reported right outside the harbor!  A group of 3 Biggs Killer Whales known as the T124A’s

• T124A Kittywake 1984 F
• T124A6 Kasuun 2016 M
• T124A7 ----- 2021 F 

This group is made up of mom (kittywake) and her...

Olivia Esqueda | Friday, March 14th, 2025 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:30pm

This was the first tour of the year for both me and Captain Gabe, and it was definitely an exciting one! We started off the trip by heading north through San Juan Channel, where there has been an increase of whale activity over the past few days. Right away we were spotting many different birds including Pelagic Cormorants, Common Murres, Harlequin Ducks, Rhinoceros Auklets, and many, many more! Most notably, we saw at least a...

Olivia Esqueda | M/V Sea Lion | September 28th, 2024| 12:30pm

Saturday out on the water was SO fun! We headed south through San Juan Channel making a brief stop at Goose Island where we saw Harbor Seals, Double Crested Cormorants and Pelagic Cormorants before passing Cattle Point Lighthouse and exploring the Strait of Juan de Fuca. After transiting past heaps of Surf Scoters, we came across a large bait ball where we were able to see one of the few Minke Whales in the Salish Sea. However, we...

Lauren | M/V Kestrel | September 21st, 2024 | 2:00 pm

The T049 matriline owned the inter-island zone today. Reports were coming in with members from this famous family along multiple sides of Lopez Island. T049C was headed north in San Juan Channel, T049A1 was heading south in Rosario Strait and the rest of the T049A1’s (minus T049A2/Jude) were hanging out in Thatcher Pass! Captain Eric and I were excited to get on the water for this T049 family affair, but where to begin? T049C/Nielson made that...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Sea Lion | September 8th, 2024 | 12:30 pm

Our Sunday afternoon Classic Whale Watch left Friday Harbor already hearing reports of whales close by in San Juan Channel, so we wasted no time heading in that direction. We traveled south in the channel, but didn’t have to go too far before we reached a group of Bigg’s/Transient Killer Whales. As we approached this group of eight individuals, we realized there were actually two different matrilines traveling together making this a T...

Maxx | M/V Sea Lion | September 6th 2024 | 12:30pm

Today’s whale watch was nothing short of spectacular: two families of Bigg’s Killer Whales were actively making their way down the San Juan Channel as we began our tour so we made our way up to them in no time. Both the T018s and T049As have taken a liking to the region lately and are without a doubt my most frequently spotted whales of the 2024 season.

From our understanding, these families are unrelated, yet they traveled in this moment as one...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Kestrel | September 1st, 2024 | 2:00 pm

Our afternoon trip left Friday Harbor in great spirits, ready to search for more whales and wildlife! Based on the sightings of the morning trip, we had an idea of where we wanted to go, so we turned north up San Juan Channel towards Waldron Island. We got some great looks at some harbor seals along the way, which was the perfect prep for the killer whales we were nearing! We quickly caught up with the Bigg’s/Transient Killer Whales...

Kelly | M/V Kestrel | August 29th 2024 | 2pm | 

I knew were likely to see two different whale groups when we left the harbor on this beautiful Friday afternoon...but I not expect that we were going to see 4 different groups, totaling 13 INDIVIDUAL whales! The stars were certainly aligned. 

The first whales we encountered were of the baleen variety, humpback whales to be precise. Typically, our humpbacks are solitary as they make their way through the Salish sea along their migration route. Not...

Olivia Esqueda | M/V Kestrel | August 28th, 2024 | 2:00pm

Today was an amazing day out on the water with the family of Bigg’s Killer Whales known as the T049A’s. We first started our tour off by traveling from San Juan Channel into New Channel, just north of Spieden Island, where we saw Bald Eagles, swimming Harbor Seals, and Mouflon Sheep grazing by the water. It wasn’t too long after that when we first spotted the Transient Orcas swimming around in the North Haro Strait. 

Soon after we arrived...

Olivia Ellman | M/V Osprey | August 25th, 2024 | 12:30pm

Summer weather came back today as we departed Friday Harbor under sunny skies! We took a left out of the harbor heading north in San Juan Channel, and quickly caught up with a group of Bigg’s Killer Whales traveling close by! This family of four turned out to be the T075Bs, consisting of mom Pebbles and her three calves born in 2015, 2017, and 2021! We enjoyed our sunny cruise up the channel with them as they traveled along the shoreline on...