It's been that kind of summer... Transient Orcas have been everywhere-surfacing in the distance, hunting for seals and porpoise, and giving us close encounters. It's been a little while since we saw Transients out on Middle Bank off the West side of San Juan Island. The M/V Kittiwake and guests went out to find them!

Transient Orcas have been seen much more than any other and we are certainly getting to know their habits and cultures more. The transients we saw today surprised us all...

This has been the summer to see Transient Orcas, which for me has been an absolute blast! Transients, unlike Resident Orcas, are much stealthier and tend to be more elusive in their feeding patterns. Since the Southern Residents Orcas seem to be feeding elsewhere for their fill of Chinook Salmon, it has created a gap in the population. Unlike past years where Residents were the "go to" whale to watch, now the Transients have filled that void.
Overall, Residents and Transients have an...

Today The M/V Kittiwake wasn't going to let a little thing like distance get in the way of seeing killer whales! Reports had Transient Orcas heading west near Discovery Island off the coast of Victoria, Canada. It was going to be quite the trek to get to these whales, but Captain Jim is never one to pass up on a challenge. On our way to the scene, we were able to spot some Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, and even two Minke Whales. All this wildlife along the way would have made for...

The other day, our guests on M/V Kittiwake settled in for a long boat ride up north into Canada. There were reports of six Transient Orcas, but they were far North and moving away from us. Captain Jim and I decided to go for it though, there's no stopping us when there's Orcas involved! The best part about it was that the "long ride" didn't actually feel long at all since going north comes with some of the best scenery and aesthetically pleasing views I have ever seen. Great people...

Another great day on the water! M/V Sea Lion didn't have to motor very far in search of whales today since they were coasting along the inside passage of San Juan Island. From Friday Harbor to the whales it only took us 8.4 minutes! Not a bad day for whale watching. Once we met up with the 2 transients, we quickly realized the individual transients were T-21 and T-20, a mother and son pair. T-20 is a mature male who has a very distinctive notch in his dorsal fin. In addition to this...

Captain Jim and myself departed on M/V Kittiwake today in hopes of finding transient orcas. Our guests were hoping that since it was Captain Jim's birthday, he would be our good luck charm! Jim ended up proving to be our good luck charm!
We made it up to canadian waters, specifically kellet reef, where we met up with a group of eight transient orcas. Most of the time we see our resident orcas and write about them, but on these special days we get to blog about this group....

We had reports of Transient Killer Whales near Victoria, B.C. today.  When the animals are reported this far away we do have to do a bit of traveling but fortunately the Killer Whales were traveling east and headed our direction. 

As we were motoring through the Strait of Juan de Fuca to reach the whales we saw 5 Dall’s Porpoise.  The Dall’s Porpoise were actively foraging in the highly productive region.  After a few minutes of viewing these animals we continued on our way...

Man was today a day for whales in Haro Strait; we saw a Humpback Whale (48°29.81N 123°11.95W) and 6 Transient Orcas (48°27.21N 123°09.33W)!!!!  There was also rumor of transients north, where most of the whale watch fleeted ended up going, but our decision to go south and around San Juan turned for the better. There were hardly any other boats around and we got the bonus of seeing a Humpback! Now if I were you, I would choose the San Juan Safaris crew.

Let's take a little risk...

We had wonderful views of 4 Transient Killer Whales!  We first saw the Orca Whales near Green Point as they were traveling north.  The pod included one physically mature male, he was massive.  When we arrived on scene, the whales were taking turns slapping their tail flukes on the surface before they continued traveling north.  They then circumnavigated Flattop Island, performed several lobtails and once again continued north. 

After viewing the Transient Orca Whales we found...

Literally minutes before our departure Captain Mike received a report of 2 Transient Killer Whales in the area!  Yahoozle! 

We found the whales near Kettle Bluff on the westside of Henry Island (48°36.15N, 123°12.60W).  The whales were identified as T20, a mature male, and T21 a female, most likely his mother.  The whales were traveling north, tightly against the shoreline.  Initially their behavior was predictable: several breaths at the surface before a deeper dive as they...