Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 04/17/2021 |1:00pm

What a fantastic day! It started off incredibly warm and sunny as the bright blue sky promised a great trip no matter what we ended up seeing.

Captain Pete and I jumped on the Sea Lion with our excited guests and boated out towards sea. Heading up the San Juan Channel, we passed Shaw and Orcas Islands and rounded the northern coastline of San Juan. Continuing back around, we headed south down the Haro Strait.

We started to see boats in the...

Laura | M/V Sea Lion | 4/15/2021 | 1:00PM

Today was a spectacular day out on the water!  We left the dock on M/V Sea Lion with a morning report that orcas had just been spotted near Orcas Island in East Sound!  Passengers were super excited to head out in hopes of finding whales close by on such a beautiful sunny day!  As we headed out of Friday Harbor our Captain, Pete, noticed two majestic bald eagles neatly perched along an exposed branch near the Friday Harbor Marine Labs.  They...

Laura | M/V Sea Lion | 4/14/2021 | 1:00PM

Today was such a fun day out on the water!  We headed north bound on M/V Sea Lion, through Presidents Channel, and towards Matia Island.  There was a morning report of Bigg’s killer whales headed SE in The Strait of Georgia near Sucia Island!  Once we arrived on scene, we were thrilled to start seeing blows to the side of Puffin Island.  This family was identified at the T49As and 49Bs, a well-known family of two sisters and all their...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | April 12th, 2021 | 13:00

What a clear day in the San Juan Islands! Not only could we see Koma Kulshan (Mount Baker) standing tall from the North Cascades, but we could also see Tahoma (Mount Rainier) to the south! You know it is a special day in the Salish Sea when both volcanoes are making an appearance. Starting off the trip, Captain Sarah took us south through San Juan Channel passing heaps of Rhinoceros Auklets. On the southern side of Salmon Bank, we...

Jordan Higgins Blogs

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 04/11/2021 |1:00pm

What a gorgeous day today! It was the first day of the year where I genuinely felt warm and wore my T-shirt around the harbor! I knew right away that it was going to be a good day.

Captain Pete and I hopped on the boat with our 35 new friends and took off up the San Juan Channel and headed towards Flattop Island. Here we found 3 beautiful bald eagles! Two adults which we presumed were a mated pair and a juvenile bald...

Jordan Higgins Blogs

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 04/10/2021 |5:00pm

Today was the very first Sunset Tour of the season!! Captain Pete and I were very excited to enjoy the islands at such a beautiful time of the day. We invited our guests to our vessel, the Sea Lion, and set out of Friday Harbor to find some wildlife.

We boated up north through the San Juan Channel and up towards tiny Islands near Orcas and Shaw Island. We wound our way around gorgeous rocks and nearby forests. As we...

Jordan | M/V Sea Lion | 04/10/2021 |1:00pm

It was such a beautiful day so both Captain Pete and I were very eager to get out on the water. As soon as our guests jumped on our boat we set off to adventure around the islands.

We headed north towards Shaw and Lopez Island as we boated through Upright Channel and around the northern point of Lopez. As we rounded the corner, we spotted something bursting from the water…dorsal fins!! The kids were the first to spot the orcas and they were...

Laura | M/V Sea Lion | 4/9/2021 | 1:00PM

What a fun day in April to be out on the water!  The skies were grey and seas a little choppy, but that did not alter the mind set of those set on seeing some amazing wildlife today.  We left the dock in a hurry, as there was a morning report of Bigg’s killer whales in the area!  Back in the office, one of our kayak guides, Clai, phoned in to let us know his guests just saw killer whales on their 3-hour kayak trip with San Juan Outfitters! ...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | April 6th, 2021 | 13:00

We already knew it would be a great day out on the water with Mount Baker making an appearance on the horizon. Our active volcano in the North Cascades is referred to as “Koma Kulshan”, meaning white sentinel with a side missing and known for being the nesting place for the thunderbird! After dipping north through San Juan Channel, we eventually moved inland to creep our way closer towards Anacortes. Almost all the way there, we came...

Jordan Higgins | M/V Sea lion | 04/03/21 |1:00pm

Today was such a special day! It is pretty rare that we see both the Southern Resident Killer Whales and the Transient Orcas in one trip. I felt very lucky and I’m fairly sure all my guests felt the same way.

Captain Pete and I began the day like any other, boating out of Friday Harbor and listening to any reports of orcas in the area. We got word from a research vessel that the Residents were only a few minutes away! So, we headed...