Welcome to the Whale Report Blog

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 18th, 2020 | 13:30

It was the most picture-perfect day on the water we have had yet. Immensely sunny, WARM, Mount Baker and Mount Rainier flawlessly in view, the Olympic Mountains defined on the horizon, and calm seas.  We traveled south gazing at Harbor Seals hauled out on Turn Island and watching Harbor Porpoise swim outside of Griffin Bay. Upon reaching the southern side of Lopez Island between Colville and Long Island, we caught out first glances at...

M/V Sea Lion | Friday July 17th  2020 | Naturalist Alexandria

Today was a beautiful day out on the water!  We left the dock knowing we had reports of Resident Orcas off the West Side of San Juan Island- and not just any resident orcas… J Pod!

As we left in M/V Sea Lion, Captain Pete and myself were eagerly looking forward to the trip ahead.  Any day where we have reports of whales is an exciting day, but when we have reports of Southern Resident Orcas off the West Side of San Juan...

Sarah | 07/17/2020 | M/V Kestrel | 2:00pm

What. A. Day. We had yet another amazing day on the water amongst members of the Southern Resident killer whale population. It was truly a dreamy day!

Captain Brian and I elected to head south out of Friday Harbor towards a recent report of orcas from our colleagues in the Pacific Whale Watch Association. All of the member companies of PWWA are obligated to share wildlife sightings with one another, enabling us to search a huge amount of...

Erick | M/V Sea Lion | Wednesday, July 15, 2020 | 1:30PM

            It is very much feeling like summer now. Capt. Pete and I took a group out on a beautiful, warm sunny day here in the San Juans. Now, it definitely was not hot especially once we got out on the water. We started going by going south through San Juan Channel and into Haro Strait. There had been a report of groups of orcas off the southwestern coast of San Juan Island. We soon saw blows a few miles offshore on False...

Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | JUly 14, 2020 | 13:30

Every moment of our trip was a picture-perfect day out on the water. From the minute we left the dock we were graced with sharp views of Mount Baker [volcano] towering over the islands, a full bodied Mount Rainier [volcano] greeting us in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, as well as the entirety of the Olympic Mountain Range silhouetting the South.

We took a sneak peek at some Harbor Seals hauled out near Turn Island before spotting Harbor...

Olivia | M/V Kestrel | July 13th, 2020 | 11:00 Charter

Baleen whales in the sunshine, how neat is that!? Captain Brian and I started our private charter by heading south through San Juan Channel, briefly stopping in Cattle Pass to scout for Harbor Porpoise, and eventually dipping down into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Shortly after nearing Salmon Bank, a shallow area of the large waterway, we found an elusive Humpback Whale! This whale was initially averaging dives of around 7-minutes...

M/V Sea Lion

Friday, July 12th | Naturalist Alexandria

Today was a gorgeous day out on the water!  We had a boat full of excited people ready to go see some whales.  It was actually kind of a windy day out on the water, which made for an adventurous trip through Cattle Pass, but as soon as we got to see whales it made it worth it!

As we got on scene we were able to confirm that these were indeed Resident Orcas from J Pod.  Anytime we get to see whales is an exciting day but when...

Laura | M/V Sea Lion | 7/13/2020 | 1:30 PM

M/V Sea Lion rocked it today in the Rosario Strait!  We left the dock with reports of a humpback whale south of San Juan Island and a potential orca whale sighting near Point Roberts in the Strait of Georgia from this morning.  Our captain and I discussed our tactic and decided to steam north in hopes of getting to see something black and white today.  Passengers were fully behind this notion and eagerly scanned with their binoculars across...

Olivia | M/V Kestrel | July 12th, 2020 | 14:00

Talk about an adventure trip! It was so fun on our zodiac today in the sunshine and big waves down south of San Juan Island. Before then, we stopped and observed Harbor Seals hauled out basking in the sun near Turn Island.  This was a chill way to start the trip before our guests became troopers as we had to go a bit slower than normal after we crossed into the Strait of Juan de Fuca due to the high swells. Just north of South Beach, we...

Laura | M/V Sea Lion | 7/11/2020 | 5:30PM

The sunset trip this evening was certainly a wildlife encounter to remember!  Passengers were decked out in rain gear from the afternoon, but luckily the skies were in our favor and we avoided getting rained on!  This overcast weather is some of the best conditions to scan for whales as their exhalations seem to linger in the air a little longer and create a nice contrast to the surrounding backdrop.  There was also minimal wind out there so...