Haleigh | M/V Kestrel | May 28, 2022 | 2:00 pm
One of our mantras for each of our tours is that every day is different, and every hour is different, meaning you can find wildlife anywhere and at any time. For today’s tour, this held up to be true given we had multiple families of Bigg’s Killer Whales traveling through San Juan Channel.
The first was a family of four, the T123’s. The matriarch, Sidney, was followed along by her three offspring, T123A Stanley, T123C Lucky, and T123D Darcy. We watched them hug the shoreline moving at a consistent pace of ~5-6 knots. After ~30 minutes, we spun back around towards Friday Harbor to meet up with a larger group of whales swiftly porpoising northbound. These whales were identified as the T60’s and T109’s, totalling up to a group of 13 whales. This large group picked up speed as they crossed to the eastside of San Juan Channel, wrapping around towards Jones Island. At one point, a few of them surprisingly popped up ~75 yards off of our stern, allowing us to shut off our engines and admire them cruising by.
After nearly ~2 hours with up to 17 killer whales, we decided to explore what other wildlife could be found in the area! Nearby, there was a haul out of harbor seals basking in the sun. They peered up at us as we passed by, while a Black Oystercatcher squawked as if it was announcing our approach. From there, we drove alongside Spieden Island where we found some Steller’s Sea Lions traveling in a pack just off the shore. They huffed and puffed as we said, “Hello” to them, and continued on their way. Within the span of a few hours, we filled up our wildlife lists seeing so many of the species that make up this diverse ecosystem, filling each of us up with so much joy!