July 8th, 2022
Abby Dahl
2pm Kestrel
Captain Gabe and I zipped out of the harbor with hopes of seeing some Biggs killer whales spotted in Boundary Pass; the same group we saw that morning. They were the T065A’s, my favorite matriline in all the Salish Sea, quite possibly my favorite whales in the entire world.
The T065A’s are made up of:
- T065A “Artemis” (1986, Female, Mother of all listed below)
- T065A2 “Ooxjaa” (2004, Male)
- T065A3 “Amira” (2007, Gender Unknown)
- T065A4 “Ellifrit” (2011, Female)
- T065A5 “Elsie” (2014, Male)
- T065A6 “Callisto” (2018, Female)
I love this family group so much because they are wild and rambunctious with the most playful personalities. They frequent these waters and are one of the most beloved and sighted matrilines in the San Juan Islands. Ooxjaa, the male who has started sprouting his dorsal fin is large for being only 18 years old. He definitely exhibits angsty teen energy…
We cruised easily up north, past Waldron Island and into the southern end of the Strait of Georgia. That’s where we spotted the T065A’s, zig zagging in the open, glassy water. We watched for quite some time before heading home. The sun was sneaking down towards the horizon and the water was the calmest I had seen it in months. We spotted harbor porpoises and harbor seals on our journey home. We passed through the Wasp Islands, high on the energy gleaned from an epic encounter with a wild matriline in the Salish Sea and the end of an orca-filled day.