Sarah | 05/10/2019 | M/V Sea Lion | 12:00pm
We have been having just spectacular days here in the San Juan Islands. The sun was shining today, and we had some great wildlife around the islands. Captain Pete and I elected to head south through San Juan Channel towards Cattle Pass to see what we could find on a mirror-smooth day out in the Straits. We had quite the tidal exchange today, so we had lots of upwelling and currents swirling around us as we made our way south.
We decided to again head towards the shallow waters of Whidbey Island to try to find a reported gray whale. As we arrived on scene we caught a glimpse of a blow over the surface of the water. Gray whales have a distinct heart-shaped blow over the surface of the water. The whale we encountered seemed to be feeding in the silty bottom of the Whidbey shoreline. Gray whales are the only species of baleen whale to feed benthically, or at the bottom of the waterway. These slender and maneuverable whales tend to spend much of their time in shallow water that is 60-100 feet deep. We got an incredible look at the whale while we were shut down, getting an incredible look at the whole body of the whale while it swam past our boat.
After a great encounter with the gray whale we headed towards the south end of Lopez Island in search of some other wildlife. At Hall Island we found some harbor seals hauled out on the shore, and on Long Island we got a great look at a bald eagle nest. We pointed back for Cattle Pass and stopped at Whale Rocks where we found Steller’s sea lions, a juvenile bald eagle, and some more harbor seals.
Overall it was another amazing day in the San Juan Islands, it was so wonderful to share this place with such curious and engaging guests.