Lauren | M/V Kestrel | 8/7/2022 | 10:00 AM
We couldn’t have asked for better boating conditions on our Sunday morning adventure whale watch and wildlife tour! It was predicted to be one of the warmest days Friday Harbor has seen all summer, which is a blessing for anyone cruising aboard M/V Kestrel. The water temperature of the Salish Sea sits at about 47 degrees year-round, and Kestrel is the fastest boat in our fleet. Traveling at a speed of 35 knots, she always ensures a breezy ride…
Not only was the temperature on our side, but we had glassy seas as far as the eye could see! Our first stop was to Deadman Island, located at the southern mouth of San Juan Channel. It was there that we viewed some harbor seals, and we even got the chance to see a mom and pup pair! Harbor seal pups are both small and adorable, they’re only about 2 feet long and 15 pounds at birth. While viewing these seals, we also spotted a bald eagle perched on a treetop just off the Lopez Island coastline. Before continuing on our way, Captain Eric shared that there was a humpback whale reported near Discovery Bay. Although exciting, Discovery Bay is quite the long haul, 30 nautical miles from Friday Harbor to be exact. We let our guests know we were in for quite the journey and started zooming down the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
As we got with-in a half nautical mile of this humpback, we slowed our speed to 7 knots and slowly started to approach. On the approach, we were greeted by this humpback whale leaping out of the water! This whales name is “Kata” also known as BCY1218. While on scene Kata graced us with many surfacing and even some tail flukes before going on her longer dives. We couldn’t stay long, as we came just about as far an M/V Kestrel can go, but what a beautiful encounter we had!
Our last stop was at Whale Rocks to view some Steller’s Sea lions before heading back into Friday Harbor. Seeing a breaching humpback whale is something that only happens a couple times a summer… I hope our guests enjoyed this truly rare experience!