Elle | M/V Sea Lion | July 7, 2022 | 2:00PM
Today we followed rumors of orca whales into Canadian waters. We cruised across boundary pass and turned off our engines between Saturna Island and South Pender Island, where we watched harbor porpoises frolic around us and enjoyed the beautiful weather. After the break, we turned back south, towards Friday Harbor. On our way, we came across a young male orca whale, zigzagging through the water by himself near Waldron Island. Although it is more common to see orcas traveling in groups because they are very social animals, sometimes we see one whale split off from the rest of their group. They can still communicate with nearby whales from around ten miles away! The male we saw was young, indicated by his smaller size and wobbly dorsal fin. Captain Erick speculated that he might be T065A3, born in 2007, because the rest of the T65A family was reported nearby. After leaving the orca at Waldron Island, we stopped at White Rock to see a bald eagle standing regally over a group of harbor seals hauled out on the rocks. We had a lovely day out there filled with wildlife and surprises!