Yesterday was another beautiful spring day in the San Juan Islands. The sun was shining and there were reports of whales before we left the dock, an unusual occurrence for this time of year, but I feel like I have been saying that a lot in the past weeks!
We headed north up through San Juan Channel hugging the shoreline, motoring past scenic Roche Harbor and around Battleship Island. We marveled at how it is starting to feel and look a lot like summer, while watching gulls dip and dive in the air around the M/V Sea Lion. We entered Haro Strait from Spieden Channel and headed down the western side of Henry Island towards our reports of orcas!
As we arrived on scene we quickly realized that we were looking at members of J-Pod, one of the familial organizations of Southern Resident Killer Whales that frequent our waters. Currently there are 84 members of this endangered population and, and eight of those individuals are under a year and half old! Orcas live in tight-knit, matriarchal societies led by the oldest female in the family. We got awesome views of a family known as the J17 matriline, led by J17 Princess Angeline. J17 has had four calves that we know about in her lifetime (J28 Polaris, J35 Talequah, J44 Moby and J53) and she currently has three grand-calves (J46 Star, J47 Notch and J54). It was a lovely afternoon with the Js highlighted by an awesome look at J35 Talequah to start off the encounter, and then some surface activity from J28 Polaris and her two kiddos, J46 Star and the newest Southern Resident J54 (born December 2015). J46 propelled her entire body out of the water for a spectacular breach, and little J54 rolled around next to his momma J28, sticking his face out of the water and tail slapping up a storm!
We left the Js as the seas started to build, and headed for calmer waters and more wildlife. Along the shores of Spieden Island we were delighted to find numerous harbor seals, bald eagles and Steller’s sea lions.
Insider Tip: Even though temperatures on land have been warm, we still recommend bringing warm layers when planning a trip out on the water! Please plan on bringing a fleece or sweater to wear over lighter layers, as well as a riancoat to use as a windbreaker. A raincoat will not only keep you dry in the event of rain, but it will also keep you warm in the wind!
