2005 Whale Watching Report

December 31st: Happy New Year! An amazing amount of birds out today. Cormorants, grebes, Brant’s Geese, groups of Pacific Loons and even our friend the Kingfisher in the marina. We saw some porpoises by the northern end of the Kitsap Peninsula and a big Bald Eagle at Edmonds that was beautiful when it took flight. Lots of Sea Lions in the cage too. Ellen Fortado, naturalist.

December 28th: Great wildlife trip today in the Sound. The clouds took a break so we had beautiful views of the Olympic Mountains and the Seattle skyline! We saw Sea Lions and ran into a group of the cute and playful Dall’s Porpoises. There were also lots of birds out today foraging on all the bait fish around. We saw Surf Scoters, Western Grebes and Cormorants.

December 27th: Orcas were sighted today in Swanson Channel, Southbound off of North Pender Island. We’ll be watching for them to hopefully greet us in the Seattle area on our tour tomorrow!

December 23rd: Orcas!! 12:00 PM today, The Island Explorer II spotted J Pod off Shilshole heading south. Great trip today and super location to spend some time with J’s, almost right off our dock!

December 22nd: No trip today but a large pod of Orcas was spotted southbound between Keystone and Port Townsend at 12:15 PM. A very good sign for our Seattle Whale Watch trip tomorrow!

December 18th: Reports of a large pod of orcas in Swanson Channel today! That’s up in Canada in the Gulf Islands. I wonder who it was. Maybe Js and Ks. Hope they keep this up!

December 17th: Awesome trip today! The sun was shining and it was plenty warm for watching whales today! Early in the morning we got a report that the whales were headed our way, seen off Point No Point on the Kitsap Peninsula. We headed out for our trip and found J Pod headed south, just north of the Kingston/Edmonds ferry crossing. They moved quite slowly and were spread out across the Sound. We had some amazing passes too. Mike is getting huge and he and Blackberry were horsing around and gave us a close pass and went right under the boat after rolling around off the stern for a little while. We also had a surprise pass by an unidentified whale pop up so close to the back of the boat, it was practically touching it. It all happened so fast, Jami, Tom and I didn’t even get a chance to see who it was! We love to see Js! Ellen Fortado, Naturalist.

December 16th: Whales back in Seattle!! No trip today, but we got reports of the whales off Vashon Island, plus the security guards at our dock in Bell Harbor Marina saw whales right from the dock today! Looks good for tomorrow.

December 10th: Great wildlife trip today! The sun was shining and we had blue sky all day. We love it when that happens in winter in Seattle! Lots of sea birds and California Sea Lions to see around the sound. There has even been a Steller Sea Lion hanging out, as well as a Minke whale! Captain Tom managed to find us a Bald Eagle by the sea lion cage at Shilshole bay today too! No sightings of the Orcas as of yet this week means that they are due to come back into the Sound very soon. The weather has been great this week, so let’s hope it’ll stay good for the weekend and the whales will be coming back in for next Saturday’s trip.

December 3rd: The Orcas went west last night. J’s and K’s were sighted off Sooke late this afternoon. We still had a great tour! Over 30 Dall’s porpoises, lots of Sea Lions and birds, and beautiful views of the Olympic Mountains!

December 2nd: Orcas sighted between West Seattle and Vashon Island, around 11:30 am. Also good news for our Saturday tour!

December 1st: No trip today, but the Orcas were sighted on the West side of Whidbey Island, heading South Good news for our weekend trip!.

November 27th: No trip today, but the Orcas are still in town. We got a report of the Orcas off Vashon Island in Colvos Pass today.

November 26th: We found the Orcas right off Kingston! It was about time for them to be here and Captain Tom spotted them up ahead. We watched J Pod slowly head north spread out across the Sound. Js were mostly moving along in their family groups, but we did happen to see the babies, Suttles and J41 frolicking together. J41 is so much smaller than Suttles, we thought we had a new baby for a minute. We also got lots of good looks at Ruffles and Granny and even Polaris! We also saw lots of Sea Lions again and even some Dall’s Porpoises off Alki. Naturalist: Ellen Fortado

November 25th: We had a trip today and saw lots of California Sea Lions hanging out around the Puget Sound. No reports of the orcas and no signs of them, but their food is around. We saw lots of salmon jumping out here! Naturalist: Jami Rouse.

November 23rd: No reports yet today - I bet they are in Seattle somewhere but maybe too foggy for shoreline viewers to see them yet. We’re looking forward to our next trip this Friday and will be going out on Saturday as well.

November 22nd: No trip today either but orca whales sighted in the morning near Edmonds heading south slowly. Yeah! They’re back!!

November 21st: No trip today and no whale reports - they were near Victoria yesterday afternoon so maybe still out there, hopefully on their way back!

November 20th: Lots of wildlife to see today near Seattle! Naturalist Ellen reports: Minke whale of Possession Point!! We also found a juvenile Elephant Seal bobbing near by. Lots of California Sealions! 2 Sealions thrashing about feeding on salmon with gulls keeping close watch for scraps. Lots of wintering birds!

November 19th: Orcas were seen heading north the evening before so we started by heading north in the morning. We headed up to south Whidbey on our way we saw quite a variety of wildlife, including Dall’s and Harbor Porpoise, California Sealions, Bald Eagle, and many types of marine seabirds. Though no orcas today it was a great wildlife cruise. We did hear late in the day that the orcas were seen heading west at Victoria but the last time they did this they were in Puget Sound the last day.

November 18th: Orcas near Seattle!! J-pod was near Edmonds just north of Seattle this morning. They were spread out and feeding across the Sound from Shilshole. Naturalist Ellen reports: Had a wonderful pass by Shachi , baby J41 and her sister Blossom all three side by side! Then Princess Angeline passed right off the stern! Was a GREAT Day in Seattle!

November 8th: Orcas in the south sound again! They were spotted heading south off Bainbridge Island at 8:30 this morning.

November 7th: No trip today but an early report of a superpod of Orcas swimming south down through Admitralty Inlet, headed into Puget Sound! We knew they wouldn’t be gone for long. It sounds like all three pods are on their way! J’s probably went up to tell the others how many fish were in the sound near Seattle!! Thanks to Jim of Victoria Clipper for the report.

November 6th: We had better weather today but unfortunately the whales went north out of Puget Sound. They were reported up off of San Juan Island today with K and L pods. They were out of the Seattle area for the first time in a week.

November 5th: Our first trip this season from Seattle. Yes! Our Captain Newberry and naturalist Ellen Fortado spotted J pod from the Bainbridge Island Ferry this morning on their way to work!! We were with them by noon and saw Granny swim off our bow. They were still near Blake Island and heading slowly north. More to come on today’s sightings. Yesterday Orcas were seen near Admiralty Inlet heading south in the afternoon. That means they (maybe L pod) are probably heading down into the sound to meet up with J’s - either today or tomorrow.

November 4th: Orcas near Blake Island - just west of downtown Seattle!

November 3rd: Orcas near Vashon Island! Probably J and/or K pod. L pod off San Juan Island heading south - they could keep going down into Puget Sound.

October 31st to November 2nd: As we were taking the Island Explorer II down to Seattle this morning Shane and Tom spotted the Orcas right in front of Edmonds! At that time they were heading north. On the !st of November they were a bit further south toward Seattle and today they are in front of Bainbridge Island (which is just west of downtown Seattle) - first heading north, then south along the east side of the island (as reported by Chris Sly, the whale watch guy). Thanks Chris! We can’t wait to start our tours this Saturday!

October 29th: Back to our usual wildlife-packed tour today! We covered a lot of water but it’s always worth it. Had nice weather - the Straits were very calm today, allowing us to go clear out to Race Rocks, west of Victoria, BC. On the way out we came across two Minke whales traveling south of Discovery Island. Had a nice visit with the two Humpbacks - and some terrific photo ops. The water was glassy calm, the backdrop of the Olympics was absolutely beautiful, the sun was peaking out of the clouds to add to the dramatic scene, and the Humpbacks were the star of the show. As they let out their blow it seemed to hand in the air forever. See the photos above taken by our passengers. Visited with the Gray whale on the return trip as well. Other wildlife today: Great Blue Heron, River Otters (whole family), Bald Eagles, harbor seals, harbor and Dall’s porpoises, Steller Sea Lions, and black-tailed deer!!!

October 28th: Well, today was the end of our AWESOME streak of whale sightings, unfortunately. The weather didn’t help at all - lots of wind so we couldn’t get out to look for Humpbacks. The Gray whale eluded us today - he might have been there but with all the wind chop we probably just missed him. We headed up Rosario Strait in hopes that the Orcas may be coming down from the north. After cruising in the inner islands for the second half of the trip we tried once again to find the Gray whale on our way home. No luck. I guess all good things must come to an end - and a reminder that it’s not SeaWorld out there!

October 23rd: No orcas today so maybe they did go into Puget Sound last night. We did have very calm water today and decent weather. Went southwest toward Victoria, BC to see three Humpback whales. Visited with the Gray whale again today. More to come... Naturalist Bart Rulon’s report: We found the Gray whale at the east side of Decatur Island and watched him for a while. Can’t believe he’s still there! Then headed way out toward Victoria to see two Humpback whales and had several nice close looks at them. They were surfacing and fluking in unison which makes for great photo ops. Ont he way home we got into some entertaining Dall’s porpoises - they rode the bow wake and then porpoised in the wake behind the boat several times. One of the porpoises in the group was a light gray-colored hybrid (between Harbor porpoise and Dall’s porpoise). Great fall day!

October 22nd: We took a similar route to yesterday - Orcas near Hein Bank, south of San Juan Island. Ellen’s report: Best Gray Whale show ever! Looked like he might leave the area since he was headed south in Rosario, but turned & kind of did large circles to visit the boats watching. He spyhopped at least 6 times and breached about that many as well. The best part happened when he came to our stern and spun around, rolled on his side and back and flipped his fluke and pec fins for like 5 minutes - right off the boat! Then he left us and did the same thing to another smaller boat - it looked as though he touched it! I spotted him again in Shoal Bight on the way home so he’s still there. We saw J pod off Hein Bank headed Southeast, possibly back to the south sound. Saw some baby breaches and one from Shachi along with Princess Angeline & her family. They all passed right under us! Lots of cool seabirds, Bald Eagles, porpoises and seals again today.

October 21st: What a great day it was! The weather was pretty good and the Orcas were very close. Ellen’s report: partial L’s offshore of San Juan, just south of Salmon Bank. L-12’s moved closer toward shore, four of them in a tight group. Mega waved his pectoral fin at us, Matia surfaced at the bow and went just under the surface in slow motion towards the stern then surfaced again. That was awesome to look at her whole body. The rest of the pod lagged behind and soon Ophelia with her little one & aunty Surprise popped up and started porpoising towards south San Juan (Cattle Pt.). Also saw two Bald Eagles on Colville on the way out, then saw two at Swirl Rock on the way back - may be a nesting pair. Harbor Seals, Harbor and Dall’s Porpoises, Turkey Vulture, Scoters, and Steller Sea Lions also sighted today.

October 16th: A short trip south for the Orcas yesterday. Lucky for us they came back this morning! Got a great report from Jim Maya of Maya’s whale watch and Ivan Reiff of Western Prince whale watching - they were driving the island and saw the Orcas traveling up the west side of San Juan! Thanks, guys! We got an awesome show near the north end of San Juan. The weather was kind of rough today but it was worth it to see J pod. Several whales were fishing right off our stern and we saw them lunging and chasing after salmon. We cruised home through the inner islands for some nice peaceful calm water. Overall it’s been a super October.

October 15th: Orcas went to Seattle today, going past Port Townsend early this morning. I guess that’s good for our Seattle program, but not so good for us today up here! We did have a great look at the Gray Whale, then ran out to the Straits to find other whales. The Humpbacks were a little too far out today, west of Race Rocks but we did spend some time with two Minke Whales near Eastern Bank. They were a bit unusual in that they were traveling side by side just a few feet apart. They are normally quite solitary. If you see two or three in the same area it’s just because there’s lots of food there. So that was kinda cool. Went through an incredible bait ball near Smith Island - lots of diving and surface birds, seals under the water, and fish scales everywhere. It was a feast! Had two Steller Sea Lions really check us out as we were cruising near Deception Pass.

October 14th: Went south today hoping the resident orcas were here, and/or we’d find some Humpback whales. It was J pod and a few of L pod - saw Faith, Ino, and Indigo feeding with J pod off the Lighthouse at west San Juan, headed slowly north. Soon after we arrived they became a little more playful and turned to the south. Overall they were spread out and feeding but watched Ruffles chase around some salmon. Then 5 whales came quite close, played around, and did a few spyhops! Granny popped up right next to us and submerged again sideways like she was after a fish - it was very cool. It was so warm today - the weather station onboard was reporting a windchill of 58 degrees! Weird, but we’ll take it. Other wildlife sighted: Belted Kingfisher, Bald Eagle, Marbled Murrelets, Snow Geese, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Fallow Deer, and Sika Deer. We cruised home through the inner islands for a great scenic tour.

October 12th: We had a great trip today with a private group. Our gray whale is still over in Shoal Bight. We also saw Bald eagles, Harbor seals, Porpoise, and a great view of Deception Pass. We would also like to thank Geppetto’s for providing another fantastic lasagna lunch! There were also Orcas on the West side of San Juan Island, and Humpbacks in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. This is a great time of year, we are looking forward to our next tours Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. There were also Orcas near Seattle this week. Our first tour out of Bell Harbor, in downtown Seattle, is November 5th. Check out the Seattle page for more details.

October 9th: Ellen Fortado: Orcas not within range today but we did head over to Victoria, BC area to see some Humpbacks! There was so much wildlife in the area today: lots of Steller Sea Lions fishing, a Minke whale popped up, and three Humpbacks traveling together! The Humpbacks seemed to be full grown and pretty friendly - got some nice close looks. One seemed to be in the lead and would fluke first, then the other two fluked at the same time afterwards. All had similar fluke patterns too. There was a Steller Sea Lion that kept hanging around behind the whales - kinda comical! L pod was heading west out toward the ocean and J and K pod went down into Puget Sound! Good news for our Seattle program!

October 8th: Ellen Fortado: Gray whale still here! He’s moved a little - Jami and I think he’s trying to figure out which way to Baja! He was just north of Lopez Pass traveling but not fluking (tail in the air). Got word that the Orcas were in Boundary Pass heading south into Haro. We headed through the middle of the islands for a nice, scenic tour and found part of L pod south of Turn Pt feeding and playing. The other boats were to the south with some not very active orcas and Captain Newberry went looking for other whales. SCORE! We had a playful group breaching and spyhopping. Saw some of J pod as well - we love J pod. It was so nice to hear J’s on the hydrophone. Blackberry gave us a close pass. Sisters Surprise and Nugget were with Nugget’s calf (born ’03) and were rolling around each other for a while. Five Bald Eagles today! Pretty cool since most of them are up river after the spawning salmon dinner.

October 2nd: When we left the dock orcas were reported heading SE off the west side of San Juan Island. We headed south around the south end of Lopez Island. We searched in the rough seas along with a few other boats but the orcas eluded all searchers. Even Tom MacMillen of Salish Sea Charters was on the hillside of south San Juan Island and lost track of them. It’s a rare day that we actually lose the orcas due to weather. Even if we had found them it would have been to rough to put our passengers through that.. We decided to come back through the islands where the seas were calmer. We did find a large group of Stellar Sealions on Whale rocks and one swimming passed the boat in San Juan Channel! We headed through the inner islands toward SE Lopez were we got a glimpse of the Gray Whale but he was hanging out in a very rough area. We decided to head for home at this point giving our passengers Fluke passes to come back again another day.

October 1st: Orcas first reported heading south in Rosario near Bird Rocks by the Victoria Star 2. Naturalist Bart Rulon: We found Orcas well offshore of south Lopez. They were pretty spread out and lots of direction changes - probably fishing. We had one group of mothers with calves swim close to the boat and one young orca breached 4 times off our bow! It took a while to find the Gray whale but finally found him - he hasn’t taken off yet!

September 30th: We headed south around the south end of Lopez Island finding the L2 subpod heading north. These were the trailers, the rest of L-pod along with J’s and K’s were further north very spread out. We by far had the best show out there when L78 Gaia along with L2 Grace headed toward the boat. Grace went under the bow and Gaia breached right off the bow getting our naturalist Ellen Fortado wet!! After leaving the orcas we got a excellent view of a Stellar Sealion on Colville Island which is unique since we don’t usally see them there. The Stellar’s spend the fall and winter here and are Amazing to see!! We spent the last leg of the trip with the Gray whale at SE lopez.

September 27th: First report of Orcas at Eagle Point on San Juan heading north. Thanks to Jim Aggergaard with Catchmore Charters for calling in the report. He saw them just before the fog rolled in - good thing! Report from Bart Rulon: We were heading west this morning toward the report of Orcas off of San Juan. Made it all the way to Eagle Pt. when a report came in of LOTS of Orcas coming down Rosario Strait right near our dock! We turned around because we knew the show would be much better over there. Just before we reached the big group of Orcas a Minke whale popped up near us! The Orcas were great - all three pods (with the exception of a small subgroup of L’s) at Bird Rocks slowly heading south. They were very active the whole time with tons of spyhops, breaches, and cartwheels. Even a couple of double breaches (when two whales come out of the water at the same time). We ended another spectacular day with the Gray whale at SE Lopez.

September 26th: Report to come in soon but the Island Explorer II had Orcas off San Juan Island - all three pods I believe, and an amazing Gray Whale show on their way in. Ellen Fortado: Orcas were off San Juan at False Bay. L-12’s were actively feeding - we saw Skana and Spirit meet up and head east together. The Gray Whale was amazing for Melody’s (one of our crew members) last day! It did a funny little hop & then breached 4 times in a row, moving quickly! Then it spyhopped a little and rolled on its side & had its pec fin in the air. It surprised us and breached VERY close to the boat, coming towards us - it looked like it might land on us!! Before we left it breached 2 more times - 7 total breaches. I love that whale. Hopefully we’ll get some pictures or footage from our passengers today.

September 25th: Another private wedding onboar the Island Explorer II (Captain Matt performed the ceremony!) so we used the Mercury (a 30 passenger high-speed catamaran out of Bellingham) for our whale watch tour out of Anacortes today. What a fun day! Cruising at speeds of 33 mph we explored the east side of the Islands until word of Orcas came over the phone. We expected J and K to be heading back from their northern trip yesterday. Word of L pod down south turned us around - we had a very nice tour of the inner islands on our way! At south San Juan L pod members were swimming south. We hooked up with a group of very playful youngsters and watched them breach over and over - probably 20 times! Captain Mark had us placed perfectly with Mt. Baker in the background. J and K turned up later in the day right in front of Friday Harbor - in the middle of the San Juan Islands (usually they’re on the perimeter). Just before sunset they met up with L pod at the south end of San Juan and had an amazing greeting ceremony and superpod activity (as told from Kari Koski, Soundwatch Boater Education Program). On our way home we took a look at 6 HUGE Steller Sea Lions at Whale Rocks near south Lopez. They were hauled out on the rocks and were so impressive! Topped off another amazing day with the Gray Whale right offshore of Paul Allen’s property. The Gray is getting so big compared to the first day he pulled in here (June 18th, 2005). I don’t get out myself very often anymore (due to a 3 and 6 year old) -today was a real treat for me!

September 24th: We had a private wedding on the Island Explorer II today (which also saw the Gray whale) so we used two other vessels for our whale watching program. The Island Express and the Stellar Sea both headed around the south end of Lopez today to see a subgroup of L pod. J and K were heading up north further away so best to visit with L’s today. They were off the southeast shore of San Juan feeding on the salmon there. Other wildlife sighted: Gray whale, harbor porpoise, seals, steller sea lions, and lots of cool seabirds.

September 23rd: First report this morning was Orcas at Beaumont Shoal - in south Haro Strait heading southeast. Yeah! We continue the awesome September - whales, sunshine, and calm water. Ellen Fortado: Just south of Salmon Bank saw mostly L’s move toward shore and up to Eagle Pt. Skana with family & Mystery with Family as well (Mystery is definitely coming into adulthood). We saw a nursery group of three youngsters a few times - they came close, rolled around, spyhopping, tail lobbing, and playing. All were quite vocal. Didn’t see any J pod members but heard them on the hydrophone! We did see K21 (Cappuccino) at the end with 8 other K members. Great day! Oh! and an L pod whale breached so close that if it had been full grown would have touched the boat! Gray whale looked like he was heading south but came back and gave us a very close pass - always a great way to end the tour.

September 22nd: Headed southwest today - the Orcas may have headed out west so we wanted to put ourselves in the best position to get them should they return today. There were many reports of Humpbacks near Victoria and we did get to see one of them. It gave us a great show! We also saw lots of Dall’s Porpoises and had the best bowriding show this season! the weather was great and calm water too. Captain Newberry went as far as possible but the Orcas were still out about 20 miles. They were coming our way so tomorrow looks great for Orcas. Got a great look at our friend the Gray whale before heading in.

September 21st: Captain Matt spotted orcas near Bird Rocks from the roof of the boat still tied up at the dock! It’s going to be a wonderful day! The Gray whale is back. He hasn’t left yet afterall. Naturalist Bart Rulon: We had such an easy day today filled with whales! 15 minutes from the dock we found part of L pod just west of our dock near Bird Rocks. They were in a sleeping pattern when we arrived. We then cruised over to Lopez and visited with the Gray whale. After a nice visit we met up with L’s at south Lopez and they finally started to wake up! Saw lots of tail lobs, cartwheels, and a few spyhops. Next we went to see K pod out toward Hein Bank. What a great day!

September 20th: Dall’s porpoises interacting with the Orcas of L pod on the west side of San Juan Island! J and K headed north this morning - looks great for tomorrow with J and K possibly in Rosario Strait, near Anacortes! The L-2’s and L-7’s are in Rosario today and the sun is shining! Naturalist Jami Rouse: GREAT DAY! Dall’s porpoise circling individuals of L-12 subpod and circling Gaia right off the port side of us! Lots of echolocating at the surface with ’rasberry’ sounds. Lots of play behavior, lifting the baby (L-104) out of the water. L-95, Nigel, was one of the whales that kept echolocating above the water. Wonderful day with the whales.

September 19th: Superpod in Haro Strait! "We saw mostly J’s and K’s all together and L’s were lagging behind. We watched the end of play time for most of the J’s and K’s. We heard some vocals, mostly babies with their cow-like sounds. Lots of tiny baby breaches and some funny belly-flop breaches from an adult. Then one breached 4 times, with the last breach so close to the bow, people got wet! I’m sure lots of people got pictures. It also lobbed its tail to say bye. J-1 (Ruffles) and J-2 (Granny) passed very close off the stern too. Then they spread out an headed offshore towards Hein Bank to feed. There was one Steller Sea Lion on Whale Rocks. I guess the Gray whale went south for the winter along with his flock of gulls that followed him around. The scoters have taken over." Ellen Fortado, naturalist.

September 18th: Minkes, Gray, Steller Sea Lions, lots of Dall’s porpoises - bow riding. "Lots of Harbor porpoises again at Bird Rocks playing in our wake. We saw a lot more again at South Lopez. We got a really good look at a baby under the water! The Gray whale was there with lots of gulls, a red-throated loon, and tons of scoters. We saw one very elusive Minke at North Hein Bank. Then a bunch of Dall’s porpoises popped up there too! We may have seen a baby with them as well. They rode the bow and stern wakes for a long time. Then we saw another minke farther east, closer to McArthur Bank. On top of that, there were two Steller Sea Lions at Colville Island." Ellen Fortado, naturalist.

September 17th: Superpod on the westside of San Juan again! Gray still here. "The whales were around False Bay. Most were closer to shore, with a few offshore. They were in large playful groups and were very vocal and quite active- lots of rolling around and rough-housing. We watched a large group of a large group of J’s and L’s with L-57 (Faith) and J-1 (Ruffles) for a long time. We got such a grand finale! They came so close to our boat and even looked like they touched some of the kayakers that were in the water. We also saw Harbor porpoises off Bird Rocks playing in our wake!" Ellen Fortado, naturalist.

September 16th: J, K, & L at south end of San Juan today! Gray still here. "We started out finding J-Pod near Eagle Point. On our first pass, J-19 (Shachi) came by our stern with her new baby. Shachi spy-hopped, then breached 5 times in a row very close to the boat! What a show. Later, we saw most of J-Pod in a tight group at the surface hanging out for a few minutes before taking very long feeding dives. Soon after that, J-Pod met up with L and K Pods. Then we finished off the day with the Gray whale!" Bart Rulon, naturalist.

September 15th: Looking to be a great day again - oh how we love September!!! L-12’s on the south end of San Juan, J & K near Point Roberts this morning. "We watched part of L-Pod between Eagle Point and Lime Kiln. They were pretty active with several breaches and four cartwheels! The gray whale also gave us a great show today. He really seemed to love our boat today with 3-4 very close passes!" Bart Rulon, naturalist.

September 14th: Private Charter today, no whale watch scheduled. All three pods of Orcas in the islands, though!

September 13th: Three types of whales today. Humpback near Discovery Island, J’s and K’s off of San Juan, and the resident Gray whale! Today was a repeat of yesterday, minus the Minke whale. Spent lots of time with the Orcas and gave our guests many super photo-ops.

September 12th: "Found Minke whales off Middle Bank lunge feeding! Humpback two miles south of Discovery Island heading SW. J and K’s at False bay, San Juan heading south then southwest. J-14, Samish, brought J-41, J-30 (riptide) & J-39 (hy’shqa) by the boat. As they came towards us they were pushing J-41 up!! Very cute!! Stopped to see the Gray whale as well - another 4 whale species day!" Jami Rouse, naturalist.

September 11th: "J & K pods just south of Point Roberts. Lots of breaching, spyhopping, and tail lobbing. Very good vocalizations today. Our guests today were VERY excited and happy (like most days!)- we had several good passes with whales right off our stern and bow. Whales still heading south when we left scene." Jami Rouse, naturalist.

September 10th: "Found L’s offshore at Eagle Pt, San Juan. Stayed with them for a while as they moved slowly to the south. Got a great view of Hugo and Baba. Lots of vocalizations amongst the whales. After leaving we found a Steller Sea Lion at the south end of Lopez, slowly making his way toward Rosario Strait. The Gray whale was feeding more inshore and gave everyone great looks at his fluke!" Jami Rouse, naturalist.

September 9th: "Great day!. We found two Humpback whales near the south end of Lopez Island (about 45 minutes from our dock - not usually seen this far east). We watched them for quite a while, then one of them breached within 150 feet of our boat. Also saw 2 spyhops and a cartwheel-like tail slap. Once again visited with the Gray whale at east Lopez." Bart Rulon, naturalist.

September 8th: "Awesome day today! We had a 4-WHALE species day (the second one this season). Started out with a Minke whale at Hein Bank, then found two Humpbacks near hein Bank. One of them came right up next to the boat! Southwest of hein bank we found all three pods of Orcas spread out and milling in groups of 5-15 animals. Saw some spyhops and lots of tail slaps. To cap it off we had a great time with the Gray whale on our way home. What a day!" Bart Rulon, naturalist.

September 7th: "Minke whale on the west side of McArthur Bank that stayed close to the boat - must have been a good bait ball nearby and lots of birds in the area as well. Found the superpod of Orcas at the north end of Hein Bank traveling in slow motion. All sorts of activity, though pretty spread out. Saw Lummi and Georgia leading a big pack including Ruffles. Samish’s group led all whales toward shore, then a HUGE group of K pod members passed all around the boat from stern to bow! Saw Cappuccino & Raggedy with Spock and young calf too. Very exciting day and quite vocal as well!" Ellen Fortado, naturalist.

September 6th: Sunshine, calm, and a beautiful day in the islands. Orcas - all three pods - are milling, feeding, and mating along the southern tip of San Juan Island. Also a Minke Whale in the midst of the orcas - good thing they aren’t transient orcas! J, K, & L pods mixed up - socializing & foraging with lots of breaching, playing, mating, etc. Had great looks at the gray whale as well!

September 5th: Jami Rouse, naturalist: Found J, K, and L’s off False Bay - got a really good pass by K-21 (Cappuccino) then another group passed off our bow - one of them breached 3 times in a row! J-19 (Sachi) brought J-41 (her new calf) about 15 feet from the boat and swam up the side. Blossom, with Bull Kelp in her mouth, swam right under the bow with her belly up, giving us a great look at her underside - a positive ID that she is indeed a she! (the markings on their ventral side are different in males and females).

September 4th: Had a few great passes with the Gray whale this morning then headed southwest to Hein Bank in hopes to run across the Orcas. We did find a Minke whale at McArthur Bank and lots of Harbor porpoises on the way home. I guess the Orcas went west again - but they should become very consistent again in September.

September 3rd: Ellen Fortado, naturalist: Best Harbor porpoise show ever! They were everywhere south of Bird Rocks - playing in our wake as we made circles. They were so close and even crossed under our bow! (This is unusual for harbor porpoises, more typical of Dall’s) All three pods were resting together north of Stuart Islands and it was amazing to see so many whales so tight together. We got a surprise when they popped up right in front of the boat! Saw Ruffles, Faith, and Cappuccino (one male of each pod). Cappuccino’s fin is really getting big - he’s a teenager and his dorsal fin is growing very fast right now. The Gray whale is still here and still very friendly.

September 2nd: Yeah - Orcas are back! We watched L pod just north of the Salmon Bank Marker at south San Juan. They were displaying some interesting behaviors with many tail slaps. One of them cartwheeled very close to the boat! Visited with the Gray whale on our way in.

September 1st: Looks like a two-day out for the resident orcas - they were still west out in the Strait. We started the day with several close looks at the Gray Whale, then found two Minke Whales at Hein Bank. The Stellar sea lions are back and we saw one swimming in the open water. Dall’s porpoises hitched a ride on our stern wake on the way in. Still a great day.

August 31st: Orcas took a leave today but we had a great show with the Gray whale - had an awesome breach! Then he surfaced, stuck his head out of the water, and opened his mouth giving us a great look at his short, coarse baleen!! Other critters sighted: Minke Whale, Dall’s and Harbor porpoise, harbor seals, jellyfish, and seabirds.

August 30th: Naturalist Bart Rulon: We had a great day today. We found J, K, and part of L pod travelling in small groups fairly spread out. We saw lots of breaching, spyhops, and cartwheels - Ruffles, Granny, Polaris, Cappuccino, Ragedy, Hugo, and others were identified. They were pretty talkative on the hydrophone today. Got a great look at the Gray whale again - has been around every day since Father’s Day!

August 29th: Have no map from today but I know we did see Orcas.

August 28th: L’s mostly today at the south end of San Juan. Faith came right under the boat and turned on his side! Saw him later with a female right next to him - possibly mating. A Minke whale popped up in the midst of the orcas at Salmon Bank and we were able to parallel along side for a while.

August 27th: L pod on both tours today - and close to home! Had a great show at south Lopez this morning and from the sounds of the Captain, and amazing display this evening in about the same place! J and K up north coming down south but used Boundary Pass instead of Rosario. Great weather despite the forecast. More detail to come.

August 26th: All three pods at south San Juan on both AM and PM trips!

August 25th: Transient Orcas today, both tours - they were making a kill on an Elephant Seal on the AM trip.

August 24th: Several Minke whales today, the Gray whale, and 3 trufted puffins near Smith Island.

August 23rd: 3 Minke whales, Gray whale, 3 tufted puffins, 100’s of harbor seals, and 2 elephant seals.

August 22nd: AM Tour: Lots of fog today but that didn’t stop us from seeing the Orcas! Got a report this morning from Jim Aggergaard, Shane’s brother who was out fishing. He had whales at Eagle Point around 9 AM. We cruised that direction and found them in the fog around False bay. Followed them south and had several great breaches right near the boat! It’s pretty cool to see this kind of activity in the fog - makes it magical. Though I did think the fog would burn off by noon. You never know what mother nature will throw at you - best to come well prepared for cooler weather! PM Tour: Orcas (all three pods) west of Hein Bank, crew says: "awesome evening!" Close cartwheels, spyhops, 4 breaches in a row by Gaia!

August 21st: AM Tour: Wonder how we get our reputation? It’s from trips like today. Early report of whales (Orcas) coming in from out west at Sheringham Point - well beyond Victoria, BC. Shane, the owner, told captain Newberry to go and go fast, keep going until you see Orcas! He’ll entertain the afternoon group if we were late, knowing that the whales would be A LOT closer in the afternoon and we wouldn’t have to go near as far. After a long haul we saw all three pods near Sooke Basin, west of Race Rocks (about the furthest we’ve ever been to see them). Had several swim under the boat and Spirit, Skana, and Solstice stayed alongside us for a while. Saw lots of other groups - there were whales everywhere! PM Tour: The whales were quite a bit closer this afternoon, riding the massive flood current in to San Juan Island. We took a look at the Gray Whale then headed south around Lopez to San Juan. Mega was foraging between Salmon Bank and Eagle Point with some others and were a little inactive so Captain Newberry slid up the beach a ways to find more action. They came across Tanya and Flash who were playing there. Tanya cartwheeled twice right near the boat, surprising us. Another little one breached two times at the same time as Tanya! Lots of looks at a mother and calf as well.

August 20th: AM Tour: This morning was similar to yesterday’s tours but we had quite the Minke Whale show! Captain Newberry cruised out in to the Straits to be ready if the Orcas were coming back in and found several Minke’s at Hein Bank. There was a ton of baitfish there and the Minke’s were lunge-feeding! They come up under a bait ball with mouths wide open and break the surface, leaping about a third of their bodies out of the water! You don’t get to see this very often - what a treat for our passengers. Lots of seabirds there too and the whales were feeding there in and around the birds - quick surfacing & turning on their sides. Other wildlife: Gray Whale, harbor porpoise, seals, seabirds, salmon, lion’s mane Jellyfish, blue herons, and turkey vultures. PM Tour: Private group charter tonight but saw lots of wildlife - and the Gray whale showed his stuff!

August 19th: AM Tour: Apparently the Orcas kept going west last night - no word yet this morning on their location. We visited with the Gray whale on our way out to the Straits. There was a huge Stellar Sea Lion on Whale Rocks and a huge flood current whipping through the kelp - it was pretty cool! Had a great look at a Bald Eagle near McArdle bay. Cruised through the inner islands on the way back for a nice warm and scenic ride home. PM Tour: Another nice visit with the Gray Whale, then watched the Stellar Sea Lion at Whale Rocks, along with several harbor seals. Also saw a total of 4 Minke Whales out in the Straits - 3 of them were at MacArthur Bank, one of which was droopy (a well-recognized Minke that has been here for years). His small dorsal fin is drooped over to the right side and looks as though he doesn’t have one. On our return trip we stopped with the Gray Whale once again and had some great close passes as we drifted silently in the shallow water.

August 18th: AM Tour: Still a little foggy in the morning today but it burned off fast. Got a call from Catchmore Charters early with whales at Eagle Point heading east. We headed south through the fog. It cleared just west of Lopez and we were with the whales shortly after that near Salmon Bank. Followed them out toward Hein Bank. PM Tour: Left the harbor and cruised south - the orcas were spread out over 5 square miles in the middle of the Strait of Juan de Fuca (between Port Townsend and San Juan Island). Got a close look at Mega off the stern and watched some distant breaching and cartwheeling. The moon was full and pinkish-orange rising over the hills. Our Gray whales was once again the grand finale with a perfect look at the tail flukes right in front of Mt.Baker!

August 17th: AM Tour: There was a couple of groups of Orcas today - some on the west side of San Juan Island. Captain Neil cruised through the inner islands in case he had to intersect them at the north end. It turned out that a group had turned back to the south so we turned south & went out Cattle Pass. Naturalist Bart’s Report: We found L pod today spread out from Lime Kiln park to False Bay and had several very close passes. Flash and Saanich swam right under the boat! Wavewalker swam just under the surface sideways - so you could see his eyepatch really well. We also saw Nyssa, Tanya, and Gaia. We capped off the day with a few passes by the Gray Whale. PM Tour: J’s and K’s went up Swanson Channel today and are heading up towards Point Roberts this evening. We went to visit with L pod since they were closer to us - on the SW side of San Juan. Naturalist Shelby’s notes: L’s were on the west side - on the way out we encountered a Minke Whale in Middle Channel feeding in a tide rip with tons of birds and harbor seals. The Orcas were spread out and foraging - they demonstrated some Orca athleticism with quick turns and short bursts of speed in pursuit of fish. The evening was so calm and the sounds of breathing orcas carried for hundreds of yards. Our stop with the Gray whale was magical tonight - Mt. Baker was pink with alpineglow, and the almost-full harvest moon was low in the sky over Deception Pass. On the very last pass Captain Matt managed to put the Gray’s beautiful broad fluke right in the buttery path of the moon. As one passenger said: "Disney couldn’t have done it better!"

August 16th: AM Tour: Apparently the orcas went too far to the west last night and were out of range for the morning tour today. There must be some salmon out in the Strait they’re feeding on. We did get to see the Gray Whale at Lopez and he/she gave us some real close looks. Our last pass with him was very close off the stern. After a big search out at Hein Bank they finally found 2 Minke Whales! PM Tour: All three pods were reported way out in the Strait in the afternoon, heading back in. When Captain Neil left the harbor it was hammer down! Burned a lot of fuel and went a long, long way but got to see them Orcas this evening. We arrived on scene about 15 miles to the west of Victoria, BC - at Race Rocks. Naturalist Bart says: It was a rough ride (2-4’ seas) but we got a great show just south of Race Rocks. Saw J, K, & L pods porpoising (speed swimming), lots of breaching, cartwheels, and spyhops - everybody was happy with the show. Also saw Ruffles, Granny, Faith, Hugo, and Cappuccino. Not much other wildlife this evening but sometimes that’s what it takes to see the Orcas! We were in a little late but always worth it.

August 15th: I am missing the notes from this day but I know that the whales were on the west side of San Juan for both the morning trip and the evening trip. Last seen near Hein Bank heading southwest toward the Strait. Will update when I get the route maps.

August 14th: AM Tour: Foggy again this morning but had a nice clearing around the Gray whale so went over to visit with him first. The three pods were southwest of Victoria last night so we’ll head out that direction in hopes that they didn’t go out west toward the Pacific. Did see 2 Minke whales at Salmon Bank but were a bit elusive. One of them did give us a close look while we were there and we saw the Minke whale researchers there collecting data on them. It turned out that the Orcas did go west last night and were too far out in the Strait for the whale watch boats to get to. In these cases we get time to go over to Smith Island - So much life here! - Ellen, naturalist. They saw tons of seabirds, many harbor seals and pups, a pair of Bald Eagles, and 3 elephant seals lounging on the beach which is an unusual sighting. Had two visits with the Gray whale today as well! PM Tour: Luckily the orcas didn’t continue westbound today. They turned later in the day and headed back in toward the San Juans. By the time we got back out there they had made it in past Discovery Island, almost to San Juan. Ellen’s notes: Mega passed right under with two ladies, L’s were so talkative tonight. Mega came over again and said hello right into the microphone! It was sooo loud and very cool. Faith popped up near JellyRoll, her calf, and Lulu - they wouldn’t let us leave. They kept turning away, we’d try to go, and they’d come back! Baby was playful & so cute. Looked like mom was teaching it to fish. Plus, we saw scale bits in the water. Great visit with the Gray whale on the way home tonight - and real pretty sunset too.

August 13th: AM Tour: The large group of Orcas were first seen this morning at 9 AM near James Island - right across the way from our marina! We left the dock and found them about a half hour from our dock near south Lopez. They were foraging near Colville and we followed them to Salmon Bank. Lots of fun activity and saw many of the members of L pod. Hugo came close by, then Cappuccino came right under the bow! Watched babies breaching all over, then saw J pod members in a tight group rolling around and playing. What a great orca show again today! Watched the Gray whale again and saw Bald Eagles, Harbor Seals, Great Blue Heron, and Phalaropes (tiny seabirds that feed by turning a tight circle in the water and concentrating the plankton in the middle of a whirlpool then eating it!) - I love those birds. PM Tour: Headed southwest tonight - the Orcas swam to the SW in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and we saw them just SE of Victoria, BC. Ellen Fortado, naturalist: Saw all three pods very spread out but Shachi surprised us and came right under our bow! Visibility was so good tonight that you could see whales as far as you looked. The Gray was spectacular tonight! Rounding Lopez, the sunset was one of the most gorgeous I’ve ever seen - still can’t get it out of my head! The Gray popped up amongst the gulls then we watched it’s bubbles come closer...He turned and was about to surface and we saw all of him under the water alongside the boat. It was awesome & lasted a few seconds before he even came up for air. Man he’s huge now. It gave me butterflies!

August 12th: AM Tour: First report came from Jim of Catchmore Charters at 6:30 AM, then again at 7 AM, and 8 AM - whales must have come down Rosario early this morning. He saw them at south Lopez and they continued toward San Juan. They are currently swimming up the west side of San Juan Island and were hoping some will turn south for the evening trip. Had a nice close look at Lummi as well as Shachi and calf & a couple of other youngsters. They were all playing with each other. PM Trip: Don’t have the notes from this evening but we watched part of L pod on the south end of San Juan Island. J’s and K’s (and maybe some L’s) continued north toward Point Roberts so we stayed with the closer group. Had a nice visit with the Gray whale also.

August 11th: AM Tour: A group of whales were at the south end of San Juan this morning, the other group probably somewhere up north. Captain Matt cruised through the inner islands this morning because L Pod was heading north up the west side of San Juan. He probably intersected them near Henry Island but will include more details when they come in. Captain Matt arrived on scene at south Stuart Island and stayed with them to Turn Point, NW Stuart. Good foraging action with a few cartwheels and some energetic tail lobbing. Saw Luna’s family! (He’s the lone orca up in Nootka Sound - on the west side of Vancouver Island. For some reason he was left there by his family as they passed by a few years ago. Very puzzling.) Longer trip through the inner islands today - but very scenic & beautiful and worth every mile. PM Tour: words from naturalist Shelby Smith: Spectacular show this evening! K & L met up with J at the coal docks (way the heck up north) at 6:30 or so and all turned south. We arrived on scene to phenomenal activity - multiple breaches, double and triple breaches (two or three whales breaching at the same time), cartwheeling, and tons of spyhopping. Ruffles was wooing two ladies but treated us to a huge spyhop 50 feet off the stern! Got a great look at Spock and her wee one both engaged in good aerial activity. Seemed to be lots of romance in the air. Beautiful sunset and the evening stayed warm until after dark. It was a pretty long trek this evening but soooo worth it. We were the only American whale watching boat up there - and there were very few Canadian boats as well. This is what we mean when we say we go the extra mile or 20.

August 10th: AM Tour: No reports this morning of the Orcas so we went over to visit with the Gray Whale first off. Captain Neil cruised around South Lopez and into the Strait to look for the Orcas (they were there last night). Turns out they went west and were sighted west of Victoria mid-afternoon heading back our way. Bummer the morning trip didn’t get to see them today but at least they’re coming back in for this afternoon. This is the time of year that they all travel together so when they take off, they all take off - but when they’re here (which is most of the time) you get to see all 90 southern resident Orcas! And they are happy! We saw 5 Bald Eagles throughout the day and cruises by the Lady Washington in full sail in the inner islands.. PM Tour: Orcas inbound from Otter Point. A little bumpy out there but we caught up with J, K, & L pods near Beaumont Shoal moving fast toward Pile Pt. They were porpoising through the big waves, with occasional pectoral fin slaps and tail lobs thrown in. At San Juan L’s turned to the south and J’s & K’s turned to the north. Great show! Nice look at a seal and her pup at Davidson Rock. - Shelby Smith, naturalist. They also checked out the Gray Whale on the way in.

August 9th: AM Tour: Orcas first sighted at south San Juan island heading east toward us! When we arrived on scene they were at Iceberg Pt. at south Lopez, still heading east. We followed them to Davidson Rock - swimming into the fog bank. They turned back to the west, back out of the fog shortly after. Naturalist Bart Rulon: A great day today full of action. We got L and K pods at Iceberg - they were exhibiting some great fishing techniques. We got good looks at Gaia, Wavewalker, and Grace. We watched a Tufted Puffin right next to the boat at Castle Rock - a rare sighting! The Gray whale gave us some real close looks several times! J pod was up north this morning heading down south. They used Boundary Pass and came back into the San Juans later in the afternnon. PM Tour: We found L Pod near False Bay tonight. They were spread out but we had a few groups of 4-7 orcas at a time come pretty close. Mega came right at us and got very close to the boat. One group of orcas gave us a good show with some fishing next to the boat. Captain Neil lined us up with the Gray Whale and Mt. Baker in the background for some good photo-ops! - Bart Rulon, naturalist and photographer.

August 8th: AM Tour: First report this morning came from Eagle Pt. Salmon Charters as he was leaving Bellingham Bay on his morning fishing charter. He came across them at Carter Pt., south Lummi Island around 6:30 AM. That’s pretty cool because they haven’t used our side for quite a while. They’ve been swimming south via Boundary Pass (on the NW side of the San Juans) for the last few weeks. So they swam right by Anacortes - probably about 9 AM and I think the boat caught up to them near South Lopez. Last report was whales at south San Juan heading south out toward Hein Bank. "J’s and L’s foraging off Hein Bank, some breaching. J-14 subpod made an awesome pass under the bow. J-40 is getting bigger and J-30 is starting to sprout!" Nice day today - clear and calm. The fog this morning burned away quicker than the last few days. PM Tour: J & K pod just south of Discovery Island - lots of breaching and porpoising. Hugo turned and surfaced right next to the boat with another whale. We actually saw them turn under the water then some down on the port side! Lots of other wildlife today including the Gray Whale.

August 7th: AM Tour: All three pods arrived on the west side of San Juan sometime last night and were at the south end this morning - YEAH! We cruised south Lopez and watched them from False Bay to Lime Kiln Park. Had some great looks and good playful activity today. Captain Matt decided to come back through the middle of the islands on the way home - much warmer! The fog was still hanging out in the Strait and the inner islands are very pretty. PM Tour: The 3 pods headed north, J & K up Swanson Channel and L’s up Boundary Pass. Since L’s were closer we went for them - however they seemed to pick up speed and we didn’t catch them until Pt Roberts! Had an okay look but Captain Matt wasn’t satisfied. He heard that J & K’s were coming out of Active Pass just to the south of us so went the extra 9 miles and cruised over that direction. Many times when you see whales emerge from Active Pass they get very excited and super active! And this time didn’t dissappoint! Had a great show watching them breach, cartwheel, spyhop, etc. One of them breached 7 times in a row - a great photo-op because you can predict where he’ll come up - and get that breach shot! Got home a little late tonight but it was well worth it.

August 6th: Headed over to see the Gray Whale first off. There were lots of Glaucus-winged Gulls, Heerman’s Gulls, and Rhinoceros Auklets feeding on the critters that had been surfaced when the Gray came up from feeding in the mud! Went out west in hopes the Orcas would be back and came upon two Minke Whales at Hein Bank - the fog lifted just in time to see them. It was beautiful and calm in the Straits today. PM Tour: Had some persistent fog today so it felt colder out on the water. Got a report that the Orcas were coming in from the Strait quickly at about 4 PM so we headed that direction, hammer down! By the time we got south of Victoria, BC no one had found the whales. Some other operators thought they may have turned back into the fog and headed west again with the outgoing tide. We searched the area for quite some time but to no avail. Captain Matt did his best but decided to turn back and visit with the Gray Whale.

August 5th: AM Tour: Don’t have the notes from today but I know they saw a Minke or two and the Gray whale on both tours. Will update later...

August 4th: AM Tour: Orcas took a leave today - most likely headed west out the Strait since they haven’t done that yet (all three pods) this year. I guess we were due. Had a super trip though with so much wildlife today: lots of seabirds, bald eagles, seals, 3 Minke Whales, the Gray Whale at Shoal Bight, harbor porpoise, Tufted Puffins and 2 horned Puffins near Smith Island, sea stars, and Lion’s mane Jellyfish! PM Tour: No sign of Orcas yet but we headed out toward the Strait just in case they were coming back in. Once again another great trip with lots of wildlife including eagles, seabirds, seal nursing her pup at Castle Rock, river otter at south Lopez, Turkey Vultures, 2 Minke whales at Hein Bank, and Gray whale with a very close to the boat fluke (tail in the air).

August 3rd: AM Tour: We are visiting with L-12’s this morning and having a great show. We saw them in front of False Bay and watched ALexis, Saanich, Skana, and others. The water is glassy calm and temps are warm. Skies are very clear - clear enough to see about 90 miles away to Mt Rainier! We usually see Mt Baker (on non-cloudy days) but to see Rainier is pretty cool. J pod was sighted this morning near Pt Roberts heading south so we may see them as well this afternoon. Got some great looks at Mr. Gray Whale on the way home. PM Tour: Started out going around south Lopez again - Orcas still near False Bay, grouped up and milling around. We hung out with L-12’s again on a very pretty and peaceful sea. Had an awesome show by the Gray whale - saw him spyhop then he breached three times!!! All with an amazing sunset in the background.

August 2nd: AM Tour: Today is a repeat of yesterday - only all three pods are together! We had to go all the way to Victoria again but should have a good show with so many whales present. There was some great photo ops this morning with lots of orcas grouped up together. When they surface to breath they all come up at the same time so many fins are in the same picture. Most of the time we get photos of one, two or three whales at a time. PM Tour: The Orcas hit the west side of San Juan in the afternoon - J’s went to the north and K & L headed to the south. It was nice to have a much shorter distance to them this afternoon! We arrived on scene at the south end of San Juan and had a great visit with K & L pods. The whales were spread out everywhere but we stuck with one group that was very active - spyhopping, breaching, and quite playful. Got a look at the Gray whale right at sunset on the way in as well.

August 1st: AM Tour: We weren’t sure where the whales were this morning and the search was on! Then some Canadian whale watchers headed west out the Strait and found them coming back in toward the islands - yeah! We headed west and finally approached them right off of Victoria, BC. It was J pod and they were resting when we arrived. After a little while with them they woke up, saw a couple spyhops and playful behavior. There are days like this where we have to travel farther away - but it ’s always worth it. We’re very serious about showing our guests the whales. PM Tour: Was a little easier this evening! The Orcas kept swimming our way and by the time we got back out there they were at the southern tip of San Juan - a lot closer than this morning!! It was J pod again heading southeast, spread out and foraging. Mako breached several times in front of us and Princess Angeline passed right under the bow. Other wildlife sighted included: rhinoceros auklets, pigeon guillemots, common murres, bald eagles, harbor seals, and of course the gray whale.

July 31st: AM Tour: The Orcas went north last night and got first word this morning they were at Point Roberts heading south. We went straight up Rosario wasting no time to get to them. Along the way we saw lots of seabirds such as Rhinoceros Auklets, Common Murres, Cormorants, and a Bald Eagle. Arrived on scene about half way between Sucia Island and Pt Roberts. The whales were heading south slowly. We saw both new babies in J Pod and Tsuchi came right under the bow, tail-lobbing as it passed! Harbor seals, porpoises, and the Gray Whale were also sighted. PM Tour: The Orcas were a little closer for the afternoon trip and were on the NW side of the San Juans. We took the very scenic route through the middle of the islands and intersected them just south of Stuart Island. They were very vocal, Ruffles and Granny swam under the boat a couple of times! Mako (a young orca) was breaching many times off our stern. Gray Whale still present - we visited with him on the way in this evening.

July 30th: The whales have really been traveling the last couple of days - about 40 miles during the day, about 100 in a 24 hour period. Luckily it’s just back and forth here in the islands so they don’t get out of range. This morning they were back up at Point Roberts but heading south. By the time we were halfway up Rosario Strait all three pods were 2 miles from the northern edge of the islands. We followed along the northern side of Orcas Island and found a group all by ourselves just north of Waldron Is. Captain Newberry called to say they got a great pass and were the only boat with them! The others were just to the west near Saturna Island. We have a private wedding onboard tonight and it sure would be awesome if they could get married among the whales!!! ...The afternoon wedding charter was great - but the Orcas swam to the north and the priority tonight was to host a wedding, not go after the whales. We did however get to see the Gray Whale near Lopez and we had a very nice ceremony in a small bay at south Lopez.

July 29th: It was a close call this morning! All three pods at Point Roberts this morning but not sure if they were going north or south. We headed north right away then got news they were swimming our way! We did have to go quite a ways to the north but got a great show. Princess Angeline and Polaris passed right under the boat and we had 2 young orcas playing around right next to us. Saw Harbor Porpoise north of Sucia Island and Norman (Norma) with seal pup in the marina. PM Tour: Foound J, K, and L and Hanna Heights (west side of San Juan) heading south, foraging. The crew identified members of all three pods and one female or younger male breached about 20 yards from the boat! Saw the Gray whale this evening - also seals, black-tailed deer, turkey vulture, and lots of seabirds.

July 28th: All of the Orcas went north last night so the search was on this morning. We headed north up Bellingham Channel then got news that they were at East Point coming back down into the islands via Boundary Pass. I believe it is all three pods together. Captain Matt took a left and cruised through the middle of the islands which is such a nice route. We intersected the whales just north of San Juan. All three pods together. PM Tour: The whales were still on the west side of San Juan - all three pods north of Lime Kiln. The whales were in many small groups, foraging. Had a beauiful pink alpine glow on Mt. Baker on the way in tonight.

July 27th: One of the best trips this year this morning! We’ve had awesome weather for the last couple of weeks and today was absolutely spectacular. And what a whale show as well. Captain Neil said they were in perfect postition when K pod (coming in from out west) met up with L-12’s and had a greeting ceremony!! This is when they get very excited to see each other, are rolling all around each other, and very active. We also got to see the lone K pod juvenile meet back up with it’s family. We had lots of great vocalization over the hydrophone and thought we could hear the excitement as the lone orca met up with the rest of K’s. The crew said it was a perfect day. PM Tour: Headed south again - here are the Naturalists notes by Shelby Smith: We came upon them (orcas) unexpectedly at Salmon Bank - didn’t expect them until False Bay. Right away we had a great close encounter with Hugo...he popped up right next to the boat and casually circled the bow, giving us the eyeball! Then we had a great playgroup of 3 - maybe Aurora (L 101)? and two others totally goofing off within 100 yards. They were rolling over and over each other, vocalizing like kids at a playground.

July 26th: An interesting day this morning - on our way out after visiting with the Gray whale we headed around south Lopez and came upon a lone Orca Whale. This is very unusual for an orca to be seperated from it’s pod and our crew and researchers were trying to get a positive ID. At first they thought it was a member of the Northern Resident pods but later found out that it was a K-pod member - one of our local southern resident pods. K pod has been out in the Strait of Juan de Fuca for the last several days so it is quite odd to have this little guy (about 6 yrs old) all by himself. He even swam past the L-12’s, not joining up with them. We got a few passes with L-12’s before having to head in. Also saw a Minke whale today as well as seals, a bunch of harbor porpoises, and lots of seabirds. PM Tour: J’s and part of L’s still up north, although they did head south for a while but then decided to boogy back up there late afternoon. What a cool trip, though! Visited with L-12’s again at south Lopez but on the way out there saw two Gray Whales going into Cattle Pass, seemingly joined at the hip. It’s not the time of year for Gray’s but what that might mean is that there are so many Gray Whales around that some are venturing to inland waters, more than usual. That’s good news for us! The Orcas were pretty active tonight and Skana said Hello with a nice close pass off our stern. Had a quick look at the resident Gray whale at SE Lopez on the way home. Bald Eagles, Harbor Porpoise, Harbor Seals, and seabirds also sighted this evening.

July 25th: J’s and part of L’s were still up north but lucky for us the other half of L pod was at the south end of San Juan! Gray whale still here!! In the afternoon we visited with L-12’s once again at south San Juan, saw a tufted puffin near Castle rock, then the Gray whale on the way home.

July 24th: Headed north up Roario to hang with J and part of L pod north of Orcas Island. Though it was a bit choppy due to a high pressure north wind, we had a nice visit with the orcas. They have been hanging out way up north near the Fraser River eating Sockeye Salmon. It was nice to see them this morning. In the afternoon we had a private memorial tour and dinner cruise inside the island chain.

July 23rd: AM Tour: Report of whales at Point Roberts heading south early this morning so it looked good for today. We pointed that direction right out of the marina in order to get there but unfortunately they turned back to the north. We fully expected them to be cruising down Rosario with the very fast ebb tide this morning. I bet there are a ton of Sockeye Salmon running up the Fraser River and that’s why they chose to stay up there. We were about half way to them when we got word they were traveling north out of range quickly. Captain Newberry salvaged the trip by cruising past one of the most popular and unique islands in the chain, Sucia, then heading back to spend time with the Gray Whale. Still a lovely day out on the water with sunny skies, calm waters, and a variety of wildlife. PM Tour: We had a private evening dinner cruise this afternoon so we headed over to check out the Gray Whale still feeding near Lopez Pass. Took a nice cruise around south Lopez then checked out Deception Pass Bridge before coming in.

July 22nd: AM Tour: We had a similar trip to yesterday’s am tour. J and L pods still hanging out at the south end of San Juan between Salmon Bank and Eagle Pt. Had a great low, low tide again so we saw Sea Stars, anemones, and forage fish in the kelp at south Lopez. The Orcas were pretty spread out and foraging for salmon. PM Tour: J, L and probably K’s swam north with the flood tide this afternoon and were getting further away as we left the dock. They were headed up into the Canadian Gulf Islands and we thought we were in for a long trip (we would try to catch them on the back side of Active Pass). But... lucky for us, L-12’s turned back to the south! We cut through the islands between Blakely & Orcas to the north end of San Juan. We watched the 15 or so orcas of this subpod just south of Stuart Island. We did see some breaching and tail-lobbing and had several great passes by Mega, a large male that has a real distinctive nick in the middle of his dorsal fin. Belted Kingfisher, Bald Eagles, seals, porpoises, and the Gray whale were some other species sighted today.

July 21st: AM Tour: Very low tide today - we went south of Lopez and had great viewing of lots of Ochre Sea Stars on Castle Rock and many Harbor seals with pups in the area as well. Dall’s Porpoise off False Bay. We spent time with J and L pods off of south San Juan...excellent vocalizations and good orca activity today. 4 orcas right under us, including Faith - with a good roll-over and close up eyeball! It was a beautiful afternoon. Saw the Gray Whale too! PM Tour: Had to go a little further this afternoon as J & L pods (possibly K’s as well) were up at the northwest end of San Juan. Watched them breaching, spyhopping, porpoising, good vocalizations. Beautiful evening with warm wind and pretty pink sunset - it smelled like summer! We checked out the Gray Whale on the way out to see the Orcas and he’s still there feeding!

July 20th: AM Tour: L-12’s at south San Juan again (about an hour & 15 minute run for us) so we headed around the south end of the islands. The Gray whale gave everyone his regular close-up looks on the way out to the orcas. We got several close passes with Mega and Skana. Matia gave everyone a great underwater view when she swam right under the boat! PM Tour: " It was a 3-whale tour this afternoon! Gray, surprise Minke, and L-12’s. J & the rest of L’s were inbound at Trial Island (just east of Victoria, BC) at 7:00 pm. The Minke popped up just as we came on scene, very close - and high enough out of the water to see it’s chin! Got a great look at this animal, who was most certainly ’Chopper’. The orcas were mellow, fishing in between Pile & Eagle Pt back and forth with several big breaches. Shelby Smith, naturalist.

July 19th: AM Tour: We cruised over to have a visit with the Gray whale this morning, then went around south Lopez to ward San Juan. Spent time with the orcas of L-12 subpod near Eagle Pt. today. J’s were up north and were heading back south in the afternoon. PM Tour: Naturalist Bart Rulon: "We got several close looks at the Gray Whale at Lopez Pass early in the tour. Later we caught up to the L-12’s on the west side of San Juan Island. After 20 minutes of milling they put on the speed, started breaching, and headed north to meet up with J-Pod at Lime kiln Park. L’s and J’s got pretty excited to see each other - lots of breaches, spyhops, cartwheels, and rolling around!"

July 18th: AM Tour: J’s were last seen heading north yesterday afternoon so we expected them to use Rosario early this morning. They may have passed through early because they were first seen on the west side of San Juan with L-12 subpod. We went south, then NW up the west side of the islands. Met up with the Orcas near Henry Island where they were being pretty social. Granny (one of the oldest orcas at over 90 yrs) was hanging with another male as they passed by pretty close and Ruffles cruised by with a harem! PM Tour: On our way out now but luckily the whales turned back to the south so we’ll get there quicker than we first thought. J’s kept going to the north but the L-12 subpod turned around for us and headed back down the San Juan shoreline. We met up with them near Lime Kiln Lighthouse and loped along with them to the south. We did see a lot of Dall’s porpoises in Haro strait at the same time. I think they are smart enough to know our resident orcas eat salmon, unlike the marine mammal eating transient orcas!

July 17th: AM Tour: K and L’s were still on the south side of San Juan - today they were quite spread out, fishing. The latest report from Catchmore Charters is that the Humpies (Pink Salmon) are just now coming in so maybe they were tracking some of them down (though pink salmon aren’t near as tasty as kings!). Saw K-20 with calf K-38 who popped out of the water a few times, practicing it’s breaching. Saw a Minke whale and the Gray whale - so a 3-species whale day! PM Tour: L-12’s out off of False Bay this evening. Mega, Calypso, and Matia passed close by and we could see bits of fish floating in the water. That Minke whale was still there at the south end of Rosario - saw him going out and coming back! And had a nice visit with the Gray whale again. Aslo harbor porpoise, bald eagles, other seabirds.

July 16th: AM Tour: Yesterday’s weather was pretty crummy (but definitely does not affect whale sightings!) and this morning started off that way. But a couple hours into the trip the sun started to peek out and the weather turned out great - maybe summer has arrived in Washington? Hope so - it’s about time. We headed southwest again this morning - J pod was on the south end of San Juan. By the time we got out there J’s headed up the beach....but K and L pods came back in!! They took a two week jaunt out into the Pacific Ocean and we are glad they’re back! Personally, I think J pod told them to go find their own fish out along the coast. Well, we are excited to have them back and we visited with them out offshore of San Juan. J’s did turn back toward K & L’s and had themselves a big superpod. The folks onboard were quite impresesd with the Gray Whale though, since he swam about 10 feet from the boat! PM Tour: It turned out to be a spectacular weather day. It seems the rain had washed the air clean and you could see for miles. The water was very calm and temperatures warmed up very nicely. Captain Newberry headed south out of the marina to hang with the superpod (J, K, & L pods) at Salmon Bank. He said there was some "flirting" going on between pod members. This is the time of year that they mate. J’s mate with K and L members, K’s mate with J and L members, and L’s mate with J and K members. Never mating within their pod. Gestation is about 17 months so typically calves are born in the winter months. That’s why this year’s summer births are a bit atypical. What a cool day....

July 15th: AM Tour: A very nice and relaxing day today. J pod went north last night so we expected them on our side this morning. Sure enough Captain Matt got word that J’s were right across the water from our marina at Thatcher Pass at about 9 AM. Met up with them near south Lopez. Here’s what naturalist Shelby had to say: Great action today - J was traveling slowly along SE Lopez. When they rounded the corner at Colville the party started! Great breaching, tons of spyhopping, cartwheels, tail lobs...very playful behavior. We didn’t get a good look at the brand new baby (born yesterday though not confirmed yet by The Center For Whale Research), but heard others (on the radios) talking lots of baby talk...Hooray! Gray Whale still there - we visited for a bit then headed in. PM Tour: We started for the middle of the islands just in case J’s kept going north - we’d be able to intersect them near Stuart. Lucky for us they turned around and headed back our way. Captain Newberry made a quick left turn and cruised around the south end of Lopez, the shortest route to them. On the way we spotted a Tufted Puffin near Iceberg Pt. (south Lopez) - kind of a rare sighting. Saw J pod breaching in the distance as we approached. Spent some good quality time with them and had a great pass by J-41 (calf born on June 29th, 2005). J-1, Ruffles, swam right under the boat off the stern! Had a visit with the Gray whale on the way home as well.

July 14th: AM Tour: Today was a circle tour around the San Juan Islands. J pod was on the west side of San Juan so we headed south around Lopez to watch them. They swam northwest up the shoreline of San Juan and we cought up to them near the NW corner and near Henry Island. Had a great show with the Orcas then headed back through the middle of the islands cruising past Orcas, Shaw, north Lopez, Blakely, and Decatur Islands. Some of the captains with the orcas later this afternoon reported a possible new birth (that would be the 8th of the season!!!!! ) in J pod. One of them said he even thought he saw the tail coming out of the mother! More to come on this news as soon as possible. Got a quick look at the Gray Whale before heading in. PM Tour: Tonight was actually a private charter out of Bellingham. Supposed to be a nice leisurely sunset dinner cruise but these are such great repeat customers Captain Matt asked them if they’d like to see a Gray Whale (J’s too far away for this 3-hour private tour). They said YES very excitedly! He poured the coals to it and spent some very nice quality time with the Gray Whale. (Fuel is not an issue with us. We show people a good time despite fuel costs - though our fuel surcharge does help take the sting out of it!)

July 13th: AM Tour: Today was the first day in a long, long time that J pod eluded us. They went so far to the north that we just couldn’t make it, along with all the other whale watch boats. We departed Skyline and headed over to see our Gray Whale friend feeding near Lopez. Saw lots of other wildlife as well including a harbor seal eating a skate (flat, bottom fish)! That is unusual. Hoped that K and L were coming in from the west so we headed out that direction - but no luck with Orcas today. Glad the Gray Whale is still hanging around! PM Tour: Better luck this evening because, thankfully, J pod had turned back to the south later in the afternoon. We still had quite a trek to see them bu it was well worth it! We headed up Rosario Strait toward Point Roberts and met up with the J’s just off Birch Bay. Naturalist Shelby Smith: Great buzz by a female with youngster - couldn’t get a positive ID but she did a slow turn around the bow about 2 feet under the surface. Captain matt spotted a long strand of kelp draped over her dorsal fin (they often do this for fun or tactile stimulation). Saw 5 eagles at Pt. Lawrence, east Orcas Island and had a beautiful sunset with a fingernail moon hanging over the Olympic Mountains.

July 12th: AM Tour: An early morning report of L-57 near Port Angeles so we were hoping to see K and L pods today. While out on the search we ran across J pod a little west of Victoria, BC. Had to go a long way this morning but it’s always worth it. They were resting again this morning but got some great looks at them. The water was as calm as Captain Neil had ever seen - which is quite impressive when we’re out in the middle of the Strait. It is so peaceful out there on glassy calm water. No more word of K or L pods but hopefully we’ll see them on the afternoon cruise. PM Tour: J’s were heading north up the beach at San Juan but turned back south just in time for our afternoon trip - YEAH! Also - a Humpback whale was spotted over in the western part of Haro Strait - unusual for this time of year. Island Explorer II has alreaady seen a Minke whale and on their way to see the orcas. Ruffles was doing circles around the boat and Speiden breached about 15 times! Gray Whale still there too.

July 11th: AM Tour: J’s have been hanging out on the west side of San Juan Island for the last couple of days - maybe waiting for K & L pods to return from out west. Or - maybe there’s plenty of fish out there - we sure hope so. Great trip this morning, this from our naturalist Ellen Fortado: Blossom with Mako by the stern, Blossom breached close to us 6 times! Mako breached twice and at the same time Shachi came right by our bow with new baby J-41. Then Shachi cartwheeled. J-41 is so tiny! & so orange! (Calves have an orange tinge to their white patches due to a jaundice-like condition, totally normal). A resident Harbor seal in Skyline marina, near our dock, has been hanging out there for quite sometime. Our crew calls him Norman but discovered today that they should be calling her Norma because she just gave birth to a new baby seal pup!! Also saw a Minke Whale and a Gray Whale today, pair of eagles in their nest at south Lopez, and harbor porpoises in the strait. PM Tour: J’s were still on the west side of San Juan but heading north. We travel through the inner islands just in case they keep going, we can intersect them near Stuart. Lucky for us though they turned and swam south. Captain Neil hung a louie and cruised out Cattle Pass. He said it was the most amazing evening this season - nearly constant breaching by members of J pod while we were there. Just incredible.

July 10th: AM Tour: Got the morning report that J pod was near Discovery Island so we headed south and west. Found J’s resting in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It’s actually pretty cool to see them rest because they are all very close together and come up to breath at or near the same time. You can get great photos of a lot of whales in the same frame. On the way out to the Orcas we saw a Minke Whale at McArthur Bank - he popped up right next to us. The Gray whale is still feeding in Shoal Bight - so it was a 3 whale species day!! Lots of Harbor Porpoise all over the Strait today and an interesting behavior note regarding J Pod. Some of the members have been toying with Harbor Porpoises - they don’t seem to be interested in eating them, just harassing them. Our local Orcas feed on Salmon so this is quite peculiar. Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, many seabirds as well. PM Tour: J’s continued in from the west so we didn’t have to go quite as far this evening. Caught up to them near False Bay at south San Juan, spread out and probably feeding. Hyshqa and J-40 were right off our stern vocalizing for quite some time and Oreo & kids were rough housing right next to the boat! We saw them rolling and spinning around each other under water - so awesome!! Gray whale still there and still not shy at all!

July 9th: AM Tour: First report of Orcas way up north off the Fraser River at 9 AM. Good thing there is a big ebb tide this morning! It’ll bring the whales closer to us on the morning trip, and even closer for the evening trip! We headed north up Rosario Strait, then between Matia and Sucia marine State Parks, then straight north toward Point Roberts until we intersected them. More to come...Shachi, the new mom of J-41 breached right next to the boat! Also saw J-14, Samish, with her new baby J-40. PM Tour: J pod decided to use Boundary Pass this afternoon so we headed through the middle of the islands to the northwest end of the San Juans. Caught up to them just south of Stuart Island and watched some of them speed swimming. Ruffles Passed by really close and gave everone a great look at him. Finished the evening with a great look at the Gray whale - fluking right next to the boat!

July 8th: AM Tour: It was pretty windy this morning so we headed through the middle of the islands for some shelter! By the time we headed out Cattle Pass the wind was calming down and we met up with J pod just around the corner. Got lots of good looks at the brand new calf and Blackberry, J-26, cartwheeled about 50 ft. from us! Cruised south Lopez on the way home and visited with the Gray Whale at southeast Lopez. He’s still there! PM Tour: Had to go a little further tonight as the whales turned and went back to the north. However, we did have a very scenic cruise through the islands! Got to see J pod between Stuart Island and Pender Island in the Canadian Gulf Islands. Gray Whale still feeding in the shallows off east Lopez.

July 7th: AM Tour: A nice Island loop tour today - first headed through the middle of the islands to intersect with J pod who was coming from the north via Boundary Pass. We arrived on scene just northwest of San Juan Island then followed along with the 24 whales toward the south end of San Juan via Haro Strait. They were porpoising (swimming really fast) toward Lime Kiln and Ruffles was right behind the boat! Saw both babies and the youngest one still looking good. Lots of good birds today: Eagles, vultures, great blue herons, auklets, guillemots, murres, and cormorants. Harbor seals on Speiden and Gray Whale at Shoal Bight. PM Tour: J’s continued south down the shoreline so we headed around south Lopez this afternoon. We encountered some Harbor Porpoises offshore aways then met up with J pod near False Bay. Naturalist Ellen said they were so vocal today - It’s pretty awesome to be able to hear them at the same time you see them. Samish and family were rolling near the boat for a while and gave us a good show! Other wildlife sighted: Gray Whale, Dall’s porpoise, Harbor Seals, California Sea Lions, and many seabird species.

July 6th: AM Tour: Usually the day after a long trip we’re re-paid nicely and today was no different! J pod first reported at Point Roberts headed southbound at 7 am. The question was wether they’d use Rosario Strait or Boundary Pass. Lucky for us they chose Rosario. We headed over to see the Gray Whale first and had some great close encounters with him/her. This whale sure isn’t shy! We just drift with engines and generator off and it circles the boat, surfacing quite close. After visiting for a while we head northward to find J pod about half way down Lummi Island (about a third of the distance we travelled to them yesterday afternoon!). We followed them into Bellingham Channel, between Cypress and Guemes Islands seeing cartwheels and breaches and new calf, J-41 before cruising back to the dock. PM Tour: Should be awesome as well since the whales are right in front of Anacortes as I type this! ... J pod just south of Deepwater Bay (east Cypress) heading south and resting. Soon after we arrived they changed direction to the north, still resting. We cruised up the east side of Sinclair and got lots of good looks at J-41 (the newest calf). Traveled with them to north Lummi Island, they continued north and we turned south down Rosario. Had a nice Island cruise this evening and visited with the Gray Whale before heading in to the dock.

July 5th:AM Tour: J’s and K’s off the south end of San Juan this morning - milling around. When the Island Explorer II arrived on scene J’s were porpoising to Pile Pt. then slowed down. Soon after we had aome close passes by the boat. Sounds like they had a great show today with a nice ending - three big breaches by J-14 right near the boat just before they headed for home! Visited with the Gray Whale again as well. PM Tour: This is the kind of trip that sets us apart from all the other guys. J pod was traveling north in to the Gulf Islands this afternoon and we knew we’d have to go a long way to see them. With only 30 people onboard, was it worth it? Of course - it always is. We could have stayed back and watched the Gray Whale only but we knew people came for the Orcas. The following by naturalist Bart Rulon: We watched J pod in Active Pass traveling in two distinct groups. We got several good looks at the new baby J-41 (see photo above) and J-40 too. We saw several nice spyhops inclusing one right near the boat. Our last view of the orcas was the best - with engines turned off and a big group passing very close to the boat!

July 4th: AM Tour: J pod at Point Roberts this morning at 8 AM, heading south. Hoping they’d use Rosario we headed north out of our marina. Soon we got news that they decided to use Boundary Pass, to the northwest of Orcas Island. We were already at north Orcas so we took a left and arrived on scene near Saturna Island in the Canadian Gulf Islands. Traveled along with them until Turn Pt. on Stuart Island. Shelby Smith: Great fishing action right off Turn Pt...high speed swimming just below the surface, dynamic porpoising out of the water - was a great grand finale to our day with J pod! PM Tour: Tonight we offered a 4 hour wildlife/sunset/fireworks cruise in which we cruised down to Deception Pass where we saw Harbor Porpoises and mouth-full-o-fish Rhinoceros Auklet seabirds darting past us at close range. Then we headed west to see the Gray Whale, still there feeding! The fireworks display was at the northeast end of Fidalgo Island and was spectacular! It was a long show - about a half hour, and full of colorful explosions. Good job Anacortes for supporting such a great local 4th of July show!

July 3rd: AM Tour: J pod on our side this morning but we didn’t get the news until about 11 AM. We were at south Lopez when we heard the news so we whipped around - knowing there would be a lot less boats in Rosario Strait than in Haro Strait (which was where K pod was). July 4th weekend can be pretty crazy in the islands so it was nice to avoid the rat race in Haro. We caught up to J pod north of Cypress and hung out with them until just north of the Ferry Terminal in Anacortes. PM Tour: by Shelby Smith, naturalist: The water was smooth like mercury - J pod bunched up in small groups, traveling slowly toward Pt. Roberts. (J’s had turned back to the north at the ferry terminal and rode the big flood tide up.) We had a fantastic close pass from a tight family group including brand new calf J-41 - so tiny and peach colored. On the way home we were treated to several close encounters with the Gray whale - beautiful tail flukes against the back drop of Mt. Baker! Close enough to feel the exhale spray!

July 2nd: AM Tour: Whales headed north in Haro Strait this morning - but turned back to the south just as we left the dock. This is good news since we’ll get on scene quicker and have more time with the whales. Spent some good quality time with K’s and L-12 subpod - lots of breaching and cartwheeling this morning. PM Tour: Had a very nice and peaceful evening watching K pod near False Bay, west San Juan. Got to see the calves breaching quite a bit tonight. Visited with the Gray whale again. Enjoyed Deception Pass and a nice sunset also.

July 1st: AM Tour: We cruised through the middle of the islands this morning because the whales were at the northwest end of the islands. By the time we got over there J’s bolted north - but luckily K pod turned south and was along the west side of San Juan. Got a nice show and a few close passes. It appeared that Spock was teaching one of the calves how to spyhop! PM Tour: K’s stayed to the south this evening so we burned a little less fuel! We watched them from Pile Point to Eagle Point. A group of 6 orcas swam under the boat two times, including Cappuccino and the two calves with their moms. The Gray whale is still feeding neat Lopez Island! Also saw a California Sea Lion hauled out on the Salmon Bank buoy. Lots of cool seabirds as well.

June 30th: Saw the Orcas but I need to find our route map for the day!

June 29th: Saw the Orcas but I need to find our route map for the day!

June 28th: AM Tour: NEW RECORD!!!!!!!!! 4 whale species in one trip!!! First we saw the feeding Gray whale near Lopez, then the Orcas of K and L-12 subpod near Hein Bank, then a Humpback whale also at Hein Bank, then a Minke whale near salmon bank! Holy Cow! or Holy Whale! This is a first - so cool. Those that braved the weather today were repaid 4 fold. J’s and the other L’s came back via Haro Strait later in the day and should be at the south end for our afternoon trip. Lots of whales in the Salish Sea this season!!! PM Tour: Gray whale at Lopez Pass - great look, circled the boat, and we got a great whiff of fish breath as he passed! We found L-12’s with L-57 (Faith) and L-26 subgroup just off Hein Bank resting. They woke up and headed east to False Bay. Witnessed lots of tail-lobbing and some breaching. L-71 rolled on his back and lobbed his tail, then rolled over and gave us a good pectoral fin slap. As we left L-41 seemed to wave goodbye with excessive tail-lobbing!!

June 27th: AM Tour: L’s came back in last night or early this morning and are on the west side of San Juan with K pod this morning. J pod is at Point Roberts as of 12:30 today. We’ll head south to the closer whales and maybe see J pod this afternoon, should they decide to use Rosario Strait. Watched L and K pod from Eagle Point to Henry Island. Had a great show with lots of activity. Also saw Bald Eagles, Dall’s and Harbor porpoises, seals, and sheep & fallow deer on Speiden Island. PM Tour: Wow! This one was incredible. Found J’s at the north end of Lummi at about 5 pm. They were sleeping at first but then woke up! It’s so cool when your there as they wake - so much activity. Breaching, spyhopping, cartwheeling, etc, etc. Captain Dave said it was one of the best displays he’s seen. Our passengers couldn’t get enough - they were elated as they disembarked!

June 26th: AM Tour: J’s went north last night but K’s stayed down south so we headed that way. Lots of vocalizing and milling which is nice because we can be shut down in one spot, just listening and watching in silence. Very peaceful. Saw some playful activity as well. Gray whale still there! PM Tour: Saw K pod again just south of Lime Kiln light house - they were resting but got pretty active shortly after we arrived. Was a very nice evening trip and did see the Gray whale on the way home.

June 25th: AM Tour: J pod came down Rosario again this morning and we met up with them at east Cypress. Got to hang out with them until the south end of Rosario Strait, then checked out south lopez for eagles and seals. Had plenty of time to go visit with the Gray whale then south again to Deception Pass. PM Tour: Jand K at Lime Kiln this afternoon - we watched them swim south to Salmon Bank. We were able to spend ample time with them and were entertained once again by Cappuccino! He is really friendly and seems to enjoy our passengers. Other wildlife seen: Bald Eagles, Auklets, Murrelets, Cormorants, Guillemots, Murres, and the lone Gray Whale once again.

June 24th: Good news again this morning! Yesterday K’s and J’s came down Rosario but J pod turned back to the north in the afternoon and went clear up to the Fraser River. This morning J’s were at Point Roberts heading south again and should be back in front of Anacortes later today. K pod is at south San Juan heading east so that looks good too! Captain Matt may head south first to see K pod then possibly see J pod on the way home. The Gray whale should still be near Lopez and we’ll check it out if we have time. More to follow... They had a great show with K pod on the west side of San Juan, then visited the Gray whale at east Lopez. PM Tour: J pod made their way down south to Cypress Island. We headed over to see the Gray whale again first, got some great looks, then north to find J pod. They actually turned around on us and headed back to the north with the big flood tide. We caught up to them just north of Orcas Island near Matia - which is a marine state park. Lots of good passes and close looks tonight and back in by 9:00!

June 23rd: J and K pods were first reported at Point Roberts this morning. The tide is ebbing (going out, or to the south) very quickly so they should get down here into Rosario pretty fast. We first headed west to the east side of Lopez Island to visit with a Gray Whale (pictured above) feeding there. We figure the longer we wait, the further south (toward us) the orcas will get! Last report was at Cherry Point at about 11 AM so we’ll probably meet up with them north of Cypress somewhere. I’ll let you know what happens.....

June 22nd: All three pods at the north end of San Juan this morning. J’s and K’s kept traveling to the north, L’s turned back to the south. We first went over to see the Gray whale - he’s still there at east Lopez Island! Then headed south around Lopez toward San Juan. Caught up to L pod at the south end of San Juan - offshore a bit. Sounds like they had a nice trip this morning and expect L pod to be in the same area for this afternoon’s trip. More to come....They also saw a Minke whale breach at Hein Bank and saw Dall’s porpoises as well! PM TOUR: Well, despite the long trip and choppy water, we did see L pod west of Victoria this evening. J and K were pretty far north so either group was not gonna be easy to get to. Looks good for tomorrow though!

June 21st: Since J’s went north last night we expect them on our side at some point today - but no word yet so we headed over to east Lopez Island to get a look at a Gray Whale feeding in the shallow water there. Nice bonus this time of year - we don’t usually see Gray whales in the summer. He (or she) is definitely not shy and we got some great looks. K pod was at the south end of San Juan and Lopez so we rounded the corner to the south and visited with them for a couple of hours. Had very nice weather and calm seas - making for a super trip this morning. Also 6 Bald Eagles throughout the trip, harbor porpoises, and many seabirds. PM TOUR: Our guests that braved the weather this afternoon were rewarded BIG TIME! (The weather changed rather abruptly to quite windy conditions). We got word that J pod was at Village Point, north Lummi Island at about 3 PM heading our way. We left at 4 and headed north up Bellingham Channel between Cypress and Sinclair. Even though it was very windy we were in very protected waters with virtually no wind chop - and we escaped the rain! The whales of J pod were just north of Cypress Island and when we arrived on scene they went bezerk! Like popcorn all around the boat. Captain Neil said this had to be the best show of aerial display he has ever seen - and he’s been around for a while! Constant breaching within yards of the boat for quite a while. Not sure what got into them tonight but man, was it cool. Our naturalist Jami took about 130 photos!! When I get them I will post any good ones here. Just goes to show, don’t wimp out due to weather! I almost forgot - we visited with the Gray whale on the way home and what did he do? Breached 4-5 times! Must have been something in the air tonight.

June 20th: Got a call from our dad Jim (Catchmore Charters) this morning with a report of whales SW of Victoria heading west, another report of J’s and K’s on the west side of San Juan. By the time we left the dock J’s were at Lime Kiln heading north so we shot the middle of the islands. Part way into the trip J’s are at Battleship Island, north end of San Juan, and K’s and maybe part of L’s closer to the south end of San Juan. We’ll probably take a look at J pod, then possibly head south to see K’s a little later. Sounds like it’s shaping up to be a great day out there! ...Stayed with J’s since we were getting a great show! Cruised back through the middle of the islands to Anacortes seeing lots of seabirds, Bald Eagles, Heron’s and harbor porpoises along the way. PM TOUR: J’s still heading north getting farther away so we headed south to visit with K pod. They were traveling from Lime Kiln Park on west San Juan to the south end of the island. That’s what is so great about this time of year - if one or two pods are further away or out of range, the other is in range! Our sighting success right now is about 100%!! We had some great quality time with K pod, very peaceful and few other boats around. Also found a Minke whale near Salmon Bank - nice bonus, and harbor porpoises, harbor seals, and seabirds.

June 19th: Summer’s here! What a great weather day we had today. And lot’s of whales too! We had two choices this morning with K’s and part of L’s at the south end of Lopez and San Juan Island and J pod up north near Cherry Pt. and heading our way. We thought it best to visit with J’s as there would be less boat traffic up that way. The west side of San Juan can be a bit congested this time of year. On our way to see J’s we got a report from the captain of Paraclete water taxi of a Gray whale or two just across the strait from our marina. The whale was feeding in the mud just outside of Lopez Pass and we got some great looks at him. We think it was Patch, a Gray whale that hangs out inside of Whidbey Island in the springtime, see photo above. Harbor Seals and the first pups of the season were spotted at Peapod rocks, lots of Lion’s Mane Jelly Fish in the water, Bald Eagle, baitball of Herring, and many seabirds. We visited with J pod from north Lummi Island to Sinclair Island. Then the tide turned and they were swimming against a flood tide - which should keep them near Anacortes for our evening trip! PM TOUR: I actually got to ride along in the evening with my kids Andrew and Amy. We had a great time and visited with J pod in Bellingham Channel and south Rosario Strait. We also spent a little time with the Gray whale at Lopez Island in between our time with J’s. We had several close passes tonight and many cartwheels (see photo above). One of the new calves kept breaching, speed-swimming, and cartwheeling, as if practicing.

June 18th: A variety of species sighted today as we headed south around Lopez Island: lots of seabirds, Belted Kingfisher, Bald Eagles, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Great Blue Heron, sea stars, and Peregrine Falcons. We got to hang with L pod and probably K pod as well - they were hard to ID today but did get a good look at Hugo from L pod. Again, they were at south San Juan Island which is quite close to Anacortes and makes for a great trip. J’s still doing their loop and are somewhere up north again. PM TOUR: Our afternoon trips have been pretty awesome lately with whales galore and glass calm water. We found K and L pods out in the eastern part of the Strait of Juan de Fuca (just south of Smith Island) and slowly headed north to south Lopez with them. It was such a quiet and peaceful evening. Being out in the Strait in that flat calm water is hard to describe - one of my favorite places to be, especially with the whales. Raggedy (K-40) came near the boat with a very large salmon in her mouth, as if to show it off! We also got a good look at Cappuccino, a sprouter male in K pod (his dorsal fin is growing very rapidly right now). A Minke whale was spotted on our return trip as well!

June 17th: AM TOUR: Captain Matt led our tour today and headed through the middle of the San Juans for a scenic island tour. We cruised past the 8 largest islands in the archipelago to the northwest corner. Along the way, Bald Eagles, herons, seabirds, and harbor seals were spotted as we made our way toward the orcas of J pod. We were able to get some great looks at them up near Stuart Island before heading south into Haro to see K pod. The K’s were at the south end of San Juan by now so we decided to go that direction home. Seeing K pod was a bonus to our trip as well as touring a whole different part of the islands than on our way out this morning. PM TOUR: J’s kept going away from us to the north but K pod was hanging around the south end in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We cruised south since they were much closer. The Orcas were quite spread out and feeding. One of the whales was playing with a stick and would pull it underwater then let it go. It came bobbing to the surface and the whale would do it again! And some say these whales don’t play - HA! They often invent games and play with sticks, logs, kelp, etc. What a great evening.

June 16th: The early morning report was that J pod was way up north, out of range and heading further away. SO we decided to head south in search of K and L-12 subpod. Along the way we saw Great Blue Herons, Guillemots Auklets, and Murres (seabirds), and harbor seals. After searching for a while in the Strait there were no Orcas to be found. K’s and L’s may have headed west for the day. We did however find a few Minke whales out near Hein Bank, and one more at Salmon Bank. We watched them feed on bait balls (herring or candlefish) for a while. You can get to predict when they’ll surface by watching the seabirds on the water. When the group of birds starts to fly into the air, a Minke whale is just about to surface under the mass of fish, getting a mouthful!

June 15th: Very nice weather today! Sunny skies and calm seas. We headed down south and west, offshore of south San Juan where we encountered K pod and L-12 subpod. Spent some great quality time with them and on the return trip found a Minke Whale as well! J’s are still doing the ’great loop’ and should be in Rosario this evening. PM TOUR: J’s first spotted just north of Washington Park, right outside our marina, at about 3:30 PM. We had a private group this evening with Chevron Texaco Cogeneration. Did they luck out or what!? It was a perfect glass calm and warm evening in the islands. We left the dock around 4 PM and headed south to find J pod. We traveled with them from Rosario Strait to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Had some very unique behavior and close passes.

June 14th: A few different reports today: K Pod heading north into the Gulf Islands early this morning and L-12 subpod was off south San Juan. J pod is still missing in action but we think they are in Rosario Strait or just north of there. No word yet but hopefully we’ll see them on our evening trip tonight! Captain Neil reported a great show this morning so far... NEWS just in: (1:40 PM) J Pod at Viti Rocks, just south of Lummi Island heading south toward Bellingham Channel. Will pass by our dock later this afternoon and our 4 PM tour will probably intersect them right outside our marina! Actually met up with J’s about 15 minutes south of our marina and got some good looks before the wind came up. We weren’t expecting such windy conditions this evening - blowing westerly at 30+ knots! Luckily the whales were very close to Anacortes. All other companies had to cancel their afternoon trips tonight. We had a nice island tour after seeing the whales, heading north in Rosario, between Lopez and Decatur, through Thatcher Pass to East Cypress Island where we saw the Atlantic Salmon jumping in the fish pens, then back to Skyline Marina. Despite the wind we saw Orcas, harbor seals, Peregrine Falcon, Turkey Vulture, Oystercatchers, Bald Eagles and other seabirds.

June 13th: Whales on both trips today! Spent time with K pod near north San Juan this morning & ID’d Lummi, Spock & calf, and Raggedy. Raggedy’s dorsal fin is quite tattered on the trailing edge (hence the name) so she’s real easy to identify. We saw two Bald Eagles in the marina this morning and when we returned there were 3 Osprey calling and circling overhead! PM Tour: K’s continued southeast along San Juan Island and met up with them near Salmon Bank. We cruised along with them to south Lopez Island, this time identifying Cappuccino, Opus, and calf Sonata. Lots of Eagles and seabirds today as well.

June 12th: With all three pods going north last night we expect them to come down Rosario today. Got a call from Penny Stone on Lummi Island with a sighting of Orcas traveling south in the am - YEAH! We headed out of Skyline, northbound and arrived at the whales just north of Cypress Island. It was K pod - J’s and L-12’s were behind them a few miles. We hung out with K pod for a couple of hours then peeled off to take a look around south Lopez Islands - one of our favorite places. We found Great Blue Herons, seabirds, harbor seals, and turkey vultures. On our return trip we found J pod just west of Biz Pt. on Fidalgo Island heading south. Spent some time with them before heading into the marina. PM TOUR: It was a pretty amazing evening out with the whales tonight! We spent some great quality time with J pod off of south San Juan. They were quite friendly and curious this evening with several small groups of whales turning toward us as we sat still in the water, engines off. I think they were definitely checking out the passengers! We had the hydrophone in the water (as we do most trips) and one juvenile found it quite entertaining! The whale was tugging on the cord and actually left a kink in it - good thing it was tied on to the rail! What a peaceful evening.

June 11th: J, K, & L pods at south San Juan today - the whales were very active and we got to see many of the new calves. On the afternoon trip we had to travel quite a bit further but had a super island tour. Went through the middle of the islands to the northwest side, crossing over into the Canadian Gulf Islands. J, K, & L pods had traveled up Haro Strait to the north. We came on scene near Pender Island and had a terrific show! Our naturalist Ellen reported several close passes and 4 breaches & a cartwheel right next to the boat!! It was well worth the mileage tonight.

June 10th: Kinda windy this morning so we headed through the middle of the islands this morning. All three pods on the west side of San Juan Juan so I think they came down Boundary Pass again this morning. We are heading out of Cattle Pass soon because the whales are between Salmon Bank and Eagle Point right now. Though it was a bit rough today we had a great show! Lots of breaching and aerial displays. We stayed in the choppy water with the whales for an hour and a half then ducked back into the calm waters inside the islands. A great day despite the wind.

June 9th: All three pods headed north last evening so we figured they’d be on our side this morning. We headed up Rosario Strait along Lummi Island but still no word. Then got a report of whales at East Point - so they switched up on us and decided to head south via Boundary Pass! Captain Hamid veered left and round the north side of Orcas Island. Caught up with them near Stuart Island and had a great show and a super last pass! They came very close to the boat and soon after decided to turn around and go back to the north. The tide was flooding pretty quickly - I think they got tired of swimming against it. Was a very nice island tour as we came home through the middle of the islands.

June 8th: Condensed version: We headed south today, whales heading south in Rosario and passed out dock about an hour prior to our departure. Cam on scene at south Lopez with J Pod and hung with them for about an hour. Turned back to the east and met up with K pod who was traveling behind J’s this morning. Spent some time with them before heading over to Deception pass.

June 7th: Condensed version: J, K, L pods off the south end of San Juan Island. Had a great show today. Was a bit choppy but well worth it - Captain Neil said it was the best show of aerial display that he’s seen so far this season! PM Tour: J, K, L pods went north and we visited with them up near the Canadian Gulf Islands. Apparently they were tired from all the playing earlier - we saw Ruffles breach twice near the stern of the boat then they started a resting pattern. On the way home that evening we had a great show of Dall’s Porpoises bow riding for about 10 minutes! Everyone on the boat got a chance to be out on the bow for a very close look at them.

June 6th: The weather forecaster was wrong today! Supposed to be cloudy and a bit rainy but nice and clear when we woke up! J & K came down Rosario in the night and were off south San Juan going north. We still had an ebb tide to push us out this morning so we headed south around south Lopez. We met up with K pod and perhaps a few of J’s near False Bay. Most of J pod continued north up Haro Strait. Captain Neil and crew are still out whale watching.

June 5th PM: We had an evening trip tonight and were really hoping and praying that J & Kwill turn back to the south from Point Roberts! Once in a while they keep on traveling north and get out of range. We got a call from another captain later in the day reporting that they had turned to the south and were heading our way! So we cruised north with a big flood tide and made very good time! Erik, owner of Anacortes Kayak Tours was onboard and he and Captain Shane made a bet - whoever saw the whales first gets $10 from the other. Erik had them at about 3 miles out! Met up with J pod near Birch Bay and watched them swim south for quite a while. Toward the end of our time with them they disappeared for about 12 minutes (a long time compared to usual) and when they popped back up K pod was there. Cappuccino breached twice about 20 yards off the boat! K’s had been behind J’s somewhere but didn’t really see them until now. They may have been talking to each other under water, saying come on, catch up! It was pretty cool.

June 5th AM: Today was a payback for yesterday morning - J & K were headed through Active Pass this morning and going north. We prepared for the long haul and told Captain Newberry to go for it! We headed north past Orcas Island, way past Orcas Island to Point Roberts. It was well worth it though! A passenger counted 32 spyhops in 30 minutes - that has to be a record!! Still seeing all the usual wildlife throughout the tour.

June 4th PM: This evening we had the Passport To Puget Sound trip that People For Puget Sound hosted and had a great cruise around Lopez Island, spending a little time with the Orcas of J, K, and part of L pod along the way! They were spread out mostly feeding in the Strait south of San Juan. Had a few breaches, spyhops, and cartwheels amongst the group. There were some great speakers onboard as well including Mike Sato of People for Puget Sound, Kari Koski of the Whale Museum, Larry Campbell of the Swinomish Tribe, and others. It was a real treat to have these folks on board!

June 4th: HAPPY DAY! Got a report this morning from our Friend and local naturalist Penny Stone who lives on Lummi Island. She watched the orcas swimming off north Lummi Island heading south! They took the Bellingham Channel route and we arrived on scence a little north of Guemes Island. As of 1 PM they are cruising south at 5 knots toward Washington Park, just past the ferry terminal. More to come....

June 3rd Evening trip: Had a very nice evening, despite the choppy waters! Our boat handles it so well that the sea state was not real noticeable. Headed southwest around Lopez Island to south San Juan where K pod and part of L pod were hanging out. When we arrived they were resting but after being there for a while they woke up and got quite active! Had some nice close breaches and spyhops. On the way home we cruised through the small pass at Deception Pass, always a thrill, then headed in to Skyline. J’s & maybe part of L’s went north today so hopefully they’ll use Rosario Strait tomorrow morning.

June 3rd: No word of J’s or K’s yet this morning - last report was at the Fraser River heading north last night at 8 PM. They typically turn around at that point. We decided to go through the middle of the islands this morning because L pod was on the west side heading north. We hope to intersect them between Henry and Stuart Islands. We have an afternoon trip today and hope to find J’s & K’s close to Anacortes! 1 PM update: J’s and K’s came back to the south via Boundary Pass on the northwest side of the islands. Captain Matt put himself in a very fortunate position as he intersected them near Henry Island! L-12 subpod is just to the south heading north so there may be a very interesting meeting between the three pods soon!

June 2nd: Orcas inbound this morning at Discovery Island (just this side of Victoria, BC)! We’ll head south I’m sure but more details to come... Actually J’s did go out the Strait yesterday to do what they typically do in early June - Go out, meet K Pod, and escort them back in to the islands!!! This morning both pods were coming in past Victoria toward San Juan Island. When we left the dock J pod was nearing Henry Island and K pod was just behind at Lime Kiln State Park. More to come... We watched J’s and K’s up near Pender Island - they were quite active and very vocal! It’s so cool to be able to hear them while we watch them. They are heading north so we expect them to come down our side tomorrow. L pod showed up on the south end of San Juan Island tonight as well so all three pods are in the area!

June 1st: Last report of J’s was on the west side of San Juan heading south last night. We expected them to be south of the islands somewhere so that’s where we headed. The water this moring was a bit choppy so we thought they were hiding in the Strait somewhere. J’s never did turn up so they probably headed west for the day. HOWEVER, we did find a couple of Humpback whales in Haro Strait! An unusual sighting this time of year. We usually see them in the fall so this was a real treat! They weren’t doing a whole lot when we first got on scene but they turned south and started breaching and we were the only boat with them! Jami, our naturalist got these great snapshots. You never know what to expect out there!!

May 31st: Hearing a rumor about Orcas in the Strait south of Trial Island (by Victoria)...We’re heading south and will update later! ...Captain Neil and Naturalist Jami led the tour today and headed south toward the reports. They found J-pod in south Haro Strait between Hein Bank and Middle Bank. Jami said they had a great show with lots of spyhopping and lobtailing. Had a great close pass by Granny (one of the oldest of the southern resident whales) and Princess Angeline - Princess spyhopping very close to the boat! Also saw 5 Bald Eagles off south Lopez.

May 30th: Just left the dock, headed for the middle of the islands. Most of J’s are on the west side of San Juan heading in the northerly direction. Just in case they keep going we want to make sure and catch them on the northwest side of the San Juans. If they turn back to the south, then we’ll turn south. We’re looking forward to another great day! ... We dodged the rough weather and came around the north end, the whales turned back to the south and we caught up to them around Lime Kiln. They were a little playful, mostly feeding. We watched them swim down the shore to south San Juan and had a great show. Were able to shut down the engines and watch for quite a long time. Also saw a pair of Canada Geese and goslings, sheep and deer on Speiden Island, harbor seals, and many seabirds.

May 29th: A super day this Memorial Weekend! Lots of sun, calm water, and whales in front of Anacortes as we left the marina! J’s came down Rosario this morning, first called in by Captain Jim Aggergaard of Catchmore Charters: whales near north Cypress at 9 AM. We headed for south Rosario in order to get in front and watch them all swim by. Had some great looks today of Blackberry, Samish & calf, Ruffles, Granny, Mako, and Blossom. The first photo above is J-16, Slick taken by a passenger. Good shot, Steve! Lots of seabirds today again, harbor seals, and 7 Bald Eagles.

May 28th: J pod was split into two groups today. One of the groups was up near Henry Island this morning heading north. The other down by Salmon Bank. We decided to go through the middle of the islands for the northern group because the water conditions were much nicer. As we got closer to Haro Strait the northern group kept on going north up Swanson, getting further away. Our plan changed (as it does often throughout the day) and we decided to head south down the west side of San Juan for the southern group. By now the water has clamed down (after the change in tide) and we watched part of J pod near the south end of the islands. Had a great island tour today, making a big loop around Lopez, Shaw, and San Juan. Lots of seabirds today including 11 Marbled Murrelets, a threatened seabird.

May 27th: Got a call early this morning from Captain Ed on the Island Transporter with orcas right in front of

Anacortes (at Washington Park) at 8 AM! A little early but we’ll take it! Thanks Ed - always appreciated! Another call from Captain Bob Plank on the Viking Star at about 9:30 AM with whales at south Lopez, Colville Island. We headed out at 11 AM for south Lopez - whales currently near San Juan. With the big ebb tides lately we expect them to turn back to the south and catch up with them near the south end of San Juan....Just got a call from our Captain Matt who is just approaching J pod out in the middle of Haro Strait. They (whales) did turn back to the south and our crew saw some breaching in the distance. L pod may be there too but not yet confirmed. More later.... Just J’s out today - got a great last pass by the J-17 subgroup.

May 26th: WOW - what a day for weather! And what a forecast for Memorial Day Weekend! Today was flat calm and downright balmy on the water. Summer’s here early. Last night J’s headed toward the west so we were biting our nails this morning, thinking they could have possibly gone way west in the night. BUT...a couple false reports this morning and then a real one - whales at Trial Island near Victoria! It was J pod coming back toward San Juan. We met up with them near False Bay, South San Juan and had quite a nice visit. Toward the end of the trip Captain Matt called and said he had Skana, an L pod member right next to the boat! So J’s must have met up with L’s out in the Strait and they came back together.

May 25th: J’s first sighted at Washington Park, Anacortes at 8 AM! They did the great loop and by the time we left the dock they were on the south side of San Juan heading north. Hopefully they won’t keep going against the ebb again... Yeah! They did turn back south and we met up with J Pod at Eagle Point, SW San Juan. They were spread out quite a bit and traveling toward Hein Bank. We had a great show today, in fact Captain Matt said the best yet for this season! Spyhops, breaches, & close passes. Other sightings: Bald Eagle, Peregrine Falcon & aerie (nest), Harbor Seals, & Purple sea stars (it’s really cool out here on super low tides!). Cruised through Deception Pass before heading in to the harbor for a spectacular look at the bridge.

May 24th: As of 10:30 AM J pod is on the west side of San Juan heading north against a big ebb tide so they shouldn’t make alot of headway. We rounded the southern end of Lopez going toward San Juan Island. The whales did continue to go north and we arrived on scene between Henry and Stuart Island. We watched them feed in the area as they continued north toward Swanson Channel. Also saw a Minke Whale at Salmon Bank on our way up to the Orcas!

May 23rd: A short lived return for L’s! They headed out west early this morning but this is very typical in the early season. They’ll come into the islands for a day or two then out for a day or two. Luckily J pod hangs around. However, today J pod was way up to the north out of our range as well. We decided to head south and west just in case L’s turned back. We did have a great Minke whale show at Hein Bank, watching three whales and they got quite close to the boat! Also saw lots of Dall’s porpoises, some Harbor Porpoises, a California Sea Lion sleeping on the red marker near Williamson Rocks, a flock of Canada Geese, Peregrine Falcon, and lots of cool seabirds.

May 22nd: L Pod returns! Pretty windy today as we left the harbor - wind waves at the south end of the islands were 2-4 feet so we headed through the middle this morning. By the time we get out to where the whales are (south San Juan) the tide will have changed and the water will calm down. Our route took us north of Lopez, in between Lopez and San Juan and out Cattle Pass. J and L pods were on the west side of San Juan where we got to spend quite a bit of time with them. There must have been about 50-60 orcas in the area, activity included feeding, playing, spyhops, breaches, lob tails, & pec fin slaps. It’s nice to have L pod back!

May 21st: Here’s a short synopsis as I’ve got to write and run... J’s in Haro Strait today spread out and heading north. It seems like our route is on a 2-day rotation. Every other day we get them real close to Anacortes, and on opposite days we get them at the NW corner of the San Juans. Today we watched J’s as they headed up toward Active Pass. Tomorrow looks good! ... watched J pod near Stuart Island as they headed northwest toward Active pass. Got a great show with spyhops, breaches, pec fin slaps, and saw Ruffles, Granny, Slick and others. Of course the given Bald Eagles, harbor seals, harbor porpoise, seabirds, and turkey vultures.

May 20th: Today was a make-up day for all the fuel we’ve been burning lately. J’s were reported up at Point Roberts at 8 AM this morning heading our way. So we cruised north to Lummi Island via Bellingham Channel and found them at the north end of Lummi- about 15 miles from our dock! Usually they ride the ebb tide down, traveling at a good pace but today the tide is flooding against them. The Orcas slowly moved to the north but only covering a few miles in a few hours. We had a super show, spending over two hours with them! Saw Breaching, spyhopping, and the coolest thing: an adult orca catching a salmon, disabling it a bit, then letting it go so that a young orca could practice catching it!! How cool is that??? Steller Sea Lions also fishing off Point Lawrence. Was a great day.

May 19th: We had quite the scenic island tour today! Saw every one of the main San Juan Islands, plus many of the Canadian Gulf Islands too. J pod was at the northwest corner of our range heading up toward Active Pass. Covered many miles today but it’s always worth it - much better than not seeing whales! We had some good looks as they approached the Pass. Other interesting sightings: many seabirds, Bald Eagle, harbor seals, harbor porpoises, great blue heron, turkey vultures, and a California Sea Lion with a fish - two eagles were trying to steal it away!! That’s pretty cool.

May 18th: We didn’t have confirmation on J pod yet so we headed through the middle of the islands this morning. Out through Cattle Pass, we were in search of Minke whales! A little choppy today but nothing compared to the ocean proper, and when the tide turned the water calmed right down. Heard about a Transient Orca near Victoria, B.C. so off we went! Just before we got on scene we had a report of J pod in Rosario. However, we were so close to the transient we had to check him out. He was very large - seemed to be just traveling to the west. Soon after we turned and burned for J pod. Met up with them at South Lopez and had some great passes. Another bonus to the day was 3 Tufted Puffins over near Victoria! We don’t see too many of these bright colored interesting birds.

May 17th: We had a private charter from Orcas Island Today - about 50 8th graders from a Spokane area school. What a fun day it was today! From the west side of Orcas we headed around Waldron and Stuart Islands. There we saw some harbor porpoise and seals, seabirds, and Bald Eagles. J pod was in Haro Strait so we headed south to Henry island and found a very active part of J pod right on the south side of Henry. The rest of the pod was down the island a ways. After hanging with the whales for a while we turned into Mosquito Pass, a beautiful passageway between Henry Island and San Juan. On the other side is Speiden Island where there are deer and sheep transplanted there from Japan and Asia. Had a great look at many of them and a young one was posing on a glacial erratic for us!

May 16th: After yesterday we were a little leary about going north and not finding whales so we headed south, knowing that if they were up there we’d get them on the way home anyway. We headed out toward Hein Bank to find a Minke whale and possibly Orcas. Was a bit choppy but nothing that the Island Explorer II couldn’t handle. We were almost there when Captain Ed on the Island Transporter (a for-hire vessel that carries fuel trucks, semi-trucks, logging trucks, tractors, etc out to the non ferry serviced islands) called to report Orcas in Rosario Strait near Blakely Island - YEAH! Thanks Ed! Captain Neil turned our boat around and headed that direction. Met up with J pod in the calm waters of Rosario just south of Bird Rocks. Stayed with them as they traveled around the south end of Lopez Island.

May 15th: Our last report of J’s was that they were heading north at Henry Island last night about 9 PM. We fully expected them to be making their usual loop around the islands so we headed north out of the marina this morning. They should be somewhere north of Lummi Island headed this way. We, and many other tour boats, searched all day up in the Strait of Georgia but no Orcas to be found. We went clear to the Boundary Bay area hoping that the other boats just missed them. No dice. Captain Matt takes it very personally when we get miss whales but not his fault today! It turns out that they turned south somewhere near Henry Island and headed out west toward the Pacific. Later that evening J pod was heading back in to the islands and were at Discovery Island (near Victoria, BC) at 7pm. They hit the west side of San Juan at 10 PM and cotinued north. Glad they’re back! Had a great trip anyway and everyone can come back again for free! Saw lots of seabirds including some terns and Harbor Porpoises

May 14th: J’s came down Rosario from the north this morning on their usual travel route. We left Skyline and headed south (they just passed by our marina at 10 AM) and caught up to them near south Lopez. The whales were foraging some and moving pretty slowly. We were actually shut down for about an hour and a half, silent in the water just watching them as they slowly swam past on their way to San Juan. They were quite spread out so we got to enjoy many small groups pass by for over an hour! We did see at least one spyhop also. Lots of birds sighted today, as on most trips: Auklets, guillemots, vultures, murres, cormorants, loons, geese, eagles, hawk, and herons. Saw a Steller Sea Lion at Lawson reef milling around, presumabely feeding. Was a great day on the water!

May 13th: J pod is still on the west side of San Juan today but did keep going up Swanson Channel in to the Gulf Islands later in the day. We headed out through the middle of the islands for a great island tour then met up with the 23 Orcas just south of Stuart Island. They were pretty active, spread out and feeding with some social behavior too. Had one spyhop just off our stern! It’s very difficult to get a photo of a spyhop because that behavior is not at all predicable. But if one of our passengers did, GOOD JOB! As we passed James Island on the way home we ran across about 100 Harbor porpoises feeding in the currents.

May 12th: Yeah! J’s back in town this morning at 8 AM. They’re on the west side this morning but may continue up north into the gulf islands. It’d be tough for them to get out of range today. More to come... J’s decided to stay on the west side all day and into the night as well. We caught up to them just south of Henry Island at about 1 PM. They turned south and we watched them to south San Juan. They were spread out and feeding - just the fact that they are staying in the same area means fish must be there! Here is a picture of Ruffles, J-1, the oldest male in the southern Resident community at 54 yrs old. It has been so nice lately to be on the water - no wind & glass calm conditions.

May 11th: Headed out west in the Strait of Juan De Fuca this morning - no word yet of J pod. When there’s no word by mid -day then we have to assume they headed west out the Strait toward the Pacific, however we keep looking hard all day just in case they slipped by someone! At Hein Bank we hung out with two Minke Whales for a while and saw 3 Elephant Seals at Minor Island (near Smith Is.) which is quite an unusual sighting! That was a great bonus. Tons of birds today: Great blue heron, cormorants, bald eagles, peregrine falcon, Canada geese, pigeon guillemots, turkey vulture, oystercatchers, common murres, marbled murrelets, and pacific loons. Great day despite no Orcas.

May 10th: Still making their loop! About every other day they are on our side of the pond and today is one of those days! Got a call this morning that J’s were at Cherry Pt Refinery docks at about 10 AM. I actually guessed them just north of there at Pt Whitehorn at 9 AM (good guess!). The timing will be perfect because by the time we get to them they’ll be south of Lummi Island in the calm water (we hear it’s a bit choppy up in the Strait of Georgia this morning). More to come... We left Skyline Marina at 11 AM and headed up Bellingham Channel, stopping to look at the salmon net pens in Secret Harbor (east Cypress Island). This is one of the most beautiful shorelines in the San Juans. Cypress is mostly undeveloped and even still has some old growth forest left on it! We met up with J’s just south of Lummi Rocks and hung with them all the way back to our marina! Had some good activity - about 6 breaches along the way and a few spyhops too. The sun came out early (you can’t always trust the forecast) and was quite a nice day!

May 9th: Writing in early today so will update the details of our trip later. J’s on the west side of San Juan Island and will likely stay there all day until the tide turns in their favor around 2 PM. What a phenomenal spring it has been for seeing Orcas and other wildlife!! Must be plenty of fish for the whales to eat this spring. Addition (May 10th): Actually J pod fought the tide and kept going north up in to the Gulf Islands of Canada. We had a great island tour today, going through the middle of the San Juans in the morning, watching J pod near Pender Island, then returning to Anacortes via north Orcas Island. Saw a wide variety of birds throughout the day and a Steller Sea Lion at north Orcas Island.

May 8th: Happy Mother’s Day! We did predict the location of the whales today but they took their sweet time getting here! We expected them to be going by Anacortes in the morning but were still up north of Lummi Island when we left the dock - even better for us! Jim from Catchmore Charters called Captain Shane reporting J pod in north Rosario. We arrived on scene at about the middle of Lummi Island. They were split up in two different groups - which they sometimes do to take advantage of more fishing area. They met back up again near southeast Sinclair Island and headed down Bellingham Channel - just north of the Ferry dock in Anacortes. We left them here and cruised over to James Island. Saw aver 100 harbor porpoises there feeding in the ripline. The orcas ended up turning back to the north with the flood tide - something they do just a couple of times a year. Im sure they floated up with the tide for a ways, fishing - then turned back to the south to continue their route to south Lopez.

May 7th: First report came in at 8 AM - J pod at Hanna Hts (the west side of San Juan) heading north. They slowly swam against the ebbing tide in Haro Strait and when we arrived (about 1 PM) they were on the Canadian side of the border near Sidney Island. Still heading north, they will likely catch a ride with the flood tide that is about to happen & end up near Point Roberts again tonight. That looks good for tomorrow! We should have the whales very close to Anacortes for Mother’s Day - What a nice gift to the mothers onboard!!

May 6th: J’s are continuing their ’great loop’ around the San Juans. At some point they cruised north through the Gulf Islands because they ended up in the Strait of Georgia this morning - near Point Roberts. The whales came down along the mainland side (Birch Bay, Cherry Pt, Sandy Point). I’m sure they continued down Rosario later in the evening since they ended up on the westside of San Juan early Saturday morning.

May 5th: At this writing no word yet, but it’s still early! (9:30 AM). A 10 AM report came in that J’s were at south Lopez traveling east - toward Deception Pass! It was a great location for us, we left Skyline at 11 AM and were watching whales at 11:30 near Colville Island! The whales were moving slowly, then turned back to the west. We saw feeding behavior, spyhopping, and tail lobbing, following them back to Salmon Bank area. Ruffles, Oreo and calves, and Samish and her new baby were ID’d - had a great breach from Samish and got a few really good close passes. We checked out the very large Steller Sea Lions on Whale Rocks, Black-Tailed Deer on South Lopez, along with harbor seals and harbor porpoises.

May 4th: We got early word that the orcas were up near Pt Roberts this morning - a whale watch captain from Vancouver, BC was walking his dog on the beach there and spotted them! They were headed our way so off we went to the north. Lots of boats were looking for the better part of the day and they seemed as if they had alluded us. Captain Shane turned back to the east from the western side of the Strait of Georgia in hopes that they were there. After a bit of searching he spotted them from 4 miles away! Those Swarovski binoculars were a great investment!! We were the first to find them and had some great passes right near the boat. Followed them to Lummi Island before we peeled off for home. They continued down Bellingham Channel by Guemes Island and Washington Park, Anacortes. I took my kids out there to watch them go by from shore. What a wonderful end to a great day. We also saw about 200 Harbor Porpoises at Boiling Reef and 4 Bald Eagles along the way.

May 3rd: Looks like J’s headed out the Strait to the west yesterday so we headed that direction hoping they’d be on their way back in. Along the way we saw Harbor Seals, Cormorants, Harbor Porpoises, 8 Bald Eagles, Canada Geese, Turkey Vultures, Pigeon Guillemots, Steller Sea Lions, Rhinocerous Auklets, Scoters, Marbled Murrelets, and Dall’s Porpoises. We searched high and low for Minkes and Orcas out near Hein Bank but no luck today! J’s finally showed up on the west side of San Juan Island at 11:45 PM - a naturalist on the island heard their blows as they swam by. Looks good for tomorrow.

May 2nd: J’s were last seen at Hein Bank (in the middle of the Strait of Juan de Fuca) heading south toward Port Angeles last night at about 8 PM. We left the dock and headed that direction this morning. Three Minke whales gave us a great show near Salmon Bank then we motored over to Discovery Island to see T-61, a transient Orca whale. Transients feed on harbor seals, sea lions, and porpoises, not salmon like our residents do. No word of J pod today so they likely went west for the day. Also saw Black-tailed deer on Boulder Island and a Peregrine Falcon on Young Island. A very unique day out there!

May 1st: Our office got a call from an early morning fisherman (THANK YOU Paul G.!) with a sighting of 6 orcas near the Cone Islands heading south down Bellingham Channel! With glass calm water, sunny skies, and warm air temps, this day is sure to please. I grabbed my kids, Andrew and Amy, and went to a lookout point. There I saw a

April 30th: We lucked out today - apparently J’s have been turning around outside of Race Rocks and coming back in to the San Juans! That’s what they did last night and were found on the southwest side of San Juan Island this morning. This is so great because it means there’s lots of fish to eat here, otherwise they’d be traveling farther distances. The calm water made for lots of other great sightings. Ruffles was hanging out with Samish and her new baby and we saw five breaches in a row! About 8 Dall’s Porpoises were bow-riding and gave us a great show. Then we saw a Minke Whale at Salmon Bank! Ellen, our naturalist made quite a list of species sighted today: Great Blue Heron , Harbor Seals, Rhinocerous Auklets, Harbor Porpoises, Bald Eagles, Pigeon Guillemots, Turkey Vultures, Swallows, Canada Geese, Purple Sea Stars, Llamas, Dall’s Porpoises, Pacific Loon, Pelagic Cormorants, Double-Crested Cormorants, Orca Whales, Common Murre, Minke Whale, Oystercatchers, and Bonaparte’s Gull. By the way - this list is the norm! In her words: "What an awesome day!".

April 29th: J’s were in Haro Strait most of the day. Last report was J’s at Race Rocks heading west - not such good news for tomorrow.

April 28th: Last night J-Pod was rounding Henry Island, headed north fast. That’s actually good news for today because they typically go all the way to Point Roberts and the Fraser River at night, then turn south again the next morning, riding the strong ebb tide. Very often they’ll travel down Rosario Strait and go right past Anacortes. The Island Explorer II left Skyline Marina at 11 AM and headed north, hoping to intercept J pod as they came south. Captain Matt cruised up to Cypress Island and took a good look up north but didn’t see anything. They turned south just in case the whales decided to come down Haro Strait instead. We saw lots of other wildlife along the way including seals, porpoises, eagles, and seabirds. The search for a Minke whale at Hein Bank turned up nothing but just then got a call from Shane (Company owner). As he headed across Rosario on his way to a fishing derby he came right up on J pod at Thatcher Pass! Matt turned the Island Explorer II around and met up with the Orcas at south Lopez Island. Hooray! Our passengers were quite pleasantly surprised to see them after the search. They were porpoising (speed-swimming) as they rounded the corner, then slowed down. Saw some breaches and one of them swam right under the boat! The new baby in J Pod is doing great, though the typically white parts still very orange due to juvenile jaundice (a normal condition in orca calves). Very calm water and sunny skies also helped make today a wonderful outing.

April 27th: We’re not running a trip today but just heard that there are whales at Henry Island heading south! (NW San Juan) as of 12:45 pm. Assuming its J pod but no ID as of yet. We’ll be out there tomorrow! (Later in the day they turned northbound again - it was J-pod)

April 26th: Can you say fog? We expected the fog to burn off by noon but it was very persistent today! It does add a real unique feel to the islands and we did actually find a Minke whale or two south of Salmon Bank. J pod was found later in the day way up north and too far out to reach on this trip. However, it is good news because it means they are staying in the San Juan/Gulf Island area and should be heading back south tomorrow.

April 25th: J’s were heading up Swanson Channel last night at about 7 pm so most likely continued through Active Pass to Point Roberts. No reports today until about noon when whales were spotted off the west side of San Juan. It is most likely J pod who did the full loop and came around South Lopez this morning. We’ll post it when we get it confirmed. Wish we were running today. Thanks for reading!

April 24th: Got a call from Jim Roe, a sport fisherman and friend from Anacortes, at about 7 am with our first report: Orcas at Eagle Point, south San Juan Island heading east. Yeah! We got off the dock and headed south around Burrow’s Island and into Rosario Strait. As I write this at 11:45 am J pod is at Salmon Bank still heading east toward Anacortes, the water calm, sunny skies, and a wonderful start to our day..... When we arrived they were heading northbound up the west side of San Juan. Saw a few breaches, lob-tailing, feeding behavior. Also Eagles, seals, cool seabirds.

April 23rd: As we left the dock this morning we had word of Orcas in Haro Strait between San Juan and Victoria slowly moving north. We started out southbound to go around south Lopez Island but then got word of J Pod up north off of Point Roberts! Yeah! The whales near San Juan turned out to be Transients so wemade a u-turn and headed north to see the 22 whales of J Pod. There was a Gray whale sighted near Blakely but we were pretty focused on getting up to J Pod quickly. Our naturalist Ellen sighted a juvenile Bald Eagle on Cypress Island. Up near Point Roberts we had some great looks at Ruffles and Granny (Ruffles’ mom), others were pretty active - breaching and lob-tailing. Also had some great close passes, with one of the orcas lob-tailing just in front of our bow as if saying goodbye to our beloved Captain Jeremy (today was his last day before taking a new job). Calm water and warm air temps rounded out a great day!

April 22th: We didn’t run today but J pod was still out in the Strait. They headed north up Haro toward Canada. Looks good for tomorrow!

April 21st: J pod seems to be settling down into their spring pattern! We headaed into the Strait of Juan de Fuca today. They were a bit south of Discovery Island, just east of Victoria, B.C. They were quite active for this time of year which is great - they’re not so serious about finding food which means there is enough food around for them. We saw a couple of breaches, spyhops, and tail lobs! It sure was nice to see the Orcas today - and the weather was very nice.

April 16th & 17th: There was a report of J pod on the west side of Whidbey Island heading south on Friday the 15th but no other reports from south Puget Sound. We’re thinking they turned and followed the coast along the Peninsula - Sequim, Port Angeles, etc. ?? Haven’t heard anything since - hopefully they’ll settle down into their spring pattern soon. I guess they will as soon as the fish come in. We did have a couple of great trips inside of Whidbey again this weekend, seeing the Gray whales feeding there. We have been so lucky with regards to their location - usually around north Camano. This allows us to spend more time with them. Still seeing lots of Bald Eagles, seals, porpoises, and a variety of seabirds.

April 9th thru the 14th: Grays still in Saratoga Passage! On the 9th we saw a Gray near Holmes Harbor, along with Dall’s porpoises, Bald eagles, and Harbor seals at Williamson Rocks. On the 10th we decided to take a different route because rumor had it that Orcas were around. We rounded south Lopez where we saw two Bald Eagles on a nest. A few Dall’s porpoises took a short ride on our bow wave on the west side of San Juan - while we punched through some pretty big waves. Fortunately the Island Explorer II handles it very well. We went clear up around Stuart Island in hopes the whales would be coming south toward us, but no luck. There were lots of Sika and Fallow deer on Speiden Island as well as Eagles and we had a nice calm ride back through the middle of the islands. Both Tuesday and Thursday (the 12th and 14th) we headed back down to see the Gray whales. The crew just called as they watched a Gray Whale breach! They have been really active so far today. The trips only half over so we’ll see what happens next! A Minke Whale was sighted at south Hein Bank mid-day thursday as well (by a fisherman).

April 7th: We’ll take rain over wind anyday! Flat calm water today, though lots of rain. A great day for a variety of wildlife. We spent time with at least 3 Gray whales. One of them was "Patch", a well known Gray that returns every year. Also saw Dall’s porpoises, Harbor Porpoises, seals, eagles, oystercatchers, and harlequin ducks - and as of this posting today’s trip is only half-over!

April 5th: Kind of windy as we left the dock this morning but the boat handles it beautifully. We made a dash for Deception Pass where we had flat calm water. No word yet on J-pod so away we go to find some Gray whales in Saratoga Passage. Didn’t have to go far today - we found two at north Camano Island right in the middle of the channel. In fact, I was the first to spot one! I was out with my kids and neice - they really enjoyed seeing the Grays. We stayed and watched them surface and fluke for about an hour and a half then headed back north. Captain Shane took us through Canoe Pass at Deception (which is the tiny side - always fun but not recommended on anything but slack tide!) Just on the other side was a Bald Eagle soaring right beside us. Our early season whale sighting record might just be our best ever!

April 3rd: It turned out to be a great day - calm water and many Gray Whales. We had a similar route to yesterday’s, cruising inside of Whidbey Island. The first two whales we saw were just north of Holmes Harbor. We watched them feed for awhile and then one breached! As we headed back we came upon two more at Strawberry Pt. They were in such shallow water we had to watch from a distance. The Grays are bottom feeders - they roll over sideways, open their mouth, and fill their mouths with mud. The muddy water is pushed out through the baleen plates and goodies like ghost shrimp and other crustaceans stay trapped in. Steller Sea Lions were fishing in the water out near Lawson reef and just before we arrived back at the dock we got a great look at a coyote. Erik from Anacortes Kayak Tours told us they have been seeing this one for some time and she may have a den there on Burrow’s Island.

April 2nd: The Island Explorer II was on another private charter from Bellingham to Orcas Island so we used the Island Express for our regular whale watch trip. It was a little windy today so we stayed in the calm water to the east of Whidbey Island. We actually cruised through La Conner on the way down which is a unique and interesting route! We saw two Gray whales at the south end of Camano Island as well as Bald Eagles, seals, sea lions, and seabirds. We got a close up look at Deception Pass Bridge as we cruised underneath it on our way home.

April 1st: What a crazy weather day! Lots of rain showers, some sun, some rough seas (for the firts 20 minutes) then calm seas for the rest of the day. We headed under Deception Pass Bridge from Skyline Marina and continued south toward Oak Harbor & Penn Cove. Just past Penn cove we came across at least 4 Gray whales feeding in the shallows. Got some great looks and had good photo-ops.

March 29th: Orcas sighted up near Vancouver, B.C. No trip that day but hope they come south for the weekend!

Report of Orcas near Tacoma on Sunday - could have been J-pod. The night before they were at Port Angeles and is very possible for them to cover that much ground in a day this time of year.

March 27th: We left the harbor in glass calm water on this peaceful Easter Morning. There was minimal sprinkling throughout the day and very calm seas. The Island Explorer II headed out west in hopes that J Pod was still out in the Strait. Though no orcas, we did spend time with two Minke whales at Hein Bank, which is a great place to be in glass calm water. We had a Peregrine Falcon give us a fly by (there are several pairs nesting in the San Juan area) near Burrow’s Island, saw several harbor porpoises throughout the day, Bald Eagles at south Lopez Island, Smith Island, and Deception Island. There was a few groups of Dall’s porpoises in the Strait - and several were riding our bow wave! On the way home we cruised by Deception Pass Bridge for a nice close look.

March 26th: Some of the Canadian operators that ran trips yesterday afternoon followed J pod to Port Angeles until it got dark. They couldn’t tell whether they headed east or west. No reports today of J’s but we did see two Gray Whales on the inside of Whidbey Island. They were moving slowly, probably doing some feeding in the mud flats there. Though the forecast was pretty bad, the weather turned out just fine - a small chop on the water and intermittent rain. Could’ve been a lot worse! Transient Orcas were also sighted yesterday at the northwest end of Whidbey Island.

March 25: J Pod at Constance Bank - 11 AM! This is just south of Victoria in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Yeah! Hopefully they’ll stick around for this weekend but if not, many Gray Whales have been hanging around the east side of Whidbey Island. No trip today but we love keeping track of these guys.

March 24: What a great spring day! Sunny skies and calm water throughout the day. We headed out to the strait in hopes that J pod would be back from the north and found a Minke Whale at Hein Bank. We stayed with it for about an hour, watching it feed. Other sightings included the very impressive Steller Sea Lions on Whale Rocks, harbor seals, many, many Bald Eagles, and the very pretty Harlequin Ducks.

March 20: We’re on a private tour for the Penn Cove Water Festival today but got the news that J pod is on the west side of San Juan Island, heading south. As they cruised past the Center for Whale Research the folks there reported that they were all present and accounted for. Yeah!

March 19: The Island Explorer II was chartered for a private group out of Rosario so we used the Island Express for our regular whale watching tour today. The Express is a fast, beach landing vessel. We cruised down Guemes Channel, slowing to watch a California Sea Lion and nesting Cormorants on the channel markers. Our route took us under Deception Pass Bridge and down Saratoga Passage. We saw Dall’s porpoises rooster tailing and another sea lion thrashing around a fish along the way to south Whidbey. Here we found two Gray whales feeding near the Clinton Ferry doc and our passengers got some nice pictures and video of the two swimming and fluking in perfect unison. Though it was cooler and gray, seas were calm making for pretty good whale watching. The Grays will be around for another month or so and J pod should become a more regular visitor to the islands anytime now. Transient Orcas have been reported this last week off the west side of San Juan Island also.

March 12: The Island Explorer II left Skyline Marina in calm, sunny weather. There was a report of a Gray whale on the west side of Whidbey Island the day before and we were hoping that it was still there, feeding in the mud flats. We continued south around Partridge point and sure enough - there it was! We got to spend about an hour with the whale as it headed south along the island. Three Gray whales returned to Whidbey on the 13th - one of which was "Patch" who has a large white patch on his right side. Patch has returned for several years now and is quite recognizable. The very large Steller Sea Lions will be in the islands through mid-may, many Bald Eagle pairs are nesting, and porpoises & seals are regular sightings. The J pod orcas have been around in March but are still covering a lot of ground. Soon they should be settling in to their spring travel patterns & hanging around the San Juans more & more.