2007 Whale Watching Report

This BIG Spyhop photo was taken 10/13/2007 from The Island Explorer 3 by Naturalist Bart Rulon!

This Humpback Whale photo taken last year, November 24th, 2006, by passenger Linda Lee Walters is so beautiful we had to post it again as our Humpback season approaches!

A Humpback Peace Sign
Photo taken on November 3rd by Naturalist Kate Janes

November 23rd & 24th: Our 2007 season ended with a splash of an Orca’s tail! Friday brought a beautiful warm and sunny winter day out on the Salish Sea. The southern edge of Lopez Island brought us Eagles, Harbour Seals and Common Murres. Out in the straits our guests saw Dall’s and Harbour Porpoises. Friday’s show belonged to the breaching Steller’s Sea Lions at Whale Rocks!! More than 30 of these 2,000 lb pennipeds were socializing in the water, giving our guests the most memorable acrobatic shows of the season! Our thankfulness for the wonderful weather spilled over to Saturday’s trip. Reports came in that J pod was heading north of the Puget Sound! The Island Explorer III began its search and by 1:40 pm J Pod was sighted!! For an hour and a half our guests enjoyed great looks! Samish, J14, even showed off the newest member of J Pod (J43), now just over 2 weeks old! The Orca’s were actively fishing near the surface and spyhopping! As J Pod headed west we wished them a “Happy Holiday’s”! Our first trip of 2008 will be out of Everett on March 8th, 2008 with the Gray Whales!! For the perfect gift for whale and wildlife enthusiasts gift certificates are available year round!! Until 2008!! Happy Holidays from Island Adventures!!

November 13th: J-Pod has newborn!! A new baby snuggled-up next to J14, Samish has been sighted!! J43 is almost a week old and has been seen next to mom, Samish and older brother Riptide, J30!! The Southern Resident Killer Whale population has been increasing year to year and continues to rise!!

November 10th: It is a beautiful, crisp, sunny day in the San Juans! Stay tuned for a report from Bart Rulon, the Naturalist onboard today. Our guests enjoyed a tour through the inner islands at the start of the journey where we saw several Bald Eagles. Speiden Island treated us with a hillside of Fallow deer, Sika deer, and Muffant sheep! There were even 8 Steller's sea lions lounging in the shallows amongst crashing waves giving them the appearance of being in a hot tub!! Dall's porpoises definately took the spotlight today with their bow riding festivities on 5 different occasions!! Despite all of our best efforts we were unable to locate a whale, so true to our promise all of our guests received a free pass to return to go whale watching again for free, for life, until we show them whales!

November 3rd: The Island Explorer 3 is on scene with Humpback Whales!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our tour! It was a beautiful way to start November! We ventured towards the southern end of Lopez where we found Bald Eagles, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoise, Common Murres, and Pelagic Cormorants! We arrived on scene with a unique young Humpback Whale just off Constance Bank!This young Humpback, which eluded a handful of boats, had a very distinctive split dorsal fin that will make him/her easily identied for years to come as researches track it throughout the Pacific! Our guests enjoyed the friendly giant, its fluking, and the sound of its exhalation!

October 28th: Calm seas, overcast skies, and beautiful views of the Olympic Mountains today as our guests watched whales and lots of other wildlife!! We started out with lots of bird sightings - Harlequin Ducks, Marbled Murrelets, Bald Eagle, Cormorants, Common Murres, Pacific and Common Loons, Gulls, and Great Blue Herons! As we searched the Salish Sea we sighted a Minke Whale! This young whale was shallow diving and made some nice close passes for great viewing! Our guests also got to see lots of Steller Sea Lions - at one point they were all around the boat!!

October 27th: Two species of whales sighted from The Island Explorer 3 today! Naturalist Drew Kelly reports, "Clear skies and calm water on the Salish Sea made this a beautiful October day! We saw hundreds of Harbor Porpoises, Steller Sea Lions, Common Murres, Loons, Harbor Seals, and a Bald Eagle on the way to the whales! As we were searching for whales a Minke Whale surfaced right next to the boat! Our guests got a great up-close look. Then we found a resting Humpback Whale south of Victoria - he started getting active and was playing with a huge bunch of Bull Kelp!!"

October 24th: The Island Explorer 3 is in Spieden Channel today spending time with Transient Orcas. We will have an update from the crew later today. Stay Tuned! "We headed through the inner islands to stay out of some windy weather and saw 3 Bald Eagles along the way! We saw lots of Steller Sea Lions near Cattle Pass and then headed north toward Spieden Island. We found a pod of 7 Transient Orca Whales including one big male! We followed these Orca Whales and watched them porpoising for about 15 minutes, possibly chasing something! Passing close to Spieden Island on the way back to Anacortes we saw Sika Deer, Fallow Deer, and Muffant Sheep - I've never seen so many animals out on Spieden Island as we did today!" reports naturalist Bart Rulon. Our guests also got to see Harbor Porpoises, Great Blue Herons, Marbled Murrelets, Pigeon Guillemots, Gulls, Common Murres, and Cormorants!!

October 22nd: We just heard from Captain Carl, aboard the Island Explorer 3, that the Orca Whales are in sight! Our next tours are Wednesday (10/24), Saturday (10/27) and Sunday (10/28)- stay tuned to hear more about the Orca Whales from today's trip! Like most bird species we headed south, not for the weather but for WHALES!! On our journey we stopped at Minor Island to look at hundreds of Harbor Seals and a Bald Eagle at its nest. We found all three Southen Resident Pods of Orcas just north of Port Townsend! They gave our guests a great show with lots of tailslaps, cartwheels, some spyhops, and breaches!! Of the 87 whales in the area we saw the most of Gaia (L78), Faith (L57), Mike (J26), Ruffles (J1) and Granny (J2)!!

October 20th: Orca Whales sighted by The Island Explorer 3!! Captain Carl just reported in and said that our guests had a great show from J and L Pods! Next tours are Sunday 10/21 and Monday 10/22 - stay tuned to the Whale Report for more details from today's tour!! Naturalist Drew Kelly reports from the Island Explorer 3: "What an awesome day! Our first wildlife sighting was watching a Steller Sea Lion eating an Octopus! As we continued our search for whales we watched over 20 Dall's Porpoises, and 1 hybrid, bow-riding in front of The Explorer 3! They were coming out of the water and criss-crossing - the display was beautiful! Soon after we found the Orca Whales south of Pender Island. Our guests got some great looks at Moonlight, Splash, Aurora, and Grace!" We also saw Harbor Porpoises, Bald Eagles, Common Murres, and Cormorants!!

October 16th: Our guests enjoyed a great wildlife tour today but unfortunately we were not able to see whales. True to our promise though all guests received a free pass to return to go whale watching again for free, for life, until we show them whales! Naturalist Bart Rulon had this to say about the trip. "Because of the windy weather we decided to go through the inner San Juan Islands first in our search for whales. As we started to head out West it was obvious at Cattle Pass that the wind was against us, so we headed North to Speiden Island where we saw at least 10 Bald Eagles, lots of seabirds, as well as the exotic island wildlife Sika Deer, Fallow Deer and Muffant Sheep! Our guests alos got to see Steller Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Pacific Loons, Cormorants, Gulls, and Common Murres!!"

October 14th:Naturalist Bart Rulon report, “We headed North today in search of J-Pod. Along the way we stopped at Pea Pod rocks for some great wildlife viewing, a pair of Bald Eagles, lots of Harbor Seals, one Steller Sea Lion, 2 Black Oyster Catchers and a flock of Harlequin Ducks. Later, south of Point Roberts, just a few minutes after we arrived we saw two breaches, spy hops, cartwheels and tail slaps. We saw Riptide (J30), Suttles (J40), J37, Oreo (J22) Double Stuff (J34), Cookie (J38), Rhapsody (J32), and Polaris (J28), among others!!”

October 13th: Orca Whales in sight!! "We had an awesome day today!" reports naturalist Bart Rulon from the Island Explorer 3. "Beautiful sunny skies started us out and we found a California Sea Lion on a channel marker as we went through Guemes Channel. We approached J-Pod Orca Whales in some fog near Salmon Bank. The fog lifted shortly after we arrived on-scene and J-pod gave us a great show! We paralleled Sachi J19, Spieden J8, and Granny J2 for about 20 minutes. They gave us a few spyhops and Spieden tail-slapped several times! J-Pod then started to group up into several family groups and our guests saw some BIG spyhops, cartwheels, and a few great breaches! Oreo J22, and her family were very playful and were rolling around at the surface - a great show today!" Other wildlife sightings included Steller's Sea Lions, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Great Blue Herons, Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Gulls, Common Murres, and Pigeon Guillemots!!

Breaching Humpback Whale photo taken by Naturalist Bart Rulon on board The Island Explorer 3!

October 11th: The Island Explorer 3 headed west from Anacortes, passing south of Lopez Island, across Haro Strait and into Canadian waters to find Humpback Whales!! Our guests got to see these Humpbacks just south of Victoria, watching lots of great fluking! We had some super photo opportunities as we watched Dall's Porpoises swimming amongst the Humpback Whales!! A great day for other wildlife sightings too - Bald Eagles, Common Murres, Cormorants, Loons, Pigeon Guillemots, Gulls, Marbled Murrelets, Turkey Vultures, Great Blue Herons, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

October 9th: All three pods of Orca Whales are in sight! We just heard from Captain Carl - guests aboard the Island Explorer 3 are enjoying flat, calm waters as they view all three of our resident Orca pods in the False Bay area! Stay tuned for more information from today's trip! Naturalist Kate Janes reports from the Island Explorer 3: "We set out on a really warm October day with calm seas and fantastic view of Mt. Baker for most of the trip! Nearing Colville Island we saw 2 Bald Eagles and lots of hauled-out Harbor Seals! Captain Carl took us further west to see all three pods of Orca Whales!! We were in 'Whale Soup' watching cartwheels, tail-lobs, breaching, 3 double spyhops(!!), kelping, and foraging. Saanich, L74 gave our guests a great swim-by and you could see his markings really well in the clear water! On our return to Anacortes we saw another American Bald Eagle and Steller's Sea Lions! Our guests also got to see Pacific Loons, Grebes, Common Murres,Cormorants, Harbor Porpoises playing in our wake, Great Blue Herons, and the beautiful San Juan Islands!"

October 6th: Orca Whales in sight! The Island Explorer 3 is on scene with the Orca Whales! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our tour!! We headed west from Anacortes going through the beautiful inner islands to find Orca Whales! L-Pod was in northern Haro Strait and our guests got watch lots of activity including cartwheels, breaches, spyhops, and tail-lobs! We even got to hear the whales exhale! Our guests also got to see Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, 3 Bald Eagles, some beautiful Madrona trees, Bull Kelp, Gulls, Common Murres, and Cormorants!!

October 4th: Our journey through the Salish Sea led us into Canadian waters where Captain Carl found two Humpback Whales playing among some Steller’s Sea Lions!! Prior to our visit with the Humpbacks we had Dall’s Porpoises bow riding for about 15 minutes! We saw a Turkey Vulture, an Eagle and some Seals too!!It was an amazing day, calm pristine water and amazing wildlife sightings.

October 3rd: The Island Explorer 3 searched the Salish Sea for whales and today they were not to be found! Our guests still had a great tour with a great, hard working crew and as always, our guarantee allows our guests to come again for free, for life until they see whales! We also got some great looks at some very burly Steller's Sea Lions (they can weigh over 2,000 pounds)!! Lots of Porpoises and beautiful sea birds on our tour too!!

October 1st and 2nd: We had our annual staff appreciation trip on these two days and took the Island Explorer 3 over to Victoria! We saw Transient Orca Whales and Steller's Sea Lions on both days!

September 29th: The Island Explorer 3 searched everywhere in the Salish Sea for whales but they were elusive today! As always, on the rare occassion when we can't show you whales, all of guests receive a pass to come again for free, for life, until we show you whales!! We still had a great tour and saw lots of other wildlife including Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Steller's Sea Lions, a Peregrine Falcon headed for Lopez Island that did a fly by across our bow, Bonaparte Gulls, Pelagic Cormorants, and Common Murres!

September 28th: Orca Whales sighted by the Island Explorer 3! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our Naturalists! "Captain Carl guided us through some choppy waters in the Strait of Juan de Fuca to find 3 pods of Orca Whales!! Soon after, the water became much smoother and the sun came out! We got to see K-Pod as they traveled parallel with the Explorer 3. K11, Georgia was in the lead with K25, Scoter giving our guests some great looks too! We also got to see some burly Steller's Sea Lions, Dall's Porpoises, Harbor Porpoises, Great Blue Herons, Gulls, Cormorants, and Common Murres!

September 27th: Orca Whales sighted from the Island Explorer 3! Captain Carl just called in with reports of L-Pod, bow-riding Dall's Porpoises, and Steller's Sea Lions!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for more details from today's tour! "We got some great looks at Gaia, L78, who was swimming amongst a group of Dall's Porpoises! The Dall's Porpoises decided to bow ride for almost 30 minutes, darting back and forth on either side of the boat!! Our guests even got to feel the spray from their exhalation! We got to see at least 30 Steller's Sea Lions hauled-out and swimming around in the water! Our guests also got to see American Bald Eagles, Common Murres, Gulls, Cormorants, Turkey Vultures, Great Blue Herons, Bull Kelp, and Harbor Seals!!"

September 26th: The Island Explorer 3 left Anacortes heading west searching for Orca Whales! Captain Carl took us in near Castle Island and Swirl Rocks for a look at some Harbor Seals. After that, our guests were watching a Steller Sea Lion swimming along side the boat! We continued our search and found all three Orca Whale Pods moving fast into the Salish Sea! Captain Carl put us in a great position to see the leaders of the Pods that were spread out over several miles. We saw 4 spyhops from J-Pod, some tail slaps, and porpoising! J-27, Blackberry, paralleled us for a long time! We saw some great breaches in the distance and got great looks at L85 Mystery, L79 Skana, L72 Racer and many more, reports Naturalist Bart Rulon. Other wildlife sightings included Pacific Loons, Common Loons, Pigeon Guillemots, Cormorants, Gulls, Great Blue Herons, Harbor seals, Harbor Porpoises, and Dall's Porpoises!!

Photo taken from Island Explorer 3 by passenger Terry Bare

September 25th: Calm waters ushered the Island Explorer 3 into the Salish Sea today! A special treat was in store as we rounded the south end of Lopez Island a Minke Whale made its appearance and it was quite a splash- literally! The Minke treated our guests to the rare sight of it breaching- not only once but TWICE!!! Our journey lead us towards Victoria where we came across 3 Humpback Whales!! As we approached two of the Humpbacks were traveling together and suddenly one of the whales breached for us!!! Our guests also saw: Harbor Seals, Dall's Porpoise, Harbor Porpoise, Steller's Sea Lions, Red -necked Phalaropes, Common Loons, Pacific Loons, Red-necked Grebe, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, and Marbled Murrelets!

Photo by passenger Scott Pudwell from Island Explorer 3

September 24th: Our travels lead us into the Strait of Juan de Fuca which welcomed us with some very gregarious Dall's porpoise that rode the bow and played in our stern wake! After visiting with these playful cetaceans for 20 minutes we discovered 4 Minke Whales zigzagging their way throughout Middle Bank!! Our guests had some amazing looks as 2 Minkes were swimming along side one another and surfacing together!! As we ventured back to port Captain Shane spotted a 5th Minke just off the south end of Lopez Island!! A fantastic day out in the Salish Sea with some amazing wildlife including: 2 swimming Steller's Sea Lions, 2 Bald Eagles, Pacific Loons, Red-necked Phalaropes, Red-necked Grebe, Harlequin Ducks, Marbled Murrelet, Harbor Seal, and Harbor Porpoise!!

September 23rd: The Island Explorer 3 is booked for a private charter today and is on-scene with all 3 Orca Whale Pods!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for details from today's tour! The Island Explorer 3 headed through the beautiful inner islands seeing lots of Harbor Porpoises along the way, reports Naturalist Bart Rulon. We entered Haro Strait to find Orca Whales!! We spent time with L and K Pods - K's were staying closer to shore and L-Pod was out closer to us. We spent a lot of time with L22, Spirit, L89, Solstice, and L85, Mystery. We saw lots of tail-slaps and several breaches!!

Photo by passenger Scott Pudwell from Island Explorer 3

September 22nd: Naturalist Vicki Kirkland reports from the Island Explorer 3: "L41, Mega, was pacing the boat while we watched Mystery, L85 chase a salmon right under the boat! Our guests got some great looks at L and K Pod Orca Whales today! We also saw a salmon do a spyhop...? - it turned out to be a Harbor Seal chewing on his freshly caught salmon and the salmon's head was poking out of the water!! We sighted 2 Minke Whales - one was very large, at least 30 feet long, and probably a female. We sighted 15-20 Steller's Sea Lions with Harbor Seals mixed in at Whale Rocks! Our guests got to see Harbor Porpoises and lots of birds too - Pelagic Cormorants, Rhinoceros Auklets, and Common Murres!!"

September 21st: The Island Explorer 3 is off the dock and searching for whales! Stay tuned for updates from today's tour! "Orca Whales in sight!! We found J-Pod and L-Pod being very active with lots of tail-lobs, spyhops, and belly rolls! Our guests also got to witness some Orca Whale mating behavior! We also saw the huge Steller's Sea Lions at Whale Rocks and then near Swirl Rocks we got to see a gull chasing a Great Blue Heron! We also got to see Rhinocerous Auklets, Common Murres, Belted Kingfishers, Cormorants, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!"

September 19th: Humpback and Minke Whales sighted on today's tour!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our Naturalists!

September 17th: It was a beautiful, partly sunny day on the Strait of Juan de Fuca today! Around Lopez Island we saw a multitude of wildlife; a bald eagle perched high in a conifer, harbor seals hauled out on the rocky shore and a large bull kelp forest bobbing in the current! And yes, we also saw whales! Today we had some great looks at Minke whales! The second of which gave us an exciting show as it battled with Gulls, Cormorants and Common Murres while eating a huge bait ball! Quite a feast! On our way home we also found three Steller's Sea Lions feeding!

September 16th: Orca Whales sighted by the Island Explorer 3!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our Naturalists! "We navigated through the inner islands to avoid some lingering fog and the drizzle stopped and the weather improved when we arrived on-scene with J-Pod Orca Whales!! Our guests witnessed an array of active behaviors on calm water including tail-lobs, breaching, belly-rolls, and foraging! At Whale Rocks we saw a dozen Stellar Sea Lions!! (They can weigh about 2200 pounds!) Our guests also got to see Common Murres, Cormorants, Gulls, Great Blue Herons, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!"

Stellar Sealion photograph taken by passenger Annette Colombini from Island Explorer 3

September 15th: Orca Whales sighted! The Island Explorer 3 will be leaving our dock shortly to show our guests Orca Whales that have been spotted earlier this morning! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates!! "Sunny and calm waters today as we started the tour with lots of hauled-out Harbor Seals at Castle Rock. Then we saw 2 mature American Bald Eagles near McArdle Bay perched atop a tree looking for food! Heading south from Lopez Island we found J-Pod near Hein Bank doing some breaching, tail-slapping, and cartwheeling!! After spending time with the Orca Whales we found some burly Stellar's Sea Lions on Whale Rocks! We started heading back toward Anacortes and found a Minke Whale!! He was feeding in a bait ball surrounded by birds and our guests got some great looks! Two species of whales today on the Salish Sea - a great tour!!

Bald Eagle photograph taken by passenger Annette Colombini from Island Explorer 3

September 14th: The Island Explorer 3 headed into Rosario Strait and started off the tour with some great looks at Harbor Porpoises! As we continued our search for the whales our guests saw lots of hauled-out Harbor Seals and a Bald Eagle, and then...Orca Whales!! L78, Gaia, and his brother Wave Walker, were the first two to be identified. Our guests also got to see J16, Slick with baby J42 and her uncle, J26, Mike!! We also got to see Sea Lions on south Lopez Island!

Orca Whale Tail-slap photograph taken by passenger Annette Colombini from Island Explorer 3

September 13th: We ventured through some fog to emerge into the sunshine and the Island Explorer 3 found a Minke Whale! The Minke Whale was feeding on our left side and then some Harbor Porpoises were cruising on our right! Our guests also got to see an Osprey taking a bath near the shore!! Lots of other wildlife too, including Harbor Seals, Turkey Vultures, Rhinoceros Auklets, Common Murres, and American Bald Eagles!

September 12th: The Island Explorer 3 was booked for a private charter through the inner islands on this beautiful, sunny day!! The guests had a wonderful catered lunch and a leisurely tour with seals, porpoises, sealions, and lots of different bird species sighted!!

September 11th: On our way out to Victoria today we encountered lots of Harbor Porpoise, a few Harbor Seals, one Stellar Sea Lion and a Minke Whale!! Victoria brought not just one BUT three Pods of Orca Whales! J, K and L Pod Orca whales were in their typical resting behavior as they all grouped up in their individual pods and did some synchronized swimming! As our time ended with the Orcas, one decided to spyhop near Trial Island Lighthouse!!

September 10th: The Island Explorer 3 headed north today where we found K and J Pod Orca whales! Mixed in with the group were some L Pod whales! We were given a great show with lots of rolling about, tailslaps, breaching and 15-20 spyhops from just one sub-pod!! We were even treated to two double spyhops! Also the two oldest Orcas in the Southern Resident Community, Lummi (K7) and Granny (J2), were seen swimming side by side! An end to a great day on the water came when a Harbor Porpoise was porpoising in the wake behind the boat!

September 9th: Orca Whales sighted!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our Naturalists! Today not only brought beautiful weather but also Transient Orca whales in our backyard!! We traveled with the T100's as they made their way towards the Strait of Georgia. Also making an appearance were harbor seals and harbor porpoise as they attempted not to become the Orca's next meal!

Photograph taken by passenger Kraig K. from Island Explorer 3

September 8th: Glass calm water and sunshine on the Salish Sea today as the Island Explorer 3 left Anacortes in search of whales! We discovered 2 Minke Whales near Hein Bank! Our passengers had some great close-up looks watching the whales feed. We left these whales to continue our search for more whales and we came across 3 other Minke Whales! We also got some great close views of these elusive Baleen Whales!! Our guests also got to see Turkey Vultures, Cormorants, Great Blue Herons, Harbor Seals, Harbor Seals, and Egg-Yolk Jellies!!

September 7th: Two species of whales sighted today by the Island Explorer 3! We traveled into Canadian waters for an encounter with Transient Killer Whales! There were about a dozen of these stealthy hunters and they were on the move! After spending time with these Orca Whales we continued our search for other wildlife and found a Minke Whale! He was feeding near Salmon Bank and we saw some nice close passes!

September 6th: The Island Explorer 3 headed west under sunshine and blue sky with a light breeze! Orca Whales in sight! J and L Pods were about 2 miles offshore in Haro Strait. Our guests got to see lots of surface activity with breaching, tail-lobs, and pec slaps! We also had some great passes by the boat including a pass by Mike, J26, and Splash, L67 engaged in mating right off the bow!! On the return home, we had 3 Stellar Sea Lions wrestling at the surface near Whale Rocks, south of Lopez Island! We also saw Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Common Murres, Harbor Seals, Dall's Porpoises, and Harbor Porpoises!!

September 5th: Our route led us through the middle of the islands today! We were able to show our guests harbor seals, pelagic cormorants, sika deer on Speiden Island and the beauty of Mesquito Pass. We then headed to the west side of San Juan Island where we found J-Pod. Slick (J-16) decided to circumnavigate the boat along with her calf (J-42).....it was an amazing look! Mike also gave us a great "swim-by", right under the boat!!! What a great day, fantastic weather and terrific wild life!!!

September 4th: Orca Whales in sight! The Island Explorer 3 is headed West from Anacortes to see J-Pod! Stay tuned for updates from our naturalists! Naturalist Bart Rulon reports: We headed through the inner Islands getting a great view of a Bald Eagle perched on top a tree on Decatur Island. We caught up with J-Pod in the middle of Haro Strait, westside of San Juan Island. J-pod was very playful today with lots of spyhops, taillobs, cartwheels and rolling around on the surface. It appeared they were having a good old time.

September 3rd: The Island Explorer 3 is with the Orca Whales today!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates! Calm waters once again welcomed us into the Strait of Juan de Fuca as we marveled at the beauty of a mature bald eagle perched upon a sign posted at Colville Island! We then found J Pod Orca Whales in Haro Straits. Rufftles (J1) welcomed us with some great close looks and later Granny (J2) was seen hanging out with Doublestuff (J34). A multitude of orcas started porpoising as Rhapsody (J32) swam along side the boat! We were also able to identify Blackberry (J27), Tsuchi (J31), and Mako (J39). Mako showed off with grace in a great breaching spree that consisted of about 10 breaches in a row!!

September 2nd: The Island Explorer 3 is on-scene with Orca Whales!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our Naturalists! Our morning tour spent time with J-Pod, resident Orca Whales, and our afternoon tour is heading north for an encounter with a group of 15-20 Transient Orca Whales!! Very unusual to have a group of Transient Orca Whales that large but an incredible experience for our guests!! Captain Shane is on-scene right now in our spotter boat and has witnessed 2 kills while Captain Carl is approaching on the Island Explorer 3! Stay tuned for updates!! "We saw tons of birds and bird activity on the way to see the Orca Whales! Pigeon Guillemots, Cormorants, Common Murres, and even a lone Brown Pelican! J-Pod showed our guests multiple spyhops, tail-lobs, and belly-rolls! The Salish Sea was glass calm! Our afternoon tour headed north to find a large group of Transient Orca Whales near Bellingham. After getting some great looks our guests got to witness a Harbor Seal kill! Later in the tour, we watched as adult Transient Orca Whales were teaching 2 juvenile Transients how to kill another Harbor Seal!" An incredible day on the Island Explorer 3 for our guests!!

Sunset photo taken from Island Explorer 3 by Terry Bare

September 1st: The Island Explorer 3 is on-scene with J-Pod! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates on this family of Orca Whales. J-Pod sighted just north of Salmon Bank heading southeast. We had some wonderful looks at Polaris and Princess Angeline as they crossed our bow, while Blackberry, Blossom , and Mako gave our guests a great look off the stern. J42, Slick's new baby, treated us to some spyhops and lots of pectoral and fluke playing on our sunset tour. Our guests also got to see Bald Eagles, Great Blue Herons, Common Murres, Cormorants, Turkey Vultures, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises and a beautiful sunset on the Salish Sea.

Photo from passenger "Kelly" onboard Island Explorer 3

August 31st: Under some cloudy skies and light rain, the guests on board the Island Explorer 3 were watching whales. After getting some great close-up views of Harbor Porpoises and seeing lots of hauled-out Harbor Seals, we had an amazing show with three Minkes. Our guests got to see these Baleen Whales lunge feeding on bait fish through the surface!! We saw a surprise close pass with a great look at the whale and even a spyhop!! As we were about to dock the Island Explorer 3, a Great Blue Heron and a Bald Eagle flew right across our bow. Our guests also to see Rhinoceros Auklets, Cormorants, Common Murres, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises.

August 30th: The Island Explorer 3 is searching the Salish Sea for whales on this beautiful, sunny day. Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our Naturalists. "We headed into Rosario Strait and through the inner islands, then turned south into Cattle Pass found two Minke Whales! they were feeding near Salmon Bank. Our guests got to see a large bait ball forming with the whales and birds having a feeding frenzy! We also had a Pelagic Cormorant wanting to watch whales - he landed on the boat several times and one time was almost on a passenger's lap!! We also got to see Red-Necked Phalaropes, Rhinoceros Auklets, Common Murres, Bald Eagles, Great Blue Herons, River Otters, Harbor Porpoises, and Harbor Seals.

August 29th:Currently the Island Explorer 3 is navigating the islands through the sunshine in search of whales and wonderful wildlife! Stay tuned for updates from Naturalist Drew Kelly. "What an amazing day with the L-Pod Orca Whales today! As soon as we got on-scene, we had Splash. L67 and Aurora, L101 in view under water! The water visibility showed Splash with a fish in her mouth. Our guests also got some wonderful looks at Flash, L73, Tanya, L5, Marina, L47, Racer L72, and Skana, L79. We also sighted Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Common Murres, and Pigeon Guillemots.

August 28th: Another calm and sunny day met our passengers today aboard the Island Explorer 3 as they departed Anacortes for a wildlife adventure amongst the San Juan Islands. A stop at Swirl Rocks produced several hauled-out Harbor Seals and a Bald Eagle. It wasn't long after our stop that we caught up with a portion of J Pod and a subpod of L Pod Orca whales! We were able to get some great looks at Oreo (J22), Mike (J26), Gaia (L78), and Wavewalker (L88). Our guests were treated to several spyhops, tail-lobs and front seat viewing of an Orca chasing a salmon!

August 27th: We had a beautiful day on the water today with lots of sun and calm waters. We headed all the way to the south end of Vancouver Island and Albert Head to find Transient Killer Whales. There were 5-6 of them including one large male and one small calf, swimming very close to shore. Shortly after they passed very near a few harbor seals hauled out on the rocks they made a kill underwater near the shoreline! I got one photo of a female as she lifted the kill out of the water - it appeared to be a sea lion. The transients gave us a good show and eventually swam on, right through a bull kelp forest. - naturalist Bart Rulon

August 26th: Orca Whales sighted by the Island Explorer 3! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for field reports from our naturalists. Today the search for Orca whales took us from Anacortes to the South end of Lopez Island and all the way up into the Canadian Gulf Islands. It was a scenic trip that concluded with our guests watching Transient Orca Whales! Their sporadic behavior kept our guests anticipating their next move. On our afternoon trip we searched high and low hoping to view the same Transient Orca Whales but they were no where to be found. Some of our guests were able to get some quick looks at a Minke Whale but since all of our guests did not get the opportunity to see whales in the afternoon we gave them passes to come back and go out with us again for free. During our travels we did get to see a multitude of hauled-out Harbor Seals and various seabirds including two Tufted Puffins!

August 25th: Orca Whales in sight! Our guests got to spend time with L-Pod today watching tail-lobs, breaches, porpoising, and pec slaps. We saw lots of beautiful Purple Sea Stars, Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, Turkey Vultures, Marbled Murrelets, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, and Harbor Porpoises. Our afternoon tour started out in the liquid sunshine that became sunshine. Near Hein Bank, we found 2 pods of Transient Orca Whales. They were identified as T-12's and T-19's. After some great looks at these Transient Orca Whales we headed north to find Resident Orca Whales!! L-Pod was sighted and Skana came toward the boat and decided to "snot" onto a couple of our guests. We had some great close-up looks in the clear water, especially by the L-12 subpod. The sunset viewed on the way back to Anacortes was truly spectacular!

August 24th: Orca Whales sighted today by the Island Explorer 3! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our naturalists. The morning fog lifted to sunshine as we rounded Lopez Island. We sighted J-Pod with Ruffles in the lead. Our guests also got some great looks at Oreo, Cookie, and Riptide! Then, on the way back to Anacortes we sighted a Minke Whale feeding in a bait ball. We also sighted Red-Necked Phalaropes, Heerman's Gulls, Cormorants, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, and lots of jumping Pink Salmon.

August 23rd: The Island Explorer 3 headed west into Rosario Strait to find Orca Whales just southeast of Lopez Island. We were watching K-Pod feeding between Castle Rock and Colville Island. The Orca Whales were headed west and then turned to head southeast toward Deception Pass. We had members of K, J, and L Pods with lots of socializing, breaching, and wrestling at the surface! An amazing day in Rosario Strait! Our guests also got to see Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, Gulls, and Cormorants.

These photos were taken by Brooke McKinley from the Island Explorer 3 in July and August. The left one is a lone Pacific White Sided Dolphin playing off the bow of a sailboat. The other is an Orca Whale catching a nice size Chinook Salmon.

These two photos taken by Aaron Whitney on July 6th. The breach sequence is a photo stitch of the same breach, showing the progression of it. Occasionally a rainbow is captured in the exhale of the whale as in the left photo. Thanks for sharing Aaron!

Thanks again to Cpt. Shane and Crew. As Island Adventure veterans (er groupies).. It makes it so nice for us when we have friends and family visiting from out of state. We can take them out with Island Adventure Charters and KNOW that our guests are in for a great day. Whales, wildlife, our beautiful Puget Sound, androyal treatment by the Captain and Crew are the icing on the cake. Our guests were just as thrilled as we continue to be. See you again in August! I did another breach sequence stitch for you and a rainbow spray shot you are welcome to post.

Thanks again
Aaron Whitney & Family

This cruise was the most spectacular day of our vacation. The crew was very
helpful, knowledgeable,and kind. The boat was so clean and comfortable. And all the scenery was beautiful, the eagles, the harbor seals, and all the whales. There were so many whales , it was easy to get a great view and a lot of great pictures. Pat and I highly recommend this cruise!! Thank you so much. Steve and Pat - Chiefland,Fla.

Photo by Steve and Pat on June 19, 2007

Photo below by Tammy and Dennis of Everett, WA taken on June 2nd, 2007. We love these nice, calm days!

We just wanted to say thank you for the great trip.We got to see the orca'stheway nature intended them to be"free",and it was amazing. The crew was wonderful and went out of their way to make sure we saw all wild life. I do not take the best pictures, but I got a great one. It just show how close you can get and still let them have their space to be orcas. Thank you once again for a life time memory.

Tammy & Dennis
Everett WA

Humpback Photos taken on July 31, 2007 by Naturalist Jami Nagel

"The Other Red Meat" (Harbor Seal Eating Salmon)
Photo taken on July 22nd by Naturalist Kate Janes

Mouth Full (Humpback Whale Lunge Feeding)
Photo taken on July 22nd by Naturalist Kate Janes

August 22nd: The Island Explorer 3 is heading back from the Straits of Juan de Fuca after spending time with both L and K Pod Orca whales!! Stay tuned for updates from Naturalist Jami Nagel! A beautiful, sunny day on the Salish Sea! Our guests got to spend time with L-Pod near Hein Bank - the Orca Whales were spread out and foraging. We got some great looks at Flash, Gaia, and Splash with calf L105! We saw lots of Salmon jumping all over the place too! Other wildlife sightings included Glacous-winged and Heerman's Gulls, Cormorants, Common Murres, Pigeon Guillemots, Rhinoceros Auklets, Bald Eagles, Black Oystercatchers, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!

August 21st: Today brought fog as we navigated through the islands, however the calm water conditions made up for it. As the fog cleared 2 Minke Whales appeared! We were able to spend some quality time with one of the two whales for some prime photo ops. After an hour we departed back into the islands where the natural treasures continued with an appearance of a bald eagle, a multitude of harbor seals and TWO brown pelicans!!

August 20th: It was a great day on the Island Explorer 3 today! Our guests were able to watch a pod of about 10 Transient Orca Whales in the Rosario Straits area. Our Naturalist Bart Rulon comments, "They were swimming in very wide circles and appeared to be in a resting pattern. After watching them for about an hour we went exploring to show our guests Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles and other seabirds, then we returned to the Orcas as they were just starting to wake up a bit. What an exciting show they put on for us, the nap must have helped! They became playfully active with breaches, tail slaps, spyhops and general whaleplay!"

Orca Whale Catching Salmon!
Photo by Brooke McKinley from Island Explorer 3

August 19th: The Island Explorer 3 is searching for Orca Whales! We have a report of a Super Pod heading in from the west. Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from today's tours."We were in and out of the fog this morning as we cruised through the beautiful inner islands," reports naturalist Bart Rulon. "Just southwest of Hein Bank we encountered a group of Transient Orca Whales. We stayed with this pod which included a large male and a calf. The male was swimming by himself but later joined the pod - 6 or 7 Orca Whales in all. As we headed back to Anacortes later in the tour, we came across lone male Transient Orca Whale! Our afternoon tour showed us more of the beautiful inner island scenery! We found a superpod of all three resident Orca pods spread out in a fishing pattern! They gave us a great show with multipile breaches, spyhops and tail slaps.

Island Explorer 3 and Mount Baker

August 18th: Naturalist Kate Janes reports from the Island Explorer 3 - "It was like cruising along atop a mirror today as we ventured out into the Strait of Juan de Fuca in search of whales. We sighted 2 Minke Whales - one was about 30 feet long and the other, more curious of the two, was about 20 feet in length and giving us some good views. After visiting with the zigzagging whales, we continued on our search to find a Harbor Seal chowing down on a Salmon! This was no peaceful meal as the Gulls hovered and swooped down to pick at the 'catch of the day.'" On the afternoon tour we sighted Humpback Whales! The Humpbacks were feeding and we got some great fluke photo ops. Our guests also got to see Bald Eagles on the south end of Lopez Island, including one fledgling. We also saw Harbor Porpoises, Black-Tailed Deer, Turkey Vultures, Red-Necked Phalaropes, Rhinoceros Auklets, Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemots, and Common Murres.

August 17th: We've got Transient Orca Whales, eh!! We discovered 5 Transient Orca whales (the T124's) just off the coast of Vancouver Island. We navigated through the Canadien waters for some great looks as the Orcas cruised through the water. After some memorable moments with the Transients we ventured to Hein Bank where an elusive Minke Whale lived up to its name. A few passengers saw the few glances that it allowed us and it vanished! Stay tuned for updates from Naturalist Vicki on our sunset cruise trip. The Island Explorer 3 headed north into Swanson Channel for an encounter with Transient Orca Whales. We saw the food chain in action! Early in the tour, we saw a Harbor Seal devouring a freshly caught Salmon and later our guests were able to witness a Harbor Seal being eaten by the Transient Orca Whales. The Orca Whales were also very social today with lots of inverted swimming, and a few great spyhops. The evening conditions in the Canadien Gulf Islands were warm and placid and there were very few other boats on the Salish Sea. We saw a spectacular sunset as Dall's Porpoises played in our stern wake!

August 16th: Captain Shane and crew went the distance and burned the fuel to show our guests Orca Whales!! All 3 resident pods were inbound from the west at Otter Point - outside our range limit, but we still went! Reports Naturalist Jami Nagel - "We had some great looks at Kasatka, L82, and her younger sister Lapsis, L103. We also had Georgia, K11, and Marina, L47 who was traveling with Ruffles, J1! (Marina is due for another calf!) There were also several Humpback Whales in the area!" Our guests also got to see Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets, Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemots, Black-Tailed Deer, Bull Kelp, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

August 15th: The Island Explorer 3 headed west into the Salish Sea in search of whales. We found 2 Minke Whales at the south end of Hein Bank taking deep dives. We continued searching and sighted a Puffin. He gave us some great photo ops. As we continued the search we came across two more Minke Whales. We got some great up-close looks at these Baleen Whales. Our afternoon tour headed north where there were reports of Transient Orca Whales well to the north in Canadien waters. We made a valiant effort but these fast moving Transient Orca Whales were still pulling away. We did show our guests lots of beautiful wildlife and a spectacular sunset, and everyone received passes to come out again for free, for life until we show them whales!! We also saw Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, Cormorants, American Bald Eagles, Purple Sea Stars, beautiful glowing Madrone Trees, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises.

August 14th: The Island Explorer 3 is on scene with two Gray Whales! There are also reports of two groups of Transient Orca Whales heading into our area and also another group of Transient Orca Whales heading in from the north. Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our naturalists. Hein Bank produced quite the surprise today with an adult and a juvenile Gray Whale!! While enjoying the beauty of the Gray Whales, a Minke Whale made its own special appearance. Later we caught up with five Transient Orca whales just in time for a meal of harbor seal. It was like witnessing first hand the Discovery Channel unplugged!

August 13th: Beautiful blue sky with lots of sunshine for our tours today! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for field updates from our naturalists. "We found 2 Minke Whales at Salmon Bank near San Juan Island. There was lots of bird activity and the Minkes were right in there feeding on the fish! One Minke came right up to the boat and gave us a great look! Near Castle Rock, we sighted a mother seal with her pup and a pup by itself. Later, we headed out to Smith Island and saw lots of Harbor Seals splashing around." We also saw a Harbor Seal eating a Salmon on the afternoon tour who was being dive-bombed by Seagulls and Rhinoceros Auklets!

August 12th: Naturalist Bart Rulon reports from onboard the Island Explorer 3: "We found calm water conditions today for easy viewing! We found 2 Minke Whales at Hein Bank. There were lots of bait balls with birds feeding and the Minke Whales were feeding on the fish too. We had a great Minke show today with lunge feeding - one of the Minkes lunged out of the water with his mouth open soon after we got on scene. Later, we sailed out to Trial Island, Canada to watch approximately 6 Transient Orca Whales swimming slowly! One big male was part of this pod!"

August 11th: The Island Explorer 3 has sighted Gray Whales today! In August? You never know what nature will show you in the Salish Sea! We also sighted Orca Whales today!! Captain Shane found Transient Orca Whales for our guests clear up in Canada! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our naturalists."Right out of Pirates of the Caribbean, we left the dock cutting through the fog. Hauled-out Harbor Seals glowed in the morning light with Rhinoceros Auklets emerging from the water with beaks full of fish. Then, into the straits the Island Explorer 3 was in the sunshine and blue sky! We traveled to the north edge of the Olympic Penninsula where we found 2 Gray Whales. These majestic Baleen Whales are commonly seen in the Spring but nature always has a way of surprising us!! One of the Transient Orca Whales was identified as T20 - we hadn't seen this Orca Whale since March when we saw a new calf which was also present today. One of the females gave us a great spyhop and the calf was very active with porpoising and a few tail-lobs!! Our guests also got to see Heerman's Gulls, Cormorants, Bald Eagles, Great Blue Herons, Marbled Murrelets, Harbor Porpoises, Black-Tailed Deer, Bull Kelp, and Purple Sea Stars.

August 10th: Two species of whales sighted today! The Island Explorer 3 headed west into the Salish Sea in search of whales! We sighted the elusive Minke Whale today - he disappeared a few times, re-appeared and gave us some great looks! On our afternoon tour, The Island Explorer 3 sighted 2 Humpback Whales! These whales were actively feeding at the surface and we saw some great fluking off the bow! Our guests also got to see over 300 Harbor Seals today, either hauled-out or in the water. We also got to see 4 Tufted Puffins at Smith Island! Lots of other wildlife sightings too including Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets, Phalaropes, Surf Scoters, Heermann's Gulls, Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, Harbor Porpoises, Egg-Yolk Jellies, Lion's Mane Jellies, and Bull Kelp!

August 9th: The 9 am trip had 2 types of whales!!! We first encountered a minke whale near Dungeness Spit (Olympic Penninsula). We had some great looks at him as he surfaced! We continued on west where we encountered 2 Gray Whales at Green Point between Sequim and Port Angeles. The grays were feeding just off the beach!!! First Grays seen since the spring!!

The 3 pm trip headed west today. They also had 2 types of whales this evening. We had a Minke Whale at Hein Bank and 3 Humpback Whales off Trial Island near Victoria! We had numerous harbor porpoise, Phalaropes, and lots of harbor seals!!

August 8th: The Orca Whales of J, K and L Pod were showing off their agile bodies as well as their rapidly changing behaviors!! We witnessed full-body breaches, lunging, taillobbing, spyhopping, and then it became nap time! We were able to identify: Cappuccino (K21), Raggedy (K40), Skana (L79), Solstice (L89), Granny (J2), Polaris, Spieden, Ruffles (J1), Blackberry (J27), Mike (J26), Georgia (K11), and little J42 ! Lots of other wildlife sightings today too, including Red Pharalopes, Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!

August 7th: Beautiful conditions followed us all day today through the islands. Harbor Seals were showing off their balancing act as they hauled out on Swirl Rocks. We visited with a portion of the L Pod Orca Whales today while the rest of L Pod, J Pod and K Pod whales were enjoying waters north of the Canadien Gulf Islands. This strong subpod consisted Spirit (L22- mother of L79 & L89), Skana (L79), Solstice (L89) and Alexis (L12). We saw an array of behaviors: spyhopping, cartwheels, belly rolls, pec slaps, and fishing. Some surprise guests appeared as we departed. The lone Pacific White-sided Dolphin that has been spotted the last few weeks around the islands played about the boat showing off its white sides!! In the distance just as we were leaving the dolphin a Minke Whale appeared almost as if it felt left out in the festivities of the day!

August 6th: Prior to even loading passengers today a Bald Eagle was spotted getting harrassed by two Glaucous-winged Gulls! A large, typically elusive Minke Whale desided to give us some GREAT close looks right by the boat just before surfacing with its mouth gaped open in feeding!! To the delight of the Island Explorer 3 passengers the Orca Whales returned back to the islands! All three pods seemed just as excited about their return with displays of taillobing, spyhopping and a multitude of belly rolls. We were able to identify Lummi (K7), Blackberry (J27), Skana (L79), and Ruffles (J1)!

August 5th: Captain Shane dodged the fog this morning by taking the east Guemes, Peavine Pass route to the inner islands. By the time they exited Cattle Pass into the Strait the fog was clear! (It is rarely foggy inside the islands) Our group had a great trip this morning - we were the only boat out there to see whales - two Minke's south of San Juan. Also got to see the lone Pacific White Sided Dolphin that has been hanging out near San Juan. More details to come for the morning trip and the afternoon trip.

August 4th: The Island Explorer 3 headed north for an encounter with the Orca Whales! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from our naturalists. Jami Nagel: Whales found near Point Roberts in the morning heading southwest toward Boundary Pass. Got to identify Blackberry (J27) and Sekiu (K22) so we know we had at least J and K pods together. The whales were active on the surface with a series of great lunges!! In the afternoon all three pods of whales got together for a superpod! J and K pods continued south down the west side of San Juan Island and L pod met up with them near Eagle Point, San Juan! The Orcas were having one heck of a party, displaying spyhops, tail lobs, breaching, cartwheels and making the pink salmon jump in fear of their lives! We also witnessed the potential creation of the next generation of the Southern Resident Orcas! We'll have to wait for the winter of 08/09 to see if we have any new additions (gestation is about 17 months). The waters weren't only filled with with active whales but also lots of Lion's Mane Jellies (one of the few jellies that reside in these waters). Great trip! - Naturalist Kate Janes.

August 3rd: The Island Explorer 3 was with the Orca Whales and a Minke Whale today! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for field reports from our naturalists! "We headed west around the south end of Lopez Island and into Haro Strait. Orca Whales in sight! L-Pod, with some J and K Pod members mixed in, was traveling northbound slowly against the ebb tide. We identified Faith, L57, Cappuccino, K21, Raggedy, K40, Skana, L79 and also got to see baby L109! Our guests got to see tail-lobs, spyhops, and even belly-up tail-lobs!

August 2nd: Orca Whales sighted on both of our tours today! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from today's tours! "Another beautiful day in the islands! The Island Explorer 3 headed north toward Point Roberts where our guests got to see all three Orca Whale Pods! We got some great looks at Cappuccino and Raggedy while they were chasing salmon off the bow! We also saw some breaching and tail-lobbing!" Other wildlife sightings included Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets, and Pigeon Guillemots!

August 1st: The Island Explorer 3 headed into the Salish Sea searching for whales! We found a Minke Whale foraging and while we were waiting for him to resurface we saw a mom Harbor Seal with her pup, swimming amongst the sea birds! Our guests also got to see a Pacific White-Sided Dolphin doing a "daffy" - a flip with a twist! We also saw Bald Eagles, Pelagic Cormorants, Great Blue Herons, Rhinoceros Auklets, Ochre Sea Stars, Bull Kelp, Lion's Mane Jellies, Egg-Yolk Jellies, and Harbor Porpoises!! On our afternoon tour, Orca Whales in sight! We found J, K, and L-Pods, just north of False Bay. Our guests got to see one youngster in J-Pod breach over 20 times as the whales moved north!! We alsom got some great looks at Ruffles, Spieden, Cali, and Skagit!

July 31st: Our 9am trip headed out to Hein Bank in the Strait of Juan de Fuca today insearch of Minke whales! We had 2 Minke's in a feeding frenzy amongst an active bird ball!! We also had numerous Lions Mane Jellies!! We also encountered several purple seastars, bald eagels, pigeon guillemots, harbor porpoise, harbor seals and many diving sea birds!

The Island Explorer 3 headed out for a 3 pm private charter. We found 3 Humpback whales near Sequim on the Olympic Pennisula. We spent quite a while watching them getting some great fluke shot. We were parallel viewing a juvenile when it decided to give us a spectacular show of 11 Breaches!!! (Photo above, taken by Naturalist Jami Nagel). It was an amazing and memorable evening. We also had many harbor porpoise, diving sea bird, harbor seals and bald eagles.

July 30th: Today we saw two species of whales on our tours. Humpback Whales and Minke Whales! We got some great looks and the colors on the afternoon tour were great for photos! We returned a little after 9pm - traveling quite a ways to the west, going the distance to show our guests whales, and the beginning of the sunset was beautiful! Our guests also got to see Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Bald Eagles, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!

July 29th: The Island Explorer 3 searched the Salish Sea for whales today on our morning departure but they were nowhere to be found! We still had a beautiful tour through the Salish Sea and saw Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, and Bald Eagles! And, on the rare occassion when our guests don't get to see whales, they can come again for free, for life, until they see whales!! On our afternoon tour we continued the search! Whales in sight! Captain Carl found 2 Humpback Whales who showed us some very graceful fluking with their massive tails! Our guests also got to see Bald Eagles, Pelagic Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemots, Gulls, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!

July 28th: The Island Explorer 3 headed west, going the distance for our guests, to see whales! We were just off Port Angeles watching Humpback Whales! These "West Coast" Humpbacks come through our area each Fall so it's very unusual, and very cool, to see them in July! Our guests got some really good looks at their unique fluke prints! We also encountered another species of Baleen Whale, The Minke, who can be very elusive! We also saw Harbor Seals with their pups, mature and juvenile Bald Eagles near south Lopez Island, Great Blue Herons, Cormorants, Marbled Murrelets, Black Oystercatchers, Harbor Porpoises, Purple Sea Stars, and Bull Kelp!!

July 27th: The 9am trip on the Island Explorer 3 started by heading through the middle of the San Juan Islands for a beautiful view. J,K and L pods were heading around Turn Point on Stuart Island from Boundary Pass. Our first Id on the boat was of Ruffles (J1) the oldest male in the Southern Residence. We also had Blossom with her family, Blackberry, Mako and Tsushi. We then had a great look at Princess Angeline with daughters Polaris and Tahlequah. We also had more wildlife on Spieden Island, Fallow and Sika deer as well as numerous harbor porpoise near James Island!

The 3pm trip headed out for another beautiful trip in the islands. The Orca Whales had traveled south into southern Haro Strait. There was lots of surface activity with many tail-lobs, spyhops and breaches. There was also some foraging behavior. We also had a harbor seal with pup and a record number of Marbled Murrlets along with some black tailed deer on Lopez Island (our deer don't take the ferry, they swim from island to island!)

July 26th: Orca Whales in sight! The Island Explorer 3 spent this afternoon with some very active Orca Whale Pods! Our naturalists identified J-Pod, K-Pod, and part of L-Pod! We were near North Pender Island on this sunny, slightly breezy day. Cartwheels, tail-lobs, and breaching - lots of surface activity! Our guests got some great looks at Cappuccino, K21, next to sister Raggedy, and Lobo! Ruffles, J1, was very active doing lots of breaching too! We also saw another Brown Pelican aggressively feeding in bait ball, Harbor Seals, Dall's Porpoises, and American Bald Eagles!

Photo sequence compliments of passenger Sekou Caldwell

July 25th: Three species of whales sighted today on the Salish Sea!! We started with 2 Minke Whales near Salmon Bank and then encountered a Humpback Whale near Hein Bank! Our guests got to see some beautiful fluking by these whales! We also saw a Tufted Puffin fishing just off Iceberg Point and a Brown Pelican (very unusual this far north) feeding very actively on a bait ball!! On the afternoon tour the Island Explorer 3 found L-Pod, Orca Whales! Mega and Skana, two large males in the family, gave us some great up close looks of their bright white bellies! Lots of spyhopping, tail-lobs, cartwheels, and breaching! Other wildlife sightings included Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Black Oystercatchers, Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets, Cormorants, Great Blue Herons, and Lion's Mane Jellies!!

July 24th: The morning clouds wore off and sunshine welcomed us as we departed on our 9 a.m. trip. We had lots of great sightings today, including some exciting looks at Humpback Whales! One showed us some fluking and peduncle throwing (which is when they throw their tail out of the water like a cartwheel)! It was quite a sight! Our guests also saw some Harbor Seals enjoying the sunshine on the banks of Collville Island, Bald Eagles by Minor Island and a wide variety of seabirds such as Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, and Common Murres!

July 23rd: Another great day for the Island Exlorer 3 today! The trip started off strong with sightings of Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Rhinoceros Auklets and Pigeon Guillemots! We then got some good looks at a Minke Whale as we continued towards Victoria, BC where we saw three Humpback Whales, one of which even showed us a breach! It was a great day on the Salish Sea!

July 22nd:Wondefully calm water conditions followed us throughout the day today! The fog caught up to us in the evening which made for quite an awe-inducing setting. We saw not just one whale species but TWO!! The elusive Minke Whale gave us some great looks and two sub-adult Humpback Whales showed us some amazing maneuvers! The whales weren't the only sight to be had! We had a hungry harbor seal chowing down on a salmon right at the surface of the water! We also saw Bald Eagles, Common Murre, Harbor Porpoise, Pelagic and Double-Crested Cormorants!

July 21st: 61 tours in row with the Orca Whales! A great sighting record! Today though, we were one for two. As always, if you happen to be on a tour that does not see whales, (it only happens 4% of the time!) you come again for free, for life, until you see whales! We did see J, K, and L Pods today, even with a little drizzle! Our guests got to see a sprouter male Orca Whale from L-Pod show-off his freshly caught salmon - he gave us 3 great surface looks with the tasty catch! Lots of Harbor Seals and some beautiful views of great Blue Herons perched atop floating Bull Kelp! We also saw Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Rhinoceros Auklets, and Harbor Porpoises!

July 20th: L-Pod sighted by the Island Explorer 3! Our guests got to see these Orca Whales near Victoria, BC! We also sighted a Tufted Puffin! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for more updates from our tour! "L-Pod was found milling around just south of Victoria - a little longer run than usual but our guests got to see Orca Whales!! Tanya, L5, decided to breach just off our stern as we came on scene! We also got some great views of Mystery and Grace with her kids, including grandson Aurora, frolicking around - lots of breaching and tail-lobbing! Our guests also got to see Bald Eagles, Common Murres, 2 Tufted Puffins, Harbor Porpoises, and Harbor Seals!!

July 19th: Sunshine today after a foggy morning on the Salish Sea! J-Pod was sighted by the Island Explorer 3 just west of False Bay! Granny and Ruffles were off-shore and identified Spieden closer to shore. Riptide gave us some great looks as he spyhopped several times and was spending a lot of time near the surface! Our guests also got to see some great breaches and a Brown Pelican - Rarely seen in the Islands!! We also saw Black Oystercatchers, Great Blue Herons, Bald Eagles, Belted Kingfishers, Moon and Egg-Yolk Jellies, Pigeon Guillemots, Rhinoceros Auklets, Bull Kelp, Lion's Mane Jellies, Harbor Porpoises, and Harbor Seals!!

July 18th: J-Pod was traveling in two sub-pods today. There was still some lingering fog and the whales would pop-up out of nowhere! The first group we encountered was Blossom, Blackberry, Tsuchi, and Mako. The second was Oreo, Doublestuf, and Cookie. We saw spyhopping and breaching and the grand finale was when both subpods decided to check us out on after the other! Oreo came by with her kids and as they approached the bow, Cookie rolled onto her back and Doublestuf pushed her to the surface! It was amazing! We also saw Egg-Yolk Jellies, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Common Murres, Cormorants, Rhinoceros Auklets, and Pigeon Guillemots!!

July 17th: The Island Explorer 3 headed out on a foggy morning for a rendez-vous with J-Pod! We saw close breaches, porpoising, tail-lobs, and some kelping with belly rolls! Our guests also got to see Sea Stars, Pelagic Cormorants, Rhinoceros Auklets, Great Blue Herons, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

July 16th: The Island Explorer 3 headed west in search of Orca Whales and we saw some great sights along the way!! At least 30 Harbor Seals were hauled out on the rocks and we had a picture perfect view of an American Bald Eagle posed just above the water line with the sun shining on his bright white plumage! We found J-Pod in Haro Strait, just southwest of Lopez Island. Our guests had some amazing views of Oreo, Rhapsody, and Doublestuf, and we got to see Blossom and Mako fishing! We also saw Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, Cormorants, Turkey Vultures, and Harbor Porpoises!!

July 15th: Orca Whales sighted!! That makes 54 tours in a row with the Orca Whales! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for field reports from our naturalists! Our guests got to see J-Pod, in U.S. and Canadien waters, with lots of activity including spyhops, breaching, cartwheels, porpoising, and tail-lobs! We got some great looks at Blackberry, Blossom, Riptide, Mako, Suttles, and Samish. We also saw Marbled Murrelets, mature and juvenile Bald Eagles, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, and some huge Bull Kelp!

July 14th: The Island Explorer 3 is on-scene with the Orca Whales just north of Anacortes, heading right toward Anacortes!! Stay tuned for updates on the Whale Report from today's tours! Our guests got some great looks at J-Pod on both of our tours today! We saw a variety of behaviors including spyhopping, resting, breaching, tail-lobs, and pec slapping. Ruffles' huge 6 foot dorsal fin was an icredible sight on the afternoon tour as the entire pod was rising in unison! Our guests also got to enjoy a glass calm Salish Sea, partly sunny conditions, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, Great Blue Herons, Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemotts, Common Murres, Gulls, and we saw a fisherman catch some Dungeness Crab from his boat!!

July 13th: The Island Explorer 3 was with the Orca Whales on both tours today! Our guests got to watch K and L Pods today! We saw some great breaches by Cappuccino, K21 who was traveling with a spyhopping Raggedy, K40! We saw 5 Bald Eagles and one was being chased by 2 Black Oystercatchers! We got to watch some serious fishing manuevers by L-Pod at the surface but they weren't sharing any of their fresh salmon with us! Lots of amazing cartwheels, breaches, tail-lobs, and porpoising by these Orca Whales!! Our guests also got to see Great Blue Herons, Rhinoceros Auklets, Turkey Vultures, Pigeon Guillemotts, Pelagic Cormorants, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

July 12th: The Island Explorer 3 saw baleen and toothed whales today! We first encountered Minke Whales and then Orca Whales! Stay tuned for updates from today's tour! Jami Nagel, one of our amazing naturalists updated us on todays tour... " We headed toward Hein Bank looking for some Minke Whales and found K-Pod!!!! They were heading north towards Hein Bank. We had some amazing views of Lummi (K-7) the oldest female in the Southern Residents at age 97!! We also had her daughter Georgia, and Georgia's daughter Skagit with her offspring Spock, Scoter, Deadhead and Cali, and Spock's youngest K-38."

July 11th: Another beautiful day on the Salish Sea! Sunny with a light northwest breeze and Orca whales! Our guests got to spend time with K-Pod today as the whales travelled south from Point Roberts. They were spread out and foraging and we got to see tail-lobs and breaching! Great looks at Cali, K34, Sequim, Deadhead, and Skagit! We also saw Rhinoceros Auklets, Common Murres, Cormorants, and Harbor Porpoises!

July 10th: The whales were seen this morning at Tide Point on Cypress Island. Naturalist Jami Nagel watched J-pod resting as they passed by Washington Park in Anacortes. Stay tuned for more reports from the Island Explorer 3....."An amazing day on the water - calm seas and not a cloud in the sky! We caught up with J-Pod just outside Deception Pass heading south toward Whidbey Island. We saw breaching, tail-lobs, and spyhopping! Then, near Minor and Smith Island, where we counted 27 Bald Eagles at one time!, we met up with L-Pod as they were heading east. The whales were surfacing simultaneously, swimming together, and just before we left our guests got to see 3 Orca Whales porpoising across the bow! We also saw a California Sea Lion, Black Oystercatchers, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

July 9th: Today the whales were in our backyard!! We had an amazing visit with L-pod today with lots of spyhops, breaching, taillobs, cartwheels and porpoising (speed swimming). We had amazing looks at Mega, Bellena, Baba, Surprise and Marina. Many of the whales were quite curious today venturing over to check out our guests.

July 8th: J's and K's where at Turn Point, Stuart Island this morning heading north.We had beautiful weather and awesome whales!! Lots of cartwheeling, taillobbing, breaching, porpoising and spyhopping today. We had some great looks at Blossom with her offspring Blackberry and Mako.We also had Moon Jellies and fallow deer grazing on Spieden.

This evening the Island Explorer 3 had calm water, beautiful weather and amazing whales!! L-pod was heading south just south of False Bay. The whale practically escorted us home tonight. We had some young fiesty whales having a hayday breaching, lunging and taillobbing.We also had harbor porpoise, seals, eagles, black oystercatchers and numerous diving seabirds.

Lummi K7 taken by Naturalist Jami Nagel

July 7th: The Island Explorer 3 started out in some Pacific Northwest fog this morning that cleared to sunshine and Orca Whales!!Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates from today's tours! We had K-pod with some of L-pod resting just SW of Victoria. We had some great looks at Onyx (L87), Georgia (K11), Deadhead (K27) and Scoter (K25). Our guested also had several wonderful looks at Lummi (K7) the oldest female in the Southern Resident Community at 97 years old, est. 1911. We also had a Tufted Puffin today!!!

July 6th: Anything is possible in the Salish Sea! On today's tour, the Island Explorer 3 encountered a HUMPBACK WHALE on the west side of Anacortes just off Washington Park! Our West Coast Humpbacks usually come through this area in the Fall so it is very cool to see Orca Whales and Humpback Whales on the same tour in July!! Stay tuned for updates from our naturalists on the Whale report! Our day was spent not only with a surprise visit from a Humpback but also some quality time with both Orca whales of L & K Pod. Cappuccino (K21), a large male of K Pod, gave us some great looks as he seemed to be showing off for not only the on-lookers on the boats but also the female Orcas of L Pod! We also had the opportunity to spend some time with Spock and K38, her 3 yr. old calf -who felt compelled to roll about and give us a little wave with her flukes!!

July 5th: Orca Whales and sunshine today as the Island Explorer 3 made her way west to find L-Pod! We found the Orca Whales spread out and foraging just southwest of Lopez Island. Our guests got some really nice looks at Saanich, Mega, Alexis, Matia, and Calypso and saw great spyhops! We saw our first Heermann's Gull of the season, and also saw Rhinoceros Auklets, Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Belted Kingfishers, Pigeon Guillemots, Harbor Seals, Harbor Seals, and Egg-Yolk Jellies!!

July 4th: SUPERPOD 4th of July!! K-Pod made their grand appearance today and we were able to watch all three Orca Whale Pods just SW of Point Roberts!! Our guests got to see some amazing breaches - it was literally like "whale popcorn!" We were able to ID Cappuccino, K21, Spock, Deadhead, Georgia, Ruffles, Granny, and several others! Lots of activity and play today!!

J-1, Ruffles, with the Island Explorer 3 in the background.
Photo courtesy of Maya's Whale Watching, Jim Maya.

July 3rd: Deer do in fact swim! A black-tailed deer demonstrated to us just how the deer of the San Juan Islands populated the area as we made our venture towards the Orca whales of J & L Pod! The Orcas once again surprised us by breaking out into a series of breaches, tail-lobs and cartwheels as they steadily made their way northward! Stay tuned for the continuation of our time spent with the whales today! "Just 5 minutes off the dock we saw a large group of Harbor Porpoises and had a beautiful view of Mt. Ranier and Mt. Baker at the same time! We saw some great breaches by L-Pod, especially Matia, L77 and Calypso, L94. On the way home we saw a Great Blue Heron perched in a tree on Burrows Island and 3 Perigrine Falcons!!

Snuggle Time
Photo taken on July 2nd by Naturalist Kate Janes

July 2nd: The amazing water conditions were continued today while we were witness to an array of behaviors on both trips! The Orcas of J Pod showed off their sleep swimming skills - quite the feat knowing that in order to do so the Orca much let one hemisphere of its brain sleep at a time!!! While sleeping all 25 whales were in a tight group while they synchronized slept. The fun continued as a party brewed in the Salish Sea. Whale popcorn was in abundance as the excitement of Orcas from J and L Pods became contagious once they met up with one another!! Our time with these beloved animals ended with the newest member of L Pod (L 109) having some wrestle time with mom, Nugget, and siblings!

July 1st: Happy Canada Day! Glass calm waters and whales on the horizon for our morning trip. Oreo, J 22, set off some of her own special kind of fireworks - more like waterworks - with her breaching and spyhops. We found J pod leaving the Canadian waters near Discovery Island (Victoria, BC area) no doubt celebrating the holiday, and cought up with our old friends near the west side of San Juan. Many seabirds sighted as usual, harbor seals, harbor porpoise, and sea stars! In the afternoon we ended up catching up with J pod again not too far from where we left them earlier. Their mood had changed and were milling, acting more curious and social. We found ourselves with Oreo, Rhapsody, and Cookie - who entertained us with the wrestling about and snuggling with one another. We actually witnessed Oreo and Rhapsody pushing Cookie on the surface of the water! The love tumbles lasted about a half hour. Even little J 42 was getting some play time with Slick, Mike, Keet, and Alki. We left with some amazing glimpses of 56 year old Ruffles.

June 30th: Holy Moly what a day - a 10! Whales were in abundance (J Pod), breaching with a backdrop of Mt. Baker and calm water. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. Saw a variety of behavior including tail lobs, spyhops, porpoising, cartwheels, breaching, kelping, belly rolls, and some pec slaps!! We were able to identify several of the orcas by comparing the saddle patches to the ID guide: Ruffles, Blackberry, Oreo, Mike, Slick, Alki & J 42. J pod started out north near Pt. Roberts and headed south down Rosario Strait today - great location for us on both the 9 am and the 3 pm.

Breaching Boy - Mike (J 27)
Photo taken on June 29th by Naturalist Kate Janes

June 29th: J's and L's were sighted southbound from Pt. Roberts last night and should be very close to Anacortes today! Stay tuned for updates from today's tour! "Although we had some showers today, the whales certainly didn't mind, and the sun came out as we spent time with J-Pod! We couldn't have asked for a better visit with the whales! They showed us a multitude of behaviors including spyhops, cartwheels, bellyrolls, tail-lobs and breaching! We were able to ID a number of the Orcas; Blossom, Blackberry, Mike, Riptide, Keet, Polaris and the baby J42, just to name a few! Of course, we also enjoyed other wildlife on our way home. At least 8 Bald Eagles, several Harbor Seals, Turkey Vultures, Silka Deer and Pigeon Guillemots were sighted!"

June 28th: Another great day with the Orca Whales on the Island Explorer 3 (even with overcast skies!) Our guests were greeted by J-Pod with a series of great breaches just off Turn Point! We also found part of L-Pod cruising with the J's and were able to clearly ID Mega, L57 and Calypso, L94. Calypso had a brand new "battle scar" on her dorsal that was very distinct! The Island Explorer 3 headed through the inner islands on the way home and we saw a beautiful pair of mated Bald Eagles and another Harbor Seal pup! We also sighted Black-Tailed Deer, Harbor Porpoises, Pigeon Guillemots, and Cormorants!!

June 27th: Today we sighted J-Pod just off of our dock in Rosario Strait! We had an amazing day with lots of breaching and surface activity! Our guests got some great looks at the new baby, J42, and Ruffles and Granny. We also saw our second seal pup of the season on Williamson Rock! Lots of other wildlife too! Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Murres, Cormorants, Bald Eagles, and Rhinocerous Auklets!!

June 26th: The weather was great today, calm and sunny, as we traveled through the inner Islands looking for Orcas. We spotted J-Pod near False Bay and had some great viewing of Oreo J22, Rhapsody J32, Double Stuff J34 and Cookie J38. We later spotted many of the other JPod family including Mike J26 who gave us a close up look! On our trip home we passed a huge bait ball attracting some of our favorite seabirds and even some seals!

June 25th: We went the distance today and it was worth it! We had wonderful parallel viewing of J-Pod off of Active Pass in Canadian waters. They were quite energetic showing us several breaches, 1/2 breaches and impressive tail slaps. Rhapsody J32, Double Stuff J34, Oreo J22 and Cookie J38 put on quite the show! Our return route was through the beautiful San Juan Islands where we were greeted by a number of Bald Eagles!

June 24th: The Island Explorer 3 has sighted 2 species of whales today! Our guests on the morning trip got to see a baleen whale, The Minke, and toothed whales, the Orcas! Stay tuned for updates on The Whale Report! "We looked high and low on our afternoon trip for the Orcas but it was the elusive Harbor Porpoise that stole the show! We were surrounded by at least 100 Harbor Porpoises milling about the boat on all sides--great viewing. We also sighted Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets and Double-crested Cormorants!"

June 23rd: The Island Explorer 3 found J-Pod foraging just south of False Bay.The Orca Whales were spread out over about one mile and were moving north. They changed direction and started heading south and we got some really nice looks at Blossom, J11. We also saw Ruffles, J1, further out and got the best looks at Samish with her offspring Riptide, Hy'shqa, and Suttles. Suttles was very playful with lots of tail-lobs and 2 great breaches!!We also got to see Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Cormorants, and Bull Kelp!

June 22nd: 9:45am: Orca Whales sighted! The Island Explorer 3 will leave the dock today at 12pm to show our guests the whales!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates on our tour! "Today was another beautiful day in the islands! We went the distance, north to Active Pass in Canada, where we found J-Pod. The Orca Whales were doing lots tail-lobbing and pec slapping and we got some great looks at Princess Angeline, J17, Polaris, J28, and Tahlequah, J35. The youngsters were spyhopping and breaching too! We also saw Dall's Porpoises, Harbor Porpoises, Rhinoceros Auklets, Cormorants, and Bald Eagles!

June 21st: We left the dock on the Island Explorer 3 in search of Orca Whales! We sighted a Minke Whale near Salmon Bank and watched him foraging on bait fish with lots of birds scooping up the scraps! The Island Explorer 3 turned northwest still looking for Orca Whales and, just north of Cypress Island, we found J-Pod!! They were very active today with multiple breaches, spyhops, tail-lobs, and cartwheels! We also got to see Mako and Eclipse wrestling at the surface! Our guests had a great show and two species of whales! We also sighted Marbled Murrelets, Rhinoceros Auklets, Bald Eagles,Cormorants, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

June 20th: A beautiful sunny day today with the Orca Whales on the Salish Sea! The Island Explorer 3 headed west. past south Lopez and found J-Pod near False Bay. Our guests got some great views of Riptide, J30 with mom, Samish J14 and sister Suttles J40. Riptide showed us lots of spyhops and spent some time playing with Bull Kelp!! Suttles breached 3 times in a row! Our guests also got to see American Bald Eagles, Cormorants,Pigoen Guillemots, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

June 19th: The Island Explorer 3 found J-Pod a little north of Lummi Island as they headed south toward Anacortes! Today is warm and sunny with calm seas and our guests got to spend time with the Orca Whales!! Stay tuned for updates from our naturalists!.... Bart Rulon, our Naturalist on board today, reports..." It was a calm and beautiful day today. We headed North toward the east side of Lummi Island today, along the way we saw 8 Bald Eagles and lots of Harbor Seals. We finally caught up with J-Pod just north of Sandy Point on the mainland. J's we're swimming southward, spread out in an obvious fishing pattern. Several Orcas came to the surface looking like they were chasing salmon. We followed J-Pod all the way to the north end of Lummi Island. On the way home we saw a large pod of Harbor Porpoises and saw 2 more Bald Eagles at their nest for a total of 10 Bald Eagles today."

June 18th: The Island Explorer 3 just called in to report that they are with the Orca Whales, just off Williamson Rocks, right in front of Anacortes!! Stay tuned for updates! "We found J-Pod just passed Washington Park, northeast of Deception Pass! Right off the bat we got great looks at Mike, J26 and slick, J16 with her new calf, J42 who was doing lots of porpoising. As we headed toward Lopez Island, our guests got some great looks at Ruffles and other members of J-Pod! We took a short side trip from Iceberg Point to Whale Rocks to look at a pair of Bald Eagles and lots of Harbor Seals!"

June 17th: Captain Carl called to let us know they are at Open Bay watching Orca Whales! Stay tuned for an update! "We found J-Pod and the L-12 subpod hanging out together again today! J's showed us some great breaches, cartwheels, and tail-lobs while Mike, J26 came in for a closer look! Our guests also got some great looks at Ruffles, Riptide, Ocean Sun, Matia, and Alexis! Lots of other wildlife too - Bald Eagles, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Sea Stars, Great Blue Herons, Pelagic Cormorants, and Turkey Vultures!!

June 16th: The Island Explorer 3 and our guests spent the afternoon with the Orca Whales! What started as a rainy morning has turned into high overcast skies and calm conditions on the Salish Sea! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for more details from our tour! "We headed through the inner islands and met J-Pod in east Haro Strait, heading north! The L-12 subpod was following just behind. We saw resting behavior and some spyhopping from both pods, and got great pics of the Orca Whales at the surface!" Our guests also got to see Harbor Porpoises, Pigeon Guillemots, Bald Eagles, and Purple Sea Stars!

June 15th: The Orca Whales passed right in front of Anacortes today at 7am! It looked like J-Pod and part of L-Pod! Stay tuned for field reports from today's tour! We started the tour today with some rain and that quickly turned into sunshine! We found J-Pod just north of Stuart Island - they were grouped-up and resting. Our guests were able to get some great pictures as all 25 whales would surface together! We got some great ID pics of Spieden, Ruffles, Granny, Polaris, and Blackberry! Our guests also had a beautiful tour through the San Juan Islands and saw Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Rhinocerous Auklets, and Harbor Seals.

June 14th: Naturalist Jami Nagel reported in from Active Pass on The Island Explorer 3 - Our guests were watching "Popcorn Whales!" Stay tuned for updates from today's tour about these very active Orca Whales!! We were looking at J-Pod and the L12 subpod. J's were grouped-up tight and just behind L's as they exited the pass and headed toward the Fraser River! J's erupted into play behavior with spyhops, tail-lobs, and more breaches than we could count! Our guests got some great looks at L's including Mega, Ocean Sun, Alexis, Matia, and Calypso.

We also got to see Bald Eagles, Rhinocerous Auklets, Gulls, Cormorants, Great Blue Herons, Pigoen Guillemots, Harbor Seals, and Harbor Porpoises!!

June 13th: First day visiting with L pod this season!! They have been around Victoria and out in the Strait since about the 8th but this is the first day they were in the islands.We had some great looks at and ID'd Surprise, Splash, & Aurora. We also saw Nugget, Lapis, and new baby this year L-109! As we turned to head home, got a great look at Mega with Alexis and Matia. Cool sighting today: a harbor seal eating an octopus!

June 12th: Calm seas and sunny skies today as the Island Explorer 3 passed south Lopez Island and headed north west from Cattle Point to meet up with Orca Whales!! We found J-Pod and watched foraging behavior, tail lobs, and breaches! Our guests also got to see Rhinocerous Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Pelagic Cormorants, Double Crested Cormorants, Black Oystercatchers, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Bald Eagles, and Bull Kelp!

June 11th: We saw J-Pod today just off of Pender Island! J1, Ruffles, was off by himself and the rest of the pod was closer to shore. our guests had some great looks at the whales and also got to see Bald Eagles, Harbor Porpoises, and Harbor Seals!

June 9th: The Island Explorer 3 is on a private wedding charter today out at Stuart Island and the Island Whaler took out two whale watch trips today, at 9 am and 1 pm. Though the weather could have been better, we did see the orcas near San Juan Island on both of the Whaler trips. The wedding party (taking place on the island) was so close to seeing them swim by- they were just on the other side of Stuart Island.

June 8th: Today we had amazing wildlife and beautiful weather! The Island Explorer 3 headed west into Rosario Strait and toward south Lopez to find 2 Bald Eagles, lots of hauled-out Harbor Seals, Purple Sea Stars, and a Tufted Puffin! Then, just off False Bay, Orca Whales in sight!! We found J-Pod foraging in Haro Strait and got some great looks at J26, Mike, and J30, Riptide with mom, Samish and Suttles too! Our guests also got to see spyhopping and some great breaches! We saw Rhinocerous Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, and Cormorants too!

June 7th: Our Captain worked so hard to find those whales today! They were all the way over in the Canadian Gulf Islands near Active Pass. We got some nice looks at J pod and our guests enjoyed the multiple tail lobs. Throughout the trip was saw Bald Eagles, Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, gulls and cormorants. The inner island route is very scenic and at times even a little warmer! It was a beautiful day to be on the water. Oh - here's a good one: Captain Brian saw a sockeye salmon jump in Rosario Strait today. The cool thing about this is that Shane has seen the correlation between the return of the Sockeye and the return timing of K and or L pods to the islands. He said that within a couple of days of seeing the first Sockey jump, the other pods show up. On the 8th, L pod was found out in the straits just west of Victoria heading our way! He is quite the observer.

June 6th: Because of the weather conditions we took the inner island route today and entered the straits through Cattle Pass. The water was choppy today making whale spotting difficult. Unfortunately we didn't find whales today but we did see lots of harbor seals, seabirds, and two Peregrine Falcons (!) - one on the way out and one on our way in near Burrow's Island. This is one of the very few days of the summer season that we don't see a whale. It is a bummer but the only 100% whale sighting guarantee 365 days a year is SeaWorld. Our passengers always get come again (just a fluke) passes, which never expire, on days like these.

June 5th: The Island Explorer II will be departing in a few minutes and we have a report of Orca Whales just west of Anacortes in Rosario Strait!!

We headed around the south end of Lopez toward San Juan and caught up with J pod near Eagle Point. J pod was heading north, continuing on their clockwise travel pattern around the island group. We first encountered Riptide (J30) with mom Samish (J14), and little sis Suttles (J40). Riptide decided to come over and say 'hi' as he crossed out bow! As we continued on we had a very active youngster breaching over and over again!! Jami Nagel.

June 4th: The Island Explorer II just reported in and they are watching Orca Whales! We also got to see a Harbor Seal eating and Octopus! WOW! Drew's report: Another fantastic day with the whales. The day started out a little overcast, but produced very calm water. Exposed on Castle Rock were many purple sea stars, harbor seals were hauled out there, and Bald Eagles & Turkey Vultures soard overhead. Between Hein and Middle Banks, J pod gave us a great show. Ruffles was in full porpoise mode (speed swimming - quite impressive especially to see the largest orca out there doing it!) and Mike displayed several tail lobs. We were able to spend time with them all the way to Eagle Point and right before we had to leave, Keet popped up right near the boat!! As we crossed Rosario Strait Captain Carl got us a super look at a Harbor Seal eating an Octopus at the surface of the water. This was an amazing day and everyone onboard had a fantastic time.

June 3rd: The Island Explorer 3 is on-scene with Orca Whales! J-Pod was sighted in Bellingham Channel, just south of Lummi Island, heading south toward Anacortes! Stay tuned for field reports from our naturalists on board The Island Explorer 3! We sighted J-Pod just off Smith Island and got some great looks at Slick with her calf, J42, Keet, Mike, and Alki. We could also see the orange coloration today on J42! Lots of activity with multiple spyhops, breaches, tail-lobs, and pec slaps! Our guests also got to see a mated pair of Bald Eagles perched beside their nest, Pigeon Guillemots, Cormorants, Black Oystercatchers, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, and Ochre Sea Stars!

June 2nd: Today is the first tour for our new boat, The Island Explorer 3!! We've been working really hard to get her ready for the 2007 season and she looks incredible! Captain Shane, crew, and our guests are with the Orca Whales right now!! Stay tuned for field reports from our naturalists from today's tour! "Calm water, blue sky, and an amazing day with J-Pod! Our guests saw tail-lobs, breaches, a cartwheel, and lots of foraging! We even saw little J42 do a tail-lob!" We also saw Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Great Blue Herons, Bald Eagles, Pacific Loons, and Rhinocerous Auklets!

June 1st: The Island Explorer II left the dock heading northwest, through the beautiful inner islands, for a rendez-vous with Orca Whales! There was a little light fog that quickly burned off for a warm, sunshiny day. We caught up with J-Pod just north of Henry Island, heading north. Our guests got some great looks right away of Blackberry, Blossom, and Mako! Next was Shachi and Eclipse - Shachi gave us a wonderful spyhop! We turned and headed south to meet up with the other half of J-Pod getting some great looks at Mike, Cookie, and Riptide! We saw lots of other wildlife too - Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoise, Turkey Vultures, Bald Eagles, Belted Kingfishers, and Cormorants!!

May 31st: "The foggy conditions in the morning didn't hold us back! We broke out of the fog near the north end of Cypress Island and headed north into Georgia Strait. We found J-Pod just south of Point Roberts and right off the bat we got a great look at our first group of Orca Whales including Blackberry, J27, and Granny, J2. J-Pod started to group up and we watched as most of the pod went into a sleeping pattern, giving us great photo opportunities with lots of Orcas surfacing at the same time! Other highlights included a mating pair of Eagles perched side by side on Pea Pod Rocks, and one lone Stellar Sea Lion off the east side of Orcas Island." Reports naturalist Bart Rulon.

May 30th: A beautiful day filled with Orca Whales and wildlife! We saw 2 Peregrine Falcons as we left Anacortes, some hauled-out Harbor Seals, Cormorants, and Ochre Sea Stars! "We found J-Pod in Haro Strait - the Orca Whales were everywhere and giving us quite a show! We had some great looks at Ruffles, Granny, Spieden, Slick, J42, Blackberry, Mike, Alki, Keet, and Riptide, with numerous breach sequences, and tail lobs!" Our guests also got to see Rhinocerous Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Bald Eagles, Dall's Porpoise, Black Brandt Geese, and Bull Kelp!

May 29th: J-Pod is right in front of Anacortes in Rosario Strait! The Island Explorer II is on scene with the Orca Whales between Anacortes and south Lopez Island - stay tuned for updates from our naturalists! A beautiful, sunny day on the Salish Sea! Our passengers got some great looks at all the J-Pod Orca Whales including Slick with her little girl, J-42. We saw 2 GREAT breaches by Princess Angeline, J17! The Island Explorer II headed through Deception Pass on the way home for a beautiful view of the bridge with the emerald green water. We also saw Eagles, Great Blue Herons, Harbor Porpoise, Pigeon Guillemots, and Rhinocerous Auklets!

May 28th: As we started our tour today a report of Orca Whales came in and they were WAY north, heading north, and running with the tide! We were doing our best to catch up and J-Pod kept getting further north when all of a sudden they turned and started coming south! Yeah! Our guests are watching Orca Whales today!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for more field reports from our naturalists! "We had a long run but it was worth it!" reports naturalist Jami Nagel. "We saw Eagles, Harbor Porpoise, Rhinocerous Auklets, and a Stellar Sea Lion just off of Point Lawrence! We caught up with J-Pod just north of Point Roberts. We had some good looks at Polaris and Riptide and then a grand finale with Granny, Ruffles, amd Samish - they gave us two great breaches as we headed out!"

May 27th: The Island Explorer II headed west through Burrow's Pass and then turned north into Rosario Strait, in search of Orca Whales! After a little cruising....J-Pod sighted! We found the Orca Whales just north of Anacortes on the west side of Lummi Island. They were spread out over a lot of water, reports naturalist Bart Rulon. Our guests got some really good looks at J42 with her mom, Slick. Ruffles and Granny made an appearance too and J's were in a breach'in mood today - we saw 30-40 breaches!! WOW!

May 26th:Orca Whales sighted on both of our tours today! It was a little breezy on the Salish Sea and Captain Shane and crew showed our guests whales, lots of other wildlife, and a beautiful tour through the inner islands! We saw a great breach by Eclipse just off our stern, with mom, Sachi close by. Slick, Mike, Keet, Alki, and little J42 were doing some tail-lobs and porpoising! A huge Stellar Sea Lion made a surprise appearance off the bow and got a great look at a Redtail Hawk on our way into Anacortes! We also saw Ochre Sea Stars, Bull Kelp, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, Great Blue Herons, a Peregrine Falcon, Turkey Vultures, Rhinocerous Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Cormorants, and Belted Kingfishers!!

May 25th: The Island Explorer II left the dock heading west through Rosario Strait. A beautiful Pacific Northwest day - the cool, early morning fog lifted and as we were approaching Lopez Island there was lots of sunshine! We sighted J-Pod near False Bay as the Orca Whales headed south. We all got to see Slick with her baby, J42 pass off the stern! Then, J1, Ruffles rolled onto his back with his pec fins up and tail-lobbed!! J-Pod was very active today with lots of spyhopping and tail-lobs! We also got some great looks at a Peregrine Falcon, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Rhinocerous Auklets, and even Bull Kelp!!

May 24th: Naturalist Kate Janes reports from the Island Explorer II: "Yet another gorgeous day here in the San Juan Islands! Our tour started before we even left the dock with a sighting of two Bald Eagles perched high atop 2 conifer trees! We saw 8 Bald Eagles in total and one swooped right in front of the bow while we were stopped! However the show stopper belonged to the elusive Minke Whale that swam right under the boat! He popped up for a little 'How do you do?' just off the bow! Other wildlife sightings included Pacific Loons (at least a dozen!), Harbor Seals, Rhinocerous Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Pelagic and Double-Crested Cormorants, Harbor Porpoise, Turkey Vultures, and Black Oystercatchers!! Great sights - Great day!!"

May 23rd: We found Orca Whales near Hein Bank today heading west, traveling slowly and checking out the world above the water with a few spyhops! After about 20 minutes, J-Pod turned and started heading east toward False Bay. We did get to see Slick with her new baby, J42 and got some great looks at Mike, Granny, and Ruffles! We also got to see Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Oystercatchers, Rhinocerous Auklets, Cormorants, and Bald Eagles!

May 22nd: A cloudy morning became a beautiful, sunny day with calm seas. As the Island Explorer II headed west into Burrow's Pass we were accompanied by a Harbor Porpoise! The search for whales was on! We were the only boat on scene watching a Minke Whale feeding on a bait ball at the surface! Our guests got to see his throat pleats expand as he filled his mouth full of bait fish and water! Then we saw Rhinocerous Auklets swimming just under the surface working the bait ball too! We sighted lots of other wildlife on today's tour - Coyotes, Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, Pigeon Guillemots, Great Blue Herons, Black Oystercatchers, Marbled Murrelets, Pacific Loons, and the very speedy Peregrine Falcon!

May 21st: We started off on the Salish Sea today with a sighting of a California Sea Lion! We had partly overcast skies with sun-breaks as the Island Explorer II headed north to find 12 Bald Eagles on Pea Pod Rocks!! Our naturalists are verifying this but we think that one was a Golden Eagle!! We found Orca Whales, J-Pod, in Boundary Pass heading toward Stuart Island. Our guests got some great looks at J8, Spieden, J11, Blossom with her youngest, Mako! We also saw Black-Tailed Deer, Mouflon Sheep, Great Blue Herons, and Rhinocerous Auklets!

May 20th: Great sightings of J-Pod today - even with the rain!! When we encountered the Orca Whales, they were spread out, traveling and foraging west of False bay heading north. Our guests also got some great looks at hauled-out Harbor seals as the Island Explorer II left Anacortes, Turkey Vultures, Pigeon Guillemots, Canadian Geese, Harbor Porpoises, and Ochre Sea Stars!

May 19th: Another great day with the Orca Whales! Our guests got to spend time with J-Pod on our morning tour today but they were no where to be found, after a VERY determined search by our hard working crew, on our afternoon tour! All of our guests on the afternoon tour received a pass to come again for free, for life, until they see whales! They also got to see a Stellar Sea Lion eating a BIG Halibut at the surface!! What a sight to see a Sea Lion thrashing a Halibut around like a rag-doll!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for more field reports from our naturalists on board the Island Explorer II! We also saw Dall's Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Bald Eagles, huge Bull Kelp, Belted Kingfishers, Pigeon Guillemots, Comorants, and Rhinocerous Auklets!!

May 18th: A truly incredible day with Orca Whales! Conditions were calm and mostly sunny when we sighted J-Pod north of Lummi Island, heading south toward Anacortes. They were spread out into their sub-families, foraging, playing, and a little spyhopping and breaching! It really looked like they were having fun playing with the new baby, J42! Our guests also got to see Harbor Porpoises, Stellar Sea Lions, and lots of Bald Eagles!!

May 17th: Another beautiful, sunny day on the Salish Sea! We saw Orca Whales today!! We sighted J-Pod in Haro Strait. We got a great look at Spieden, J8 as she passed close by underwater. Keet and Alki were playing with the new baby J42, while mom, J16 was close by! Great activity today with multiple breaches, spyhops, and tail lobs! We also saw Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Pigeon Guillemots, Rhinocerous Auklets, Cormorants, and American Bald Eagles!!

May 16th: Orca Whales!! Today was partly sunny with a light wind on the Salish Sea. Our guests got some great looks at Blackberry, Tsuchi, and Slick with her new baby, J42, and saw some great bellyflops! We saw some Turkey Vultures making a low overhead pass - you could see their red heads even without binoculars! We also got a super look at a low flying Bald Eagle and saw 5 Sea Lions!!

May 15th: We got spend this beautiful, sunny day with J-Pod! These Orca Whales were sighted in Haro Strait heading north and were spread out into several small groups. Lots of great activity today with breaches, cartwheels, and BIG tail slaps!! 3 youngsters were playing together for about 20 minutes and it was a blast to watch!

May 14th: Today was another amazing day with J-Pod! We sighted J's near Andrews Bay, heading north. There was lots of activity with breaching, many tail lobs, and some spyhops! Our guests were able to all 25 Orca Whales in J-Pod surfacing together while we headed past Henry Island! Naturalist Jami Nagel adds that the new baby, J-42, is very playful and loves to wrestle with her older brothers and mom!! We also got to see White Winged Scoters, Bald Eagles, Cormorant, Rhinocerous Auklets, Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, and Sika Deer!

May 13th: Today the Island Explorer II headed north into Canadian waters and the Fraser River! It was a long run but we went the distance and got to show our guests Orca Whales!! Our guests got some great looks at most of the J-Pod family including Ruffles, Granny, and Slick with her baby! We saw lots of other wildlife too including Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemots, Great Blue Herons, Oystercatchers, Rhinocerous Auklets, and California Sea Lions!!

May 12th: Whale sightings and great conditions on the Salish Sea for both of our tours today! On the 9 am tour we sighted a total of 3 Minke Whales and got some great looks as they passed close to the boat! Minke Whales are baleen feeders and sometimes we are lucky enough to catch them lunge feeding! Our guests got to see a major Elephant Seal on Minor Island and 8 Bald Eagles! We also saw Harbor Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Cormorants, Pacific Loons, and Rhinocerous Auklets! The 3pm tour started out with no reports of Orca Whales and just as the Island Explorer II was heading home, J-Pod made their appearance! Each tour is truly unique and you never know what nature will show you on each tour! We spotted the Orca Whales just off of Tide Point heading south toward Anacortes. Ruffles, J-1 honored us with a great breach! Our guests also got to see Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Bald Eagles, Surf Scoters, Ochre Sea Stars, and a beautiful sunset in the San Juan Islands!!

May 11th: J-Pod sighted by Island Explorer II just SW of False Bay! They were spread out, foraging, and also slowing down to socialize and frolick around! Our guests got some really good looks at Samish, J14, Hy'shqa, J37, and Suttles, J40. Suttles even showed us a small breach in the distance! Then Blackberry, J27, and Riptide, J30 decided to have a wrestling match near us! The water was so clear we could see them under the surface! The last group we encountered was Sachi, J19, Eclipse, J41, Blossom, J11 with her kids Mako and Tsuchi!! A great day with the Orca Whales on the Salish Sea!!

May 10th: Another sunny day on the Salish Sea - May is turning out some beautiful summer-like days! Our guests had a great tour through the islands and saw Porpoises, Harbor Seals, Eagles, and many other beautiful seabirds but after lots of searching they were not to be found! All of our guests received passes to come again for free, for life, until they see whales!!

May 9th: More sunshine and calm conditions on the Salish Sea today. Naturalist Bart Rulon reports that they spotted 15 Bald Eagles on today's tour! We searched everywhere for whales and couldn't spot them anywhere! All of our guests still had a beautiful tour through the San Juan Islands and get to come back again for free! We also saw tons of Harbor seals sunning themselves on Minor Island and toured through Deception Pass!

May 8th: This morning we had sunshine, blue skies and a little fog creeping up the fingers of the islands! In our search for whales, Captain Shane took us north into Canadian waters and Active Pass where our guests were watching 7-8 Transient Orca Whales! We were able to identify T87, T89, and there were also two juveniles in the group. Stay tuned to the whale report for more reports from our tours!!

Photo of Slick (J16) and new calf J42, taken May 7th by Naturalist Jami Nagel

May 7th: What a day! Sunny, and glass calm! Our tour started out with wild coyotes on Burrows Island. As the Island Explorer II headed west in search of Orca Whales, we had the usually shy Harbor Porpoises playing in our stern wake. When we arrived on-scene with J-Pod, our guests got some great looks at the new calf, J-42 and saw some fun breaches by J-41!! And we saw some magnificent Eagles on Swirl Island on the way back to Anacortes!

Photo taken on May 6th by Naturalist Jami Nagel

May 6th: Captain Shane just called in from the Island Explorer II and reported that they are on-scene with J-Pod! Stay tuned for more reports from the field! We traveled a long way again today to see J-Pod....all the way to Race Rocks!!! We were the only American boat on site with the beautiful Orca Whales. They stayed in a tight group today, but that didn't keep Spieden (J-8) from giving us a little show and we had another lucky glimpse of J-42, Slick's new calf.

May 5th: What a great day to go to Point Roberts!!!! It was beautiful and sunny as we traveled north, cutting through the middle of the islands.On the way we saw Seals, Sea lions and Sea birds.It was a long run today but we met up with J-pod and their newest addition!!! Yes, we did see J-16's (Slick) new calf, J-42, along with Ruffles and the rest of the family !!! We were all so happy and excited, it was a terrific day!

May 4th: Another beautiful day in May for the 12pm departure! Seals, Sea lions, Eagles, Porpoises, and other beautiful seabirds! The south end of Lopez Island was warm and calm with Ochre Sea Stars and massive Bull Kelp (it can grow a full foot per day!) The wind was picking up a bit in the afternoon and Captain Shane took us through the inner islands and into calm waters. Even without whale sightings today, our guests enjoyed a wonderful tour through the San Juan Islands and the Salish Sea, and they get to come back for free whenever they like!

May 3rd: The Island Explorer II reported from Minor Island to let us know they had a great look at an Elephant Seal, 2 Peregrine Falcons, a beautiful Harlequin Duck, and a record breaking look at 18 Eagles!!!! Even though we did not spot any whales today, we had nice weather, a great tour with lots of wildlife, and all of our guests get to come back for free, for life until they see the whales!!

May 1st: Our first Anacortes tour in the Salish Sea was filled with wildlife sightings! The Island Explorer II reported flat calm seas and high overcast. We covered miles and miles of water searching for whales and Captain Shane found a Minke Whale at McArthur Bank! We also saw Harbor Porpoises and Harbor Seals, Eagles, Pacific Loons, Black-Bellied Plovers, and Sealions. Then, on the way back to Anacortes, we took a look at Minor Island and found an Elephant Seal!! They can weigh-in at 5,000 pounds!!

April 30th: Our Everett Gray Whale program concluded today with sightings of two Gray Whales, making a total of 32 tours in a row with Gray Whales!! We indentified one of the whales as #53 - today was the first day that whale was seen this season. The crew of the Island Explorer II checked in about 4:40, just north of Camano Head, heading for Anacortes! She is making 15 knots in good water conditions. Her crew is getting ready for our first Orca Whale tour departing tomorrow, Tuesday May 1st, from Anacortes at 12 PM. J-Pod has been sighted over the last few days and we will be looking for resident and transient Orca Whales!

April 29th: Gray Whale sighted! Lots of searching today but Captain Ed just called in to report the sighting. Stay tuned for more details from today's tour.

April 28th: A beautiful, sunny day today! The Island Explorer II headed west from Everett and we found Gray Whales! That makes 30 tours in a row with whales!! Another great day on the water with Sea lions, Seals, and Eagles! (Orca Whale sightings were reported today west of Anacortes - probably J-Pod. Tours for Orca Whales begin May 1st from Anacortes.)

April 27th: 29 tours in a row with Gray Whales! Everett has been a great departure point for watching the Gray Whales - usually we're with the whales within a half-hour of leaving the dock! Also, Orca Whales were sighted today near our home port of Anacortes which is perfect for our Orca Whale tours starting May 1st from Anacortes!

April 26th: The Gray Whales were hard to spot today but after a little searching our guests got to see them! (They were feeding pretty close to our departure area when they were sighted!)

April 24th: Gray Whales sighted today not long after leaving the dock! We also saw Seals, Rhinoceros Auklets, Sea lions, and Eagles!

April 23rd: It is 12:15 p.m.... the Crew and Guests are with 3 Gray whales already!!! Jami and Drew have identified them as #383, #531, and #56. We will keep you posted on the trip as it progresses, there are 3 hours left. Stand by.....

Photo taken April 14th by guest Annette Colombini.

Photo taken April 14th by guest Annette Colombini.

April 22nd: Three Gray Whale sightings today! The water was calm and it was a beautiful April day. We were able to identify #44 and #49 but the identity of the third Gray Whale is still a mystery! One was feeding in about 20 feet of water and every time he would go down to scoop-up a snack, his tail was sticking way out of the water!! We also got to see more of those very pretty Rhinoceros Auklets, California Sea lions, Seals, and American Bald Eagles.

April 21st: There was a little wind getting started this morning but it died-down and the afternoon was calm. We saw lots of Sea lions heading out and there must have been about 1000 Surf Scoters! We found a single Gray Whale, #44, and spent some time with him and then continued north where we found another just off of Camano Head. We got to see 2 Osprey and Bald Eagles on Jetty Island. Then, about 2 miles from the dock, we saw #49, Patch!

April 20th: Our tour started today with some very friendly Mallard Ducks in the marina looking for some tasty snacks! We got to visit with 5 Gray Whales on our tour today! Lots of sunshine and mild temperatures on this spring day. Beautiful Rhinoceros Auklets, Sea lions, Seals, Eagles, and lots of other birds too!

April 19th: Just got a call from the boat and they found a couple Gray Whales near the south end of Whidbey Island. Naturalist Bart reported visiting with "Patch" and "#531" today!

April 16th: Today was a little breezy but Captain Shane found us some beautiful Gray Whales, California Sea lions, Seals, and showed our guests lots of seabirds too!!

April 14th: We had a great day on the water! Just 15 minutes off the dock we were with the Gray Whales and Jami identified #44, #49 and #53. We also saw Rhinoceros Auklets, 6 Eagles, Harbor Seals and Sea lions hauled out on the Possession Point Marker.

April 11th: Our crew called in this morning to report cool temps with overcast skies but generally good weather conditions. The Island Explorer II departed at 11:00 and we were with the whales at 11:30! Everett is a super departure point for watching Gray Whales! We also saw Bald Eagles and their massive nest! Lot's of California Sea lions in the area too!

April 10th: Captain Shane called 20 minutes off the dock to report 5 Gray Whales! Calm waters today and the rain has passed. Stay tuned for more reports of wildlife from the field!

April 9th: We got some great looks today at Gray Whale #49, Patch! Lots of activity from the Sea lions too - we were watching them swim out of the water and onto the channel markers. One very young Sea lion received a standing ovation from our guests and crew when he made it onto the marker after 8 tries!!

April 8th: The weather today turned out to be sunny and warm, with calm seas. Naturalist Jami Nagel was able to identify one Gray Whale, #383. We also saw two Bald Eagles flying overhead, one with a fish clasped in his talons! A California Sea lion surfaced and was wrestling with a Skate fish in his mouth - an incredible sight!!

April 7th: Captain Shane called in from the Island Explorer II to report being on-scene with 4, possibly 5, Gray Whales. He also said the rain had passed and the seas are calm! Naturalist Jami Nagel reports from the field,
"The Island Explorer II found 4 gray whales today just north of Clinton on Whidbey Island. We had 3 whales traveling together and one feeding by itself on the beach. All the whales were slowly heading south toward Possession point. We ID 'd #49 Patch again, he is the whale that has been coming in for the last 20+ years.
It was good to see that he was still in the area. We first ID 'd him about a month ago! The seas were calm and the weather was great! We also enjoyed several California Sea lions, harbor seals (including one eating a crab!!!) and 2 Bald Eagles fighting over prey while fighting near the boat!!

Photo taken by Larry Elliott, April 6th

April 6th: Today our passengers enjoyed the warmest day of spring! We found 2 Gray Whales just south of Clinton off Whidbey Island. We were able to identify one of the whales as #383. This could be the first time the second whale has been in Puget Sound and the Salish Sea. We also saw many seabirds (Western Grebes, Pigeon Guillemots, Common Loon, Brandt's Geese and Bald Eagles), California Sea lions, Harbor Seals and Harbor porpoise.

April 4th: Naturalists Jami Nagel and Bart Rulon called in from the Island Explorer II to report very cool Gray Whale sightings today, including a Spy hop! Stay tuned to the whale report for more field reports!

April 3rd: Today our guests were able to experience "whale snot!" When Gray Whales exhale, their breath can go about 30 feet into the air! So, when you're downwind, you get the total experience!! We also had some great looks at Sea lions, Harbor Seals, Eagles, and had a beautiful day on the water!

April 2nd: Today we were with the Gray Whales 20 minutes after leaving the dock! The Island Explorer II sighted the whales just north of Gedney Island under blue, sunny skies. Stay tuned for more wildlife reports from today's tour!.... We identified one of the Gray Whales as #56 and couldn't id the other. Our guests got some great viewing today! We also saw California Sea lions, Harbor Seals, Golden Eyes, and many other birds!

April 1st: A terrific day for wildlife and whales! We got back to the dock a few minutes late but we went the distance to show our guests Gray Whales!! Lots of California Sea lions too, hauled-out on the markers and in the water. It's very close to the peak season in our area for these big mammals. Great lighting today for photography and we saw a super display by about a dozen Bald Eagles! They were at Baby Island, adults and juveniles, flying and on the beach - what an experience to see 12 American Bald Eagles together at the same time!!

March 31st: Today turned out to be a beautiful day, with lots of sunshine! We had some great looks at the Gray Whales, California Sea lions, Harbor Seals, lots of seabirds, and Eagles too!

March 30th: The passengers on board the Island Explorer II enjoyed beautiful weather and a wonderful wildlife tour today! We started our tour with some great looks at 2 California Sea lions basking in the sun, on top of a navigational marker. We saw many seabirds ( Western Grebes, Pigeon Guillemots, Surf Scoters, Double-Crested Cormorants and Brandt's Geese). It was just south of the Clinton ferry that we found 2 Gray Whales. Our passengers got some wonderful photo opps of the whales! We were even lucky enough to be down wind of the Whales at one point.....(Stinky!!!!)

March 28th: A beautiful March day with sunshine and calm waters! We got some great Gray Whale looks, and nice pics of the flukes, after some deep dives. Lots of Sea lions around today, on the markers and swimming along in the water too! Our guests also got some great looks at Bald Eagles!

March 25th: Gray Whales sighted!! Captain Shane found the whales just off Lowell Point. Our guests got to see a total of 5 Gray Whales today - a mom with her calf, #49, Patch, and two other adults!. The weather was a mix of rain and sunshine, and we also got to see Sea lions, Porpoises, Seals, lots of different birds!

March 24th: We looked everywhere but the Gray Whales were elusive today! All of our guests did get to see Sea lions, Harbor Seals, lots of other wildlife, and a they all received a pass to come again for free!

March 23rd, 2007: Today was a little breezy but Captain Shane found the Gray Whales for us! We were in Saratoga Passage, mid-channel between East Point and Langley. We got some great looks at Sea lions and Harbor Seals, and lots of different birds too!

March 19th, 2007 We started out our trip with some GREAT looks at 3 harbor seals at the dock. Our passengers got some great pictures of them as the came very close to the boat bobbing in the current. As we left the marina, our favorite buoy had again 2 California Sea lions snoozing on it. They barely payed any attention as we cruised by. We headed out in search of whales and other wildlife. We encountered a couple bald eagles that decide to fly right over the boat! We had another Sea lions feeding on a Salmon he had just caught while seagulls hung close in hopes of a nibblet!
Unfortunately we didn't have any Gray whales today, but they are in the area as we have been seeing them for several days prior. The great thing is our passengers received "fluke" passes to come again for life until they see a whale!!!! We will see some of them Friday for our next departure from Everett!!

March 18th, 2007: The Island Explorer II is on scene now (12:45 PM) with 2 Gray Whales, possibly 3 and one of them is Patch (49)! Stay tuned for a report from Naturalist Jami Nagel...... "Patch has been coming to Puget Sound and Saratoga Passage for the las 20+ years. Patch usually stays around for several weeks before making his way north. The fourth whale we found on our way back to Everett was near Mukilteo. We identified this whale as (123). We got some amazing looks at this guy! We had many photo opps with him fluking for us. We also had numerous Bald Eagles, one flew over the boat with a fish in his talons! Some of the other wildlife we saw were Western and Red Throated Grebes, Common Loons, Harbor seals and California Sea lions"

March 17th, 2007: Awesome day for Wildlife!! The Island Explorer II found two Gray Whales today! We headed out toward Camano Head and saw Sea lions, Harbor Seals, Harbor Porpoises, Eagles, and tons of sea birds! Our guests got to see nature in action - three Eagles were eating a dead harbor seal! 1 PM: The Explorer II has now left the Gray Whales in search of Orca Whales reported about three miles to the south of Possession Bar. Stay tuned to the Whale Report for more updates! 2:10 PM: The Explorer II arrived at Possession Bar to meet up with T-20's, a group of 7 Transient Orcas. They have a 1 year old calf with them and we saw a couple of them Spyhop! Wow!! What an incredible day!!!.

March 15th, 2007: Naturalist Bart Rulon reports, "A great day with Gray Whales today!" We started our day heading North toward Camano Island. We saw a few California Sea Lions just outside of Jetty Island. We saw a few Bald Eagles and the Bald Eagle nest on Camano Head. Next we headed toward South Whidbey Island and Captain Shane found a Gray whale on the South side of Whidbey at Possession Point. He gave us several good looks in between 5 minute dives. A great day!!

March 9th, 2007: Gray Whales sighted in Saratoga Passage! They have arrived and that will make for two awesome tours, tomorrow and Sunday! It may be a little rainy but the Island Explorer II is super comfortable in the weather that we encounter this time of year!! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for updates on our Gray Whale sightings!

March 4th, 2007: Another great March day our calm waters! We searched in all the favorite Gray Whale spots but couldn't find them today - we'll keep looking until we do! We saw lots of Bald Eagles, Harbor Seals, California Sea lions, and lots of other seabirds coming out of their winter plumage!

March 3rd, 2007: Today was a great March day to spend on the water! Calm seas, a little drizzle, lots of wildlife, and not too cold! We searched for the returning Gray Whales but couldn't find any today - we'll try again tomorrow! We did see upwards of 20 fearless Sea lions, Harbor Seals, Cormorants, Pacific Loons, Surf Scoters, Western Grebes, 12 Bald Eagles (including an Eagle's nest on Camano Head) and many other seabirds! All of our guests on today's tour were given a pass to come again, anytime, for free!! That's our guarantee!

March 1st, 2007: The Island Explorer II just tied up at the Everett Marina a few minutes ago. The 2007 whale watching season begins in less than 48 hours!! The crew called in reports of tons of birds in Saratoga Passage. Beautiful Golden eye ducks, Harlequin ducks, and Surf Scoters were seen in large congregations. Sea lions were foraging near Everett, as were the ubiquitous Harbor seals. In the last few weeks several Gray whales were seen transiting the area as well. Our crew is chomping at the bit to get out on the water to do what they do best. Everything is in place for our best season ever!

Our new flagship, the Island Explorer 3, is nearly done with her makeover. We've been working hard to put the finishing touches on what will surely be the most complete whale watching boat in the fleet. In May our guests will be able to enjoy a whole new level of quality. State of the art sound system, flat screen LCD televisions (for digital chart plotting of our journey, whale identification, and educational purposes), a huge bow pulpit, and a full galley complement our standard amenities like upper and lower viewing decks with full walk around capabilities, His/Hers bathrooms, heated cabin space, and tons of space at the rail for everyone (for "front row" viewing). Once you've gone out with Island Adventures, there's no turning back!

February 12th, 2007: J Pod sighted just off of Vancouver Island on Thursday in Swanson Channel! Lots of Spyhopping and a great picture of Granny, J2, about half-way out of the water! Some reports of Gray Whales in this area and along the coast as they work their way north! Our first tour will be March 3rd from Everett searching for Gray Whales!!

January 25th, 2007: The Gray Whales are headed North and will arrive soon! Our first tour for the 2007 season will be March 3rd, departing from Everett! That's a super departure point for Gray Whale watching. Just click on the yellow "Gray Whale Watching " button on our welcome page for all the details and come and see us in Everett!

We're also getting our new boat, The Island Explorer 3 ready for the season - while we were working on the boat in the harbor, we saw an eagle swoop down and steal a fish from the mouth of a river otter!!