Whale Watching Report

Friday, March 21, 2008

There He Blows!!

"It was another beautiful day out on the water! A slight breeze and blue skies accompanied us aboard the Island Explorer 3 on our quest for Gray Whales! First stop however was to see the Eagles at Camano Head! A juvenile Bald Eagle showed off its mottled brown features, proving you don't have to be "bald" to be an Eagle!! Did you know the term "bald" is Dutch for white? Not long after visiting with the eagles Captain Shane spotted the blow of a whale! Too our delight it was yet another new whale in the area!! Joining the ranks of the other four Gray Whales in the area is #356! Our guests not only enjoyed the Gray Whale and Eagles but also California Sea Lion, a raft of 250+ Western Grebes, Pigeon Guillemots, Harbor Seals, Mallards, and Cormorants!"

posted by Island Adventures Whale Report @ 7:51 PM   0 Comments

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Gray Whales Sighted on Every Tour for 2008!

Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

A great start to our 2008 season with sightings on 100% of the tours so far this year! The wind has kicked up a little today but that's no problem for the Island Explorer 3 - we're on scene with the whales right now, 12PM, 1.5 miles north of Camano Head. More details coming soon from today's tour! "We not only found Gray Whales today, but we found the 4th whale of the 2008 season! Joining #531, 56 & 49 is number 44, whom we were able to identify despite a small chop in Saratoga Passage! Prior to getting on scene with the Gray Whales our guests spent some time checking out a Bald Eagle's nest on Camano Island and even saw Surf Scoters just off Gedney Island!! We also spent time with California Sea Lions both in and out of the water!! Although the two pictured above appear to be quite lazy, they in fact are thermo-regulating (keeping themselves warm)!!"

posted by Island Adventures Whale Report @ 12:04 PM   0 Comments

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Gray Whales near Langley!!

Naturalist Kate Janes reports from aboard the Island Explorer 3: "Gray skies melted away to blue as our trip got underway! Prior to heading north up Saratoga Passage we visited with some lounging California Sea Lions, enjoyed a fly-by of a couple of Pigeon Guillemots, and saw a raft of a dozen Barrow's Goldeneyes!! Our binoculars were out searching for the exhalations from Gray Whales as our quest took us up to Langley were we found #531 & #49! Yet again our passenger's enjoyed the aroma of the Gray Whales breath!! Captain Shane did give our noses a break and positioned us up-wind from the whales!! Patch, #49, gave us some great looks as he showed off his white patch and even fluked giving all on board a bit of good luck!! Throughout our adventure we saw Western Grebes, Glaucous-winged Gulls, Harbor Seals, Canada Geese, Mallards, and both Pelagic and Brandt's Cormorants!!" Our next trips out of Everett are at 11 am on March 20th, 22nd, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 29th and 30th!

posted by Island Adventures Whale Report @ 4:14 PM   0 Comments

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Calm Seas and Sunny Skies!




"Gray Whales in Sight!," reports Naturalist Kate Janes from The Island Explorer 3. Today's tour was a private charter and our guests enjoyed a beautiful, sunny March day with the whales and lots of wildlife! Stay tuned to the Whale Report to hear about whale breath and other details on today's tour! "Many of our guests came prepared for the elements, however the nose plugs were left at home! Why nose plugs you may ask? Well, if you find yourself downwind of a Gray Whale as it surfaces you may experience its "all day breath" (it sure makes you thankful that we may just suffer from morning breath) !! It definitely makes an already unforgettable experience even more so!! These two pictured above (#531 & #49, Patch) were just two of three Gray Whales whom we visited. The third decided to feed alone today and in quite an peculiar spot. This whale (number undetermined due to situation) found himself in the delta in 10 feet of water feeding!! With almost each dive the whale would twist flashing us a glimpse of half a fluke!! We also saw a California Sea Lion feeding on a Salmon while his lazy friends were hauled out on a channel marker! Pelagic & Brandt's Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemot's, Harbor Seals, and various gull species were also seen!!"


Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

posted by Island Adventures Whale Report @ 4:44 PM   0 Comments

www.flickr.com
Island Adventures2011's Whale Report Photos

Previous Posts

Archives