Whale Watching Reports from Island Adventures Whale Watching Tours in the San Juan Islands

Beautiful Day with the Orca Whales!!

Sunshine, calm water, and J-Pod!! Stay tuned for details from Naturalist Kate Janes!

Family (Oreo, Doublestuff & Cookie)

Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

Take Off (Rhinoceros Auklet)

Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

A Celebrity (Ruffles)

Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

"Coming around Cap Sante Point the Island Explorer 3 was first greeted by a snow capped Mt. Baker! With clear skies and the brilliance of the mountain just over our shoulder we headed towards the south end of Lopez Island and towards the orcas of J pod! The waters were teeming with wildlife as we navigated Rosario Strait. Guests could catch glimpses of Harbor Porpoise racing through the water, while Rhinoceros Auklets dove deep into the water for bait fish. As we entered into the waters surrounding Castle Rock Pigeon Guillemots swam around the boat, a Black Oystercatcher was searching for its next meal, Harbor Seals were hauled out on rock outcropping, and Eagles were flying high above us while in the company of soaring Turkey Vultures. It seemed that we weren't the only ones enjoying the sunshine!! It wasn't long and we were with the whales! Enjoying some great passes with some youngsters of J Pod we saw in the distance Ruffles! The oldest male of the Southern Residents, Ruffles, gave our guests some great looks at his 6 foot dorsal fin as he moved with ease through the waters a couple of miles just off of Eagle Point. Then an amazing thing happened! A Minke Whale appeared near Ruffles!! Two whale species in one day; that is what we like to call a doubleheader!! The Minke appeared just 3 times and then vanished! We departed and soon was with Oreo's subpod! The appearance of this family made the day of the Brownie Troop that had joined us today! They had appropriately adopted Oreo's daughter Cookie and this was the first time meeting her!! We had an amazing day in the company of J pod as the milled about the Strait of Juan de Fuca, breached, pec slapped & taillobed. We also saw a record number of Rhinoceros Auklets feeding, Pacific Loons having trouble taking off on a full stomach, Glaucous-winged Gulls, California Sea Lions, and Common Murres! It was the picture perfect day." - Naturalist Kate Janes

J-pod off Henry Island

J16, Slick, and her family

We had beautiful conditions today with sunny skies and calm seas. Before any of the passengers boarded the Island Explorer 3 today we had a bald eagle fly right over us at the top of A dock as captain Michael was briefing them about our trip today. Later we headed south around Lopez island and slowed down to look at wildlife around Castle rock. We saw several harbor seals hauled out on the rocks there. We found J-pod just north of the Lime Kiln Lighthouse on the west side of San Juan Island. We spent most of our time watching J16, Slick, and her family J26, Mike, J33, Keet, J36, Alki, and J42 the youngest member of J-pod. They were all swimming in a close group and surfacing together for some great photo opportunities. Later we moved off-shore to check out J1, Ruffles. He was obviously chasing salmon at the surface with many changes of directions and circling back and forth. We shut down the engines to watch him hunting. He was in hot pursuit of fish on two different occasions then he changed directions and came right over to pay us a visit!! He gave the passengers a good look at just how big an adult orca really is. As we waved goodby to J-pod we drove past Speiden Island and saw many of the exotic animals there such as the mouflon sheep, sika deer, and fallow deer. Several bald eagles and turkey vultures were gathered up on the hillside of Speiden in two groups squabbling over a kill of some sort. Other wildlife sighted today included Canada geese, pelagic cormorants, rhinoceros auklets, pigeon guillemots, and harbor porpoise. What a great day!! Naturalist Bart Rulon

J-Pod Sighted Near Henry Island!

Another great day with J-Pod Orca Whales (and J1, Ruffles!) on the Island Explorer 3! Stay tuned for details on today's tour from Naturalist Bart Rulon!

J-pod asleep then playful

The wind was blowing a little today so Michael decided to take a route through the inner San Juan Islands in order to give everyone a smooth ride. Along the way through the islands we saw hundreds of harbor seals hauled out at various spots. With the low tide passengers also got to see lots of ochre sea stars, both purple and orange, exposed on the rocks by the low water. Bald eagles and turkey vultures seemed to be everywhere today. We probably saw about 15 bald eagles throughout the day and even more turkey vultures. We ended up finding J-pod just north of the Lime Kiln Light House on the west side of San Juan Island. When we arrived they were all swimming close together in a sleeping pattern. 15 -20 minutes later J-pod started to wake up, just as they passed the Center for Whale Research building. First there was a spyhop then a couple of breaches, then some porpoising, then a few cartwheels, then several more breaches, and some tail slaps. Our passengers really got to see a great variety of different orca behaviors today. We left the orcas just as they reached Henry Island. We had sunshine all the way back as we traveled through the inner islands again. Just a few minutes before we reached the dock at Cap Sante Marina we had more excitement as a bald eagle swooped down and caught a fish right in front of the boat. Then another eagle came by to try and get the fish. Soon the fish was back in the water and one of the eagles swooped back down to get it. By that time yet another eagle entered the picture and we had three of them at close range. What a great way to end an action packed day on the water!! Other wildlife sightings today included the belted kingfisher, great blue heron, pelagic cormorant, pigeon guillemot, rhinoceros auklet, Canada goose, and the exotic wildlife on Speiden Island. Naturalist Bart Rulon

Labels: A J-pod sprouter male breaching

Good morning! At 6:30 a.m. this morning we spotted Orca Whales at Bird Rocks!The boat is off the dock at noon today. Whale report to follow later today.

A Sea of Harbor Porpoise

"As we left the marina the extreme low tide exposed normally hidden treasures on the breakwater. Ochre Sea Stars, both purple and pink in coloration, clung to the wooded pilings as we cruised on by! It was at the end of Guemes Island where we found a hauled-out California Sea Lion lounging on a channel marker. Our guests enjoyed the sleepy giant as he "winked" for the cameras! We decided to head south down Rosario Strait and that is where we first encounter large numbers of Harbor Porpoise! Bait balls were forming under the water thanks to the efforts of the porpoise pushing them higher in the water column! Glaucous-winged Gulls, Cormorants and Rhinoceros Auklets started appearing just to join the feast! We continued on our way into the Strait of Juan de Fuca and found small swells quickly building. Our decision to turn back into flat water was only reinforced when we received a call that J pod was north with an undeclared direction. So we started back north hoping for the best- that J pod would head back south putting them back into our range! It became apparent at this point in the trip that it was the day of the Harbor Porpoise! Everywhere we turned their small dorsal fin appeared in the water and then quickly disappear! At Peapod Rocks we found 20+ Harbor Seals hauled-out, a lone Harlequin Duck, 3 Black Oystercatchers and our second Bald Eagle of the day! Unfortunately as we rounded Orcas Island we heard news that J Pod was heading north. Although we didn't see whales today our guests enjoyed the beauty of the islands along with Black Oystercatchers, Harbor Seals, Pelagic Cormorants, Harbor Porpoise, Pacific Madrone Trees, Harlequin Duck, Bald Eagles, Double-crested Cormorants, Dall's Acorn Barnacles, Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Ochre Sea Stars, Pacific Rockweed, and California Sea Lions!" - Naturalist Kate Janes

J Pod in the Strait of Juan de Fuca!

Swimming by for a Visit (Slick- J16)

Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

Wait up Mom! (Suttles & Samish)
Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

Getting Air

Photo by Naturalist Kate Janes

"Today we found the Orcas of J pod milling a few miles off Iceberg Point! The first whale we spotted was Riptide, a young male. It was incredible to see how much his dorsal fin had changed just in a matter of a few months!! Over a period of a few years his dorsal fin will go from about 2 feet to just over 6 feet tall once he reaches adulthood. We weren't with him long when he suddenly changed directions. It soon became apparent why when he reappeared next to his mom, Samish, and younger sibling Suttles. We enjoyed a great pass by Samish's sub-pod as they began swimming almost in unison along side the Island Explorer 3! It wasn't long before the other members of J pod started to come into sight. One young whale was particularly happy as it began breaching repeatedly- we counted 9 breaches total!! We ended our time with J pod with a visit with Slick (J16) and last years calf J42 as they continued heading south towards the highlighted Olympic Mountains!! It was great seeing that little girl and just how much she had grown since the fall!! Just like our little ones, Orca calves grow up so fast! The journey was far from over though. Our guests enjoyed 30+ hauled-out Harbor Seals at Colville Island, 3 Black Oystercatchers, Bald Eagles, one gigantic Bald Eagle's nest, a feeding California Sea Lion, 4 hauled out California Sea Lions, Rhinoceros Auklets, Pigeon Guillemots, Pelagic Cormorants, Double-crested Cormorants, Pacific Madrone Trees, Common Sea Stars, Glaucous-winged Gulls, Bull Kelp, Pacific Rockweed, and Dall's Acorn Barnacles!" - Naturalist Kate Janes

Orca and Minke Whales Today!!

The Island Explorer 3 sighted Orca Whales very close to a juvenile Minke Whale! Stay tuned to the Whale Report for details from Naturalist Jami Nagel! "Beautiful weather in the island's and a double header today with 2 types of whales!! We headed north were we caught up with J-pod heading south at Alden Bank just NW of Lummi Island. We stayed with them as they made their way south in Rosario Strait to the southend of Lummi Island. The subpod we were with was Slick (J16) with her offspring Mike (J26), Keet (J33), Alki (J36) and calf J42. There were several breaches, taillobs and some great porpoising!! We also had a Minke whale join in on the action! This Minke thought he was part of the pod, porpoising along with J-pod!! This is not normal behavior seen by our Minke whales. We had a great pass by Blackberry (J-27) a sprouter male. We refer to the maturing males as "sprouter" because their dorsal fins are being to grow or "sprout". The last group we saw before departing were Samish (J-14) with her son Riptide (J-30) and calf Suttles (J-40). We also encountered several bald eagles including a massive eagles nest on Jack Island, numerous Pigeon Gullimots, Rhinoceros Auklets, Pacific loons, harbor seals and a rather lazy California Sealion on a channel marker."

Whale Watching Report

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Beautiful Day with the Orca Whales!!

Thursday, May 22, 2008

J-pod off Henry Island

J-Pod Sighted Near Henry Island!

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

J-pod asleep then playful

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

A Sea of Harbor Porpoise

Monday, May 19, 2008

J Pod in the Strait of Juan de Fuca!

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Orca and Minke Whales Today!!

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