Whale Watching Report

Just received a call from Captain Carl on board the Island Explorer 3 that our guests are just leaving a very friendly Minke Whale and are on their way to visit with some Steller Sea Lions! Stay tuned for details from today's adventure from Naturalist Bart Rulon. Nobody in the whale watching fleet was able to find orcas today, but the water conditions were ideal for spotting wildlife on the water. We managed to find a minke whale near Salmon Bank that was very cooperative with us. He surfaced many times near us as he zig-zagged along. Next we cruised over to look at several Steller sea lions on Whale Rocks. As we approached we noticed many more sea lions swimming in the water. We followed them as they cruised away from the rocks in a big group. They were very entertaining. Earlier in the trip we spotted a large group of harbor seals at bird rocks. We also spotted several harbor porpoises, and a small pod of Dall's porpoises that played at our bow for two brief sessions. At Colville Island we spotted two bald eagle, and each were perched on a separate national wildlife refuge sign. Captain Carl managed to find another minke whale after we left the eagles which made for a great finale. It was a great day especially because of the glassy calm water conditions today. Naturalist Bart Rulon