J-Pod at Hannah Heights

Captain Brian just called into the reservation desk to report on his whale watching trip today. It sounds as though Captain Brian and Naturalist Kendall had a really fantastic trip. Brian reported that the seas were flat and calm and I can add that the sun is shining! The day started off with serious fog though which could've hindered the trip. Luckily, it burned off with the afternoon heat and Brian was able to navigate down the west side of San Juan Island to an area called Hannah Heights which is just south of the Lime Kiln Lighthouse. It was just our boat, the Seahawk, with the J-16 sub group of J-Pod. This group includes the newest calf in J-pod, J-42. It sounds as though they saw breaching and other playful behavior. Another successful trip!

Our kayaking trips have also had some interesting and fun experiences today. According to one of our guides, Noelle, her guests saw an orange ochre sea star which is not seen very often. They also saw a raccoon on a local island and had some great looks at a few bald eagles.

Summer weather has arrived...

The weather this week has been beautiful as well as comfortable. That is one of the many aspects of San Juan Island that I love. We are in a rainshadow, so we don't get much rain; probably under 20 inches per year. Also, in the summer months of July and August the temperature is usually in the 70's or 80's. In addition to the great weather, we have had great success on our kayaking and whale watching trips. Our boat trips have been consistently seeing the whales as now is a great time to view them. A few of our kayaking trips have also had the oppurtunity to see the whales because the typical route of the orcas runs right outside of Roche Harbor. Other kayaking trips have been seeing seal pups, bald eagles, and even a fox on the beach. We are really in a prime spot to see a great variety of wildlife.

Bait Balls Galore!

I paddled out on our six o'clock sunset tour the other day and was rewarded with excellent animal sightings!
As we paddled south by Henry Island we saw a few large tight groups of gulls screaming, whirling and diving into the water. It was a bait ball! As we drew close Rhinocerous Auklets and a few types of cormorants started to surface nearby, as well as some seals. They were working together underwater to surround and herd those schools of fish up towards the surface where the gulls were attacking. We sat and observed them for a few minutes, comparing the calm and still evening to the frenetic action of the birds. It was a gorgeous evening to be out on the water.

J-Pod Boogy at Kellet Bluff

Yesterday's 5 hour trip included myself, a school teacher from Spokane and our dockhand Nick(a.k.a Biscuit). We left the docks at Roche and headed up Mosquito Pass, quickly earning our lunch with a flood tide and a stiff Southwesterly leaning against us..

On our approach to Kellet bluff we were passed by a handful of Northbound Orcas from the J-Pod. We were treated to a few tail slaps , a breach, and several instances where we held our breath as Orcas swam toward us, only to submerge and turn before reaching us. As the last members passed we shot through the tidal race around Kellet, emerging on the other side with 3 grins that, if placed side by side, would have nearly reached Victoria.

While riding the flood tide down the West side of Henry Island, we encountered numerous adult seals and their pups. Some pups were riding piggy back atop their mothers, a few were sunning in pairs on the rocks, and one solitary seal snoozed belly-up in the kelp bed. We lunched and skipped rocks at Half-Moon Bay, then continued down the coast, spotting a perched Bald Eagle at McCracken Point. We concluded our trip paddling through the calm waters between Posey and Pearl islands.

The trip was, in the end, just another epic day in paradise.

Thursday's Kayaking Trips...

Today was a beautiful day to go kayaking out of Roche Harbor. One of our kayak guides, Blake, reported seeing many interesting things out on the water today. He mentioned sighting several bald eagles, a sandpiper, and he even saw his first harbor seal pups for the season. It's currently pupping season here and as the next few weeks go on, we will start seeing more and more on our trips.

Whales near Saturna Island!

What a beautiful day in the San Juan Islands... blue skies and in the 70's. We had a morning whale watching trip depart out of Roche Harbor and at the point of departure, we didn't know where the whales were. Luckily, Captain Brian was the first captain of the day to find the whales up north in Canada, near Saturna Island. According to the crew, J Pod, K Pod and part of L Pod were breaching and porpoising across boundary pass. Good reviews all around!

My favorite kayaking trips!

It always amazes me how a cloudy day often clears up just in time for our 6pm Sunset Kayaking Tour. In fact, the 6pm trip is my favorite of all the kayaking trips for this very reason. So often, the sun creeps out, the wind and waters calm down, the boat traffic dissapears and the wildlife comes out. Last night I had a chance to hop in a boat with a single guest and get out from behind the desk and on the water. After a cloudy, somewhat chilly day, the weather rolled out and we were left with a wonderful, sunny paddle. The water was so calm it looked like silver. There were barely any boats out and just one sea plane taking off (which is a cool sight from a kayak). We saw several harbor seals quietly hunting for dinner- and even saw one splashing around chasing a fish! On the west side of Henry Island we watched freighters quietly rolling across a backdrop of islands and mountains. Just north of Half Moon Bay, we saw the highlight of our trip- a juvinaile Bald Eagle in a nest with two mature Bald Eagles watching from another tree. Another amazing trip!

Holy Whales, Batman!

Summer seems to be in full swing these days with sunburnt noses on the guides, sandal tans on the dock hands, and whales all around. The orcas have been spotted right outside Roche Harbor for the past two days. Nothing like having whales right out your back door!

Whale and Wildlife Sightings June 10th

Great Whale Watch Tour Sunday. J-Pod had been foraging along the west side of San Juan Island all day, and decided mid day to make their way into the larger straits. By 3:00pm, they were 6 miles southwest of Hein Bank, at the confluence of Haro Strait and the Straits of Juan De Fuca. The entire pod was very spread out, foraging as usual. We had a small group of guest, as well as employees on their day off.

We were fortunate to have some good views of J-16 and her family group. Some lob tailing, and breaching.

Great day on the water.

Critters abound at the low tide line!

This week we've been having spectacularly low tides, and as a result of that extra exposure of rock all sorts of animals have come calling. Joe, Tom and I paddled out of Roche Harbor for a 3 hour tour and we were soon rewarded with wildlife sightings! Not only did we see a few raccoons turning over rocks and hunting crabs, but a fox as well! We were able to quietly slip by along the shore as they went about their business of catching a meal.

The absolute highlight of the trip was what we saw as we rounded the north side of Henry Isle. All of the sudden a Bald Eagle swooped really low to the water right in front of us! We looked eagerly to see it's intended prey but instead of fish we saw some brown heads bobbing along the surface. Joe correctly identified them as river otters and we watched as the otters swam away unscathed while the eagle glared from the shore. It would have to try it's luck elsewhere...