Last Tuesday morning we set out from Roche Harbor with 14 people aboard our boat the Sea Hawk. It was a drizzly morning but the wildlife was still fantastic. On our way out we motored over to a large group of Harbor Seals hauled out on shallow rocks. They craned their necks to look at us but then went back to doing what they do best, napping! We also viewed several Bald Eagles perched majestically in the tree tops. After motoring down the west side of San Juan Island we reached the Orca whales and quickly realized we were in for a treat. There were whales surfacing in every direction! We had whales from J, K and L pod passing us on all sides forming a Super Pod! Our captain did his best to stay out of the whales way as they moved north along shore as well as off the coast of San Juan. Some of the whales were moving quickly, while some were hunting and popping up all around us. Others were extremely active, breaching, spyhopping (poking their heads straight up out of the water to look around), tail slapping, and even what appeared to be mating (hard to tell exactly what goes on beneath the surface:)). One calf was particularly active, breaching over and over again. An adult female Orca snuck up behind us popping up within feet of our stern and then swimming just below the surface along the port side and surfacing again at the bow! We followed the whales all the way back home and even had to wait as more whales passed so the we could safely cross back into Roche Harbor. Everyone on board was elated as they made their way off the boat, with broad smiles plastered across each of their faces. These Orcas have a way of making everyone smile!
Whales, Whales and more Whales!
Last Tuesday morning we set out from Roche Harbor with 14 people aboard our boat the Sea Hawk. It was a drizzly morning but the wildlife was still fantastic. On our way out we motored over to a large group of Harbor Seals hauled out on shallow rocks. They craned their necks to look at us but then went back to doing what they do best, napping! We also viewed several Bald Eagles perched majestically in the tree tops. After motoring down the west side of San Juan Island we reached the Orca whales and quickly realized we were in for a treat. There were whales surfacing in every direction! We had whales from J, K and L pod passing us on all sides forming a Super Pod! Our captain did his best to stay out of the whales way as they moved north along shore as well as off the coast of San Juan. Some of the whales were moving quickly, while some were hunting and popping up all around us. Others were extremely active, breaching, spyhopping (poking their heads straight up out of the water to look around), tail slapping, and even what appeared to be mating (hard to tell exactly what goes on beneath the surface:)). One calf was particularly active, breaching over and over again. An adult female Orca snuck up behind us popping up within feet of our stern and then swimming just below the surface along the port side and surfacing again at the bow! We followed the whales all the way back home and even had to wait as more whales passed so the we could safely cross back into Roche Harbor. Everyone on board was elated as they made their way off the boat, with broad smiles plastered across each of their faces. These Orcas have a way of making everyone smile!
Labels: breaching, j pod, K pod, L pod, Orca Whales, roche harbor, san juan island, spyhopping, super pod, tail slapping