Laura C. | 6-25-2019 | M/V Sea Hawk | 2:00pm
Today was a beautiful, calm and sunny day out on the water! Captain Sarah took the helm of M/V Sea Hawk as we made our voyage north towards Turn Point. As we emerged from Roche Harbor it only took us minutes to find our first species of the day, majestic bald eagles! There were at least 5-6 eagles on treetops and soaring over a nearby island. One junior passenger Gavin had an "eagle eye" and was our avian spotter for the day!
We continued on and were so lucky to have a family of Bigg's killer whales close by! The family was the T101s and it was awesome to appreciate the difference in dorsal fins between T101 and her sons. A lone male was traveling about 1/2 mile away from the family so our vessel kept him company for a little while. The passengers were able to get amazing looks at this massive male as he surfaced to breathe and show off his powerful exhalations. He was also strutting an impressive dorsal fin measuring about 6 feet tall!
We all had a magical experience during one surface event when Captain Sarah turned off our engine to appreciate the environment around us. We were the only vessel in the area and decided to sit in silence along the bow, listening to this male's powerful exhalations as his body broke the surface of the calm water to take in a breath of fresh air. Experiences like these are something film cannot quite do justice and each person aboard today will always remember this incredible moment on the water.
Our time with this beautiful male had to end at some point because there was still more wildlife to investigate! We watched one more surfacing with gratitude towards this male, as he allowed us a glimpse of his underwater world. Our vessel moved southbound and stopped along Spieden Island to find harbor seals with their pups! This was the first batch of seal pups of the season and we were thrilled to see the little ones shuffling around next to their mothers! There were also more bald eagles in the area including a pair right along the rocks next to the seals! Spieden Island is also home to exotic deer species and everyone enjoyed pointing them out along the grass areas and up in the shadows of shading trees as we slowly cruised by. Binos came in handy at this point because we were able to pick out a number of deer! As we made our way to the dock everyone was so happy to have seen such wonderful wildlife and were sad to leave! Hopefully we will see everyone again soon as this season is just starting and we have so many more wildlife to investigate together!
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