Just got back from an epic kayak tour! We saw whales breaching in the distance as we sat in kelp beds surrounded by harbor seals. The paddle back was blessed with some huge lions mane jellyfish! What a day!
San Juan Outfitters Kayak Guide Owen, 3 hour tour, July 27, 2014
Today I had the pleasure of accompanying an amazing family on a pretty beautiful paddle. This morning we paddled out to the bull kelp forest near Battleship Island, just off of Henry Island. Bull kelp is an important species in the Salish Sea, creating critical habitat for crabs, small fish, and even harbor seals! We enjoyed the antics of a particularly friendly seal dipping and diving through the currents. On our way back into Roche Harbor we stopped on Posey Island the...
Today I paddled out on a 3 hour kayak tour. It was a bit windy out but the overcast clouds created the most beautiful colors-- all of the islands to the west were clothed in wonderful shades of blue.
We saw harbor seals, courting bald eagles and lots of shorebirds.
As we were paddling down the west side of Henry Island we spied a Steller sea lion surfacing a few times just a few hundred feet away! This big guy was hard to identify at first because he surfaced...
Yesterday I paddled out on a 3 hour sea kayak tour with guests from Idaho. The water level was so high that most haul out rocks were covered so I wasn't sure we'd see any harbor seals but as we paddled down the west side of Henry Island we were suddenly surrounded by harbor seals. 6 or 7 of them surfaced all around us, curious and calm but wary too. One large adult repeatedly surfaced eating a HUGE fish. With each appearance a little more of the fish disappeared...
Whales were spotted along the southern and western sides of the island today, and one of our guides Tim reported back that he'd seen 6 or 7 individual orca whales during his 3 hour kayak tour. It's always exciting to see the whales, whether from a kayak or from our whale watching boat, but it isn't always possible during our 3 hour tour, so we're especially pleased that he and his guests were able to see them as well!
Greetings all!
Our guide, Joe, just returned from his 10am 3-hour sea kayak tour and had an amazing tour. While they were near Henry Island's McCracken Point they saw an Eagle swoop down, land in the water and fifteen seconds later pulled itself out with a fish in it's talons. It was an amazing sight. Shortly there after our guests, Jim and Marylynne paddled near a huge lion's mane jellyfish.
Megan, one of our Kayak guides, reported that the guests on our 3 hour sea kayak tour were so excited to see K-Pod while they were paddling on the west side of Henry Island. They had just gone past McCracken Point on Henry Island when they happened to spot orcas in K-Pod going north towards Stuart Island. It was an amazing sight to see!
Today I paddled out under gorgeous skies with a small family, and we were on the hunt for wildlife! We've been seeing a great number of harbor seal pups lately, especially out on the west side, where there are a number of safe haul out spots for them. It was great to view them at a distance, and listen to their vocalizations, but even better to see them close up. As we were paddling near a forest of bull kelp, a mother seal and her pup surfaced just a few feet from...
Today, during out 3 hour sea kayak tour, we were paddling on the south side of Posey Island and saw about six Black Oyster Catchers, beautiful birds with distinctive red and long beaks, chattering loudly and scouring the intertidal zone for food. Oyster Catchers are native to the San Juans and it is always exciting to see them in action.
Also due to the flood tide there were also a significant amount of Moon Jellies spotted near the shoreline of Henry Island. They...
With the sun out and blue sky all around, all three morning kayak trips enjoyed an abundance of wildlife. They spotted bald eagles, harbor seals and river otters. The morning was low tide, which allowed us to observe sea stars, kelp crabs and moon jellies. The day ended with four of our guests from the 5 hour kayak trip taking advantage of the great weather by going for an impromptu swim.