Mosquito Pass

Naturalist Olivia | M/V Sea Lion | July 11th, 2020 | 12:00pm

It was my personal first trip on M/V Sea Hawk of the season and it definitely did not disappoint! We left Roche Harbor with gray skies, but our happy faces were no reflection of the weather, as everyone was already in good spirits as we traveled southwest through Mosquito Pass. We left the dock with potential whale rumors, which is always humbling on our retired fishing boat. Despite knowing there were potential...

Jordan | August 26, 2018 | M/V Sea Hawk | 2:00 trip

Today was a fantastic day out on the water! Captain Sarah and I headed out of Roche Harbor really excited to see whales and other amazing life, when all of a sudden, we found whales!

We hadn’t even reached open waters when we spotted dorsal fins just a few feet away! Coming into harbor, these young transient whales were searching for seals among the boats. We identified these individuals as just two whales: T65A3 and...

Despite intense yearning and best efforts, guests and crew aboard the M/V Sea Hawk were reminded that one can flip only so many whale tails before you’re certain to get a deadhead.  After a lucky run of tours over the past week, which included multiple whale species, the laws of statistics came bear, resulting in not one sighting of a cetacean today.

No matter, our guests could still be heard chattering and laughing from the Canadian shoreline as we plied the...

Of all the creatures spotted on our wildlife tours this summer, K pod resident killer whales have been the most elusive. They spent the majority of the summer in their wintering grounds in the Pacific Ocean, making us wonder if we were ever going to spot them again! Finally, a few days ago, J pod returned to the Salish Sea and brought K pod swimming along with them.

We headed out of Mosquito pass to follow up on a report of residents milling around False Bay on the...

Yesterday on the Seahawk, we had an amazing day. Capt. Gabe and I set out with a bunch of great guests on a very sunny and calm day on the water. There were reports of some of the Resident Killer Whales heading east along the north side of Henry Island which is really close to Roche Harbor! We managed to head them off at the pass! Right when we exited Mosquito Pass into Haro Strait. It was the J-16s! We moved out of their way and watched them swim south. It seemed like...

Today we left Roche harbor with the reports of J pod at Eagle Point headed South.  We headed out Mosquito Pass towards Haro Strait and saw a number of seals on our route.  It is currently seal pupping season so those cute little guys are an adorable sight this time of the year.  Since the whales were headed south during our travels they ended up on the South end of Lopez Island traveling East.  Thankfully there was a trailing group of four whales that were moving at a...

Today we left Roche harbor with a recent report of transients down towards salmon bank.  We headed out Mosquito Pass and headed South on the West side of San Juan Island.  Thankfully the transients were moving in our direction so we met them around False Bay.  We watched a large group of transients with a large male and 3 young juveniles including what looked to be like a very young calf.  The whales were heading North up the West side of San Juan Island at a very slow...

Today we left Roche Harbor at noon with a nice breeze and overcast day which is great for viewing wildlife because there is no glare from the sun on the water.  We headed out Mosquito pass towards reports of whales around American Camp.  On our way out to Haro Strait we saw an adult bald eagle in flight.  We traveled down the West Side of San Juan Island past Lime Kiln State Park.  Thankfully the whales were moving North so we met with them at False Bay.  We first spotted...

Captain Mike, Naturalist Emily, and myself took our guests out on the M/V Sea Lion for what turned turned out to be a stellar trip today. We had reports of members of J Pod in the Haro Strait, so we sped up and around the North end of San Juan Island there right from the Harbor. Not long after entering the open strait we had our first sighting!

L87, who travels with J2, was the first animal we saw. He popped up a few times in the Haro and we followed him South, his tall...

Despite having to work against strong winds and a flooding current before our lunch break, we ended up having a really nice paddle today! The guests were kind and curious, as were the many harbor seals who surrounded our boats multiple times! We explored Garrison Bay and English Camp, paddling around Guss Island and back up Mosquito Pass, finally with the wind at our backs and the warm sun on our faces.

Kayak guide Courtney, 5 hour tour,  San Juan Island Outfitters Whale...