Transient Killer Whale

[08/18/17- M/V Sea Hawk- Kelsey, Naturalist- 2:00PM]

It was almost too easy, today! M/V Sea Hawk cruised out of Roche Harbor in search of whales and other awesome wildlife, and it only took a matter of minutes to reach the west side of Speiden Island where some transient (or mammal-eating) orcas were mingling. We had hoped to see whales, but we soon saw much more than just that! We saw whales come up RIGHT to our boat!

We had our engine off and were watching them milling...

[8/14/17- M/V Sea Hawk- Kelsey, Naturalist- 2:00PM]

M/V Sea Hawk meandered out of Roche Harbor on San Juan Island in search of whales and other cool wildlife, and we had the best of days!

The smoke has finally cleared out from the San Juan Islands, giving us a beautiful view of the islands and the surrounding mountain ranges as we cruised through perfect waters. We passed numerous sea birds, including a bait-ball filled with Glaucous gulls, Rhinocerous auklets, Common...

[Lauren Fritz, M/V Seahawk, 08/12/17, 6:00 pm Charter]

What do humans do for fun when they're hanging out with their families? Run around outside and throw a football around? Play Settlers of Catan and watch Disney movies? Bake cookies and make gourmet hot chocolate? Well, whatever you do for fun, you can bet orcas have their own ways of playing too! Guests onboard M/V Seahawks private charter today were treated to some amazing playful behaviors from a pod of Transient...

[Lauren Fritz, M/V Seahawk, 08/12/17, 2 pm Tour]

Don't you just love when you can spot killer whales near your home turf? Every day is different and unpredictable out here in the San Juans, but today we had the chance to observe a family pod of Transient orcas in San Juan Channel - moments after we were watching a humpback! It was a whale watching jackpot day. 

Captain Joe and I greeted our guests on the dock at Roche Harbor, excited to see what was in store for the day...

[8/9/17- M/V Sea Hawk- Kelsey, Naturalist- 2:00PM]

In recent days, we have not been seeing orcas, because they were just out finding food elsewhere! But today, our luck changed and we saw some transient (mammal-hunting) orcas, just southwest of San Juan Island!

M/V Sea Hawk had quite the trip in store as we moseyed out of Roche Harbor towards Victoria, BC. We finally reached some orcas, and they were soon identified as the T18 family group. This cozy little family of four...

[Lauren Fritz, M/V Seahawk, 08/02/17, 6pm Private Charter]

On M/V Seahawk's 6pm charter today, we took out a wonderful family for a big reunion. It was a wonderful evening out on the water - lots of good laughs, beautiful scenery, and the best part - the chance to travel 15 miles north and see Transient killer whales up in the Canadian Gulf Islands!

I've posted a few photos from the journey - the lighting was unreal with a thick haze coating the islands, turning the sun...

[Lauren Fritz, M/V Seahawk, 08/01/17, 2:00 pm Tour]

We had some interesting weather in the Salish Sea today - a nice haze coated our islands, creating an etheral aura and providing a beautiful backdrop for our whale watches today. After our guests had boarded the M/V Seahawk in Roche Harbor, Captain Joe shared his plan for the day. We would be heading north and going into "search mode" because no whales had yet been reported in our area - we wanted to be the first to find...

[Sarah M. – 07/21/2017 – M/V Seahawk – 02:00pm]

Today the M/V Seahawk had a breathtaking afternoon whale watch from Roche Harbor. We had some much-needed rain and it yielded a true Pacific Northwest feel as we cruised the Salish Sea with some liquid sunshine falling the sky.

As we left the harbor we had two reports of orcas in the area, one far to the south, another to the far north. We made the decision to head to the northern group, and Captain Joe steered the M/V...

[7/20/17- M/V Sea Hawk- Kelsey, Naturalist- 2:00PM]

To start, it should be noted that San Juan Outfitters is part of the Pacific Whale Watch Association, and that means we receive information at any point when out on the water regarding whale and other wildlife locations and behaviors. This can create some exciting trips that are unpredictable, and today was one of those days!

We started the trip leaving beautiful Roche Harbor with no whale reports, but we were hopeful...

[Sarah M – 07/14/2017 – M/V Seahawk – 02:00pm]

With such spread-out sightings geographically this year, we are often “forced” to go the extra mile to show our whale watch guests orcas here in the Salish Sea. Yesterday was a perfect illustration of this new whale watching, and the distance, as well as patience, that it can sometimes take to see orcas in their natural habitat.

A Shifting Ecosystem

This year we have seen historically low salmon runs here in the inland...