san juan island

I paddled out on a 5 hour Orca Search sea kayak tour today, and enjoyed my day with some hearty guests who were able to gamely paddle through some rough breaking waves. We were crossing our fingers that the resident killer whales on the south side of San Juan Island would continue to head north towards us. The whales moved northbound all the way to the lighthouse (Lime Kiln State Park) but then, alas, they turned away and moved out of range.

Although we were...

Today I paddled out of Roche Harbor on a private sea kayak tour and we paddled over to Posey Island for a picnic. Posey Island-- at high tide one of our nation's smallest state parks-- is a lovely spot to take a break, rest, relax, watch the sunset and even stay the night.

As we returned to the harbor we were fortunate enough to glimpse a mink scampering along Pearl's shores, a river otter playing off the Tarte's dock and then a harbor seal sunning its head in the...

Yesterday Joe, Nick and I along with new guides Megan and Tim returned from a little overnight kayak trip of our own. We paddled out to Stuart Island for the night, and then returned to Friday Harbor the second day. The gorgeous blue skies and calm waters let us take advantage of the area and explore some new routes. We saw lots of eagles and sea birds, and even found a small pod of harbor porpoises foraging off the western point of Speiden Island.

This evening one of our new guides Tim paddled out on a 3 hour sunset sea kayak tour, and boy was it gorgeous out! The calm waters north of Henry Island allowed for an almost perfect reflection of the sun going down. It was briefly obscured by a low lying cloud bank just above Salt Spring Island, but then slipped down to reveal a huge, glowing red orb. It was a perfect night for a paddle!

Success! Nancy and I headed out from Roche Harbor and headed north in search of some members of K pod that had been spotted earlier that day. Whales in K pod are members of the Southern Resident Community, resident killer whales that spend their summers here in the Salish Sea as they hunt the salmon that pass through on their way to spawn upriver.

After a long boat ride (cruising with the current at 18 knts) we encountered the whales just a few miles south of Point...

Joe returned from his 3 hour tour in high spirits today. Not only did he have fantastic guests that were ready to encounter anything that came their way, but they had a great time looking at the animals out there. Although they worked against strong winds to fast moving currents, their upbeat attitudes ensured that everyone had a good time.

They were rewarded with up close wildlife encounters including sea birds, bald eagles and of course, our local harbor seals...

This morning I saw out a large group of Harlequin ducks feeding out on the calm water. While they're a common sight on our sea kayak tours, this was the first time I'd seen so many grouped together while swimming. I watched for a few minutes and saw the dozen birds all diving and surfacing in unison; using their large numbers to corral and cooperatively hunt their prey.

All of us here at San Juan Outfitters been having a ton of fun trying out our new equipment for rent-- a funky pedal-powered kayak and some paddle boards.

Our pedal-powered boat is really cute and colorful, with a bright teal sunshade. The two front seats have pedals, while the back seats are just for relaxing! There's also storage space both in the bow and stern. It's a great choice for families and groups of friends who want to tour the harbor and protected...

One one hand I can't believe it's already June 1rst and on the other, the absolutely stunning weather of the past week makes it feel like it should be August already.

This afternoon I paddled out on a special tour with two lovely ladies from Colorado. The water was as smooth as glass all around us, so we were able to see the antics of some seals from far off. A few males were out and about practicing their mating displays, so we got to hear the double flipper slap...

Well I've just returned from our first overnight sea kayak trip of the season and have to report back a wonderful success. The weather was absolutely perfect and the wildlife certainly put on a great show, so that coupled with delicious snacks and good company made for a great weekend.

Steve and Robin were Washingtonians with an appetite for adventure, and I'm glad I could deliver. We met in Friday Harbor and walked down to our exclusive launching docks where we...