sea birds

Yesterday (Sunday), was another beautiful day out on the water in the San Juan Islands. It’s still summer here, hot and sunny, but there are signs of fall starting in the more northerly regions of the planet. Different birds species that breed and nest in the arctic regions are returning here in preparation for winter. Most notably (maybe just my favorites) are the phalaropes. These groups of birds are a little smaller than doves and hang around drifting mats of logs and...

We were again treated to orcas close to San Juan Island. On the warmest day of the year so far and some of the best sunshine we’ve had in a while, we were definitely ready for another foray into the waters of the Salish Sea.

Again we had no reported whales in the area, but as we have seen in the past few days that does not mean that there are no whales around. We changed things up a bit and headed south, enjoying the scenery of the shorelines of both San Juan Island and...

Today I was able to paddle out with a lovely family new to the Northwest. Luckily for us we had gorgeous weather and could see clear to the Olympic, Cascade and Vancouver Island mountain ranges. The wildlife was visible as well, with a number of harbor seal sightings, various shorebirds seen and heard and even three harbor porpoise. I thoroughly enjoyed showing off a bit of the splendor of the islands, and the Pacific Northwest!

For me the highlight was spotting...

I paddled out for my first trip of the season today, and what a day! The weather was perfect and the wildlife certainly on display. There were so many different kinds of winter birds-- scoters, mergasers, buffleheads, cormorants, bald eagles, kingfishers, guillemots, auklets and more. The highlight of the trip for me was when two harbor porpoise surfaced behind our boats a few times. They seemed to be feeding, but moved off before we could get some really good...

Today I paddled out for a few hours with a lovely local couple who were celebrating their wedding anniversary. We started out under gray skies and were quickly paddling in the rain. Although it was November, and thus well after the tourist season was over, it was beautiful.

We identified all sorts of birds today, from the Harlequin duck's defined white markings to the soft gray spots of the Bonaparte's Gull in winter plumage. There were grebes, guilemots and...

Today I paddled out with two friends from Seattle who were excited to see all the wildlife the San Juans have to offer. We were getting some great looks at bald eagles, sea birds and harbor seals and were taking a short break in a forest of bull kelp when the report came in that whales were in the Haro Strait and headed south-- towards us! We watched as whale watch boats moved down the strait and then noticed that a few whales were much closer to shore--to us. At...

Today was a pretty fantastic day all around-- gorgeous weather, active wildlife and calm water. As we rested in the bull kelp forest, we kept a sharp lookout for harbor seals, and were rewarded when a mother decided to haul herself out of the water and on top of the kelp just a few dozen feet from our boats. There she proceeded to get comfortable and nurse her pup!

Earlier that day we'd been resting in the same spot when an eagle flew down from its nest on...

It was another beautiful day on the west side, and my 3 hour sea kayak tour was pleased to see all sorts of wildlife out and about! Not only did I get my first glimpse of the year of an eaglet in a nest, but we also saw killer whales off in the distance! The whales were spread out in the Haro Strait, headed north. Although they were so far off that we could only just make out some dorsal fins and their exhalations, it was still awesome to see.

Yesterday started off gray and rainy, so I was pleased that my guests were not deterred by the cool weather. We made sure to dress appropriately with warm layers and raincoats, and headed out. It's absolutely essential that everyone who intends to go out on the water always brings clothing to stay warm and dry-- even in summer that means a fleece or other non-cotton layers, and a windbreaker or raincoat. It's always better to be prepared than caught unawares!

I...

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.