WOW!  What a fabulous day on the water….and a memorable last trip of the season!  Leaving Friday Harbor with promising weather and the news that orca vocalizations were heard on the Port Townsent hydrophone three hours before, spirits are high.  The water is flat clam today and yesterday’s rain and wind have done an excellent vanishing act.

A stop right before Cattle Point turns into a birders paradise!  An adult Bald eagle perches proudly on beach logs scanning the water for prey.  Surf Scoters float in a large group ahead of us, and one Grebe pops around on the edge of the flock.  Then two Marbled Murrlets appear bobbing off our port side and quickly dive…reappearing moments later a few yards away.

Little Harbor seal heads skim through the water on their way somewhere, for something.

On we go, heading out into Haro Strait.  The water out there today looks, well….big.  As in vast…huge…very expansive…and only two little dots far off for boats.  Flat water….but no ripples in the water and no fins.  We look and look….and LOOK.  Finally, way out toward Victoria we stop.  Splash!  In goes the hydrophone….and instantly we hear it!  J pod calls!!  And the vocalizations are loud!  They are close…somewhere close…binoculars pop up to every eye…and we look some more, but now with excitement and hope.  This is a great day to have four extra crew along and all those experienced eyes scanning the horizon.  Before long Chris shouts…”There! ”  …and we know now, this last trip will be with Southern Resident Orca whales!  Soon Doublestuf, J-34 is cruising and foraging off our stern.  His mother then appears, and little sibling and cousin.  In the distance we see a mother and calf.  Whales!  Lots of whales!  ”

Now for the surprise!  Two long backs suddenly appear on the other side of the boat!  While everyone has been focused on the port side, the beautiful Orca whales…two Humpback whales have cruised along beside us.  Engines silent everyone watches as Orca whales amaze us on one side, and Humpback whales amaze us on the other.  One of the humpbacks is identifiable as “Split Fin” as the fin is clearly split in two.  We are treated to a huge pec fin waving in the air as the whale rolls…and then a massive cartwheel as the tail stock flips through the air and crashes down in the water!

Which way to watch?  No way to lose on this one!

The weather holds, we enjoy these amazing animals in lovely light, warm temperatures and flat water.  But we are a long way from home, and time flies when you are with whales.  Trust me on this.

Too soon it seems, but we turn back for the trip across Haro Strait and Friday Harbor.  The whales continue west….we turn our bow to the east.  I take one last, long look…and you know…I really do think that Split Fin waved a special goodbye.  Don’t you?  ”Vaya con Dios,” I whisper.

Looking up,  I see….smiles all around!

The last two weeks have been outstanding in variety of animals, birds and weather.  Even the exotic game animals on Spieden Island have been easy to see…clustered in the open grassy areas on Spieden Island.

Humpback whales!  How amazing it is to see these massive whales, slowly cruising our local waters…in no hurry it seems.  Hasn’t anyone reminded them of the long migration ahead?  Appearently it’s of no consequence.  We have seen both individual adult whales and adult and juvenile pairs.  The numbers of Humpbacks have increased in the past 10 years, and I can imagine a time when we may see many more!

Orca whales!  Yes!  Both Transient and Resident Orcas have been in and out…out and in…many days during October.  Some days we have found J pod….and then J and K pod…oh, wait…sometimes all three pods!  This time of year I think I have more casual encounters….yes, always on the look out for salmon….but more time for socializing.

The Steller sealions have been growing in numbers and now show up at the north end of San Juan Channel often.  One day we  a large group surprise us, all gathered around the edge of the rocky shore…waiting turns for being the king of the shore?  So many!  Another day a California sealion lunges among a group of three big Stellers…all out on a group shopping trip in Spieden Channel?

A Harbor seal with a huge salmon “in mouth”…migrating Bonaparte gulls in winter plumage….Dall porpoise, Harbor porpoise, adult Bald eagles….I make entries for each sighting in the wildlife logof The Western Prince.

I know I’m going to hate to see it end!  The last few trips are just days away….then we’ll tie the lines for the last time this season, button up the boat, walk up the dock…and begin the “winter wait.”

Waiting for a new season….with so many incredible memories to tide us through!

Most times when people come out with us, they are hoping to glimpse some of the amazing wildlife found in this area.  Especially orcas.  And while it has been a good summer for orca sightings, October has proven to be a great month for viewing more than one kind of whale!  We’ve had lots of encounters with our Resident pods (J, K, and L Pods), a few encounters with random groups of Transient (mammal feeding) Orcas, and amazingly–quite a few encounters with humpback whales!  Humpbacks used to be more plentiful in the Salish Sea, but were very nearly wiped out during the days of whaling (especially with the BC whaling station in operation).  Folks used to say that we used to have a “resident” pod of humpbacks.  Well, 2011 is proving to be a banner year for humpbacks here, with sightings of not just one, but many times 2 or more.  Several humpbacks were seen over multiple days going back and forth in the same area, most likely foraging.  Here are a few pictures from recent encounters:

Which brings us up to today (SUNDAY, October 9th).  We started the day on the Western Explorer with no reports of any type of whale in the area.  Cloudy skies looked ominous, but we were hopeful.  By the time we left the dock, we had a report of “a large group” of orcas out west but heading into the area.  They were just at the outer range of the Explorer, but we hoped the flood tide would push them in further.  As we headed south, the skies began to clear and the seas were quite calm.  Which made viewing the 30 or so Stellar Sea Lions on and around Whale Rocks much easier.  Soon we were headed out west towards Victoria, BC when we had a report of 2 Pacific White-Sided Dolphins!  WOW!  We found them playing and leaping out of a boat wake, and this was my first encounter all year with these playful dolphins!

Soon it was time to head further west to see the orcas.  Under crystal clear skies and warm sun, we finally found them foraging and going every direction around the Constance Bank area south of downtown Victoria, BC.  We dropped our hydrophone in and we got to listen in as J Pod was vocalizing like crazy.  J8 Speiden and J30 Riptide were our first two whales to ID.  We also saw J34 Doublestuff as he was chasing after two juveniles as if to play with them.  These two little guys put on quite the surface active behaviors, everything from tail lobs to backward swimming to spyhops and even a few breaches!  It was so beautiful.  The calmness at the surface was broken by loud blows when the whales would come up to exhale.  Then down they’d go and we’d listen to them underwater.  Before we knew it, it was time to head back to Friday Harbor.  We searched on the way home for the two humpbacks that had been reported at Constance Bank as well as the two humpbacks also reported at Hannah Heights, but couldn’t locate either group.  Dozens of porpoises were zipping about in the currents at Middle Bank.

Did I mention I love October whales?

John Boyd (JB)
SSAMN Marine Naturalist, Western Explorer

Ohhhh!  The birders of the northwest rejoice!  A loon!  Right here in Haro Strait!  Surprise!

Ohhhh, again….and I think this one is L-94 passing by the side of the boat.  Remember….I have a 400mm lens!  But what a great view for everyone, 400mm or not!  We watch this family all afternoon, hopefully finding lots of salmon.

Hey!  Here I come, catching up to mom!  Part of the L pod for sure!

Thursday we follow L pod members around Salmon Bank area.  Friday we search the same area and find Minke whales, Steller sealions, Harbor seals, Bald eagles and a few porpoise.  Saturday morning we travel far to the north as there are no sightings to the south.  We have incredible sightings of seals, sealions, eagles and a Minke whale.  Then, right before the afternoon trip departs on Saturday, we hear the Southern Residents have been sighted incoming west of Victoria!  Yikes!  Lots of calculation and the decision is we can most likely make it IF the whales keep traveling toward us.  Decision made, we strike out toward Victoria, B.C. and….after a long run, we are rewarded with a fabulous sighting of L pod and J pod!!!  The weather is cool and grey, but spirits are high and somehow the cold just doesn’t seem to bother anyone.  Oh, did I mention the blankets, hot coffee and hot chocolate?  Even though part of the trip is in thick fog, everyone has a great time…and when I do drive by of the ferry lane after the trip, everyone seemed to have made it onto the 6:30 p.m. boat that wanted to leave the island!  The lanes are empty!  YAY!  Great end for everyone!

Although we experience some cloudy weather, a few rain drops and some light chop on the water….the wildlife viewing is spectactular.  The Bald eagles are back!  One day we find six adults as we meander through the waterways.  Steller sealions practice their Fall - Winter - Spring assignments of being the biggest bully, appearing to have the biggest body, letting loose with the loudest roar and catching the most fish.  Whale Rocks provides high action with  sealions, birds and currents.  The Harbor seals hardly seem to noitce any of it!

Thursday and Friday we find all three pods of Southern Resident Killer Whales out in Haro Strait.  Just back in from a trip out the Strait of Juan de Fuca, they are busy hunting for salmon in family groups.  Yes, the weather is slipping into Fall.   The wildlife is changing…into Fall coloration and presence.  The colors are changing…from grey sky, to brilliant blue, to bright afternoon light, to rain spitting from the clouds…suddenly here, then gone.  And then there are the other signs…the hats, the gloves…oh, and did I mention the hot chocolate??????????

The amazing thing is to realize you are in short pants and a t-shirt and NOT cold!  No gloves, hats or socks on these trips!  And it appears the weather will hold through the weekend.

Heading south both days we got to see lots of Harbor seals and the Steller sealions too.  The birds are changing into “winter clothes”…or feathers, so it’s interesting when you realize which bird you have in sight.  That’s the thing about nature and “wild-ness”…things are always, always changing.  So, I’ll keep my gloves, hat and socks handy…right in my backpack!

Mt. Baker from Georgia Strait

Our second trip was also amazing (and one thing I love about my job is I can have multiple trips in one day and they won’t be anything alike!)  This time we still headed north, but first had to make a stop off above Flattop Island so we could look at a minke whale.  He was mid-sized, but it was great to actually see a whale on our trip (since orcas are really dolphins…)  After 4-5 surfacings, the minke would make a long 5-7 minute dive, so we watched for 2 intervals before heading west.  But as we passed the Canoe Islands, I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and Ivan made the quick turn so we could watch a pair of bald eagles hunting in a large patch of bull kelp.  One eagle made 2 attempts to grab something out of the kelp, but missed both times and returned to the trees.  Soon we were off again, wondering what we’d find next on our way to see the orcas.  4 very playful harbor porpoises were zooming around at the surface.  As the sun headed more westerly, everything started getting that cool late afternoon glow.  And before we knew it, we had huge groups of whales passing the boat.  At one point, there must have been 5-6 whales all in a huge resting-type line, practically on top of each other.  The whales by this time were pretty mixed together, with Js, Ks, and the Ls all mixed in big groups.  J30 Riptide hanging out with a bunch of other J whales.   K21 following behind the rest of Ks.  The whales appeared to kind of gather themselves up and then practically launched down Haro Strait, with lots of tail slaps, breaches, and porpoising.  It was amazing.

Did I mention I love September whales?

Can you see the wee head surfacing next to the adult fin?

Look carefully!  Another surprise!