Written by Alison
on May 23, 2017

Fantastic wildlife tour in the San Juan Islands!

Fantastic wildlife tour in the San Juan Islands!

We got some great action as we headed out of Friday Harbor. A Steller Sea Lion had just caught a Skate, we think. Obviously, a large fish that he was shredding into bit size pieces. A gull, hoping for a free lunch, got a little close to the frenzy at one point! From there we headed north and made a stop at Skip Jack Island. This is one of 84 wildlife refuges in the San Juan Islands. We had Bald Eagles and Turkey Vultures feeding on a dead animal that was hidden by a rock. I looked up the different stages of plumage for the Bald Eagles. It was pretty cool to find that we had a 2nd year Juvenile (on left), third year in the middle, and I am going to guess a 4th year on the right! The next picture is of the 3rd year. Not only does their plumage and beak coloration change, but so does the color of their eyes. As I looked through all of my pictures these three went from brown, to light brown to the very light green tinted white of an adult. Next, we checked out the Harbor Seals on the other side of Skip Jack where they hauled out in the sun. Then it was on to Boiling Reef. The upwellings were great and we got to see harbor porpoise feeding in the current. The backdrop was Mount Baker. At 10,800 feet in height is so impressive. You can see how active the water was in the foreground! At East Point on Saturna Island, we encountered many Harbor Seals, Steller Sea Lions and one California Sea Lion. After cruising the Saturna shoreline we headed back to Friday Harbor. Another fabulous day on the water!!

If you’re interested in booking a tour with us, be sure to check out our whale watching tours on the Western Prince II or the Western Explorer II and if you’re coming from Seattle, read more about our Whale Watching Seattle trips!

Written by Alison
on May 23, 2017

Fantastic wildlife tour in the San Juan Islands!

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