San Juan Islands Sea Kayaking from Anacortes

J-Pod and some of K-Pod cruised down Rosario Strait this morning at about 10:00, and they were swimming at a blistering pace! The tide was ebbing, and so in effect they were traveling "down hill" which probably was the reason for the incredible speed. This is the fifth day in a row that they've been here near Anacortes, and tomorrow looks good too. Although this is a very typical travel pattern during the summer months, it is clear that the killer whales are using Rosario quite a bit more these days.

James was leading the 10 o'clock Burrows Island trip today and had an incredible encounter with an Elephant seal. These monsters can weigh up to 4000 pounds. We don't see them very often so this is a pretty special event. Speaking of wildlife sightings, our good friend, long time guide, and "King of the Razzle Dazzle", Ryan Hopkins is making a guest appearance this weekend. His Early Bird Burrows Island trip had a super close encounter with a California sea lion.

You've got to love the Salish Sea, where else can you find such incredible biodiversity so near to a major population center?

Labels: orca whales, San Juan Islands, sea kayaking

I just got the report that our favorite local family of Orca Whales is swimming down Rosario Strait this morning. Our Early Bird Burrows Island trip is probably going to get lucky again!

We also have a 3-Day camping trip out on Cypress Island that may have seen them, I'm just waiting for our guide Monica to call in to let me know. Jeff Porter is coming back from a 5-Day tour to Sucia Island, he was on the water paddling at 6 a.m. and so it is almost certain that he and his guests had an encounter.

As always, we never want to give our guests the impression that this is the sort of thing that can be expected, but boy have we been fortunate over the last couple of seasons! The whale-watchers, local fishermen, and biologists seem to have the common opinion that the whales will once again be spending more time over here in the eastern San Juan Islands and less time on the west side.

In other news:
It's a little early for the big push of seal pups, but we've seen a few showing up in the kelp beds near Deception Pass and Burrows Island. Maybe the abundance of fish in Rosario Strait is the cause.
Also, the peregrine falcons are once again sitting on eggs in their nest on the cliffs of Burrows Island. In a couple of months we will be hearing the chicks incessantly calling to their parents for more food.

We've certainly had our share of whales in the area lately. Yesterday a big Gray whale was sighted down in Deception Pass near our kayaking route in Bowman Bay. The big fella was probably foraging in the shallow water just outside the Deception Pass Narrows.

Lately our Southern Resident Killer Whales have been doing their usual loops around the San Juan Islands too. We've had them swimming by Anacortes several times recently. It may be another season like last year when the Orca whales seemed to prefer our side of the San Juans. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed! I just received a report from our Pacific Whale Watch Association's whale-spotting network and it looks like the whales were up north by Vancouver B.C. and are presently headed south towards the San Juan Islands. Hopefully they will be over near Anacortes tomorrow so that our multi-day kayak trips and Burrows Island trips can see them! Stay tuned!

J-Pod is southbound in Rosario Strait right now!
For those of you who are not familiar with the San Juan Islands, that means that they are right off of Anacortes! Perfect timing for an Early Bird (9 a.m.) Burrows Island trip.
These Orca whales have been spending a lot of time on our side of the islands over the last couple of years. Scientists are thinking that it probably has to do with more salmon swimming up Rosario Strait, which makes a lot of sense.
Bob Otis, a scientist with a 20 year Orca whale study located on the west side of San Juan Island, says that in 2008 the whale sightings there were 50% down from previous years. Conversely, the Orca whale encounters on our side of the San Juans were through the roof!

The good news, for those of us in Anacortes, is that the travel patterns appear to be similar to last year.

What a spectacular day for sea kayaking in the San Juan Islands! The Sun is out, it's warm, and lots of mothers have chosen to come out on kayak tours with their kids today.

Hopefully the Orca whales will cooperate at last. Last night they came down from Canadian waters late in the afternoon after we were already back at the docks. That's the way it works though, if the feeding is good up near the Fraser River then they will stay as long as they can before beginning their repetitious 100 mile circuit around the San Juan Islands.

As this report goes out, I am getting word of many porpoise foraging off of the Burrows Island Lighthouse. It should be a good trip for our guests on the 9:00 a.m. Burrows Island kayak trip.

The wild flower bloom is in full effect right now. I walked out onto Rosario Head this morning to enjoy the early morning sunshine, see the Blue Camas blooming, and take a look for Orca whales out in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The previous evening J-Pod was last seen up near Vancouver B.C, which meant that they should have been somewhere near Anacortes in the morning.

While I was out there I got to watch our guide Andaria and her guests on the Early Bird Special gliding by underneath my perch on the rocks. It was a beautiful sight to see the kayaks cruising through the kelp patches from that vantage point. After they passed by I got my "visual highlight of the day", a Harbor seal chasing fish under water. From 40 feet above the sea I was able to look directly down as the drama unfolded. It is a thing of beauty to watch seals swimming. Such a dramatic change from their awkward motions while on land.

Labels: kayak tours, San Juan Islands, sea kayaking