Jpod and members of Lpod! Aug 1st, 2008.

In the sequence of pictures above you can see the Orca chasing a salmon. Not only did we observe this incredible event but heard the entire chase over our underwater hydrophone!

The sky tonight looked like it was on fire.

 Mum & Pup Harbor Seals, looking so cute;)

We saw a number of breaches today. Orcas reach speeds of approx 25mph when breaching and that speed can be achieved within three flicks of their tail flukes. An amazing feet when these Orcas can weigh almost 10 tons!! 

The water tonight was almost mercury in colour, stunning!

What an amazing start to the month of August with encounters all day with Jpod and six members of Lpod!

In the morning Jpod was first reported to Ron Bates, MMRG, near False Bay, which is where we headed. The Orcas were actively foraging (hunting and feeding on Salmon) and did not move very far in the morning. 

As we set out in the afternoon we heard of another group of Orcas coming in from the rest that turned out to be 6 members of Lpod including L57 "Faith" a male born in 1977. These 6 members of Lpod eventually met up with Jpod in the middle of the Strait south of Trial Island and then headed back to False Bay.

During our evening excursion we again headed towards False Bay in calm seas and beautiful lighting. As we arrived on scene we observed a great deal of social interaction between members of the pod, a Spyhop, tailslaps and a number of breaches. However, the highlight was when we not only got to watch but also listen through our Hydrophone as a Sprouter Male hunted and caught a Salmon close to our boat (just over a 100yds away). It was an magical experience and we could even see the Salmon leaping out of the water trying to escape the Orca!

On our journey home we stopped in at the Chain Islets to see the Harbor Seals and Pups. At Great Chain we watched as the Seagulls and Cormorants suddenly took off in flight as a Bald Eagle appeared on scene creating chaos. The Eagle chased a number of Seagulls before disappearing. A stunning sunset and amazing skyline was the perfect end to an incredible Five Star Adventure:)