We had all three pods of Resident Orcas today off shore of Salmon Bank in the morning and near Spieden Island in the afternoon! The Orcas were spread out over a wide area but it is always a thrill to see over 80 Orcas in the wild:)
In the morning we were a little to the north west of Hein Bank and the Resident Orcas were spread from Hein Bank to Salmon Bank foraging for Salmon. As we arrived on scene we were greeted by a number of Breaches & Cartwheels as all three pods of Resident Orcas socialized. As we watched the Resident Orcas we watched as L41 and his sisters traveled past with the new L-pod calf, L119. This calf was born in May 2012 and is the second youngest member of the Southern Resident Orcas.
By the afternoon the Resident Orcas had mostly moved north and we caught up with large group, well over 40 Orcas, near Spieden Island and spread across Haro Strait towards Mandarte Island. Not long after we arrived on scene a large deep sea vessel passed by and we witnessed a number of the Orcas surfing in the wake:) We also witnessed a Cartwheel and a Spy Hop as we watched the Orcas. Whilst watching the Orcas travel we were able to identify an number of them including J27 "Blackberry", J26 "Mike" and K21 "Cappuccino".
On our way home we had a surprise encounter with Dall's Porpoise near Darcy Island, always a thrill!
Today was the perfect way to end the month of August!
1 comment:
My husband and i were on this trip that morning it was the first whale i had ever seen we will be back next year THANK YOU!!!
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