Elephant Seals and L pod

What a day !

Saturday June 9 , Well the weather was a little ugly with lots of rain , but the whales ! In the morning we saw Jpod near San Juan Island in a tight resting formation. Later we encountered a group of 12 Transient Killer Whales hunting near Race Rocks , to top it off we had one of the first viewings of the year of L Pod. Photos by Brian Glennon, KillerWhale.ca

Eagle eye

Our late trips today had the please of seeing 3 of the young orcas playing together in the kelp beds off Henry Island. We also spotted what I thought was a cormorant in the water struggling with a fish for several minutes, upon closer inspection we saw it was a bald eagle.
Photos by Brian Glennon , KillerWhale.ca

Waiting for the cousins

J pod continues to make us all happy by being in the area on a daily basis. Historically the rest of the Clan (K and L Pod) ,who have been away for 5 months, will make their return to the area in the coming weeks. Always very exciting. Photos by Brian Glennon , KillerWhale.ca

transients with calf

Late in the day we located J pod travelling South in Rosario Strait there was a number of unidentified whales and we realized that this was a group of transients trailing J pod, perhaps a hunting strategy? The transients later showed up in Haro Strait near Henry Island travelling north. The Male is T87. Photos by Brian Glennon , Killerwhale.ca

Southern Residents , Georgia Strait

J Pod made another appearance today , they were last seem heading toward the Fraser River after cruising the Gulf Islands for the day. They seem to really love getting through Active Pass and entering the Strait , always lots of breaching and purcussive behavior. With the exception of several B.C. Ferries running over the whales it was a beautiful evening again, Photos by Brian Glennon

Evening with the J's

Few things could be better than being with J pod on a evening with glass smooth water and warm breezes. J pod was heading for Active Pass very spread out across Haro Strait. They decided to get together into a tight group prior to entering the pass. Photos by Brian Glennon , www.KillerWhale.ca

J Pod , Pelicans

J Pod showed up near San Juan Island early in the day and puttered around in the area for the entire day. The new calf (J42 ) is very active and is taking long dives ( in excess of 2 minutes ) with his mother. The family was very vocal today , several times I had to turn down my hydrophone because I thought the speaker might blow !
Several rare bird sightings today as well. A tufted puffin and several brown pelicans. We seem to be getting these birds with increasing frequency . They are always a treat to see. Photos by Brian Glennon KillerWhale.ca

T14 ( Pender)

A late evening trip made for some great light for photos. We found Pender off the Victoria waterfront hunting sealions. He made several charges at a small sealion but appeared to be unsuccessful. A great change from the high winds and rescues yesterday.

Wild Weather

It was a hard day on the water . We has a Minke whale circle the boat several times near Moresby Island , rather unusual but very elusive. Lots of racing Dalls porpoise in Boundary Bay . No sign of Jpod and the new calf , hopefully tomorrow. It was very rough on the return trip to Victoria. Tough day for photography as fear of getting your gear soaked was very real. A complimentary saltwater facial rejuvenator was included free of charge.(see photo)