We thought we’d just send you a email saying thank you for what was a most exhilarating experience, we both felt a bit battered after the trip but thoroughly enjoyed it. Christian (the captain) did a great job following the pod of transient killer whales, and despite a soaking my camera did survive. To prove it I’ve attached one of the pictures I managed to take.

Best wishes

Carol & Trevor Brown

October 14, 2006

The fog began to roll in this morning, and then it was lifting… and then it rolled in again - pea soup thick! We headed out of the harbour hoping for it to break off the waterfront. No such luck. After some discussion with the passengers aboard, we decided to give it a go instead at 1pm. We assembled on board at 1pm and yes, the fog had lifted!! We had heard that J-Pod was off of San Juan Island and headed that way. We hit some fog again, but certainly not as bad as before, and our expert Captain Brad navigated us for a wonderful viewing of J-Pod. We were several miles off the shore of San Juan, when we picked up an extra passenger - a small bird took refuge on our railing (see photo). As soon as the fog lifted enough to see the shore of San Juan Island, the bird continued on its way. After our fantastic resident orca viewing we drove back toward the harbour. On our way we heard there were some Humpback whales off the water front. We had a short visit with the Humpbacks and some Stellers sea lions that were also in the area and then headed for home. What a perfectly fantastic fall trip!

Here are some great photos taken by Captain John onboard the Orca Spirit tours on October 11 and 12th.

October 11, 2006

WOW - What an amazing tour! We went over to San Juan Island first thing this morning. It was another beautiful day. Calm waters, blue skies - not your typical October weather. As we went on our search we found J-Pod. The most amazing thing happened; Mike (J27, a 16 yr old male) came over to our boat and rolled over to lookup at us! It was spectacular! And then we had amazing sightings with the Humpback whales. It is not until these massive animals are so close that you realize their size and power. Another trip for the books!

October 10th - Afternoon Orca Spirit Tour

October 10, 2006

This morning we cruised out of the harbour to find not 2 but 5 Humpback whales! After spending some time watching a calf roll around and play with a few Stellar sea lions we headed east to see J-Pod. We found them fishing in their favorite spot along the San Juan Islands. It was a fantastic tour for all onboard.

For our afternoon tours we headed straight for San Juan Island. J-Pod was great, they decided they wanted to play and put on a nice show for us. Everyone onboard was shocked at the amount of spyhops (see photos above). Eventually we had to leave, but we had just enough time for a visit with the Humpbacks, and were lucky enough to see 6 traveling together. Does it get much better than this? I think not…

October 9, 2006

This morning’s trip was spent with a pair of humpback whales. This mother and calf duo has been visiting a few miles outside of the Victoria harbour for about a month now. After joining in the search pattern for porpoise and orcas, we drifted through Race Rocks to see the seals and sea lions. To finish the trip we were fortunate enough to spot a bald eagle sitting on top of a very tall tree. This was great for the onboard eagle enthusiast we had!

Photos from October 8th Tours

Hi,

I experienced the Zodiac whale watching tour at the beginning of September 2006 and was very fortunate to see many, many Orcas (Resident). I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed the ride and also the excellent and knowledgeable people, who served as our Guides ( I'm sorry I forgot their names, but one of them was Chris, and there was a lady guide and one more gentleman driving the Zodiac, with a cap on). The 'bumps' were thrilling and the whales were beautiful. Wanted to share my favourite photograph from that day.
Keep up the good work!
Regards,
Pranati

October 4th Photos