Orca Spirit Adventures

2008-05-18T08:54:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 17

With flat calm seas and sunny skies, the Pacific Explorer and its intrepid crew of Captain Brad and naturalists Tim and Corey headed into the Strait of Juan De Fuca with a large group of adventurous passengers. As we passed Trial Island and headed towards Discovery Island, we encountered a large group of harbour porpoise. This normally shy miniature cetaceans were a thrill for our guests and crew alike. The calm seas allowed us some excellent views of these normally shy creatures. After a brief but fantastic visit, we headed east towards San Juan Island in search or orcas.

Not to be disappointed, we found some members of J-pod just off Pile Point. Immediately upon arriving with the whales, we were treated to one of the most exciting behaviours one can have the privilege of seeing - high-speed porpoising! In the porpoising manoeuvre, whales may jump almost clear of the water and can reach maximum speeds that are estimated to over 30 mph. The grace and were of these majestic animals is truly a sight to behold. We also were able to watch whales foraging, it was great to see these amazing predators in action. Satisfied with another astounding adventure, we headed back to the harbour.

2008-05-18T08:51:00.000-07:00

Friday, May 16

A long way for J’s

What a superb day to be out on the water. The sun was shining, seas were calm, and it’s the first day of the year I was in shorts and t-shirt. (I’ve been waiting for this day all year!). Now all I had to do was see J-pod and it would be a “pearla” of a day!

Both of our covered boats, the Orca Spirit and the Pacific Explorer headed out this afternoon with a report of J-pod quite a bit north of Victoria, up around the Gulf Islands. We were worried they had gone a bit too far for a regular trip but we decided to chance it as we wanted to show our Southern Hemisphere passengers the biggest member of the dolphin family, the wonder that is Orcinus orca. We travelled east across the Victoria/Oak Bay waterfront into the Haro Strait and across to San Juan Island. From there we headed north up to Stuart Island where we travelled through John’s Pass (a narrow body of water between Stuart Island and John’s Island), then out into Boundary Pass and then up around the south-east corner of Saturna Island, and there, my friends, is where we came across our favourite resident orcas,-J-pod. And a very active J-pod I might add! Many a tail slap, pec slap, breach, cartwheel and some very big spyhops where they were bringing themselves almost half way out of the water.
Passengers were ‘ooing’ and ‘aahing’ at this marvellous sight, and although we could only stay with these majestic creatures a short while, our passengers from Down Under certainly impressed by their active and playful behaviour. Now it’s not everyday that you get to see a 5 tonne animal throw itself up and out of the water, so to even see a breach, or a spyhop is incredibly lucky. I like to sometimes think that they’re just showing off for us. Maybe they are…

A magnificent trip on a magnificent afternoon, with a 70 nm round trip for passengers to enjoy this great BC weather. Stick with it sunshine, I think the orcas like it when you leave the clouds behind and come out on your own.

2008-05-18T08:41:00.000-07:00

Thursday, May 15

Hi!
Thanks again for the amazing tour today. It was amazing. Once I got back to my condo and started enlarging my photos I realized that I had some fairly good ones so I thought I'd send them to you. Obviously those who got the breeching have the best photos, but I thought these were fairly good. There is one that is kind of pixilated because I zoomed in so close but I think its still possible to identify which orca it is if you have to chart to compare it with. Hope you have great luck in the future with your whale tours.
Melissa Lindsay

Thank you Melissa - Great photos! We've made notes on those we were able to identify below. Orca Spirit Crew

The above photo is of J2 "Granny" - the oldest Resident Orca! Her estimated birth year is 1911.

The above photo shows J33 "Keet", born in 1996.

2008-05-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Thursday, May 15

2008-05-14T13:26:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, May 14

What can I say.....I love my job! We spent our morning dividing our attention between transient orcas, bald eagles and harbour seals. At times the passengers and crew didn't know which way to look.

We started out of the harbour with a positive attitude despite the grey cloud filled skies overhead. And right we were, just 35 minutes east of Oak Bay we came across a small group of orcas. I, Sheenah (marine naturalist), was able to identify them as a large male T87, traveling with females T88 & T90 and T90's calf. After about 20 minutes of traveling north bound along a tide line, the transient changed direction. We noticed quickly that this was to join up with another group of transient orcas, the T124's (another 4 individuals, ID by another vessel in the area).

Now the group of 8 individuals were heading strait for Victoria's water front. We were able to enjoy the whales, all the while, checking the shore line of Chatham and Chain Island. We were fortunate enough to see 4 bald eagles, one of which was still immature without the distinctive white head and 3 different areas where harbour seals were hauled out on the rocks. And don't forget, the orcas were with us the entire time. We said good-bye to the orcas as we passed the 100 year old Trail Island light house and finished with a little tour of Victoria's outer harbour.

2008-05-14T11:43:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, May 13

The rainy skies could not stop the excited guest and crew aboard the Orca Spirit today. Before we even left Victoria’s harbour, our Captain Brad, had word the J-Pod (consisting of 24 members) were heading south down the Rosario Strait. The Orca Spirit made a direct path east, and after an hour, met up with a spread out foraging group.

While on scene, for both the 1pm and 5 pm tours, we were able to get great looks at such whales as two young teenagers, Mike (J26, 17 yrs) and Blackberry (J27, 17yrs), who were traveling with Mike’s family. Mike’s mom Slick (J16, 38 yrs) was there, along with his brother Keet (J33, 12 yrs), and two sisters (Alki –J36 9 years, and J42, J-Pod’s newest, and yet to be named member. She is one year old) We also got a great look at Riptide (J30, a sprouting male) as he tail lobbed passed us. To top off the sighting, we dropped the hydrophone and enjoyed the calls and echolocation of a tight family unit.

On our way back, we also saw many Dall’s porpoise, cormorants, pigeon Guillemots, gulls and a lone bald eagle at the northern tip of Trial Island.

2008-05-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some AMAZING photos taken by onboard passenger Tony Bamberger of our recent Pacific White-Sided Dolphin sightings!

2008-05-13T12:00:00.000-07:00

Monday, May 12

Well what a bloody amazing trip today was. Sorry readers but I have to say bloody as that really is the only way that this Aussie can describe how great a trip it was this afternoon.
We headed out of the harbor to calm, almost glass-like Salish Sea waters with a report of creatures that aren’t usually seen in these waters. Upon approaching the south-western side of San Juan Island and viewing some rather hook-like, bicoloured grey/white dorsal fins, we were able to confirm these creatures as Pacific White-sided Dolphins. Although these creatures are found throughout the North Pacific it is somewhat rare to get these creatures so far south of the island as they are typically found in the northern waters around Vancouver Island. Perhaps they were on vacation? I’d never seen these creatures before in the wild and Captain Brad had never seen them in these waters, and he’s been working on whale watching boats for 4 years! What an absolute treat! We observed 4 individuals travelling together, and being the gregarious, playful bow riding dolphins that they are, passengers were extremely lucky to witness these animals bow-ride on a couple of other boats, giving us some great photo opportunities. The “lags”, as they are commonly called around this region (shortened from their Genus name Lagenorhynchus), went from boat to boat riding the bow wave and then the wake created from the vessel motors. Then, it was Orca Spirit’s turn! The lags came right up and swum around the bow of our boat, and because the water was so calm and clear we could easily see their white underside with prominent light grey patch on their foreside and a narrow light grey ‘suspender’-like stripe across the top half of the body below the dorsal fin. They then began to ride the wake of our boat and passengers were absolutely delighted to see these two metre long graceful delphinids swim just under the swells created by our boat and porpoise out occasionally, giving us some great Kodak moments. Check out the photos below. You will notice the distinctive grey/white hooked dorsal fin in the first photo, and the other two are of these lags riding in the wake of the Orca Spirit.

After observing these white-sided dolphins play in our wake we thought it best to let another vessel experience the beauty and grace of these animals, so we slowed down and the lags veered off into calmer waters. As the waters were so calm we went and checked out an area known as Hein Bank, which is a shallower body of water between Dungeness Bay, Washington State USA and southern San Juan Island, as there are often baleen whales feeding in this region, but unfortunately not today. So we headed back to Victoria, seeing plenty of harbor porpoises, and then stopping off at the Chain Islands and seeing plenty of pregnant harbor seals hauled out on the rocks, and also a bald eagle perched up on a cormorant’s nest. It truly was a fantastic afternoon to be out on the water, with passengers and crew alike being extremely lucky to be able to view Pacific White-sided Dolphins frolic in the wake of boats. Who knows if we will ever see them this far south again anytime soon. Let’s sure hope so! Days like today though cannot help but make you feel so lucky to be able to view such a diversity of marine mammals in their natural habitat, and all within a short distance from the harbor!

2008-05-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

Sunday May 11

“Sunday, adventure seas Sunday”

With a strong south easterly wind blowing off the Victoria waterfront, and two trips out today for Orca Spirit, passengers got a little extra “adventure” on their Marine Wildlife Tour.

9am trip
After getting through some bumpy seas as we headed east, water was a lot calmer in the north of Haro Strait. We headed across Spieden Channel to Spieden Island where we observed two bald eagles soaring close to the shoreline. They then landed on a nearby branch to enable passengers to get some great photos.
Spieden Island is a little bit different to other islands in that it is privately owned by the founder and major shareholder of Oakley, Inc, and was once used for big game hunting. There are still exotic species on the island such as Mouflon sheep, which passengers were fortunate enough to see grazing on the grass. After Spieden we cruised around scanning the water for anything marine mammal-like while appreciating the beautiful coastline this part of the world has to offer. We observed some Harbor Seals hauled out on a rock at Chatham Island then made the bumpy ride home. Passengers definitely enjoyed the bumps and water spraying over the top deck, and it certainly made for an adventurous morning trip.

1pm trip
With winds not having died down from this morning’s trip we headed east again, and then headed north along the Vancouver Island coastline, stopping off for passengers to see an active bald eagle’s nest on Sidney Island; plenty of gulls, cormorants, Canadian geese, and pigeon guillemots on Mandarte Island (which is in fact a bird sanctuary); and a great photo opportunity of a bald eagle sitting upon a directional marker. After viewing such a diversity of bird life we headed further north to Stuart Island, just south of Turn Point (named so as it is a major turning point cargo ships must make on their voyage to/from Vancouver), and low and behold, we came across half a dozen Dall’s porpoises that appeared to be foraging. Passengers were certainly excited to see these little creatures, which only get to just over 2m in length, but weigh around 200kg and are in fact one of the fastest swimming cetaceans, clocked at around
55 kph! After spending a bit of time with these robust porpoises (often mistaken as baby killer whales) it was time to make our way back to Victoria and again, passengers sure got a bit of a thrill ride on the way home. The kids on board were certainly enjoying it! After safely making it back to the harbor we farewelled our happy passengers, who were extremely lucky enough to witness Dall’s foraging around in the water column. We’ll hopefully see you “baby killer whales” again soon.

2008-05-12T09:58:00.001-07:00

Saturday, May 10

This afternoon, the Orca Spirit headed out into Juan De Fuca Strait in search of orcas and other wildlife. We headed east out of the harbour towards Trial Island and the Chain Islets. Our first stop of the trip was Great Chain Island, home to a nesting colony of double-crested cormorants. When we arrived at the island, we found the cormorants not in their nest, but on the water, waiting for a bald eagle that had perched on the nesting mounds to leave. Nearby, we cruised through the Chain Islets, and observed several harbour seals hauled out on the extremely low tide.

Travelling southwest of the Chain Islets, we headed southwest out into the strait when we encountered a huge group of harbour porpoise, easily numbering well over one hundred. These normally shy cetaceans were foraging in the waters around our boat with our engines shut off to minimize our impact. We listened to the quiet puffing of these miniature whales in the calm waters. It was a fantastic experience.

We left the porpoises and headed in a big south-western arc past Race Rocks. Our trip took us to Beecher Bay and into Whirl Bay where we encountered another majestic mature bald eagle perched in a tree. Our last stop of the trip was Race Rocks, where in addition to the historic lighthouse, we observed elephant seals, harbour seals and were thrilled with a fantastic northern (Steller) sea lion encounter. Shortly before leaving the ecological reserve, we noticed 3 sea lions swimming near the edge of the kelp forest. The sea lions were watching us as much as we were watching them. It was a lovely way to conclude another excellent trip.

2008-05-12T09:23:00.000-07:00

Friday May 9
J Pod returns!

Well what a fantastic day to be on an Orca Spirit boat! ‘Aquatic Dancer’, one of our zodiacs, captained by Cheri and trainee driver Tim, headed south out of Victoria Harbour on a 9am trip determined to find the wonder that is orca. We got an unconfirmed report that someone on land had spotted “critters” on the west side of San Juan Island, so we cranked the wheel to port and headed to San Juan Island, hoping to confirm the sighting. As we arrived on scene we could see blows off in the distance, and they were quite spread out. Transient killer whales (mammal-eating) don’t seem to travel this far apart we thought, could our beloved Resident killer whales (fish-eating) returned after being away for just over a month? There was only one way to tell. We needed to get a visual on a saddle patch (at the base of the dorsal fin) to see if it was “open”. Sure enough, after positioning ourselves offshore from the whales and out of their path, a female individual surfaced and we noticed a little open whisp at the top of the saddle patch. Yes, it was a resident, and yes, it was a member of J-pod (J11, aka ‘Blossom’), and yes it meant that J-pod had returned to our waters! Cheri and I couldn’t contain our excitement! Passengers were somewhat stunned as to our enthusiasm, but this truly was a wondrous occasion. Being the first whale watch boat on scene was very special, and the passengers certainly appreciated watching these amazing creatures forage, tail slap, pec slap, and even witness a breach off in the distance. Then came a familiar dorsal fin about 200m off our port stern, a male orca that is iconic in these waters and the most photographed killer whale in the world – J1, aka “Ruffles”. It was fantastic seeing Ruffles and his well over 5ft tall ruffled dorsal fin again, after he and the other 24 members of J-pod had been away for a month. After explaining the threats of salmon decline and environmental contamination facing these amazing, yet Endangered animals, it was time for us to head back to Victoria. Upon arriving back to the docks we had a boat load of passengers (and drivers!) with grins from ear to ear. What a fantastic morning trip it was. Stay tuned and read the next blog of our afternoon encounter with J-pod.

(See photos of driver Cheri “displaying” J-pod and their return, and also of passengers on the zodiac watching these graceful dolphins at play)

The afternoon trip on the ‘Orca Spirit’ headed out of the harbor with an eager Captain Brad and marine naturalist Tim, and a bunch of passengers that had no idea as to what sort of excitement they were in for. We headed back across to San Juan Island in the hope that J-pod were still around, and sure enough, they were! As a marine naturalist it really is incredible to witness passenger’s reactions the first time they see killer whales, and this afternoon’s trip certainly had some “in awe” passengers. We were very very fortunate enough to witness several breaches, by both juveniles and adults. It really is spectacular to see an animal that can weigh up to 6 tonnes propel it’s entire body a few feet out of the water, turn it sideways, then come crashing down with an almighty splash. We were also able to observe tail slaps, reverse tail slaps, pec slaps and some close travelling by the various members of the matrilines. With a hydrophone deployed and plugged in to our onboard speakers, passengers were able to hear the calls and clicks of these majestic creatures, and from personal experience and studying these vocalisations first hand last Fall, they really are fascinating and intriguing. Below are a couple of pictures of the passengers watching and filming these killer whales.

We left J-pod and headed across to Discovery Island where we saw over 30 Harbor Seals hauled out, plenty of which were looking very pregnant. These females are due to give birth in the coming months, at which time these haulouts will be littered with pups, but after 4-6 weeks they are left to fend for themselves, so some are often stranded, and as a result taken to refuges, rehabilitated, and released back into the wild.

Well what a fantastic day it was to be out on the water. Our resident J-pod returned after being away for just over a month, and there were some very lucky passengers onboard our zodiac in the morning and covered boat in the afternoon.
Welcome back J-pod, we certainly missed you, and hope to see you again very soon!

2008-05-12T09:21:00.000-07:00

Thursday, May 8

An amazing Elephant seal sighting today. Once at Race Rocks, south west of Victoria's Harbour, we came across a record number of elephant seals hauled out on the top of the rocks. 11 individuals were counted. This is rare because elephant seals only come ashore for 3 months total in a year, for mating and moulting only, so to get this many at once was a really treat for the guests and crew alike. We also saw many harbour seals and stellar sealions on the rocks and fishing the same waters around Race Rocks. We then headed off shore to the middle of the Strait of Juan De Fuca. There we came across a large group of Harbour Porpoises. They were spread over a large area but were estimated at 50+. We watch and enjoyed them as they swam and fed all around the boat. Trial Island was our next stop. The 100 year old light house sets a beautiful back drop to view more harbour seals and 2 large bald eagles. The calm seas, warm sunshine and the marine wildlife made for another great day on the water!

2008-05-12T09:20:00.001-07:00

Wednesday, May 7

Today's tour was spent on the south east side of Vancouver Island. We left the Victoria harbour due south in search of whales, porpoises and other marine wildlife. Our search lead us to the amazing islands located between Victoria and the San Juan Islands (a group of American Islands south east of Victoria). As we toured along we were pleased to find a large haul out of Harbour seals on the north tip of Discovery Island. 20+ individuals covered the rocks while basking in the sun and keeping an eye out for the next opportunity at some lunch. From there we continued north to Spieden Island. The unique history of this island gave us much to look at, and to the surprise of the guest, usual animals. On the island there are many long horned sheep and a unknown variety of asian deer. On our way passed Sydney Island we came across a large mature bald eagle as it enjoyed the beautiful view and sunshine. Even with out any sign of whales, the guests and crew all had a fabulous time.

2008-05-02T08:43:00.000-07:00

Friday, May 1
First day in May, what a whale of a day!

This morning, the first day in May, Orca Spirit had both covered boats head south out into the Salish Sea, and what a lucky couple of boats they were! The ‘Ultimate Bachelor Orca’ known as “Pender” (T14) graced us with presence this morning in Beecher Bay, just west of Race Rocks. He had appeared to be foraging when we arrived on scene then began to make his way east along the coastline towards Race Rocks. Our Spanish tour group passengers were on a tight time schedule so being able to see an orca, and to have him just south-west off Victoria was certainly a treat. Although ‘Pender’ is typically a lone transient orca that travels in these waters, he truly is a sight to see. He is one of the biggest killer whales we get in this region, estimated to be around 10m in length, a dorsal fin about 2 feet wide and 6 feet high, and weighing in around
6-7 tonnes, he certainly gives passengers that “wow” factor. He even gives the naturalists that “wow” factor!

Attached are some photos of this mornings trip, with passengers on the ‘Pacific Explorer’ getting a great view of ‘Pender’, marine naturalist Sheenah and Captain Brad aboard the ‘Orca Spirit’, and a single shot of the wonder that is the big lone male ‘Pender’ (T14).

What a great afternoon it was to be out on the water, with passengers certainly getting a great experience aboard the ‘Orca Spirit’. We headed southwest out of Victoria Harbour into calm waters and only a few miles from the entrance we came across ‘The Big Man on Campus’ killer whale known as “Pender” (T14). Conditions for viewing this lone magnificent male orca were perfect, and passengers certainly were surprised to be seeing a killer whale so early in the trip (as were the naturalists!). ‘Pender’ was displaying what we believe is a typical dive pattern, with 3-5 shallow dives and then a longer deeper dive, often up to 10 mins, and of course, knowing where he was going to surface next was really anyone’s guess. He appeared to be zigzagging north towards the entrance to Victoria Harbour, and in doing so the passengers were able to get some great photos. We decided to leave ‘Pender’ to do whatever it is almost 40 year-old male orcas do, and head towards Race Rocks. At Race Rocks we were lucky enough to witness around 20 Stellar Sea Lions hauled out on the rock, with a few male Californian Sea Lions resting among the big males. I did notice a couple of female Stellar’s on the rock, which indicates that it definitely is the time of year when they head further north to breed on the offshore island beaches. We normally only see males hauled out, but as there were some females, it let’s us know that soon the Stellar’s will be gone for a couple of months, and so to see that many in this region at this time of year certainly is a treat to passengers. There were also a couple of juvenile Elephant Seals hauled out, and plenty of fat Harbour Seals (aka “rock sausages”) on the lower rocks. It’s pupping season at the moment for the Harbour Seals, so there are quite a few pregnant females out there, soon to give birth. I’m sure ‘Pender’ is aware of this as he loves to feed primarily on Harbor Seals. Perhaps this is why we have been seeing him somewhat regularly these last couple of months? After leaving Race we headed out into the flat calm waters of the Strait of Juan De Fuca and looped around to where Pender was, this time only a mile or so south-east of Victoria. The water around here must be pretty good if we are getting killer whales right off Victoria! Passengers were able to view Pender in all his glory a few more times before it was time to scoot back into the Harbour. A fantastic trip this afternoon, with passengers thoroughly enjoying themselves. What a great day to start the month! We hope to see you again soon Pender. Take it easy mate!

2008-04-30T14:53:00.003-07:00

Wednesday, April 30

Both the our large vessels, the Orca Spirit and the Pacific Explorer, headed east after a report of orcas came in earlier that morning. Right away we found ourselves enjoying harbour seals and a large bald eagle as they utilize the shore line of Trial Island for hunting and resting. After getting a great look at the 100 year old light house, on the southern tip of the island, we continued east in our search. We stopped to view the many sea birds that use the Great Chain Islands (a protected bird sanctuary) as a home and feeding ground. We saw such birds as pigeon guillemots, cormorants, Canadian geese and gulls. From there we headed north east to the Chattam and Discovery Islands. These two islands offer much in the way of beautiful scenery, but top the charts with their amazing historical significants in our area (both were named after boats first used to explore our area between 1792 and 1794). We then headed out into the middle of the Haro Strait looking for other larger marine life. We were unable to find any whales but all the guests on board were thrilled with all the animals and fabulous coast line that British Columbia has. We made our way back along Ogdan Point and into the Victoria harbour and called it a day, until tomorrow.....

2008-04-30T14:52:00.001-07:00

Tuesday, April 29

On today's tour we headed west of Victoria in search of the many marine wildlife that the west coast of Canada has to offer. We began by searching the shoreline in the hopes to locating transient orcas as they patrolled the area for food. We made our way as far west as Beacher Bay where we saw many harbour seals hauled out on the rocks enjoying the beautiful sun. We were even lucky enough to get a good look at a new pup. From there we headed into a near by cove called Whirl Bay. We had a good look at a large bald eagle's nest (about 6 feet deep and 9 feet across). As we were getting ready to leave this nice little cove a bald eagle came flying in, what an amazing view. From here we headed off shore looking for resident orcas humpbacks and porpoises. With little in the way of large marine mammals, we found ourselves close to a marine park called Race Rocks. Once inside the small passes and islands we were very happy to find some large elephant seals (about 5) and many stellar sealions in the water and on the rocks. We had a great time as they all swam, fought for space on the rocks and made much noise. All in all another great day on the water.

2008-04-27T08:55:00.001-07:00

Saturday, April 26

Well what a fantastic morning to be out on the water this bright sunny Saturday. Conditions were great, with bright blue skies and flat calm waters. The 'Orca Spirit' went out with Captain John at the helm, marine naturalist Tim, and a bunch of eager passengers enjoying this Victorian Spring sunshine. We headed south out of the Harbor to the Strait of Juan De Fuca and looped around to Race Rocks where there was an abundance of Harbor Seals hauled out on the southern rocks. On the middle rock we observed around 20 Stellar Sea Lions that were quite active, and in amongst them was some very noisy Californian Sea Lions, barking to let us know they're not the only eared seal on the rock. A rare and exciting sight was in fact half a dozen juvenile Elephant Seals that were hauled out on the top rock, but instead of seeing them laying there lounging around, they actually had their heads held high showing off their proboscis and were giving each other a few snarls and nips on the neck. 'Twas certainly a pinniped infested haul-out!

After Race we proceeded to head further west along the spectacular coastline and were able to observe Bald Eagles in flight and perched on a rock, and we were lucky enough to see a raccoon on the rocks. Passengers certainly didn't expect to see land mammals on a marine wildlife tour! All in all though a great trip on this sunny spring Saturday morning.

After our fantastic morning wildlife tour, we received word that a large group of transient orcas had been located moving southbound in Haro Strait. Heading east, we travelled to Zero Rock, a harbour seal haulout and known transient hunting locale. We arrived on scene to find a group of whales that included Pender (T14), probably the most well known transient on the coast of BC. Fortunately (for the harbour seals anyways), the orcas did not appear to be hungry and were content to swim slowly southbound.

We travelled with the whales for almost an hour travelling slowly south with them and we were treated to some excellent passes. Besides Pender, we saw members of the T36 and T49 group, including at least one young calf, about eight orcas total. It was a sight to behold as these whales travelled in a resting formation. As an additional stop on the tour, we travelled to Chatham Island, where we viewed many harbour seals hauled out on the low tide. It was a great way to conclude the trip as our guests were able to see the majestic transient orcas and their favourite prey. After a nice cruise by Trial Island and a majestic bald eagle sighting we headed back to the harbour. It was another great day on the Orca Spirit.

2008-04-26T10:48:00.000-07:00

Friday, April 25

I believe spring may have finally arrived in Victoria! After a slow start to spring, we enjoyed a beautiful sunny morning as we headed out on our newest adventure. We had word, from local fisherman, that a group of approximately 4 transient Orcas were heading east towards Victoria in the Strait of Juan De Fuca.

After a search involving 3 boats, we came across not 4, but 8 Orcas off Vancouver Island's Beechy Head. Traveling together were mature females (4 tons, 23 feet in length), juvenile males (3 tons, 18 feet in length) and 2 calves ( at birth 400lbs, 6.5 feet in length). As the view continued, the crew were able to identify the group as the T49A's and the T36's. We enjoyed these large graceful mammals as they traveled the shore line in search for food, generally smaller marine mammals such as Seals, Sealions and Porpoise. All the guests on board were able to get a great understanding of the behavour, while capturing photos that will last a life time.

Once a great view was had by all, we traveled back towards Victoria, only to visit Race Rocks where we stopped to take a look at other marine mammals. We were able to see the Seals and Sealions, giving the guests a better understanding of our circle life on this coast. All the animals hauled out on the rocks were also the major food source for the previously viewed transient orcas. What a great way to end an amazing tour.

2008-04-26T10:47:00.001-07:00

Wednesday, April 23

Our guests and crew had another great day out on the water. We started our search for wildlife by heading east out of the Victoria Harbour. We quickly meet up with some amazing harbour seals hauled out on the rock surrounding Trial Island. We were happy to see a variety of young and old, ranging from newborns (25 lbs, 2.5 feet in length) to mature males and females (300+ lbs, 5.5 feet in length). All the while enjoying the beautiful view of the 100 year old light house that marks the most southern tip of the island.

From here we headed off shore in search of any other marine life we could find. This brought us to a marine park south west of Victoria's harbour, known as Race Rocks. It too has a large light house (lite in 1860) but even more spectacular was the abundance of marine life found here. We were able to view California Sealions (1000lbs), Stellar Sealions (2000lbs) and the amazing Elephant Seal (5000lbs) in their natural habitat as they lay in the sun anf fish in the bull kelp rich waters. We were even able to get a great look at an immature Bald Eagle as it perch its molted brown body with its early stages of white head feathers while over looking the waters in search of a big fish for lunch.

All in all another successful day of wildlife viewing in the waters surrounding the sounthern tip of Vancouver Island.

2008-04-25T09:04:00.000-07:00

Tuesday April 22nd

With a full boat load dominated by passengers from ‘Down Under’ we headed out to the Strait in search of some Pacific Northwest marine life. Conditions were somewhat choppy but passengers enjoyed it, not as much as the complimentary hot chocolates though! We scanned the open Strait and the coastline and managed to track down a Harbor porpoise just south-west of Race Rocks. We looped around Beecher Bay and came across a Bald Eagle perched up on a rock, and were lucky enough to see it take off and soar through the air with its almost 7 ft wingspan. We then headed across to Race Rocks where there were around 20 Northern Sea Lions being quite playful and vocal. We were fortunate enough to witness some aggressive behaviour and also a few hauling out and moving about the rock. There were a few Californian Sea Lions on the rock, as were 4 juvenile Elephant Seals and plenty of Harbor Seals on the neighbouring rocks.
‘Twas a pinniped fiesta, with true seals and eared seals galore! It’s truly amazing the species richness in this region of the world, and the passengers certainly were able to appreciate this.

2008-04-25T09:01:00.000-07:00

Monday April 21st

The Pacific Explorer headed out of Victoria Harbor early this morning with Captain Brad at the helm and marine naturalist Tim on his first solo trip. The decision was made to head south towards Port Angeles as it was relatively calm.
We made it past the Canadian/US border but fortunately no US Customs officials were there to check our passports. We headed west up the Strait of Juan De Fuca with eyes peeled and constantly scanning the horizon. We looped around inshore to Whirl Bay where there were a few lone Harbor Seals sunbathing on the rocks and then headed across to Race Rocks to see what may be hauled out there. We were in luck, with around 30 male Stellar Sea Lions with heads held high and being quite vocal. It’s great to still see them this time of year as we know very soon they will leave us for a few months to go further north for mating.
There were also 3 juvenile Elephant seals on the top of the rock, no doubt here to moult before they make their long migration out to sea over summer. A few male California Sea Lions were also amongst the Stellar’s, and were also quite vocal with their distinctive ‘dog-like’ bark.
A very pinniped dominant trip, and the passengers sure were impressed with the diversity of seals and sea lions they saw.

2008-04-13T08:22:00.001-07:00

A "grayt" whale of a day
Friday April 11th, 2008

For the first time this season we had two boats head out on a 9am trip from Victoria. It was the first trip of the season for 'MV Orca Spirit', with Captain John at the helm and marine naturalists Sheenah and Chelsea aboard. 'MV Pacific Explorer' was captained by Brad with marine naturalists Cheri and Tim also aboard. So with full crew and full passengers we headed out to the calm waters of the Salish Sea, not knowing what the trip would bring us. We headed east to Trial Island where we observed several Harbor Seals hauled out on the rocks and a few playing around in the water. We were also were able to see a lone Bald Eagle perched up on a sign pole. We then proceeded to head in a south-westerly direction towards Constance Bank, with water conditions perfect for spotting whales. Once out into the Strait of Juan De Fuca we headed inshore to Beecher Bay. As we looped around the small island in the middle of the bay, with the water looking like glass, beautiful coastline and spectacular Olympic mountain ranges in the background, it really did look like a scene from a postcard. Very picturesque to say the least! As we headed back east to Race Rocks Ecological Reserve we hear the scream "whale!". As I looked inshore to confirm the sighting, we had indeed come across a gray whale, slowly making it's way along the coastline, westbound towards the Pacific. Being the only boats out on the water we were able to observe this gray whale forage and even show off it's tail-fluke for all to see. With the passengers on a high we proceeded to head to Race Rocks where we observed more than 10 male Stellar Sea Lions, a couple of Californian Sea Lions, a couple of Elephant Seals, and several Harbor Seals all hauled out on the same rock. Four species of pinniped on one rock, you can't get much more diverse than that! So with crew and passengers witnessing some spectacular marine life off this "species rich" southern coast of Vancouver Island, all in all it was a great trip.

(written by Tim, marine naturalist)

2008-04-09T10:52:00.001-07:00

NEW FOR 2008
Lunch & Dinner Cruises Onboard the
MV PAcific Explorer

Orca Spirit Adventures is excited to be partnered with the Blue Crab Catering to offer group lunch and dinner cruises in Victoria's Inner Harbour. With a capacity of 70 passengers these cruises are a 'must do' activity for your group!
Here are some photos of our first lunch cruise this season - it was DELICIOUS!

2008-03-23T18:31:00.000-07:00

The Season Starts with Transient Sightings!

Sunday, March 23

The Pacific Explorer left the dock on schedule this calm Easter Sunday afternoon, and the decision was made by Captain Brad to head North East towards San Juan Island. After naturalists Cheri and newcomer Tim chatted to the passengers about all things marine mammal we ended up about 3 miles west of Lime Kiln Lighthouse, and were fortunate to come across some Tansient killer whales! There was a group of 5 individuals, and a couple of lone individuals travelling in a northerly direction, and upon closer viewing we were able to identify the big male as T20. There were 2 calves present within the pod that appeared to never leave Mum's side, with the big male T20 trailing closely behind. They would do a couple of shallow dives and then a longer deeper dive, staying down for 3-5 minutes, then would surface again but not where we and the passengers were expecting. After a few more dives and the passengers eagerly awaiting their return to the surface for that magic photo opportunity, the killer whales surfaced quite close to the boat and gave the passengers (and the naturalists) a huge shock and burst of excitement! Cameras were going crazy as these ever so graceful creatures surfaced a few more times in good view of the passengers. Seeing killer whales this time of year is a very special thing, so we were very lucky to witness Transient killer whales going up their business in the wild, and so all passengers and crew were very excited (to say the least!).

Heading back to Victoria we stopped by the Chain Islands and observed a lone Bald Eagle perched up on a rock, and quite a large Cormorant's nest also. The trip back to Victoria was certainly an exciting one! The wind and waves made for an entertaining boat ride and we experienced some sea spray over the side of the vessel. The passengers loved it!
A great trip on this Easter Sunday, with passengers stepping off onto the dock with big grins and a mountain of knowledge to take home.

2007-11-10T11:15:00.000-08:00

Friday, November 9th

This morning, we headed out into the Strait of Juan De Fuca in search of humpback whales, orca and other wildlife. For the first stop of the tour, we traveled to Race Rocks, the spectacular ecological reserve located southwest of Victoria. Here we watched several Steller sea lions jostling for their favourite spot on the rocks and practicing their territorial fighting behaviours that no doubt serve them well on their breeding grounds which they will return to next spring. We also observed a juvenile bald eagle on the northern most rock. We journeyed west of Race Rocks and than back south of Victoria but did not find any humpback whales. We were thrilled to encounter some speedy Dall's porpoise and had an excellent encounter with these fun little cetaceans before we headed back to the harbour.