(A memory from last year):
that we decided to go for an extra day (four days total) just to see how much more we could pack in to our fun-filled quest. And let me tell you, it's tricky traveling around here by open boat in October! The weather can be stunning or it can be downright hideous. We chose the dates for our walk-about a few weeks before and just decided to keep our fingers crossed that the weather would be kind to us. Wow, did we ever luck out! It was nice on all four days of our adventure. A little bit of rain here and there, but for the most part it was sunny, glassy, and gorgeous.
We departed Friday Harbor early in the morning on the 17th. Let me just say one thing - it's cold in October and when you're traveling across the water at 30 knots you need ALL of your winter weather gear. So we decked ourselves out in wool sweaters, fuzzy hats, warm gloves, ski goggles, neck gators, fleece jackets, thermals, and had "hot-packs" stuffed in our boots to keep the toes warm. I also managed to pack on a big down jacket which made me look a bit pregnant with all my other layers underneath! Then, on top of all that, we wear very bright orange anti-exposure suits:
After we loaded our gear into the boat and stuffed our over-dressed bodies into our suits, we were off and zooming north to Nanaimo, B.C. which is about a two and a half hour cruise from Friday Harbor. Here we stop and clear customs (which always takes a while since I'm red-flagged in Canada...don't ask, haha) and this also serves as our last bathroom stop for a while. We don't have a head on the WEX, only a bucket for those "high-water line" emergencies ;)
I think one of the greatest rewards of traveling north (besides the experience itself) are encounters with Pacific White-Sided Dolphins (commonly known as lags because of their scientific name: Lagenorhynchus). These little guys are SO MUCH FUN to hang out with, it's ridiculous! I think Alison, one of our crew members, made a very valid point:
"We need to give these guys a map to the San Juan Islands!"
I would have to say I would 100% agree. We have wonderful, incredible wildlife here in the San Juan Islands, but we only see lags a couple times a year. And when we do see them, there are usually less than six animals hanging out together. If you go up north, sometimes you can see pod sizes numbering in the hundreds! This year was no exception. On our first day, after traveling north through the massive Strait of Georgia, we spotted a small group of dolphins just south-east of Campbell River. We could see them from a LONG distance away due to their extreme acrobatics. We are still not sure if these animals were feeding or merely socializing with one another, but what we witnessed was outstanding! Sometimes lags perform a behavior called 'popcorning'. I think it's pretty obvious as to why it is called that:
We observed this behavior for well over an hour and was certainly one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
After we departed ways from these acrobatic characters, we encountered yet ANOTHER pod of several hundred dolphins just north of Campbell River...and this is only the FIRST day!? Sheesh! We're spoiled already...
On our second day we ventured WEST (for you, Peter) in Johnstone Strait. I am going to call this the day of the humpbacks because that it was. We encountered many humpbacks in Blackney Pass early in the morning, but decided to bounce around for a bit to see if we could locate larger groups of whales or perhaps even find some transient orcas. We buzzed around the Queen Charlotte Strait and it was a beautiful day. Nothing here so we decided to venture west and go around Malcomb Island, which is a notorious orca hang-out. However we noticed that the farther west we went, the colder it became. The clouds shrouded the sea and it looked as if it might rain or we might be covered in fog. Ok...TIME to go back east where the weather is more pleasant. We made a quick stop at Telegraph Cove to use the facilities (again, no bathroom on the boat) and we made our way back to Blackney Pass to have lunch with the dozen humpback whales we encountered there earlier in the day. It was warm outside. The lighting was incredible. It was so amazing being surrounded by so many whales and having them mostly to ourselves. Not a bad lunch date if you ask me. They were simply meandering back and forth in the same area feeding on the multitude of bait balls (large schools of bait fish) that were dotting the area. A very pleasant way to spend the afternoon...
The next day our search for orcas continued, but not until we played with 1,000 dolphins. Another incredible encounter with dolphins and I imagine we played with them for a couple of hours. Many of them were in a playful mood and spent time time surfing on the bow. This combined with the brilliantly glassy water made for some cool photos:
And not only that, but the scenery was shockingly beautiful that day, as well:
The rest of the day was spent zipping around many of the islands around Campbell River. The scenery was amazing, but still no orcas...
The next day...our last day...time to go home...
We left our lodgings at Blind Channel on West Thurlow Island and made our way home. We had one last visit with some humpback whales and another encounter with dolphins, but it was getting late. Time to go. Perhaps no orcas this year...
We entered the giant Strait of Georgia and proceeded to zoom south. Not much going on out here, but calm seas and sunny skies. But WAIT...what's that? Chris spies something off in the distance. We all sit up to take a look. BLOWS! Obviously whales, but I think we all assumed they were humpbacks. We had seen so many humpbacks the past few days... But, hmmmm....they look too small to be humpbacks... could it be...?
ORCAS!:
Two of the animals breached off the bow of the WEX. WOW! Was that ever exciting!:
We certainly were feeling joyous ourselves! Captain Ivan determined they were the T2C's - a group of four transient orcas with a brand-new, perhaps 6-week-old baby:
We were able to spend an hour with these guys, but before long we knew it was time to go. It was getting late and we had a long way to go before dark. BUT! Not before we had another and final encounter with dolphins!
We arrived home safely to Friday Harbor at about 6PM that evening. 630 miles in four days by open zodiac and a plethora of astounding critters, life-changing experiences, and good times spent with good friends. Not bad if you ask me....
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