Looking for Orcas

Coming our way

If you ask where is the best place in the U.S. to reliably see Orcas, you will undoubtedly be told the San Juan Islands off the coast of Washington. For years this was true, which is why Caty and I selected Friday Harbor as our destination for our spur-of-the-moment trip. But, sadly, recently Orcas have been harder and harder to find and our two Whale watches bore this out.

They are there, just not as many or as often

First, you have to understand that there are two types of Orcas (AKA Killer Whales) in the cold Pacific waters off the western U.S. and Canada: Southern Residents and Bigg's (formerly called Transients). They have different habits and they look different (to the trained eye when you can get a good view).

The two types; Photos: NOAA Fisheries

Southern Resident Orcas feed exclusively on fish, with a strong preference for endangered Chinook Salmon. 

They travel in large matriarchal family groups; Photo: Guide to the San Juans

Unfortunately, they are critically endangered because  of boating traffic, pollution and, more critically, low Salmon populations. There are now only 73 known Orcas in this group.

Because they target schools of fish, they can hunt in large groups without needing to be stealthy or quiet.

Southern Residents eating fish; Photo: Guide to the San Juans

We didn't see these; Illustration: Emma Luck

Bigg's (Transient) Orcas hunt marine mammals, including Harbor Seals, Sea Lions, Harbor Porpoises and, occasionally, other types of Whale. 

Bigg's with a Harbor Porpoise; Photo: Whales and Dolphins BC

Because mammals are much more aware of the danger of predators and because they have good hearing, Bigg’s Orcas limit their hunting group size to three to seven individuals, relying on stealth to capture wary prey. 

Bigg's have taller, more triangular dorsal fins with solid grey-forward saddle patches

This was the type we saw; Illustration: Enna Luck

Both of these ecotypes have been routinely found around the San Juan islands, but now Southern Resident Orcas are harder to find because they have shifted their summer feeding grounds to the outer Pacific coast and the Strait of Juan de Fuca as their primary food source, Fraser River Chinook Salmon, continues to decrease in local inland waters. The decline has many causes: 

Marine heatwaves and climate change affect the Salmon's key prey species like Capelin as well as creating severe heat stress and facilitating diseases and parasites.

Man-made structures including dams, culverts and floodgates block historical migration routes, degrading spawning habitats and altering natural water flows. 

 Washington's Snake River Dam is an issue; Photo: Washington State Standard

Fishing practices targeting mixed schools with immature fish skews populations toward younger, smaller individuals with lower overall reproductive capacity.

Currently and fortunately, Bigg’s populations are growing because Seals and Sea Lions are abundant. 

Harbor Seals keep the Orcas near

Over the past 17 years, the time spent by the Orcas around the San Juans has declined by more than 75 percent. They now spend more time near the outer coast and Vancouver Island where food is easier to find.

Whale Watch #1—Maya’s Legacy

Our first Whale watch was an afternoon outing (4:30 to about 7:30) with Maya’s Legacy, a company we had used before. They had grown since out first tour on a cabin cruiser out of Roche Harbor, now offering excursions on much higher-speed boats out of Friday Harbor. We came to realize that fast boats are now critical because you often have to travel quite a distance to see an Orca.

Small, sleek and stable; Photo: Maya's Legacy

We had to go all the way to Vancouver, Canada.

Since we were in a boat, we didn't have immigration issues, but we couldn't disembark

The afternoon was gorgeous – sunny and warm. 

Pretty light

Whale watches can be quite chilly because the northwest’s waters are cold, plus we were going late in the day. 

The warmth was a surprise

The scenery was lovely. As I mentioned in my last blog, the San Juan Islands comprise 172 named islands and reefs. 

Plus countless rocks and islets too small to count

Our trip wove through this seascape, showing us calm blue water, pine-studded islands, steep cliffs, lovely homes and a smattering of lighthouses.

Views along the way

Our first sighting was a small island upon which seven or eight Harbor Seals were hauled out enjoying the sun. 

More were swimming in the water around them

I don’t know what it is about Harbor Seals, but they often look as though they are posing for a formal Renaissance painting.

Nice composition; Photo: Caty Stevens

It is estimated that about 11,000 Harbor Seals live in the Salish Sea, the 6,950 square-mile interconnected network of coastal waterways spanning the international border between southwestern British Columbia and northwestern Washington.

Common around these parts

As I talk about our trip, I may mention its core waterways.

There are so many channels

The Strait of Georgia is between Vancouver Island and the extreme southwestern mainland coast of British Columbia; and the Strait of Juan de Fuca is the main outlet to the Pacific Ocean that between Vancouver Island and the Olympic Peninsula.

A BC Ferries dock on Mayne Island, British Columbia, on the Strait of Georgia

The Salish Sea also includes Seattle’s Puget Sound, along with numerous passages, gulfs and bays.

With all the islands, the Salish Sea has a coastline exceeding 4,600 miles

The Salish Sea's Harbor Seals are the main diet of Bigg’s Orcas, offering about 200,000 to 275,000 calories per Seal. Because mammal-eating Orcas have massive energy demands, a single adult Harbor Seal satisfies only about half to a full day's energetic requirement for an individual Orca. That's why Orcas, which often share catches among pod members, usually hunt multiple times a day. 

A chubby one

After admiring these lovelies, we moved on to our next wildlife sighting: Mouflon Sheep grazing on the relatively barren hills of southern Spieden island.

Spieden Island is unlike most of the other islands

The Sheep are not native, but are now a fixture of the San Juan Islands. 

A Ewe with her buddy, a female Brown-headed Cowbird

They were introduced from Corsica and Sardinia in the 1970s along with European Fallow Deer and Asian Sika Deer to stock an exotic big-game hunting ranch on the privately-owned island. 

A handsome Ram

The commercial hunting venture quickly closed down, but attempts to recapture the animals failed. Left to roam, the Mouflons successfully adapted, established breeding populations. 

They continue to graze freely across the island

Spieden Island remains entirely private property with no public upland access. But, you can easily see the Sheep (and allegedly Deer, although we didn’t see any) foraging along the southern hillsides and shoreline.

Just the Mouflons!

Moving along, our boat detoured between two islands to see the Pigeon Guillemots that hang out there. 

Obviously a good feeding area

Not a new bird for me, these pretty seabirds are still a favorite, primarily because of their bright red legs and mouths ...

Brilliant compared to their black/brown bodies

... and their goofy posture when taking off and landing ...

It takes a bit to get airborne, but once up, they can fly 48 mph; Photo: Caty Stevens

Pigeon Guillemots are found on North Pacific coastal waters from Siberia through Alaska to California.

Fairly common here

They breed and sometimes roost on rocky shores, cliffs and islands close to shallow water.

Pigeon Guillemots are in the Auk family

I was surprised that we didn't see a lot of other birds on this day.

We did see a Bonaparte's Gull, which was a bit rare for this time of year

But, enough of this fun! Let’s find some Orcas!

And, we finally did after traveling almost 60 nautical miles to the Strait of Georgia. 

First sighting

With the city of Vancouver in the distance, we encountered a small group of Bigg's Orcas. 

That's Vancouver shining in the sun

Remember, they stay in small groups and hunt stealthily so as not the spook the Harbor Seals they are looking for.

Pssst! There were some back thataway!

The group we saw comprised three members of the “T100” pod led by 47-year-old matriarch Hutchins who seemed to be seriously hunting and keeping her distance from us. 

Two of the three Orcas

She was so far away and so stealthy that I didn't even get a photo of her.

Hutchins on a more fun day; Photo: Kim Parry

She was joined by two of her sons, 24-year-old Laurel (identified as T100C) and his baby brother, 12-year-old Estrella (T100F). 

Laurel and Estrella have a significant size difference

Not with them were other pod members, their 17-year-old sister Tharaya (T100E) who is often in this group or their 29-year-old sister Freya (T100B) and her offspring, 16-year-old Seidr (T100B1, male) and two-year-old Selkie (T100B3, female). Freya, Seidr and Selkie are not seen as often with Hutchins.

It's most often Laurel and Estrella

I had not realized before this trip that mammal-eating Orcas tend to be in such small groups. Although I should have known because most Orcas I have seen had been in little groups.

I guess bigger pods I have seen were “Resident” (AKA fish-eating) Orcas. Or, maybe not ...

While they usually stay in small units, Bigg's Orcas occasionally gather into larger temporary aggregations or "superpods" (sometimes called "T-Parties") containing 20 or more individuals, often for socializing or cooperating on larger prey like Minke or Gray Whales.

We saw a large pod in Antarctica in 2024, but that area has its own ecotypes that I won't get into here.

This Antarctica subspecies, Gerlache Orcas, eats Penguins, Fish, Squid and Seals

As I said, Bigg’s used to be called “Transient.” Their new name honors Dr. Michael Bigg, who developed photo-identification techniques for Orcas in the 1970s.

He also discovered that mammal-eating pods moved independently of fish-eating pods

"Transient" became scientifically misleading because marine-mammal eaters often spend more predictable, continuous time in areas like the Salish Sea than the fish-eating "Resident" pods do.

How cool would it be to have this "predictable" view from your house?

Scientists and taxonomists are discussing whether Resident is still the best label now that fish-eating pods travel widely searching for dwindling Salmon. Discussions with Indigenous Tribal Groups in North America are exploring potential common-name updates.

I wish we had seen Residents (which seemed have moved their residence north to Canada). We saw lots of reports of big, flamboyantly active pods further north.

But, we did have some good views, especially of Laurel

Anyway, while Hutchins was hunting (but apparently not catching), Laurel and Estrella just seemed to be swimming ...

Often in tandem ...

Sometimes close to our boat ...

And, really close to the only other Whale watching boat in the vicinity

We got some good views, but not a lot of variety or out-of-the-water postures. Both Caty and I did get some stunning head-on shots as the two boys headed straight for our boat before diving under it. I am not sure I ever got such a close-up “ramming speed” shot before. 

Intimidating; Photo: Caty Stevens

Now, on most (not all) Whale watches I have been on, once we have spent time with one Whale or one pod, we move on in search of another. This time, we didn’t. 

Because they knew there were no other Orcas close enough to see on this day

Don’t get me wrong, these were good close-up sightings (and Caty’s second-ever encounter), but I am a bit spoiled. 

I have seen babies, breaches, rolls and tail slaps, plus spy hops

This trip was comparatively tame

Oh, well, we had another watch the next day.

Would we see the same Orcas tomorrow?

As the sun started to sink, we needed to head back. 

Boat wake

On the way, we saw another Bald Eagle (the San Juan Islands are a great bet for Bald Eagles).

Perched in a tree, just watching us zoom by

When we were almost at Friday Harbor, we veered past on one more mission.

Although Sea Otters are not common here, there had been one camped out in a kelp bed all summer. 

And, there he was!

All by himself (except for a Bald Eagle on a nearby channel marker) ...

Rolling in the kelp ...

And munching on what appeared to be scallops

The reasonably famous Sea Otter is nicknamed Odin because he has an injured left eye. The Norse god Odin sacrificed one of his eyes in exchange for wisdom. 

I thought he was just closing his eye

I am not sure how wise this guy was ...

But he did have all the scallops to himself

Sea Otters were hunted to near-extinction in Washington during the maritime fur trade. 

Sea Otters have luxurious, warm, waterproof coats

Reintroduction efforts on the outer Washington coast (the Olympic Peninsula) have succeeded.

But established populations are rare in the Salish Sea and San Juan archipelago

So, seeing Odin was a treat

As is evident by the photos, the daylight was fading quick, so we turned and headed back to Friday Harbor. 

We had to say goodbye

Despite the somewhat boring Orcas, it was a lovely trip. 

A good day!

And, we did see three Orcas!

And photographed two!

Whale Watch #2 -- San Juan Safaris

The next morning was our second (and final) Whale watch. This was with San Juan Safaris on an even higher-speed boat. Because the boat was open and fast-moving, we were provided heavy-duty weather suits. 

Our boat; Photo: San Juan Safaris

At first, Caty and I thought it was overkill and we would melt. But as we departed, the sky, which had started a bit cloudy, got cloudier. The weather was cool edging toward cold and we had intermittent rain. The suits were a great idea.

This trip, based on Orca sighting reports, headed the opposite direction from the day before. We went southwest toward Victoria, BC. 

Yep, parts of Canada are south of the San Juans

First we passed by an island close to shore that I had noticed from land but had not realized was a rookery.

It was covered in Glaucous-winged Gulls (and probably some others) ...

Including some gangly chicks

There were also perching Brandt’s Cormorants and nesting Double-crested Cormorants.

The nests were enormous

I had seen this island the day before but didn't even notice all the birds.

Most were facing the ocean, not the Island

We cruised by the Cattle Point Lighthouse ...

You can see it from land, but, it's better from a boat

Our next stop was to visit Odin and his Bald Eagle buddy.

I didn't take a picture the day before, but this was the same Eagle in the same place

It was just a quick stop.

With not as good light as the night before, I didn’t take many photos

As we neared the main shipping channel between the San Juans and Victoria, it started to rain.

This was intimidating compared to our little boat

Here we saw a single Humpback Whale and stopped briefly. I believe this was a fairly well-known Whale called Graphite.

It lazily floated and made shallow dives

Eventually, the Humpback made a deeper dive (showing its humped back) ...

Revealing its fluke ...

Diving ...

And disappearing

It's funny. On most U.S. Whale watches, the major goal is Humpback Whales. But, the San Juans are decidedly Orca country. There are about 500 Orcas one might see in the San Juans and only about 50 Humpback Whales, so it makes sense.

This was just a quick detour. Then we headed on on our quest for Orcas ...

... which took us straight to Victoria, past the Trial islands Lighthouse

We (and many other Whale watching boats) found them right along the shoreline.

A suburban Orca

Victoria, located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, is the capital of British Columbia and has a population of 92,000 for town and 397,000 for the greater metropolitan area.

Named for the United Kingdom's Queen Victoria, the city is one of the oldest in the Pacific Northwest, with British settlement beginning in 1843. Known as "the Garden City," Victoria is a popular tourism destination. Seeing Orcas from shore doesn't hurt.

These folks seem to be looking further out; did they even see this one?

I am not sure how many Orcas there were; I think three or four. It was difficult to hear on the open boat, so I didn't catch these Orcas' numbers or nicknames.

But, we never saw more than two together

Like the previous day’s Orcas, they weren’t doing much ...

Just swimming

Unlike the previous day’s, they never came close to out boats, although the did get close to some of the other boats, many of which were out of Victoria. 

Small ...

And large

So, those people got almost immediate gratification. We had to travel 28 nautical miles for even less exciting Orcas.

We never saw much more than dorsal fins

It was cool how close they got to the rocky shore. Lots of people were watching from land. 

It made me want to move to one of the lovely houses along the shore

After a bit, we headed back through gloom and rain. This time we passed some large rafts of seabirds. 

We didn’t slow down so it was tricky to make IDs or take photos

But I did see more Glaucous-winged Gulls and ...

Rhinoceros Auklets, named for spiky feathers that look like horns

Both Caty and I saw, separately, a Harbor Porpoise. 

One of the smallest marine mammals, they grow to only about 5 to 6 feet long and weigh no more than up pounds. Salish Sea Harbor Porpoises spend 77 percent of their time underwater rather than cruising at the surface like many other sea mammals and, when they do come up to breathe, their short, triangular dorsal fins that barely break the surface.

A great shot; Photo: Dr. Thomas Jefferson, Save the Whales

They usually travel alone or in small, quiet pods of just two or three individuals and, unlike playful Dolphins, they avoid boats, people and loud noises, and they swim away when approached. Not surprising that neither of us got a photo.

We also saw Harbor Seals (can you find them here?)

So, we returned to Friday Harbor, wishing there had been a bit more excitement.

Both of the Whale watches were fine, with nice boats and friendly, knowledgeable crews.

The problem is the Orcas

Actually, the problem is not the Orcas. It is what we, as humans, have done to the Chinook Salmon populations in the Pacific Northwest.

If we could fix those problems, maybe the Orcas would return

End of the Trip

The next morning, we took the ferry and drove to Seattle, with plans to explore the city’s famous Pike Place Market.

Iconic signs

Operating since 1907, the market is one of the older continuously operated public farmers' markets in the U.S. Overlooking the Elliott Bay waterfront on Puget Sound, Pike Place Market is Seattle's most popular tourist destination, with more than 20 million annual visitors. And, since it was Sunday, I think all 20 million were there the day we went.

Flowers in the market

Built on the edge of a steep hill, it has multiple levels filled with shops, restaurants, food vendors and craft stalls. It’s most famous for its fishmongers and fresh produce. 

Claim to fame

But, it was so busy, we could barely see a thing.

So, we decided to go to the Seattle Aquarium, which sits on the bay across from the market. 

Seattle Aquarium

Focused on the marine life of the Pacific Northwest and the Salish Sea, the Aquarium features: a 360-degree glass dome that lets you see fish and marine life swimming all around you; a 120,000-gallon tank featuring fish and species native to local waters; habitats for Sea Otters, Fur Seals (which are misnamed; they are actually Sea Lions) and Harbor Seals; large touch pools where visitors can interact with live Sea Stars, Urchins and Anemones; a Coral Triangle display featuring tropical reef ecosystems, Sharks and Rays from Southeast Asia and the western Pacific Ocean.

Main attractions; Photos: Seattle Aquarium

It was pleasant, but I wish we had chosen to go to Mt. Rainier or somewhere wilder. The crowds were too much. For that reason, we returned to our hotel (the Courtyard by Marriott Seattle Downtown/Lake Union) and crashed. We originally talked about going to the Space Needle for sunset, but opted not to because we were tired and not up for more crowds. That was a wise call. There was a shooting at the Space Needle that evening.

Glad we missed it; Left; CNN; Right abc30 Action News

The next day, we flew home (uneventfully). 

Well, we were on Tiana's plane! Right: Alaska Airlines

A nice trip, but next time we want to see Orcas, we’ll go to Alaska, Canada or maybe even California where they have been showing up in greater and greater numbers.

When we arrived home, I stayed one more night at Caty's because we had a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater on the 28th.

Red Rocks on a nice evening

We saw Sarah McLachlan, a long-time favorite of ours

Caty had gotten great seats and it was a fabulous show.

No Orcas, but great music!

Trip dates: July 22-27, 2026