Anacortes Full Day Whale Watch

Highlights

Bigg's Killer Whales (T69E Kodiak, T60D Onca, T60E Lynx)
Humpback Whales (CRC-16262 Victory and MN0510828)
Dall's Porpoise
Sea Lions
Harbor Seals
Common Murres
Oyster Catcher
Great Blue Heron

September 19, 2025 | 12 PM Full Day Whale Watch

What a spectacular day out on the water!

With reports coming in from the west, we jetted across Rosario Strait and cut through Thatcher Pass. We then turned into Upright Channel and angled down towards Cattle Pass. Turbulent currents swelled and boiled as the flood tide raged in from the Strait of Juan de Fuca, but waters calmed as we crossed through and left Cattle Point behind us. Skirting along the west side of San Juan, we crossed Haro and met up with our first Bigg's killer whale of the day, 21 year old male T69E Kodiak. Kodiak traveled peacefully through tranquil waters, taking longer deep dives and holding consistent surface patterns. This behavior signaled that he might have been taking a little mid day nap while slowly making ground to the south.

With more reports coming in from the west, we decided to say goodbye to Kodiak after a few good looks and turned towards Race Rocks. We slowed here for several humpback blows, getting a few fly by looks at some gorgeous individuals before arriving at the Race Rocks lighthouse. Just west of this monument, we spotted the dorsal fins of two more Bigg's killer whales! This pair turned out to be the iconic brotherly duo of 21 year old T60D Onca and 17 year old T60E Lynx. These brothers have been dispersing from their mother T60 Panthera and their other siblings since 2021, so seeing them together without the rest of their family was no surprise. Usually, male Bigg's killer whales will stick with the pod they are born into for the long haul, but Onca and Lynx-- as well as Kodiak, who was also traveling alone-- provide good examples of exceptions to this rule.

These brothers cruised slowly east, passing the light house and colliding with a collection of at least seven humpbacks feeding just off Victoria. Even though globally humpbacks and killer whales have a... tense relationship... these two species didn't seem to mind sharing space with each other. Luckily for our humpbacks in the Salish Sea, our nearshore Bigg's population almost always choose to go after much smaller, easier meals like harbor seals. However, this news hadn't seemed to reach one very small juvenile humpback, who hung tightly with us while Onca and Lynx made their way through, perhaps unsure if these two brothers were friend or foe. This little one was also intent on showing off their gorgeous fluke, and flaunted their diving skills to all of us on board again and again while being met with oohs, ahhs, and lots of cheers. Using Happy Whale, we were able to that determine this Juvenile was MN0510828, a whale that has only ever been documented in the Salish Sea. Their first confirmed sighting was this last January near Stuart Island, which could mean that this whale hasn't decided to make the winter journey down south yet. This isn't any cause for concern as some juveniles who aren't sexually mature yet have been known to forgo the long migration down south in favor of year round nutrient rich waters in the north. Once Onca and Lynx had passed and this Juvenile whale decided to pick a dedicated direction back towards the west, we pushed off and pointed for Hein bank.

Right in between Middle and Hein bank, captain Carl spotted a rapid splash, then another, and another. We couldn't believe our eyes as we got closer and realized we had found a group of Dall's Porpoise! Once a common sight in the Salish Sea, Dall's are now more and more rare as harbor porpoise pressure has pushed them further up north into BC. It was an absolute treat to get to see this species actively hunting at the surface, causing sprays of water each time they took a speedy breath. After circling a few times with these foraging Dall's, we arrived at the Hein bank marker just in time to see a Steller sea lion launching themselves up onto the green can for an afternoon rest.

Continuing to point up toward McArthur, another humpback whale, CRC-16262 Victory, surprised us with a massive lunge feeding behavior at the surface. Common Murres joined in the feeding party with Victory as she made slow circles in the area scouting for baitfish. Victory is a summertime Salish Sea resident, and we always look forward to seeing her! Cruising back toward South Lopez, we circumnavigated Castle Island and spotted resting harbor seals, a great blue heron, an oyster catcher, and lots of flowing bull kelp draped along the surface near shore. The lowering sun provided an absolutely gorgeous golden hour journey back up Rosario Strait as we finished off our long adventure underneath a breathtaking Koma Kulshan. We covered 105 nautical miles on this action packed adventure-- what an amazing end to the last long range tour of the season!

-Amy and Sam

Stay tuned for our 2026 calendar and be sure to book your spot on our full days or extended range trips!