Anacortes Whale Watch

Highlights

Bigg's killer whales
Harbor seals
Steller sea lion eating dogfish
Sea otter
Bald eagle
Black Oyster Catchers

August 15, 2026 | 8 AM, 1 PM and 5 PM Whale Watch

8 AM

What a magical morning! I thought we were going to leave the dock to find fog and breezy waters. But I was pleasantly surprised to find neither!!! We had the best wildlife karma! As we were exiting Guemes Channel, we saw a small splash and slowed down to see a Stellar Sea Lion tearing a part a Dogfish Shark. It was incredible! We knew we had good karma from there on out. Eventually we turned to some rumored reports up North and took an inner island route. We were able to find the reported whales just Northwest of Shaw Island. We were quickly able to identify these Bigg's orcas at the T19 brothers Galliano and Spouter traveling quickly along the shore with mom. We got to spend quality time with these whales, watching them come together and spread apart every other surfacing. We saw lots of harbor Porpoise popping up and traveling quickly away from the area, so we were guessing they might have been chasing one down! Eventually we had to make the turn back to the dock. We went between Shaw and Lopez and out back through Thatcher again on our way home. We stopped at Pointer Island and got to hear from Bird man Eric talk all about the many different types of birds hanging out along with the harbor seals on top of the Island. We saw double crested and Brandt's cormorants, one Harlequin duck, and two pigeon guillemots. It was a really cool way to end the trip! - Clare

1 PM

We spent a lovely afternoon with the T19s in East Sound, Nootka and her two boys traveling in tight family formation in the afternoon sun. This trio of mature Bigg's killer whales are such a beautiful example of long-lived family ties. Nootka, whose minimum estimated age is 61 this year, is still consistently accompanied by her two boys Galiano (31) and Spouter (25). Seeing their towering dorsals standing guard on either side of their wise old mother warmed our hearts each time they surfaced. Galiano broke the calm with a massive tail slap, and Nootka followed suit with her own percussive action. An exciting finale to our encounter.

Prior to catching up with this pod, we'd enjoyed some wildlife searching along the coastline of Blakely Island. Pointer Island was teeming with life: glaucous-winged gull chicks exploring the rocky shoreline, cormorants painting the island white, and harbor seal mom-pup pairs swimming in the shallows. Along the steep cliffside of eastern Blakely we spied bald eagles in the treetops and belted kingfishers flitting from branch to branch. Our return trip took us past the scenic shoreline of Willow Island and through Thatcher Pass where pigeon guillemots dove for prey.

5 PM

With word that whales were working their way further west, we set off at speed through Thatcher Pass and Cayou Channel. We caught up with the T19 trio as they were working their way past Bell Island, seemingly searching every shallow reef and rugged shoreline for dinner. Their blows were brilliantly illuminated in the evening light, setting shimmering mist hovering amidst the pacific madrona branches along shore. Residents from Crane Island ran out to see them as they hugged the shoreline, and even the Washington State Inter Island ferry slowed to enjoy some whale watching in Wasp Pass. Galiano took our breath away with a close surfacing following a deep dive, his incredibly massive dorsal fin slowly, and dramatically cutting through the glassy water. We watched as the pod caught dinner along the shoreline of one of the smaller Wasp Islands, turning the water red. It was a dramatic display of their coordination and hunting prowess.

Our search for wildlife continued as we cruised south down San Juan Channel. We slowed at Turn Rock to visit with our favorite furry friend. He was busy grooming his fur while floating amongst the bull kelp. The currents churned as we neared Cattle Pass, the growing westerly winds picking up in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We slowed at Whale Rocks to take in the full sensory experience, watching as Steller sea lions vied for space atop the haul out site. We surfed the swell past growing bait balls off Iceberg Point, then sought out calmer seas in Rosario Strait. We made a final slowdown at Bird Rocks, where flocks of black oystercatchers were huddled up, formations of cormorants flew in to roost, glaucous-winged gulls called to their young, and pinnipeds hauled out and lie camouflaged amongst the rocks.

We enjoyed a truly epic sunset on the water, the smoky sky setting the sun ablaze. It was an epic finale evening trip for the 2026 season. -Sam