Anacortes Whale Watch

Highlights

Bigg's killer whales (T109As)
Humpback whale new to science!
Steller sea lions
Harbor seals
Common murres & rhinoceros auklets

September 28, 2026 | 1 PM Whale Watch

Double header! We enjoyed an incredible amount of wildlife diversity on today’s adventure, including sightings of killer whales and a humpback new to science.

Kulshan was out and sporting a fresh dusting of snow after last week’s storm, guiding us out of Cap Sante at the start of our adventure. Hearing reports of activity in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, we let the Olympics guide us south as we scanned the waters of Rosario Strait. Common murres swam past in pairs, flocks of Heermann’s gulls gathered at current lines and the occasional harbor porpoise rocketed through the light chop. We slowed at Colville to visit with a dozen harbor seals that were hauled out and sunbathing, some harlequin ducks around them amidst the flowing bull kelp forest. As we continued west across the banks we passed white-winged scooters, more murres and a mixture of gulls and cormorants.

At Middle Bank, a young humpback was traveling west. It graced us with some looks at its flukes, which allowed us to compare them to known whale IDs via the HappyWhale database. It turns out, this whale is new to science! That’s not a very common occurrence in the Salish Sea these days, as most of our humpbacks are returnees who have fed in the area before. Welcome to the region little one! What's more exciting, thanks to the quick work of our friends at HappyWhale, this whale has already been given a new scientific designation: HW-MN0510951. We’re happy to have been able to contribute some ID photos to this whale’s new bio.

After waving farewell to our humpback friend, we angled back to the east. We crossed Salmon Bank and slowed at Whale Rocks, a bustling haul out site for Steller sea lions. They were out in full force today, and busy vying for the most favorable spots on the islands. Their growls carried easily over the water, and so did the smell…

We made our way to Griffin Bay next, first cruising through the turbulent currents of Cattle Pass. The T109A family of orcas was working the coastlines, scoping out the shallows for pinniped prey. We arrived in time to witness a very dramatic attempted predation, where all six whales encircled an exposed reef covered in dozens of harbor seals. It was a tense several minutes as the whales flushed the seals from their rocks, but we never could confirm if they made a successful hunt. The photos offered a unique perspective of the size of these apex predators, as they were so close to the rocks we could measure their dorsals against the height of the glaucous-winged gulls and pelagic cormorants in the pictures from the encounter. Eventually the pod moved on, spooking common and pacific loons as they traversed the coastline of the bay. Oh, and we had some lovely looks at a flock of rhinoceros auklets here as well!

We enjoyed a scenic cruise through the heart of the islands on our journey east, taking Upright Channel and Thatcher Pass. The gentle cloud layer that hung above the mountain peaks when we left this afternoon, had gradually sunk lower, foretelling the storm to come later that night. By the time the crew had finished washing down the boat that evening, it looked as if you could reach up and touch the clouds, which had taken on a wave-like texture. The golden hour lighting played off the formations in the most spectacular fashion. Another reminder that the dynamic weather conditions here are part of what make the Salish Sea such a stunning region.

- Sam