Anacortes Whale Watch

Highlights

Bigg's killer whales (T65Bs, T65A3, T19s)
Harbor seals
Steller sea lions
Deception Pass bridge

October 2, 2026 | 1 PM Whale Watch

Wow, wow, wow. What a spectacular day with calm seas, sunshine, and an 8-whale T party!! With rumored reports of the T19s-- a family of three Bigg's killer whales-- somewhere in Rosario Strait, we began scanning outside Guemes Channel. It wasn't long before our friends to the south spotted them, so we turned and aimed for Lopez. We made a small stop at Bird rocks on the way and checked out some seals and lots of cormorants. Near iceberg point, we spotted the T19s cruising west, but they weren't alone... We counted four, five, six, seven, and eight individuals total, soon recognizing that the T65Bs had joined forces with the T19s! The T65Bs are led by matriarch T65B Chunk, born in 1993. Traveling with her were her kiddos, T65B1 Birdsall, T65B2 Nettle, and T65B3 Rook. Crashing the party was Chunk's nephew, T65A3 Amir, who has been having himself quite the adventurous summer. This spunky 19 year old has been bouncing from pod to pod and maximizing his social life. Most recently, it seems he's decided to catch up with his aunt and cousins.

These whales were movin' and groovin', at one point separating into a "bro group" (naming rights to captain Tyson), which included all the big boys. (T19B Galiano, T19C Spouter, T65A3 Amir, and T65B1 Birdsall). Meanwhile, our two matriarchs, T19 Mooyah and T65B Chunk, led the way along the Lopez shoreline. Chunks two little ones, Nettle and Rook, followed close behind.

During this T party, we witnessed porpoising, a massive full breach from Spouter, a few baby breaches from 3 year old Rook, tail slaps, and a double porpoising breach from two of the males in the party-- absolute insanity!! We hung with this group as they rounded Castle Island, then peeled off to investigate the Lawson reef markers. Here, we witnessed the trials and tribulations of a Steller sea lion attempting to jump onto an already jam-packed navigation can.

To round out our trip, we made a quick stop at Deception Pass, then on the way home we discussed killer whale IDs, family history, and matriarch parenting styles in the Bigg's killer whale population. Such a stellar day!!

- Amy