07/01/22
Anacortes Location
Our trip started off this morning under a marine layer as we cruised north in Bellingham Channel. We enjoyed calm waters and the sun broke through completely. We stopped at the north side of Guemes Island and found a Steller sea lion hauled out on the red navigational marker. He looked up at us but was fairly uninterested and went back to warming up in the sun. We continued north along the northwest shoreline of Orcas Island. We were scanning hard as no whales had yet been spotted by any other boats in the area. Captain Drew saved the day! He spotted an exhalation from a whale along the Waldron Island shoreline. It took us a few minutes to get our whale dialed in and when we did we had found a humpback whale! This humpback whale was BC X0915 also known as “Fallen Knight.” Fallen Knight gave us some wonderful looks as she cruised to the Orcas Island shoreline. She maintained a rhythmic breathing pattern and showed us her fluke each time she went on a deep dive. It was truly picturesque with the emerald green waters, the green trees, the sunshine, and our humpback whale! We had notified the fleet of our find and they trekked our from all directions. As the first boats approached and got on scene, we departed in search of other wildlife. Along Flattop Island, we found several pigeon guillemots and three mature bald eagles. We continued our journey through New Channel on the north side of Spieden Island, where we found a few more bald eagles. We rounded the corner to the south side of the island and found numerous harbor seals hauled out enjoying the sunshine. We found a few more bald eagles and even a few of the mouflon sheep in the shade of the trees. We continued our search through the inner islands home as we cruised home. What a truly special day - to have saved the whale watching fleet in the San Juan Islands by finding our humpback whale friend.