July 16, 2016
So far this season July has been the winning month to see orca whales on our San Juan kayak tours. Early in the season, there were a good number of transient killer whales in the area but very few sightings of the Resident Killer Whales. But starting the first week of July we have had encounters with J Pod and some of L Pod from the Southern Resident Killer Whale population almost every day.
The most popular kayak tours for whale watching have been our Half Day and Full Day Kayak Tours. We have had occasional encounters on the Sunset Kayak Tour but not as frequently. The west side route we select for our San Juan kayak tours spends the entire time in the orca whale sanctuary, recognized as the zone where Southern Resident Killer Whales spend the majority of their time when visiting the San Juan’s.
With the summer in full swing, we start to see increased salmon in the area, specifically Chinook Salmon. Chinook is the preferred fish consumed by the Resident Killer Whales. Though the salmon stocks are much lower than historic records the killer whales will still spend a good amount of time traveling the west side of San Juan actively foraging for salmon.
We hope for continued success providing amazing whale watching opportunities from our kayak tours for the remainder of the season.
Other recent whale encounters include Minke and Humpback Whales. Not always easy for us to encounter from kayak due to the swift speeds and deep dives each of the species travels. But even a few surfaces are exhilarating.
If you are interested in the latest news and updates on what we are seeing in the field please join our Facebook page to keep up with the action.
Questions or comments? Phone us at or send an email to [email protected]. You can also visit our contact page and submit an inquiry via our contact form.
Posted In: Discovery Sea Kayaks | Getaways | San Juan Islands | Sea Kayak
