Orcas Close But Still Elusive

AE7I9737.jpgWe have had some good opportunities recently to see orcas up close.  That didn’t stop us looking for them while we were on San Juan Island.  The west side of the island has regular whale activity of a few species.  When we showed up at the good spots, we met people telling us what had been passing by earlier.  We even just missed a humpback (or gray depending on who you talked to) that had come into Friday Harbor.  We did get a bit luckier when we got to San Juan State Park.

AE7I9921.jpgA bunch of orcas were off the coast a bit north of the area we visited.  They seemed to be hanging around in one area so may have been feeding.  There are two distinct groups of orcas in the area.  The resident group feed on salmon while the transient group like mammals such as seals.  This was the resident group apparently.  Eventually they headed north away from us but, in the mean time, another part of the group came into view from the south.  They transited north although sadly a bit far out for a good view.

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