Resident Orcas have Arrived!

Today was sunny, warm, and beautiful in Johnstone Strait. Not only that but some of the resident killer whales are now back in the area! On our way down and back up the strait to and from where the orcas were we had plentiful Dall's Porpoise encounters. One group of 6 individuals chased us down so they could ride the pressure wave created by our bow. With the calm waters today we were all delighted to be able to look down into the water and see all the animals as they darted back and forth at high speed under the SV Tuan. Once with the 4 killer whales known as the A11 matriline we hardly knew what to focus on as right behind where they were surfacing were numerous black bears along the beach. We saw 5 individuals in total including a sow with 2 very small cubs of the year. As they foraged along the beach the 4 orcas rested while slowly heading east. The famous, young, once orphaned killer whale known as Springer is still travelling with this group and it was very nice to see her resting right in tight with her other extended family members, just like a young whale should. A13 also seems to be doing well with his new dorsal fin shape and nicks aquired somehow last October right before leaving the area. Aside from this group rumour has it that there are 3 other resident family groups of orcas in the area including the A36 pod. In the days and tours to come we will continue to keep our trip log up to date with a photo of the day to go with each update.

Enjoying summer in Alert Bay, the Seasmoke crew