Shortly after leaving Alder Bay this morning, passengers on both tours were delighted to see
the blows of orcas ahead of them in Johnstone Strait. The orcas were identified as being the A12’s who had traveled the distance back from Chatam Point where they had been sighted around 6.00 p.m. last evening. Initially, A55 was observed to be foraging nearby but soon rejoined his family as they traveled back towards the east, forming a slow moving resting line. Seeing all of the A12’s together, it was a wonderful sight. Cruising home via Blackfish Sound, passengers aboard M.V. Cetacea observed a Stellar Sea Lion fishing, they also experienced the fun of bow-riding Dall’s Porpoises. Meanwhile, passengers onboard the S.V. Tuan in Weynton Passage were fortunate to see a Minke Whale feeding in the heavy flood current, they also enjoyed bow-riding Dalls Porpoises. All passengers enjoyed viewing a Humpback Whale who was also feeding in the flood current in Weynton Passage. On the afternoon tour, the A12’s were inside the Ecological Reserve and were viewed from the boundary initially when A12 and A33 began to move outside of the boundary and passengers onboard M.V. Cetacea enjoyed watching as A33 foraged back and forth. Other sightings today: Harbor Seals, Rhinoceros Auklets, Black Oyster Catches, Black Turnstones, Marbled Murrelets, California Gulls and Bald Eagles.