5-28-13 Would They Ever Return...

Tuesday, May 28th
...would they ever return?...I was beginning to wonder...humpbacks have been more abundant that any killer whales in the last several days...just before heading out on Maya's Westside Charters to see what we could see, word came that Transient orcas were near Active Pass...
...on our way I heard that a humpback was in the area too, and that it was the same one who has been around...even though researchers only use the underside of the tail flukes for positive IDs, this humpback, BCY0324, has an interesting lump...this image I took in 2008...

...we didn't see her today, but thanks to a friend who I had been talking to about that lump, I knew who it was...
...when we arrived on scene to see the Transients, they had come through Active Pass and started to head toward the east side of Salt Spring Island...but they turned, passed a couple small islands...

...made a big loop and headed back up toward the pass...
...T124A2A...so that meant that the T124As were there...and more...

...with mom T124A2 and grandma T124A...

...see that notch?...that's T86A3...looking further mom and older sibling were present too...

...as I looked through my images I saw that T124A1 was present...last time, this whale was seen traveling with the T86As and not the T124As...keeps us all confused and 'on our toes' !

...that's the light station on Prevost Island...just south of Active Pass...back up they may have gone...I don't know...we had left the scene to head for the harbor and then we hear...'INBOUND'...that will be in the next post...too cool!