8-31-16 A Curious Whale Watching of the J16s

Wednesday, August 31st
...they had stayed up north for two nights...an indicator they might be getting more salmon up there than down here...
...knowing they would come back down at some point...well today was that day...some of the whales were so far off shore it was difficult to see them or even attempt to count how many were out there...
...but some came in to view as they came down...

...the K13s and the L4s came back down...behind them a bit later were the J16s...and what an interesting time it was watching them...

...mom, Slick J-16 was behind Mike and ahead of:

...they passed by the lighthouse and were down island a ways...then a good distance behind, Echo surfaced coming down island...

...that definitely had people 'seeing double' today as all this occurred...
...later in the day and not having seen many of the whales, I went down island a short distance and there I saw:

...Polaris and J-54 were with several others...I will assume one of them was Star J-46, her oldest...it looked as if maybe some of the J16s were with them but I couldn't be sure...but I was sure of seeing Polaris and J-54.
...everyone is pulling for these two to make it, to recover, to be fat and healthy again...
...now if everyone could just get the 'powers that be' to take some action to save the wild salmon, that in turn would sure help the whales...
 
 

8-29-16 They Are More Than Just A Bunch of Whales in the Water

Monday, August 29th
...I have been land based whale watching for over a month now.  I need to be where I am when the whales are on the west side...for what matters to me is what is going on with them and this gives the opportunity to see that...though a glimpse, it can be full of information and realizations...
...what they are doing...why might they be doing what they are...who's with who...and lots and lots of other things...
...over these past several weeks I have had the opportunity to talk to an amazing amount of people about who these whales are and that they are much more than 'just a bunch of whales in the water'...
...there isn't a story or an ah-ha moment with every encounter, but there are pieces of a story or moments in time...
...some make you laugh, others touch your heart, and others just cause you to pause, wonder, smile, or just flat irritated with what you see...
...in all of that the most important thing is that these whales have salmon to eat and it's been a miserably tough year for them so far...

...today they were coming back in...word was that it might be everyone...don't know the actual end result to that...most if not all of the L pod whales and most of them stayed down island at the end of the day...Nugget L-55 and her family went north with J Pod and K Pod whales...

...that's the Elwha Valley in the distance...the close piece of land is Discovery Island...on the other side of Discovery Island is the Strait of Juan de Fuca...and on the other side of that strait is the Olympic Peninsula of Washington...that is the place were the greatest dam removal in the history of the United States took place a few years ago...
...and now after over 100 years of a dam the wild Chinook salmon are spawning up the river once again.. because the dam was removed!

...if you haven't seen the movie Return of the River you might want to watch it...it gives hope to restoration of the earth - that is when people will come together to reach the best decision for those who have no voice - the salmon, the orcas, and all the other species that have been negatively impacted by man.

...and what man seems to forget is that ultimately it negatively impacts humans...but humans seem to forget about that until it is either too late or almost too late.

8/25-26/16 Polaris J-28 and baby J-54

Thursday, August 25th
...the day started with...

...August is usually hot, at least part of it...the worst thing in the world for salmon...and the worst thing for the whales because of the worst thing for salmon...
August 25th
...Granny was in the lead with some of the J16s - Mike J-26, Slick J-16, Scarlet J-50, and Echo J-42...with them were Hy'Shqa J-37 and her offspring, T'ilem I'nges J-49...then about 10 minutes later, Shachi J-19...
...some of the kids were not there (a group of 6) - like:  Slick's other two - Alki J-36 and her offspring Sonic J-52, Hy'Shqa's brother and sister - Suttles J-40 and Se-Yi-Chn J-45, and Shachi's offspring and her offspring - Eclipse J-41 and Nova J-51...
...the group of 6 came zooming by after the J17s had come up and then had gone back down island...


...six of the J17s came up...Tahlequah J-35 and Notch J-47 had stayed down island...
...the six stayed for about 20 minutes before going back down island...

August 26th...
...the J17s and the J22s had gone up island sometime in the night because they were now coming back down island in the morning...going against a strong flood tide didn't make things any easier for them...
...they all went down island past the lighthouse, except Polaris, J-54 and Star turned and spent the next three hours in our view from shore at the lighthouse...

...it was only one day...but gave a glimmer of hope that there was a chance they both might make it...

   

8-24-16 When Least Expected

Wednesday, August 24th  (I am writing this on 8-29)
...it happens all the time when least expected...sometimes it's something good and other times it just causes you to just stop...
...it's been that way since learning of Samish J-14 missing...
...I knew something wasn't right when I posted in early August...where was she?...already missing...

...Samish J-14 has always been a strong, steady, mother...
...present with her offspring every time Granny's group was here...

...there was no indication to me of anything being a-miss, until I kept not being able to find her in images when the rest of her family members were there...

...Riptide J-30, her oldest male offspring, did not return in 2012...it was so very sad for him to have died before he was 17 years old.
...and now his mother, missing (as stated by the Center for Whale Research), at the age of 42...

...What is happening to this community of orcas? 
...Why?
...I don't understand.
...I only hurt, as I know many others do as well.


...she is such a beautiful orca...with a classic dorsal fin and bright white saddle patches.
...she is the mother of the first baby orca I ever discovered, Se-Yi-Chn J-45.
...she is a steady mother to her kids.

...when I saw Lea K-14 this evening (8-29) as the whales passed by, Lea was traveling alone...she is always with her family...
...for a moment it gave me a glimmer of hope that just maybe, just maybe, Samish would show up. 
 

8/22-23/16 Up One Day and Down the Next

Monday-Tuesday, August 22-23rd
...no whales at the park on Sunday...
Monday the 22nd
...it was late afternoon when K and L pod whales came up island...
...J Pod had already gone north in the early, early morning...

Tuesday the 23rd

...late afternoon...

...evening...getting toward sunset...

...will they continue 'down and then out'...or will they just continue down and then back up tomorrow?...