June 26-2024 More Happy whales and People too!

J Pod came down from the north today. They were very spread out. Some were miles across Haro Strait and luckily some were closer to the west side.

Suttles J-40 was in the mix with several of the mothers and their littles.  But Suttles wasn't 'on duty' as an escort today, but maybe just in-case she was called on :)

Slick and Shachi were both up front as the whales came down - these next two images are of Slick J-16.  She was changing directions a few times as they were passing by.

Then came some moms and kids.

Shachi J-19 was with her grandson, Nova J-51, and Nova's mom,

Eclipse J-41 was with her youngest, Crescent J-58.

Tsuchi J-31 and her offspring, Tofino J-56 were there too.

Mike J-26 was the only male that I saw in closer to the west side while it appeared the other males were miles offshore, which is not uncommon.

And then some action began and oh how the people on shore were delighted!

...and then came Hy'Shqa J-37 & offspring J-59 Swee-uh-kosh, currently the youngest living member of J Pod.

That's J-59's head and dorsal fin tip landing with a big splach!

It was a great day for the people to learn about the SRKWs and the challenges they face.  Each of us can do somethig to help these whales live long lives and prosper into the future.

Cheers!

June 2024 - SRKWs - Full of Energy!

 Happy whales!!  This is just one pass-by! images from shore by Jeanne Hyde.

This was a day of hope for this community of orcas which in turn showed those watching that just maybe they too could help this community of orcas so that they can thrive in these waters that have been their home for more years than we humans know.

Enjoy this 'energy in motion' and think about what you can do to help these whales of J, K and L pods. The next generation of humans and whales will thank you!  

                                            One more heading for the fun!

5-27-24 J and K pods and some Ls Today!

Here's just a few images of a very long day watching many of the Southern Residents as they spent a lot of time in view from the Lime Kiln shoreline.

 ...but first a few days ago there were several harbor porpoise not far from shore, traveling into an oncoming current which kept them in view for a while.

the next couple days were pretty quiet...and then today occurred...

...Notch J-47 was very close to shore when he surfaced in front off these two!

...below is Blackberry J-27 and ???

...

...

...they had gone north past the park and were just out of view to the north...but not for long when they grouped up and came back down.  It reminded me of the greeeting ceremony a few years ago. There was no obvious ceremony...Js and Ks had come into the inland waters together and it was stated that some Ls had come in too, though most of the L Pod whales hadn't made it up this far...except a while later there was an L Pod call mixed in with some J and K pod calls as the whales continued to go north...hmmm... they keep us interested in what they are doing...we need to make sure they have enough salmon to survive and thrive.

The whales may look like they were far away but they were much closer than the image shows. Also this image shows them coming down but they changed direction a short time later and went back to the north!

Thank you whales and thank you Sound Watch for keeping boats out the the path of the whales!

5-17-24 J Pod Whales - Oh, My!

Early Friday morning, whales were heard over the Lime Kiln hydrophones...the calls made me think of L Pod - that up-tic call...but when they were seen it was J Pod!

The whales had passed the lighthouse very early and came back up island to the lighthouse, then some changed direction and came back down a bit...oops, no they changed their minds again...and again...All in all it was a great day to see J Pod and eventually they went north.

Here are a few images of the day...enjoy...

The day reminded many of us as to 'how it used to be'...hope the whales are/will be finding enough to eat this year.  

4-26-2024 J Pod

The last sighting of J Pod along the west side of the island was April 19. On that day the whales were spread across Haro Strait and seemed to be aiming toward Discovery Island, B.C. and likely headed back out to sea.

They were not seen again until April 26th. And again they were spread across Haro Strait.  For quite a while they were spread in a few groups and not going anywhere.  Research boats were documenting who, health, etc. When the whales began coming north, there were a few breaches and a spyhop or two.  

Some of the whales moved north and closeer to shore as they came up the west side and Lime Kiln. They continued north and passed by Low Island, off County Park, a short while later.

Just a couple images as the passed Low Island heading north.

The land in the distance is Vancouver Island. Some of the whales had been so far away that it was a splash that would get one's attention.  

One group of 3 were Eclipse J-41, her youngest Crescent J-58, and Echo J-42. Most interesting is that Echo was with them....hmmm

This type of spread indicates that salmon were not abundent through Haro Strait on this day and also on the 19th when they had come south.

It will be interesting to see when/if K Pod arrives as they often come into these waters after J Pod. However, they might be finding plenty off food off the outer Washington coast.