Whale & Wildlife Update

Here’s Captain Hobbes with this week’s update…

Orcas in the Channel – Click for larger view – Hobbes Buchanan photo

As I write this on Friday morning, there are transients on the west side and the Gray’s are coming! Like clockwork, #53 — nicknamed “Little Patch” — is the first gray whale to show up in the northern part of Puget Sound for the second year in a row. 22,000 gray whales make the 6,000 mile trip from Baja California to Alaska.  Around eleven make a pit stop here in our area to feed on ghost shrimp. Very impressive animals, around 50′ in length and weighing around 40 tons.

Our Southern Resident orcas known as J pod, along with L87 Onyx, have been in the Salish Sea this week, but last reports indicate that they were heading for the ocean.

We’re still seeing tons of sea lions, seals, porpoise, eagles and loads of beautiful seabirds that are still showing off their winter colors. Don’t forget to check out SJIVB & PWWA’s websites to see who’s running trips. And check out “Kiss the Sky, the Orca Freedom Concert” in Seattle on Earth Day! Cheers from the PWWA!

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