Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 10-13-2014, 10:29 PM   #1
Senior Member
 
Lutarious's Avatar
 
City: Oakland,Ca
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 108
Orcas in the San Juan's?

So we finally got back to Olympia about 15 minutes before the rain. Looks like our cruising in the Sn Juans is going to be a bit different than forecast. Everyone on the boat wants to know if we will be seeing Orcas?
Lutarious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2014, 10:59 PM   #2
GFC
Guru
 
City: Tri Cities, WA
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 4,406
No. They're a publicity stunt put on by the whale watching tours to get people to go on the boats. If they don't see whales they give you a free tour, but most of the people have gone back home by then.

Just kidding, of course. There are some areas where you are more likely to see orcas. One of those is along the west coast of San Juan Island, but it's dependent on the season.
__________________
Mike and Tina
1981 Boston Whaler 13'
GFC is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2014, 11:29 PM   #3
Guru
 
Rebel112r's Avatar
 
City: Birch bay wa
Vessel Name: Rogue
Vessel Model: North Pacific 42
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 648
Very good chance of seeing Orcas. West side of San Juan Is is a good choice. Turn Point on Stuart Is and all of Boundary Pass are good spots. Call one of the whale watch charters, out of Friday or Roche, they might help you out when you get up there. The different outfits all talk to one another, something like 60 boats out there, and they have hydrophones at different spots, so if they are out there they usually know where they are at.
Rebel112r is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2014, 11:37 PM   #4
Guru
 
rochepoint's Avatar
 
City: Sidney BC Canada
Vessel Name: RochePoint
Vessel Model: 1985 Cheer Men PT38 Sedan
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 1,744
Quote:
Originally Posted by GFC View Post
No. They're a publicity stunt put on by the whale watching tours to get people to go on the boats.
Attached Thumbnails
Whales.jpg  
__________________
Cheers
Mike
MV RochePoint
rochepoint is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 04:39 AM   #5
Master and Commander
 
markpierce's Avatar
 
City: Vallejo CA
Vessel Name: Carquinez Coot
Vessel Model: penultimate Seahorse Marine Coot hull #6
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 12,559
Seals in Carquinez Strait?

__________________
Kar-KEEN-ez Koot
markpierce is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 06:36 AM   #6
Senior Member
 
DCBD's Avatar
 
City: Sidney BC
Vessel Name: Our Island
Vessel Model: KK Manatee
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 202
Not sure if they still do or not but the whale watching boats used to communicate on VHF channel 71. So you might try listening in if you're out and about.
DCBD is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 09:40 AM   #7
Guru
 
kolive's Avatar
 
City: Cowiche, WA
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 662
We seem to see the Orcas on a incoming tide on the west side of San Juan Island from Cattle Pass all the way to Open Bay. Last month we were fishing that coast and had them around us three days in a row. Oddly enough we only caught fish when they came our way. It was like they were herding the salmon towards us. We always picked up gear and went into neutral when they were around and had them approach quite closely and even swim directly under our Willard 30.
__________________
Keith Olive
1974 Grand Banks 36-427
Vashon Island, WA
kolive is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 10:41 AM   #8
Guru
 
Nomad Willy's Avatar
 
City: Concrete Washington State
Vessel Name: Willy
Vessel Model: Willard Nomad 30'
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 18,743
Orcas are highly over rated. The're just sea cows that think the're fish.

I always thought they knew exactly where we were w our engines running and they almost certainly do but I still ran right into one .. T boned him at 6 knots. Eight tons meets 30tons? Everybody survived but now I stay well away from them. And then I had a policy of not altering course to get closer to them. And I didn't on collision day.

I think there should be no commercial whale watching and boaters should stay basically far to well away from them. Most don't though. Accidentally getting close or steering toward them is IMO harassing them.

Beautiful to watch but Mother Earth probably wouldn't miss them much if they were to become extinct. There would just be lots more seals and fish. Ever watched a cow Orca teaching her young how to kill and eat seals? It's a bloody mess and happens in Thorne Bay at times.

Mark are those seals or sea lions?
__________________
Eric

North Western Washington State USA
Nomad Willy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 10:56 AM   #9
Senior Member
 
DCBD's Avatar
 
City: Sidney BC
Vessel Name: Our Island
Vessel Model: KK Manatee
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 202
Quote:
Originally Posted by manyboats View Post
I think there should be no commercial whale watching and boaters should stay basically far to well away from them. Most don't though. Accidentally getting close or steering toward them is IMO harassing them.
DCBD is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 01:01 PM   #10
Guru
 
Rebel112r's Avatar
 
City: Birch bay wa
Vessel Name: Rogue
Vessel Model: North Pacific 42
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 648
This should generate more posts than the anchor issue. Great stiiring the pot many boats!😱
Rebel112r is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 01:33 PM   #11
Master and Commander
 
markpierce's Avatar
 
City: Vallejo CA
Vessel Name: Carquinez Coot
Vessel Model: penultimate Seahorse Marine Coot hull #6
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 12,559
Quote:
Originally Posted by manyboats View Post
...

Mark are those seals or sea lions?
Sea lions. I should have said "pinnipeds" to be safe.

__________________
Kar-KEEN-ez Koot
markpierce is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 02:10 PM   #12
Veteran Member
 
Tacomasailor's Avatar
 
City: San Diego
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 39
Don't need to go to San Juans

Between Alki and Restoration Point in May. I've seen way more Orcas in the Sound south of Admiralty Inlet than in the San Juans.
Attached Thumbnails
ORCA2_ScreenSize.jpg   ORCA3_ScreenSize.JPG  
Tacomasailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 03:47 PM   #13
Guru
 
kolive's Avatar
 
City: Cowiche, WA
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 662
Wow, that was a fast thread creep. I thought the OP was asking about possibly seeing Orcas in the San Juan's. Suddenly it is about whale watching and what you think about Orcas and Whale Watching? Maybe that should go to a different thread to be continued. Not trying to start an argument, just trying to stick with the original question.
__________________
Keith Olive
1974 Grand Banks 36-427
Vashon Island, WA
kolive is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2014, 03:51 PM   #14
Guru
 
Edelweiss's Avatar
 
City: PNW
Vessel Model: 1976 Californian Tricabin LRC
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 1,860
Unfortunately, the resident Puget Sound Orca pods eat salmon and not seals and sea lions.

I would gladly contribute to a fund aimed at teaching our Orcas the value of eating our overabundant population of seals and California sea lions instead of the tons of salmon they consume.

PS: Here is a web site that may give you some insight on where to look . . .

http://www.orcanetwork.org/nathist/salishorcas1.html
__________________
Larry B
Careful . . .I Have a Generator and I'm not afraid to use it !
Edelweiss is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-15-2014, 12:45 AM   #15
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 83
Quote:
Originally Posted by DCBD View Post
Not sure if they still do or not but the whale watching boats used to communicate on VHF channel 71. So you might try listening in if you're out and about.

Some of them show up on AIS as well. If you see a cluster on the other side of the island you know something's going on.
Sisuitl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-15-2014, 11:37 AM   #16
Senior Member
 
Boydski's Avatar
 
City: Olympia, WA
Vessel Name: Sea Eagle
Vessel Model: Nordhavn 47
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 201
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sisuitl View Post
Some of them show up on AIS as well. If you see a cluster on the other side of the island you know something's going on.
It's a dead-giveaway when you see the whale watching boats turn their AIS off and then turn abruptly. The last couple of years, I've seen more Orcas Southeast of Lopez Island than I have off the West side of San Juan Island.



We have also spotted porpoises almost every weekend in South Puget Sound and Grey Whales north of Seattle.
__________________
Scott (Boydski) Boyd
Yes Please, Grand Banks Eastbay
Sea Eagle, Nordhavn 47 (sold)
Boydski is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-15-2014, 12:20 PM   #17
Guru
 
Moonfish's Avatar


 
City: Port Townsend, WA
Vessel Name: Traveler
Vessel Model: Cheoy Lee 46 LRC
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 1,576
This time of year the resident orca travel all around Puget Sound, not just in the islands. So you may see them on your way north! Here's a Facebook page that gives updates on the orcas location as well as any other whale sightings in the area, including humpbacks, grays, and minkes.

https://www.facebook.com/OrcaNetwork?fref=ts
__________________
Darren
m/v Traveler - '79 Cheoy Lee 46 LRC, Port Townsend, WA
https://www.boatertested.com
https://www.theboatgeeks.com
Moonfish is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2014, 01:36 AM   #18
Opu
Senior Member
 
City: Oceanside
Vessel Name: Cheers
Vessel Model: Bayliner 32
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 107
Re:mark

Quote:
Originally Posted by markpierce View Post
Seals in Carquinez Strait?

There used to be seals lounging on the San Diego channel entrance buoy until it sank several months ago. They initially said they were going to replace it with a virtual waypoint.

On the other hand we've seen a few blues down here in SoCal recently.
Opu is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2014, 08:34 AM   #19
Guru
 
hollywood8118's Avatar
 
City: Port Townsend Washington
Vessel Name: " OTTER "
Vessel Model: Ocean Alexander Europa 40
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 2,378
Quote:
Originally Posted by manyboats View Post
Orcas are highly over rated. The're just sea cows that think the're fish.

I always thought they knew exactly where we were w our engines running and they almost certainly do but I still ran right into one .. T boned him at 6 knots. Eight tons meets 30tons? Everybody survived but now I stay well away from them. And then I had a policy of not altering course to get closer to them. And I didn't on collision day.

I think there should be no commercial whale watching and boaters should stay basically far to well away from them. Most don't though. Accidentally getting close or steering toward them is IMO harassing them.

Beautiful to watch but Mother Earth probably wouldn't miss them much if they were to become extinct. There would just be lots more seals and fish. Ever watched a cow Orca teaching her young how to kill and eat seals? It's a bloody mess and happens in Thorne Bay at times.

Mark are those seals or sea lions?


wow... one could have a field day with this one.

HOLLYWOOD
hollywood8118 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2014, 02:14 PM   #20
Guru
 
Nomad Willy's Avatar
 
City: Concrete Washington State
Vessel Name: Willy
Vessel Model: Willard Nomad 30'
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 18,743
Go ahead hollywood 8118,
You going to make a case for the value of Orca's?
Or getting among their midst?
Or saving the whale watchers jobs?
Or Orca's eating seals?
Or do you see something I don't see?

Not much else going on on this forum anyway.
__________________
Eric

North Western Washington State USA
Nomad Willy is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Trawler Port Captains
Port Captains are TF volunteers who can serve as local guides or assist with local arrangements and information. Search below to locate Port Captains near your destination. To learn more about this program read here: TF Port Captain Program





All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:42 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2006 - 2012