As I have said frequently in this blog that one of the best methods of whale or killer whale watching is to sit quietly. If you are able to be in an area as we were on this day with no other boats the orca tend to approach closer and are curious. They are a dolphin and dolphins like to play with moving boats and orcas seem to approach resting boats. The picture is the proof.
On days when the killer whales are feeding it is not unusual to have them come close to the boat. Sitting quietly in one position if that position happens to be over a school of salmon makes for an interesting viewing. This orca choose our boat as a base and swam around and under the boat several times while catching salmon. Some days are golden in the case black and white.
The northern resident orcas appear in the area of Johnstone Strait in late June and remain until mid October. They are the fish eating orca and their appearance coincides with the arrival of the Chinook salmon. The Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha is the largest species in the pacific salmon genus. Other commonly used names for the species include king salmon, black mouth, Quinnat salmon, spring salmon and Tyee salmon.
Chinook salmon are big fish! They are the largest Pacific salmon species. On average, Chinook salmon are close to a meter (3 feet) long and 8 to 14 kg (20 to 30 pounds). But some Chinook salmon in this area can grow to over 25 kg (55 pounds)! This is the preferred food for the orca although they will other species of salmon…..more tomorrow.
As with most wildlife photography doing nothing is often the best practice. On whale watching safaris from the lodge there is normally allot of activity when a pod of killer whales in located. The guides job is to try predict where the orca are going and to try and be there when they arrive and this can be a challenge when they continually change directions. But when there is a full day on the water at sometime there is a good chance of success and then a photo such as this is the result. Taken just before the two orca dove beneath the boat.
Many really interesting wildlife photos are the result of the right place and right time. And many more you do not know that you have until they are enlarged on a computer screen. This photo was taken when several orca passed beneath the boat and I snapped a series of photos with my fingers crossed. The enlargement shows a calf tucked by its mother’s side. As a mother swims quickly through the water, she forms something called a ‘slipstream’ next to her body as the water rushes past her. If the baby is inside this slipstream, he or she will be carried along with mom.
The whale watching trips from the lodge on BC’s Minstrel Island travel about fifty minutes to Johnstone Strait and along the shore of Vancouver Island to find orca. The resident (fish eating) orca spend their summers working this area in search of the larger spring salmon. The whale watching guidelines require that we remain a hundred meters (yards) from the orca so if they are coming up the straits the boats will line up parallel to the line of travel for a good view. Engines off we wait for the orca to pass but at times they will do a ninety-degree turn and pass between waiting boats or in this case start to feed on salmon.
This was the first time I saw this site on a whale watching tour from the lodge. As the pictures show it was a foggy morning and we were in Blackney Passage off Cracroft Point about fifty minutes from the lodge. The other larger boat was also whale watching from Telegraph Cove with a few guests on board. This morning only twenty or so guests were aboard when they often have between forty and fifty. In the first photo there are a number of pacific whitesided dolphins playing and on the right side the large back of a humpback whale. In the second photo you can clearly see a mother and calf being harassed by the dolphins. This harassment continued for about fifteen minutes until the humpback took a long dive and disappeared. It is common to view Steller sealions playing with the humpback whales but a first for the dolphins.
On a clear whale watching day these two photos would not be confusing. One of a killer whales approaching the boat and the other of a humpback when it is rolling on it’s side and showing its pectoral flipper. But on a foggy day or from a distance without binoculars many guides have confused the pectoral flipper for a dorsal fin and made a radio call to claim a pod of orca only to have to admit the error. Either picture on it’s own is excellent the confusion is only embarrassment.
Excellent picture of the orca we see in the Johnston Strait while on a whale watching safari. The resident orcas (fish eaters) return to the area in late June and remain through late October. Their return corresponds to the arrival of the salmon, which attract the many fishers to the area to try their luck on catching a “Tyee”. A tyee is a large salmon over thirty pounds (13.6 k). Thanks again Karen and Martin for the provided this photo.
The post from yesterday with the seine boat netting salmon is in direct competition with today’s killer whales fishing. I have found over the years that during the commercial fishing season, which is not much, more that two weeks the orca stay away from the areas containing the fishing boats. Fortunately the commercial fishing area is a small portion of the viewing area for orca and humpback whales. In a way it is helpful in that it eliminates some area from our search grid and helps to locate the humpbacks and killer whales a little faster.
Just like that another season has come to an end. We are grateful for all the wonderful staff and the guests this season. It was an excellent season and we are already looking forward to next May.
One of the highlights of the season was all of the new cubs out. It was awesome to see so many new cubs of the year and that is great news for our bear populations moving forward. We had great spring viewing and this continued through summer. On our river trips we started to see salmon arriving in August and enjoyed some great shoulder season viewing. The fish at the viewing platforms were a little late showing up this year, but viewing during late September at the platforms was great and the estuary viewing remained strong throughout the season.
Out in the whale watching world it was another year that saw large numbers of resident Orca who remained in the area right into October. The Humpback viewing was also great with large numbers feeding in Blackfish Sound. It is so amazing to have these magnificent animals back in our waters in such numbers.
Over the winter and spring we will be doing some repairs and maintenance. We rebuilt the front deck last spring, utilising cedar cut on site. We will continue with some siding, rooms improvements and hopefully a floating sauna ready for the start of our season.
2026 is already looking like a very busy season for us. We only have limited high season availability so please book early to ensure we have space for your group.
Looking forward to seeing you next year
Angus Reid
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