super pod

I was out in Samsun Narrows and their was a lot of seals feeding. Watched a couple of Stellar Sea Lions as well. Must be a fairly big Salmon run going on.
 
Most welcome Bob. I have not seen a super pod this large in my 30 years on Island. We have transient orca and resident orca. I believe these are transients which primarily feed on seal and dolphin. Residents are fish eaters.
 
A super pod is generally referenced when J, K & L Pods (SRKW - Southern Resident Killer Whales) come together. It is an amazing thing to see: there is a greeting ceremony. Definitely, an unforgettable time for whale viewing.

We have been through and near Active Pass several times this past week. It has been transient whales in that area, and the viewing has been good. We have distance rules that have to be followed on the water... when the whales are that close to shore, and you are ON the shore, it is quite a sight!

We had a similar situation off Waldron Island a couple days ago, and not a single person on shore to take it in.

Seeing that YouTube video is a delight - I am generally busy at the helm and not able to get photos; video would be impossible. I considered mounting the GoPro at the helm, but the wide angle aspect wouldn't be as impressive... and you just know the whales would be on the opposite side of the boat that I'd have the camera mounted. :wink:

Thanks for posting that link!

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Was that a Super pod? looked like 25 to 30 animals total. That would be just on of the 3 pods. a Super pod, all three groups, would be closer to 80 whales. That would be something to see. Not sure this could be called a super pod. It was a outstanding video and great to watch. We have seen the whales there before. In fact the last time we saw riffles was at active. He was the first killer whale we every saw in the SJ's. Can right over to the boat ad swam under it. That was in the 19 starcraft we had. Last time we saw him we were 300yards away from the last spot we saw the whales and all of a sudden Riffles surfaces so close to the boat his dorsal just touches a fishing rod i had in the holder sticking out the side. Susan almost backed up right out of the boat trying to get the whale to fit into the photo.
 
JamesTXSD":292ovk1g said:
A super pod is generally referenced when J, K & L Pods (SRKW - Southern Resident Killer Whales) come together. It is an amazing thing to see: there is a greeting ceremony. Definitely, an unforgettable time for whale viewing.

We have been through and near Active Pass several times this past week. It has been transient whales in that area, and the viewing has been good. We have distance rules that have to be followed on the water... when the whales are that close to shore, and you are ON the shore, it is quite a sight!

We had a similar situation off Waldron Island a couple days ago, and not a single person on shore to take it in.

Seeing that YouTube video is a delight - I am generally busy at the helm and not able to get photos; video would be impossible. I considered mounting the GoPro at the helm, but the wide angle aspect wouldn't be as impressive... and you just know the whales would be on the opposite side of the boat that I'd have the camera mounted. :wink:

Thanks for posting that link!

Best wishes,
Jim B.
Click to expand...

Jim, where in the san juans would a person yield the best chance for watching right now? we're headed out this weekend and I'd love to surprise my wife with a viewing if it worked out.
 
DuckDogTitus":jo2qcdpb said:
JamesTXSD":jo2qcdpb said:
A super pod is generally referenced when J, K & L Pods (SRKW - Southern Resident Killer Whales) come together. It is an amazing thing to see: there is a greeting ceremony. Definitely, an unforgettable time for whale viewing.

We have been through and near Active Pass several times this past week. It has been transient whales in that area, and the viewing has been good. We have distance rules that have to be followed on the water... when the whales are that close to shore, and you are ON the shore, it is quite a sight!

We had a similar situation off Waldron Island a couple days ago, and not a single person on shore to take it in.

Seeing that YouTube video is a delight - I am generally busy at the helm and not able to get photos; video would be impossible. I considered mounting the GoPro at the helm, but the wide angle aspect wouldn't be as impressive... and you just know the whales would be on the opposite side of the boat that I'd have the camera mounted. :wink:

Thanks for posting that link!

Best wishes,
Jim B.
Click to expand...

Jim, where in the san juans would a person yield the best chance for watching right now? we're headed out this weekend and I'd love to surprise my wife with a viewing if it worked out.
Click to expand...

Wish I had a dollar for each time I am asked that. Historically, you stood a good chance of finding them on the west side of San Juan Island. This year, that has certainly not been the case. Other than a 10 day period when some of L-Pod was hanging out there, we have gone a different direction, and to a different destination every single day.

These animals can, and do, travel up to 70 to 100 miles per day. Sometimes they leave the area. Transients can pop up anywhere... or nowhere. If I could tell you where you might find them in a couple of days, I would be buying lottery tickets!! :wink:

Our company pays to belong to a commercial operators association that works together to help members find the whales. There are days we have no reports; days we get a report once we have departed; and sometimes we have a credible report ahead of time.

Sorry I can't tell you any more than that.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
It would be great if the transients stuck around to put on a show for the CD folks gathering in Sidney. Active Pass is very close.
Chris
 
Jim, that's more or less what I expected to hear but I thought I'd ask. I've seen them all the way down in Tacoma before and that was pretty darn cool. My wife hasn't seen them in the wild yet so it will be a treat for her if she can.


do you recognize individual whales now after seeing them so often? or just the pod size? I am wondering how you are able to know who is who when you reference which family pod you see.
 
That is an awesome video. Just knowing that we were in that area just a few weeks back.

Another great reason that we drove 36hrs and 2000 miles (10mpg) with the CD22 in tow and left it there for at least a few years - never know what we'll see...

Thanks for sharing that video.
 
Cheers Robert.
BTW. I checked out you gallery. Yours may be the coolest cabin I have ever laid eyes on. The copper roof is beautiful.
 
DuckDogTitus":22sra0kl said:
Jim, that's more or less what I expected to hear but I thought I'd ask. I've seen them all the way down in Tacoma before and that was pretty darn cool. My wife hasn't seen them in the wild yet so it will be a treat for her if she can.


do you recognize individual whales now after seeing them so often? or just the pod size? I am wondering how you are able to know who is who when you reference which family pod you see.
Click to expand...

The naturalists on our boats have reference books that are like a high school yearbook for J, K & L Pods. They are identifiable by their dorsal fins and the saddle patch area behind the fin. They log who we see. I can identify some of the big males... especially Blackberry, who seems to have an affinity for one of the boats I drive. I jokingly said to the owner, "Maybe I shouldn't have painted the bottom of the boat black and white last year?"

We pass the info of who we see to the Orca Network. There is generally a research boat out there, with a dog onboard who helps them find whale scat. That is used to check the DNA and general health of the animals (yes, really). Our guests are generally fascinated by this all once we explain the process and point out the research boat and the dogs (there are two dogs doing this duty, not to be confused with doody :wink: ).

These animals have been studied since the 70s. Births are recorded (a very high infant mortality rate), deaths are assumed if an animal is not seen for a season. These Orcas are very family oriented, in a matriarchal society. The oldest female, Granny (J-2), is estimated to be 102 years old. Males generally live to be 30 to 40 years old, females another decade or so.

Ruffles, that Tom referred to, died a couple years ago. His dorsal fin had a definite "wave" to it, like the Ruffles potato chips. Each of the Orcas are given a number identifier (Ruffles was J-1, and believed to be around 60 years old when he passed) and after a year, a name.

When you study them, and see them on a regular basis, you begin to understand their behavior, as well as being able to identify them. Our naturalists are all degreed biologists and trained as naturalists. They explain different behavior, family links, and point out identifying features on the Orcas. If the animals are moving and there are a lot of other boats nearby, I have my hands full at the helm, keeping legal distance while positioning to give the guests the best viewing, and being respectful of the animals and other boats.

As has been discussed in another thread, NOAA and WDFW have been more visible this season, boarding boats and enforcing the regulations. If you come across the whales while out there, watch what the professional whale watch boats are doing: you will see them maintain at least 200 yards lateral distance and not getting in front of the whales' path. When there are a bunch of boats out there, all following the rules, and someone blasts right up on the whales or positions their boat in the path (yes, we see that on regular basis), it is pretty obvious. NOAA and WDFW have been all over that. Some people think that if they're a private boat or don't have their engine running that the regulations don't apply to them... and then find out differently.

Maybe more than you wanted to know. Hope you get the opportunity to see these magnificent animals!

Best wishes,
Jim
 
JamesTXSD":27294qia said:
Maybe more than you wanted to know. Hope you get the opportunity to see these magnificent animals!

Best wishes,
Jim
Click to expand...

It was more than I thought I wanted to know, but now my curiosity is really piqued. I'm going to have to do some more digging and learning here, because this is pretty darn cool stuff. thank you for the feedback and history there!! :thup
 
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