Orcas T65B's pass through the inter-islands

September 13, 2020 – The smoky haze from the nations wild land fires together with sea mist gave a sobering somber look to the layers of islands today. With a tip from the ferry that orcas were near Flat Point, Lopez we headed out from Friday Harbor. The current was in full flood so we stayed close to shore on the back eddy that runs to Turn Island. Coming in close to Turn Rock I was busy pointing out the kelp forest when Barbara alerted us to the bald eagle roosting on the green number 3 channel marker. Hitting the flood after rounding the rock we veered left to sail with the current across to Shaw Island.

As we approached Shaw we heard that the Biggs/Transient orcas known as the T65B’s who were hunting north of Canoe Island had taken off to the North. It was tempting to turn around on plan B to circle San Juan Island where the resident orcas were coming in to False Bay. However with the visibility said to be less than 50 yards we continued catching the flood around Shaw Island to catch up with the T65B’s.

We caught up with the orcas as they crossed West Sound. We left them in the maze of Islets and took Pole Pass meeting them again as they approached coming around Crane Island. We watched as they hunted close to shore before moving on to Yellow Island. Finding some areas with a decent breeze we sailed for awhile and paralleled the orcas from afar as they continued North. Harbor porpoises were all around and there was a report of Dalls porpoise near Flattop, however the orcas were now in traveling mode.

We broke off to navigate through Ripple Pass and come down through the Cactus Islands. A great blue heron froze in place standing on the kelp fronds as we drifted through. Sailing close to shoreline of Spieden Island we headed west in New Channel and came around the island to see the South side with many fallow deer, mouflon sheep and rams. We found a bald eagle engaged in eating a large fish on Sentinel Island. A California sea lion was at Green Point in the kelp forest – the first one we’ve seen this year.

We circled Flattop Island before heading South. Large groups of pigeon guillemots with occasional pairs of marbled murrelets were gathered south of Jones Island. And we paralleled a traveling steller sea lion approaching Point Caution before returning to Friday Harbor.