May 3, 2022 – We had such a fun adventure seeing humpback whale, BCY0324 aka “Big Mama”, with her 7th known calf – plus several others that joined up for a get together. Other highlights included a bald eagle in the nest on Flattop Island, dozens of harbor seals on Flattop Island and White Rock National Wildlife Refuge, Steller sea lions at Boiling Reef as well as hundreds of Bonaparte’s gulls, the gorgeous forested coastline on the north shore of Orcas Island, and another bald eagle with its nest on Orcas Island. A stellar day!
Nob Island with the head of Turtleback Mountain
Nob Island and Shirt Tail Reef
Cormorants on Low Island
Wildflowers on Yellow Island
Bald eagle in nest on Flattop Island
Harbor seals on Flattop Island
Flattop Island
Harbor seals on White Rock
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama with 7th known calf
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama
Big Mama’s calf’s tail flukes
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama
Big Mama’s calf’s dorsal fin
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama tail flukes
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama with new calf
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama
BCY0324 Big Mama tail flukes
Big Mama’s calf’s tail flukes as it lays on its side
Big Mama’s calf as it goes on a deep dive
Humpback whale BCY0324 Big Mama with 7th known calf
Humpback whales joining up near East Point
Steller sea lions on Boiling Reef
Steller sea lions on Boiling Reef
Bonaparte’s gulls
Bonaparte’s gulls
Another humpback whale in the vicinity of Big Mama
Humpback whale tail flukes
Humpback whale tail flukes
Humpback whale tail flukes
Bare and Skipjack Islands
Eagle in the forest on Orcas Island
Northside of Orcas Island
Bald eagle in nest on Orcas Island
Bald eagle above nest on Orcas Island