“Phenomenal”, as my mother-in-law would say. Leaving the splendor of Yellow Island, we doubled back on a ferry report of orcas at Orcas Island. We found the T49A’s that we left at Darcy yesterday heading through Pole Pass. After a harbor seal snack, they made a straight line at speed for Green Pt. Long down time followed by explosion of surface activity and porpoising fleeing stellar sea lions. The T49A’s were then escorted along the southern edge of Spieden by tight groups of stellars roaring with mouths agape close to the rocks. Occasional flurries as the orcas ventured into their tight knit groups. The day ended with silhouetted orcas at sunset rounding Spieden pointed towards Johns Pass and the Cactus Islands lit by a full moon.

Lady Bird or Lady Bug on Buttercup

Indian Paintbrush, Blue Camas and Buttercups wildflowers of Yellow island

Wildflowers, Yellow island, Nature Conservancy, San juan Islands

T49As pass through the narrow Pole Pass of Orcas Island

T49As Deer Harbor Orcas Island

T49A4 and T49A3 and Wa State Ferry hunt Harbor seals near Wasp Pass

T49A1 hunting Harbor seals

Gull grabbing a snack of seal meat

T49A4 and T49A3 hunt Harbor seals, Yellow island

T49A3 with T49A Transient Orcas hunting harbor seals together

T49A1 and T49A4 racing towards Spieden Island and the Steller Sea Lions

The start of the attack on the sea lions

Sea lions fleeing from the T’s

Chasing after sea lions

T49A’s watched closely by the sea lions

Transient Orcas T49A’s watched closely by the sea lions, Speiden Island, San Juan Islands

T49A

T49A1

T49A with calf T49A4

T49A1

Orcas at Sunset

Orcas at sunset heading for Johns Pass

T49A3 with the setting sun

Another boring sunset in the San Juans

Full moon guiding us back to port