Humpbacks BCX0837 'Tempest' and BCX1057 'Divot' pass Friday Harbor

May 29, 2020 – An early morning exciting sighting of some humpback whales coming down the channel towards Friday Harbor made us scoot out the door in a hurry with the hopes to identify who they were. As soon we we exited the harbor we spotted the blows of two humpback whales near Reid Rock traveling southbound. The whales zig zagged down the channel and we managed to get some fluke photos and identified the whales as BCX0837 ‘Tempest’ and BCX1057 ‘Divot’.

Out of nowhere (or possibly after their nap) the whales breached together twice and it was a magnificent sight to see – unfortunately neither of us had a camera in hand to capture it on camera. But, following the breaches, one of the whales (who we believe to be Tempest) half breached twice and began pectoral fin slapping.

The tide was ebbing and the fast current moved us along swiftly under sail over 8 knots through Cattle Pass. The whales continued southwest into some chunky seas and we came about to check out some other wildlife enroute back up the channel.

There were still some steller sea lions hanging out on Whale Rocks including a young pup. One of the largest groups of harlequin ducks we’ve ever seen were just north of Deadman Island, and black oyster catcher birds called out and gave several nice fly-bys. Many harbor seals were basking in the sunshine near Turn Island including a harbor seal we’ve noticed over the years with a matte black coloration and lack of pelage. A very cool sighting for us…

We’re open for business and accepting bookings. Come for a sail with us.