Off of Lopez Island
Early this morning we awoke to a beautiful sunrise, with an orange glow steadily growing behind the jagged profile of the Cascade Range. We were traveling north along San Juan Island’s western edge. By the time breakfast was done, we had docked at Friday Harbor, the “capital” of the San Juan Archipelago. A forest of masts swayed in the harbor; white trunks and chrome foliage gleamed in the bright sun. Soon we were clomping up the dock, headed for town. Friday Harbor is a charming place, full of cafes, bookstores, and other intriguing shops. We browsed our way up to the Whale Museum, where we observed a collection of bones, oil, video and other whale-related stuff.
By lunch, we were underway again. Having scoured the town, we had some hints concerning the whereabouts of the region’s most charismatic marine mammal. Motoring along Lopez Island’s south shore, at last we found… killer whales! We joined a group of seven or so of the creatures and the small parade of boats that often accompanies whales in this area. We were careful to give the whales plenty of space, but they swam right along side of us, giving us thrillingly close views. We saw all of the behavior that makes killer whales fun and exciting to watch—they were spyhopping, breaching, tail-lobbing, and generally horsing around. We also saw dorsal fin nicks and saddle patch patterns. These distinctive marks can be used to identify individual whales, and we believe that we were in the company some of the members of L pod. After watching the whales for quite a while, we noticed a sudden surge of breaching and splashing. And soon we saw the reason for this. A larger group of whales was fast approaching. Soon the whales mingled in a friendly morass. They regularly surfaced in a chaotic minuet of fins; we smiled as we imagined all that could be taking place beneath the waves. At last we drew away, and soon we were listening to Milos as he gave us some marine mammal biology to set in context all that we had just enjoyed.
Meanwhile, we were motoring toward Lopez Sound. Here we found a quiet spot to anchor. After some packing and a bit of preening, we were ready for Captain’s Dinner.
It was not easy to contemplate an end to this journey, especially on such a golden day, but Seattle, too, looks good in the sunshine, and future travel awaits!
