Encounter Summary: 

It was blowing 15 knots or more for most of the day, making Haro Strait a bit "chunky"; but as the high slack tide approached the wind died down enough for a brief "Chimo" encounter to ascertain which whales were going northwest off Sunset Point just before 4PM. J pod had spread out and passed Sunset point already, and K pod was just passing as "Chimo" arrived. K25 was a bit offshore and not approachable, but the others were at least tolerant of a few brief snapshots. Whales were also reported to be heading south off Hannah Heights, San Juan Island at the same time, so it became a priority to get a few identifications down that way before day's end. Jane Cogan has been keeping very precise track of which matrilines are present and in what area for most of the summer, so that we can calculate how many mouths are feeding in the fishing areas used by whales and humans in the Salish Sea. This is a fine scale distribution study that can amplify the knowledge gained by tracking and reports to Orcanetwork.