Date: 25-Sep-19

Sequence: 1

Encounter Number: 78

Enc Start Time: 13:05

Enc End Time: 16:05

Vessel: Orcinus

Observers: Dave Ellifrit, Stewart MacIntyre, Kathy Babiak

Pods or ecotype: K, L pods

Location: Haro Strait

Begin Lat/Long: 48 29.09/123 06.40

End Lat/Long: 48 23.45/123 00.29

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Encounter Summary:

We were working in CWR’s Photo-ID office when we heard about whales on the west side of San Juan Island. Since the whales were heading north, we decided to see if we could see them from shore first. We headed down to LandBank on the west side by about 1030 where we saw members of K pod plus L54 heading slowly north very spread out. A pair of humpbacks also passed north through the southern residents. Some of the Ks made it as far as Lime Kiln before they turned around at and headed down island again and we got a nice pass by the K12s and the K14s. We then went back to CWR and got ready to go out in the boat.
We left Snug Harbor at 1240 and found the whales off Hannah Heights at 1305. The K12s were spread out and foraging while slowly heading down island. K33 and K43 were both involved in fish chases at the same time when they were spread out by a few hundred yards. We later found K14 and K36 traveling down island together at the south end of False Bay. We then went way offshore to the northwest and found L88 along with the L54s and K42 very spread out and foraging. A minke appeared when L54 showed up and charged southwest past the foraging SRs toward a big bird ball that was somewhere near Beaumont Shoal. Farther south we found K16 and K35, also spread out, heading southerly toward Hein Bank. K35 was less than a mile north of Hein Bank when we left him due to dropping temperature and a big wet looking cloud that was looming to the north. We found K26 a little north of the K16s and ended the encounter there at about 1605.