July 1st - Canada Day spent with whales near Nanaimo!
On July 1st Kula headed south through the Gulf islands before going through Porlier Pass and heading North through the Strait of Georgia in search of whales. It wasn’t long before captain Rodrigo spotted 2 large black sails on the water. We found Orcas!
We had found Wake (T46) was milling about with her sons, Strider (T46D), T46E, T46F and Centeki (T122). Centeki was born in ~1982 but does not have any children of her own, and it’s suspected that she might be T46’s daughter, but she was first catalogued separately and so we are unsure of whether or not they are related even though they are seen together so frequently.
T46 is actually the grandmother of T46B1, who we had spent time with on the 29th and 30th of June. Her great grandson is T46B1B - Tl’uk, the white orca.
After watching the T46’s milling in the strait we headed back towards Gabriola Island to see some Stellar Sea Lions and Eagles before making our way to the other side of Gabriola to watch the Cormorants and their Chicks, as well as some Turkey Vultures.
Check out some photos from the trip taken by marine naturalist Rebeka.
T46E is very noticeable with a large dorsal fin and a nick about half way down. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
T122, T46 and T46F. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
Photo by Rebeka Pirker
T122, T46 and T46F. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
Centeki, Wake and T46F milling in the Strait. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
T46D Strider has a very distinct dorsal fin. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
Stellar Sea Lions on hanging out off of Gabriola Island. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
A pair of Bald eagles were hanging out near Gabriola watching the boats pass them by. Photo by Rebeka Pirker
We are happy to be running tours daily at 1pm!
We are running at reduced capacity because of Covid, but have our Open Zodiacs and our semi-covered boat ready to take you to see whales!
If you’d like to book a tour to see whales and other cool wildlife, you can book online through our website, email use at info@vancouverislandwhalewatch.com, or call us at 250-667-5177.