February 23rd was another sunshine filled day exploring the Salish Sea. We started our adventure by heading North towards the Parksville area. In the past few weeks, this area has been a hotspot for whale sightings. Today though, our search along the coastline didn’t find any whales so we continued further north.

Our sights were set on Qualicum beach where there were rumours of whales being around earlier in the day. Our eyes were peeled as we got to the area and started zig-zagging towards Lasqueti island, since that was the direction they had been reported heading. Once we got between Lasqueti island and Sangster island we took the opportunity to stop for a picnic while the guests enjoyed the gorgeous views of the islands.

Once the guests stomaches were full we continued our search for the elusive whales down south once more, back towards Nanoose Bay. Getting to the Winchelsea Island Archipelago, we spotted a bunch of sea lions hanging out on the rocks! We watched the sea lions until we saw what looked like the tell-tale sign of whales in the distance, blows! Upon closer inspection it was just a high speed boat throwing a ton of water, which was still interesting to see. We continued our journey south back towards Nanaimo where we saw a bunch of sea lions hauled out at Harmac and finished the day off at the base of the towering cliffs of Gabriola Island!

While out adventuring today, we spotted this mirage on the horizon. A mirage is defined as “an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions, especially the appearance of a sheet of water in a desert or on a hot road caused by the refraction of light from the sky by heated air”. There are three different types of mirages: Inferior Mirages, Superior Mirages, and Fata Morgana. From our research, it appears this is an example of a Inferior Mirage - The edge of the island is mirrored and visible below the actual island, causing the tip of the island to appear as if it is floating.
All 3 types of mirages can be observed on our waters given the right conditions. Fata Morgana is an Italian Term that means Morgan le Fay ("Morgan the Fairy"), or the name of the sorceress from Arthurian legend. It was once believe that these mirages were fairy castles floating above the water, conjured up to lure sailors in to their untimely demise. Lucky for us our captains aren’t so easily fooled!

Please enjoy the rest of the photos taken during the trip by Marine Naturalist Rebecca Stirling!

Although we didn’t end up finding whales today we saw a ton of other wildlife and got some great photos. All our guests will get to join another tour for free and try again!

February 23rd - Sealions and Mirages

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