Behind the Scenes at the Orca Meet-Up
July 19, 2011 by Michael Mountain
Some candid shots taken by several of us at the get-together
Superpod!
July 18, 2011 by Michael Mountain
“The “J” pod is south of us near the point over there and heading up toward where the other pods are coming down. They may all be joining up for a superpod.”
Luna the Orca Who Wanted to Be Friends
July 16, 2011 by Michael Mountain
The story of Luna leading up to that fateful day is told poignantly, but with no editorializing, by Mike Parfit and Suzanne Chisolm, in their movie, The Whale.
T is for Transient
July 16, 2011 by Michael Mountain
Visiting the orcas, Wednesday a.m. One of the transient orca groups – Photo by Chris Zylstra. Thursday morning: One of the teams that went out this morning had the good luck to come across a pod of transient orcas. As well as the “resident” pods — the J, K, and L pods — who spend [...]
First Sighting
July 15, 2011 by Michael Mountain
Visiting the orcas — Tuesday afternoon By Michael Mountain About 10 of us are on the deck of the office at the Center for Whale Research. Some whale watching boats have appeared in the distance, which means they’ve spotted some orcas heading our way and are following them at a respectful distance. A half-dozen kayaks [...]
Off to the Island
July 15, 2011 by Michael Mountain
From Seattle to San Juan Island to visit the orcas By Michael Mountain It’s all aboard the Victoria Clipper for a 7.30 a.m. departure. My dinky camera doesn’t do the Seattle skyline justice on a dark cloudy morning, but we leave Pier 69 for the three-hour journey to San Juan Island, home to the Center [...]
Visiting the Orcas
July 14, 2011 by Michael Mountain
On July 2, Granny J2 celebrated her 100th birthday. They held a party in her honor on San Juan Island, off the coast of Seattle. How do they know she just turned 100?