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Victoria | Vancouver | Seattle
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Tag Archives: orcas

Zodiac Wildlife Adventure April 18 2011

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Our guests from England, Oklahoma, Ottawa and Victoria were given a glimpse into the best that the west coast has to offer on this sunny afternoon in April. The 2pm zodiac with skipper Mark ‘Mallard ‘at the controls headed us due south east to where Transient Orca were reported. The ocean was flat calm, and the sunshine bathed this picturesque coastal region so we could view the Olympic mountains and the Canadian and USA islands. When conditions are right and the sun shines, all is perfect for spotting wildlife. Our keen eyed skipper soon located the marine mammal eating Killer Whales, ‘Orca ‘ off the south end of Hein Bank. This group consisted of 8-9 whales, the T49′s and the T75′s. They were very active and foraging for their main prey item, the Harbour Seal, which is an abundant species in these waters. There appeared to be two very young baby Orca within this group, as they were still quite peach coloured where it should be white patches on their bodies. We watched these stealth hunters, mothers with their babies, churning the water while chasing their prey. It was an awesome encounter and soon we saw the clean up gulls, flock in to snatch up what they could from the successful hunt. Nature can be cruel at times, but to watch and admire these stealth, apex hunters is a real privilege. Our trip was soon over so we headed back to Victoria enjoying the scenic beauty before us and some of the sea birds, Rhinoceros Auklets and Common Murres. This was one of those trips never to be forgotten, with those mysterious mammals that frequent these waters, especially at this time of year. Marie, Orca-Magic.

Ocean Magic Adventure April 2 2011

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The Ocean Magic set out at 12:15 with lots of eager passengers in search of killer whales. As there have been transient (meat eating) killer whales sighted in the area over the past few days, we were certain we’d find more today however we were one of only a handful of whale watching boats out there so we were pretty much on our own to find them out in that vast ocean of ours. With captain Anthony at the helm along with whale “manifester” Mallard (who made a guest appearance), naturalist Liz and Biologist Mika, along with bloggers Orca Wizard and Orca Magic, we headed east through thick clouds into open sun as we went north in Haro Strait. Along our travels passengers were delighted to see a variety of other wild life such as harbour seals, California Sealions, a pair of bald eagles and other sea birds. Just after an hour into our travels as we were nearing Active Pass, we heard that Jpod, our resident killer whale pod had been sighted just minutes from us! So we did a u turn and only minutes later found Jpod members spread apart traveling south west in Swanson Channel just South of Pender Island. We were a very happy Ocean Magic to have had the opportunity to see Jpod! Please enjoy photos and video clip of that sighting. While on route home, passengers were treated to a thrill seeking ride as we had some big waters off of Victoria’s waterfront. The Ocean Magic is a pleasure to ride in such water, actually making it fun rather then scary. Please see the bonus video below for a fun clip of that experience which was shot on an HD GoPro video camera strapped to my head (was sped up to 200 times). The following excerpt was written by blog contributor and bird expert “Orca Magic” who was also on board with us during that trip; We had the J 16 family group,   Mom J 16 ‘Slick’, J 26 ‘Mike ‘ and little ‘Echo ‘J 42. Interestingly J 36, who is 12 yrs old, their sister wasn’t swimming with this family group…guess she was off with another friend. J 33, their other brother died last year. I have sent you two pics of Mandarte Island, a breeding bird colony for Pelagic and Double-crested Cormorants as well as Pigeon Guillemots and the ubiquitous Glaucous-winged Gull. Please note: all photos were shot with a telephoto zoom lens are also cropped for internet viewing.

Ocean Magic Adventure March 19, 2011

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It was a gorgeous afternoon when Capt. Anthony and crew members, Mika and Dan headed the Ocean Magic out of the harbour and turned west. After only 20 mins of travel, we were pleasantly surprised to encounter a foraging Gray Whale just off the Victoria waterfront. We watched this large Baleen Whale take 2-3 breaths at the surface and then lift its ‘ Flukes ‘ to indicate it was heading down for a deep dive. We watched with interest for a while and then received word that Orca had been seen at the north end of Haro Strait. We left the Gray whale and headed east and then north under blue skies. The calm water made for a comfortable ride so our guests were able to catch sight of a few Steller Sea lions and Dall’s Porpoise chasing after fish. We found the picturesque scenery stunning on route. Our black and white friends, the ORCA, were soon encountered. These were some of the members of J Pod, the fish eating killer whales that frequent these waters. They were observed to be traveling very slowly, in a resting formation, heading toward Boundary Pass. On two occasions we saw ‘spy-hop’ behaviours by youngsters. It was a magical moment and privilege to watch these charismatic, marine mammals, file past . Several skeins of Mergansers flew overhead on our return trip. Our guests were delighted with their Saturday afternoon adventure on this bright sunny day, the last one of winter ! Marie, ‘Orca-Magic’ and Clint, ‘Orcawizard’. Please note, all of the photographs are taken with telephoto lenses and are heavily cropped.

Ocean Magic Wildlife Adventure March 6

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The Ocean Magic slipped from the dock in Victoria’s Inner Harbor at 1 pm. Our Skipper Anthony took the Ocean Magic past the Victoria Breakwater and headed east. The clouds parted and the sun warmed us as we worked our way past the waterfront. Out trip then took us past Oak Bay and out past Kelp Reef then up Haro Strait. Here we cam across the Killer Whales of J Pod along with L87 from L Pod. These are Southern Resident Orca, the fish eaters. They were all spread out in small groups over an area of a few miles. Our skipper carefully put us in great position to view these amazing Killer Whales as they worked the waters in search of food. We had a great pass of two Mothers with their youngsters swimming along in their wake, taking advantage of the slip stream to save energy. We then made our way back to Victoria and along the way we spotted Dalls Porpoise, these 300 to 400 pound cetaceans zip through the water sending a rooster tail of water up as they break the surface to breath. Mother nature gave us a great March day, sunny, calm seas and a great wildlife show with Orca, Dalls Porpoise, Bald Eagles and Seals. Truly a wonderful marine wildlife adventure with Prince of Whales! Clint “Orcawizard”

Winter Wildlife Adventure Feb 13

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There’s nothing like seeing wild marine mammals in our cold, but nutrient rich waters. Victoria sees an abundance of variety of wildlife when ever the Prince of Whales Zodiacs head out of the harbour, at this time of year. Sunday, was no exception, when Skipper Mark took us west of the harbour to ‘Albert Head ‘ ,where we had reports of inbound Orca. It wasn’t long before our knowledgeable skipper was able to identify who these Killer Whales were. It was apparent that this group consisted of mothers and their young, the family sub group, J17′s, members of our Southern Resident clan, JPod. This group have three youngsters, that were busy chasing fish and generally having a good time together. J 27, and J 34 , two males were seen as well as the J 22 family group. We left them doing what these wild animals like to do best, forage for fish in unpredictable patterns. We headed toward the Chain Islets at Oak Bay Flats, and saw several Harbour Seals, Harlequin Ducks, a pair of Bald Eagles and even a small fishing boat flying an oversized Canadian Flag. Upon our return to the harbour two young Long-tailed Ducks were seen. Our guests from Brazil, Ontario, Lethbridge, Alberta and Olympia, Washington State, thoroughly enjoyed their wildlife trip in ideal weather conditions. Marie, Orca-Magic.