Prince Of Whales
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Victoria | Vancouver | Seattle
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Tag Archives: zodiac

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.

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.

Winter Wildlife Adventure Feb 11

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The Prince of Whales 12.30pm Zodiac left the harbour on Friday afternoon with international guests from Sweden, Germany, Brazil, Ontario and Saskatchewan. Although it was overcast there was very little wind or chop on the water. Snug in our survival suits, Skipper Mark, headed us south and east to hopefully encounter some Orca. We search diligently and then had a call from one of our friends on shore, who had seen a few black dorsal fins 2 miles south of Victoria, through his spotting scope. This was great news! We found the four Transient Killer Whales, identified as the T30 family group, travelling in from the west. The big male T30A, split from the rest of the group to go forage on his own. The three others soon were seen chasing a Harbour Porpoise, that surface periodically while trying to flee. The churning sea water soon indicated the hapless animal had been dispatched by these apex hunters. The clean up crew of assorted gulls soon flew in to claim their share. We later found the big male Transient Orca foraging with a prey item, a possible Harbour Seal. A quick look for other wildlife led us to Trail Island where, Harbour Seals were lounging on rocks. A Bald Eagle and some flying Harlequin Ducks added interest to our magical afternoon of wildlife viewing. Our guests were thrilled with their adventure even on a somewhat cool winter’s day not far from the Victoria waterfront. Marie,  ‘ Orca-Magic ‘

Winter Wildlife Adventure Tour Jan 8

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A little wind in the air and some chop on the water set the scene for our Prince of Whales Winter Wildlife adventure. Mark, ‘Mallard’, our 12.30pm skipper headed the yellow zodiac out of the harbour and turned east. There were some heavy winds and seas developing out west this afternoon so our knowledgeable skipper took us to the southern tip of San Juan Island, east from Victoria, where at Whale Rock we had great encounters with the large Steller Sea Lions and Cormorants on the algae covered rocks. We had plenty of sunshine in this area and traveled north along the shoreline of this scenic island were we found three large Bald Eagles nests and one adult and one immature eagle high above in the trees. Our trip then took us across Haro Strait where the water was flat calm and several Dall’s Porpoise were seen. They were very illusive, but a female and her little one close beside her, were photographed. The scenery was spectacular. We then visited Chain Islets off Oak Bay, and viewed some Harbour Seals sunning themselves on rocks close to the water’s edge. As we entered the harbour our guests from New Zealand, Malaysia, Victoria and Calgary saw several sea planes taking off and landing along with some bird life, Common Mergansers. It was another beautiful encounter with the rich diversity of wildlife that these waters have to offer, all year round. Marie, Orca-Magic.

Winter Wildlife Adventure Tour Jan 3

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And what an exquisite day to start 2011 off with. Our three hour wildlife adventure took us just south of Victoria. The weather gave us great conditions with flat calm water and plenty of sunshine. It even felt relatively warm simply because there was no wind for a change.! Our skipper ‘Rush’ headed us south of the harbour in search of Orca. A report had just come in to say Orca had been sighted off the westcoast at Sooke much earlier and they were inbound. Great excitement was anticipated by our international visitors, from Hawaii, Germany and Brazil. It wasn’t long before we could see the black dorsal fins rising from the surface in the distance with their misty exhalations, ‘blows’. It seemed there were whales spread right across the Strait of Juan de Fuca. As far as the eye could see in these ideal conditions, there were whales. They were busy foraging, chasing after Salmon, and changing direction all the time. One never knew where they would pop up. J2, ‘Granny ‘ the oldest female of the Southern Resident clan of fish eating Orca, and J8, ‘Spieden’, were traveling together and churning the water as they porpoised after fish. Granny is 100 yrs old this year. Other members of J Pod and K Pod were seen along with L87, a young male, who likes to travel with this group, keeping close proximity to the older females. Youngsters were chasing one another, while others floated along on their backs embracing the moment it seemed. Eventually they headed slowly off to the east and some seemed to be heading south east. Mt. Baker looked wonderful as the backdrop for this amazing encounter. Our guests were enthralled with this once in a life time spectacle. One thing about ‘ORCA’, they will always surprise us! Marie, Orca-Magic.