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Sign up for Whale Sightings Reports and updates! The purpose of Orca Network's Whale Sighting Network and Education Project is to encourage observation and increase awareness and knowledge about the Southern Resident Community of orcas (J, K and L pods), and foster a stewardship ethic to motivate a diverse audience to take action to protect and restore these orcas' critical habitat. The orcas' steep population decline of 20% from 1995 to 2001 is a reflection of the problems and issues facing the greater Puget Sound marine and watershed ecosystems: declining salmon runs, PCB contamination, and the effects of a rapidly increasing human population including habitat loss and resource depletion. Through a volunteer Whale Sighting Network, sightings and observations of this orca community are gathered and disseminated to researchers and volunteers, and posted on our website. For information on the Southern Resident orcas , go to Orcas of the Salish Sea .

, go to . Click here to find out about Northern Resident orcas : Northern Resident orcas ,

: , For more about Offshore orcas : Offshore orcas ,

: , To learn about Transients/Bigg's Killer Whales , see: Photo-identification Catalogue, Population Status, and Distribution of Biggs Killer Whales known from Coastal Waters of British Columbia, Canada. 2019 . For more information, please see: DFO's what is known of these whales or here: Bigg's Whales (Transients) .

, see: . For more information, please see: DFO's or here: . Click here to learn about Gray whales .

. Click here for Sightings and movements of humpback whales in Puget Sound, Washington from Cascadia Research Collective.

from Cascadia Research Collective. To learn about minke whales, click here for the Northeast Pacific minke whale project .

. Commonly found marine mammals of Puget Sound

Other sightings networks can be found on the Orca Network Links page.

page. To hear orcas underwater in real time when they're around, go to OrcaSound - real-time underwater sound

when they're around, go to OrcaSound - real-time underwater sound To better understand how to operate a boat among orcas, please become familiar with the Be Whale Wise Guidelines and Regulations

To report harassment of whales in US waters, call NOAA Enforcement: 1-800-853-1964 ;

In Canadian waters, call DFO's Observe Record and Report (ORR) Violations Hotline: 1-800-465-4336

Report the boat name &/or a description of the boat, & get photos if at all possible.

; In Canadian waters, call Report the boat name &/or a description of the boat, & get photos if at all possible. To report stranded marine mammals, please contact Marine Mammal Stranding Network

For whale watch information, contact the Pacific Whale Watch Association

For charts of the Salish Sea and Pacific Ocean, go to: NOAA Nautical Chart On-Line Viewer - Pacific Coast Summarized Sightings map HERE

September 16

Wed, Sept 16 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - T046B1 hunting a harbour seal south west of Sombrio Point on the afternoon of September 16th. -Mark Malleson

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ORCA NO IDS - Wed, Sept 16 - Puget Sound - 12:15 - We reviewed a video taken at 12:15 by Ken of a pod looking to number 6-7, heading northbound in Colvos Passage, 3 miles north of Gig Harbor (around Point Richmond area?). (secondhand report from Roxane Jackson Johnson and Rachel Blaurock of video by Ken Donald on posted in Puget Sound Whale Sightings FB group)

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~10:00 - Around 10 am, a pod of 6/7 orcas in Commencement Bay close to shore in Browns Point. -Helen LaPorte

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~08:00 - [orcas] From the beach at Browns Point Lighthouse. 9/16/2020. (It was really hard to get pictures with the smoke.) -Patricia Peachy Reynolds

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GRAY WHALES - Wed, Sept 16 - Northern Saratoga Passage - Gray whale off Polnell Shores, feeding. General direction heading north. -Kris Holley



September 15

GRAY WHALES - Tue, Sept 15 - Northern Saratoga Passage - 11:00-11:30 - Gray 2261 (presumably) is passing by Mariners Cove heading south toward Polnell. It wasn't feeding much as it approached from the north but started feeding as it passed my place and approached the happy meal mudflats. It's pretty close to shore but it's just under 1' tide so still pretty far out there. Smoke is thick and bright, but I can see the outline clearly and hear the puffs. As of 11:30, it is at the mudflats feeding, but still moving south as far as I can tell, but it's disappearing into the mist at this point. -Marianne Parry

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UNIDENTIFIED SPECIES - Tue, Sept 15 - Central Puget Sound - ~15:45 - My neighbors and I saw a minke whale very close to shore in front of our condominiums yesterday, Sept. 15, 2020, approximately 3:45 p.m. It was northbound about 1 mile south of the Fauntleroy Ferry in West Seattle. Its dorsal fin and size were distinct compared to the humpbacks, orcas and harbor seals we've seen. A worker on site said he saw it jump twice and described its tail. I saw it roll to the surface as it traveled fairly fast northbound. Moments later I saw splashing/disturbance at the buoy of a neighbor's boat and assumed it was the whale but we did not see it again. It happened too fast for a photo, but it was exciting. -Carolyn Duncan



September 14

ORCA NO IDS - Mon, Sept 14 - 19:20 - Three orcas southbound off southern end of Lagoon Point very near Whidbey side. Moving quickly. -Margaret Marshall

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18:30 - I may have seen one off Driftwood Beach just east of Coupeville ferry terminal around 6:30. if it was, it was at the smoke/fog line and disappeared. -Marilyn Armbruster

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15:03 - Good afternoon. This would be my first sighting, but saw 3 fins moving fast north from Langley. Maybe porpoises -Kimberlie C de A

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GRAY WHALES - Mon, Sept 14 - Northern Saratoga Passage - ~12:15 - Thanks to a helpful tip, I was on the lookout for Gray, and it showed up maybe 12:15-ish at Mariners cove, arriving from Polnell Point. It cruised by pretty quickly and as of 12:45, I can hear it but it's out of sight to the north. It's staying along Whidbey so far instead of heading into the channel.... Actually, as I write this, I'm hearing louder puffs again so maybe it has turned out into the channel - the smoke is so thick I just can't get a visual. I got a few glimpses of it as it passed by me - it was not very close in, and I could just barely see it in the smoke. It did not appear to be feeding - no fins or tails, and no big noggin' lifting out of the water - just very low-profile and short surfacing. Maybe the smoke is bugging it after all. -Marianne Parry

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Gray Whale #2261 made the rounds through Polnell Point in Oak Harbor, WA today. Do you happen if #2261 is a female or male? -Greg & Terra Parham, Oak Harbor



September 13

Sun, Sept 13 - Haro Strait - 14:50 - 3-4 loud orca exhalations, southbound. Visibility was only 200' and I couldn't see them.

11:40 - I heard K-Pod on the Lime Kiln Hydrophone. (Due to the wildfire smoke, Southern Resident activity was hard to see.)

11:38 - Orcas on LK hydrophone. -Michelline Halliday, SJI

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11:18 - I had J22's -Alan Niles

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13:55 - Burst of louder K calls now.

13:40 - Distant K calls...

13:36 - S2 call (J pod).

13:30 - At least some still near Lime Kiln hps, just heard clicktrain. (And now a boat coming thru 13:32).

13:04 - 13:04 - hearing K calls on Lime Kiln again at least, a bit distant.

12:38 - An abundance of sweet kitty (K) calls, last several minutes, getting louder.

12:12 - Currently nice echolocation on Lime Kiln to go along with those lovely J & K calls.

11:11 - [SRKW] I did hear one quick call on OrcaLab hydrophone. -Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network

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09:38 - There is a report of Orcas in Spieden Channel going west. -James Mead Maya

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BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sun, Sept 13 - San Juan Islands (T65Bs) - 13:15 - [orcas] They're exiting the Wasp Islands and pointed North. -Barbara Howitt

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11:34 - Reported as the T65Bs, with better visibility over there than on the west side of San Juan. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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11:04 - Bradley Coombe, WSF Marine Ops, emailed report: YAKIMA: Master reports via 800MHz a pod of orca near Canoe Island in Upright Channel heading North-East.

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Sun, Sept 13 - WA Coast - I did a pelagic trip out of Westport. We spotted these orca's approximately 20 miles off coast, in line with Westport and Willapa Canyon. I have a fair amount of pictures of them. I'm attaching a link to a zip file with what I think are the best for ID purposes. I've included some that show groupings/pairings in case that helps. The conditions for photography were fairly poor; please excuse the un-processed images. -Tim Kuhn

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ORCA NO IDS - Sun, Sept 13 - San Juan Island - 15:40 - [time of report] Foggy, but heard then seen single orca off Eagle Point off SJI. Could not tell if solo but in fog only made out one large dorsal. And heard just a single blow. -Max Terror



September 12

Sat, Sept 12 - Strait of Georgia - 09:14 - As of 8 this morning a large group of the Southern Residents were seen heading north off the Fraser River. Visibility and air quality conditions are even worse out there today, so stay safe everyone! -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sat, Sept 12 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - T109B hunting a harbour porpoise south of Nitinat on the morning of September 12th. -Mark Malleson

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Sat, Sept 12 - San Juan Islands (T65Bs) - 13:45 - T65Bs heading south down President's Channel. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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Sat, Sept 12 - San Juan Islands (T123s) - We headed up into the Strait of Georgia after that, along the outside of the outer islands toward Alden bank. We met up with the T123 Bigg's orca whales on the south end of the bank and settled in for a show. As the whales traveled, they exhibited many behaviors that would be consistent with hunting and we did see a few harbor porpoise swim relatively close to the orca whales. We left the whales as they continued north and headed over to Clements reef to check out a big group of Steller sea lions. Continuing to search the area after that, we received a call the whales had turned south and so we joined them one last time. This time they were getting into a resting pattern as we followed along with them. We waved goodbye to the T123's and cruised the shores of Lummi Island where Captain Scott found us two adult bald eagles perched in the trees. -Tyson, Island Adventures (Anacortes)



September 11

Fri, Sept 11 - Strait of Juan de Fuca to Haro Strait

22:00 - Pretty good on orcasound!

21:52 - [SRKW] Distant calls on Orcasound now. -Michelle Savoie

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18:14 - [SRKW] Some whales heading north towards False Bay. CWR and Giles present. -Karin Roemers-Kleven

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17:05-18:37 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #46: " We saw our first whale at 1705 off Hannah Heights although it soon disappeared on us. To the south off False Bay, we found J51, J27, and K36 spread out and foraging. J27 and K36 briefly came together before spreading out again. Due to heavy smoke mixing with fog, we had only about a half mile of visibility. A half mile of visibility in Haro Strait would be the best we had for the next week. " [See CWR Encounter #46 for full encounter summary and photos.] https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-46

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16:10 - [SRKW] Had one male, swimming SB past the lighthouse.

15:55 - 15:55 KW's spotted on Lime Kiln PTZ Cam, directly off LK lighthouse, northbound. -Fred Horn

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21:00 - Too dark to see, I could hear orcas traveling northbound, most were spread out near and far. One group of 5 were surfacing together; each exhalation followed quickly by another.

15:43-16:40 - 16 orcas, spread out except for two groups traveling southbound from Edwards Point. There were more orcas that I could hear but not see. All southbound.

15:40 - 1/2 mile south of Edwards Point, one large male milling. (Due to the wildfire smoke, Southern Resident activity was hard to see.) -Michelline Halliday, SJI

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16:10 - Five orcas visible 300 yds. off Lime Kiln, heading down island.

15:34 - [orcas] I can hear breaths in the distance at Hannah Heights right now. But visibility is v poor so I cannot see anything. [wildfire smoke] -Michael Noonan

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15:26 - J, K, and Ls on the [LK] hydrophone!! -Valérie B Messier

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22:10 - Report from other thread: many blows and surface percussives from whales passing northbound off Madrona Drive near Snug Harbor.

21:30 - Off the hook vocals on Lime Kiln!! (all three pods)

18:05 - Some very distant calls again on the Lime Kiln hydrophone.

16:07 - Still a few southbound off Land Bank.

15:35 - Visual off Land Bank.

14:25 - Update is of superpod south of Discovery crossing Haro fast aiming for San Juan!

11:00 - Members of all 3 Southern Resident pods inbound from between Sooke and Race Rocks. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Fri, Sept 11 - Srait of Juan de Fuca - 10:18-12:11 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #45: " Mark spotted a pair of bulls at the edge of their visibility. It looked as though they were pointed towards them so they shut down and waited. What seemed like an eternity, a bull popped up abeam of them working its way back to the original sighting location. They eventually got confirmation of T049A1 but no sign of the other bull. In the reduced visibility it was hard to keep their bearings and every time they thought they had found the other bull it turned out to be T049A1. They decided to end the encounter and make their way towards the Nitinat River bar to get out of the fog. As they were taxiing away T049A3 and T049A4 appeared. Once they got decent pictures for proof of presence the Mike 1 crew ended the encounter at 1211 " [See CWR Encounter #45 for full encounter summary and photos.] - https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-45

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Fri, Sept 11 - Strait of Georgia (T123s) - West of Sucia we met up with the T123s, a pod of four Bigg's killer whales that frequent Salish Sea waters. Mama Sidney (T123) and her three kids seemed to be scouting for prey, maintaining long down times interrupted by periodic episodes of milling and circling at the surface. They passed by Clements Reef where about a dozen Steller sea lions were playing a life-and-death round of king of the rock (don't want to be the sea lion shoved into the water with Bigg's around), then continued on towards Echo Bay. We got some great looks at this pod when they decided to switch up their direction of travel, and pass by the starboard side. As we were leaving the whales, we crossed paths with two swimming Steller sea lions, and questioned why they were swimming in the direction of the pod of Bigg's. -Sam, Island Adventures (Anacortes)

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GRAY WHALES - Fri, Sept 11 - Northern Saratoga Passage - ~09:00 - I was afraid I'd miss our friend Gray 2261 today because the windows are closed due to smoke and I wouldn't hear it. Luckily, I happened to see it coming down the beach at about 9am. It is moving pretty quickly, feeding more as it got closer to the mudflats. It's heading toward Polnell, as far as I can tell. I'm hoping this smoke doesn't bother Gray too much. -Marianne Parry



September 10

Wed, Sept 10 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - 08:39-17:53 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #44: " When they were ~5 miles south of the entrance to Port of San Juan (Port Renfrew), Hanna, who was scanning from outside the cabin, motioned to Mark that she had spotted a breach off to the southwest towards an outbound container ship. She figured it was likely a humpback whale, but Mark felt it was a good idea to confirm. When they were within a mile of the ship, it was obvious that there was a large group of killer whales westbound in the outbound shipping lane. They confirmed that they had J pod in its entirety grouped up moving slowly west. Mark took advantage of the calm seas and started scanning with the binoculars while they waited for J's to resurface to see if more members of the Clan were nearby. Sure enough! He spotted a huge number of small blows a couple of miles to the west. After a couple more sequences with J's, Mike 1 proceeded to the west to confirm the others. It turned out to be two large groups of a mix of K's and L's in each, and both groups were heading east towards the J's. The lead group of K's and L's met up with J's, and after a short greeting with visible signs of excitement, the Clan split up into three big mixed groups as the trailing eastbound group arrived. " [See CWR Encounter #44 for full encounter summary and more photos.] https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-44

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BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Thu, Sept 10 - Haro Strait - It was a pretty cool evening out there watching the T18s, T65Bs, T60D, and T60E pursue a minke whale for nearly fifteen miles before it eluded them. photo - "T65B led the charge with T19 for many miles." photo - "T19 in pursuit." photo - "T60E and T19C" photo - "T18 and T65B2" photo - "T65B2 spyhop" Afterwards, the orcas grouped up and had some social time. -Sara Hysong-Shimazu

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16:20 These whales, the T18s and T65Bs (possibly having joined up with more), are now south of Discovery Island, reportedly chasing a minke whales as they aim back towards San Juan Island. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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07:30-10:00 - At 10:30 Haley Eldridge callled to report seeing pod of 8-12 orcas in Haro Strait this morning, observed from 07:30-10:00. They first saw and watched the orcas moving southbound from County Park. They then moved down island and watched from Land Bank/Westside Preserve. The pod was more mid channel where they hung out in the middle for a while, eventually moving further offshore and were last seen heading west, directionally, toward Victoria, B.C. Lots of spyhopping, playing, breaching at one point. Too far to see saddles or which ecotype. One large male had distinct backward-looking/leaning dorsal.

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GRAY WHALES - Thu, Sept 10 - Northern Saratoga Passage - #2261 was leisurely feeding around Polnell Point today. He/she doesn't seem to be in any hurry to go to Alaska! -Greg & Terra Parham, Oak Harbor, WA

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11:00-11:20 - Gray 2261 apparently went down to Polnell Shores and then turned around and came back up here! I've been watching him for a good 30 min or so. It came back up to Mariners Cove and then finally decided to head out into the channel. The buffet ran out of dessert apparently - lol. It's now 11:20am and it is heading across the channel toward northern tip of Camano. I can hear the puffs but losing visuals in the haze.

08:20-08:50 - I heard the familiar puff at 8:20am, and watched it feeding southward for about 45 minutes. Today's dance moves were less like ballet and more like a rock concert (classic rock of course) - lots of fins waving in the air and really splashing and churning up the water, with little sideways movement. Progress was much slower than usual, just moving a very short distance between rolls. It appeared to be heading toward Polnell, and Greg and Terra just said they can see it from the beach but still up in my direction (9:25). -Marianne Parry

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MINKE WHALES - Thu, Sept 10 - It was a pretty cool evening out there watching the T18s, T65Bs, T60D, and T60E pursue a minke whale for nearly fifteen miles before it eluded them. Afterwards, the orcas grouped up and had some social time. -Sara Hysong-Shimazu

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DOLPHINS - Thu, Sept 10 - 14:35 - I believe there is a Pacific Dolphin off Apple Tree Point [Kingston]. Not a porpoise, lighter grey, moving fast and porpoising along. Only see one. [Follow up] It was moving pretty fast and away from me. It definitely was not a porpoise. I did not get a good enough look. [to confirm which type -alb]. -Sara Frey



September 9

BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Wed, Sept 9 (T37As) - ~17:00 - We were lucky enough to have 3 orcas swim past Skagit Bay (just past Yokeko Point), heading west towards the Deception Pass Bridge Wednesday evening at about 5:00 pm. -Diane Parham

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17:55 - Back through the pass and headed out.

14:22 - I just saw 2 beautiful orcas swim down the Skagit Bay off of Oak Harbor/Whidbey Island. They were headed East and taking their time cruising along. A couple of whale watching boats with tourists was viewing them but giving the precious whales plenty of open space. I wanted to be sure to report it to you! -Trisha Ferreira, Oak Harbor, WA

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18:10 - After tail lobbing along the north side as they headed out Deception Pass, they are now pushing northwest away from shore.

~17:45 - About 545 they headed west in Canoe Pass.

17:15 - Westbound near Cornet Bay headed towards bridge.

15:15 - They turned around. Steady northbound at Borgman Road.

14:10 - They just passed Borgman Road beach access. A couple hundred yards off Whidbey shore steady southbound.

13:30 - [orcas] Still steady southbound passing Dugualla Bay now.

----Today was my fifth time seeing orcas head under Deception Pass - except they tricked me, and headed west out the smaller Canoe Pass. I had to race in my car to the other side, but still managed to get a few photos. T37As. -Rachel Haight

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12:30 - Bigg's Transients T37As off northeast Whidbey south of Ala Spit County Park and Hope Island. Currently stalled, had been southbound. [per ALB]

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Wednesday the ninth, orcas were spotted in the Dewey Beach area having come through Deception Pass and went over to the Hope Island area and then eventually around Hope island where I lost sight. They were in the distance so hard to see how many. At 5:30 that afternoon I spotted them again along the North shore of Whidbey Island by the old ferry terminal. A sailboat was watching them. This time I counted it seem to be at least five. With a juvenile or two. They had it out past Deception Pass where I can no longer see them around the corner of Yokeko point. They were heading to the pass for dinner I'm sure! I'm sure the sighting has been reported and they were so distant I wasn't able to make any possible identifications. But it was still lots of fun! Watching them feed the North Shore of Whidbey was really fun even from across the bay. -Wendy Bents Patterson

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~11:15 - Saw the baby with pod in Cornet Bay around 11:15. Very vigorous and keeping up with the adults. They stopped to do a little fishing before heading down the east side of Whidbey. Fantastic!! -Kristi Lovelady

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09:50 - [orcas] Saw a pod of four (we think) heading towards Deception Pass at 0950 Weds 9/9/2020. -Bill Westman

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DOLPHINS - Wed, Sept 9 - 09:30 - My parents believe they saw Cinco in Gig Harbor at 9:30am today (Sept 9). They said there was only one dolphin, it had a fin, and looked like the dolphins they saw in Tampa. (Hales Passage, not Gig. They're from out of town.) Additional info: [Moving] southeast. Toward Point Fosdick. When I asked my dad about its behavior, he said it was swimming at a leisurely pace and looked almost as if it were looking for fish.



September 8

BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Tue, Sept 8 - Active Pass and Strait of Georgia - 18:15 & 19:30 - A group of orcas came tonight at 6:15pm to Lighthouse park on Mayne and into Active Pass. Then another group swam in the Strait of Georgia heading into the sunset toward Saturna Island and the US side at 7:30pm. -Yves Tiberghien, Mayne Island, BC

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Tue, Sept 8 - San Juan Islands (T18s) - We had been following earlier reports of orcas known as the T65Bs who had been southbound along the west side of San Juan Island. When they reached Cattle Point, they made a sharp turn and continued to Hein Bank. At first they seemed out of range for us so we skirted Salmon Bank looking for minke whales. We later realized that the orcas had stopped near the Hein Bank marker and were just hanging out for the last hour. We decided to step on it with the hopes to see them. Unfortunately, as we got closer, they decided to begin travel again at about 6 knots westbound in the opposite direction eventually crossing the border. We came about and decided to head back in towards Lopez Island. Another report came in from the Ferry who spotted orcas near Thatcher Pass. A whale watch boat was in the area and found them southbound along the Lopez coastline. It turned out to be the T18's and they were moving fast in our direction. We continued our course crossing over McAurthur Bank scanning for minkes, but instead found loads of diving birds. As we neared Colville Island, we spotted the blows and tall fins of the two big males. The family of four orcas were traveling together at first but soon separated traveling parallel to each other as they moved westbound. After some nice looks we decided it was time to start making our way back to the barn. photo - "Sailing with T18's Bigg's Orcas" -David and Barbara Howitt, All Aboard Sailing

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18:30 - T65Bs continued west. At around 6:30 PM the T18s were heading west as well. The T65Bs were coming back East (they had gone further west in the strait). They were both on a heading and speed to meet very soon after.----On Tuesday evening, September 8, I was able to spend some time with the T18s in Eastern Juan de Fuca Strait. The matriarchal nature of their culture was fully on display as the big boys T19B and T19C spent time in close proximity with their mother and grandmother. One son would go with Mom and the other with Grandma and after a bit they would switch up. The size of the dorsal fins on these guys is awe-inspiring, made all the more interesting by the left-leaning tendency and thickness of T19B's giant fin. They zigzagged in a northwesterly fashion, which was ironically on a heading in which the T65B's were coming from the opposite direction. We know these two family units have been meeting up over the past week in the San Juan Islands - are these pre-planned meet-ups? All photos taken with 600mm lens and cropped. photos - [IDs: Debbie] "T19B surfaces in perfect synchronicity and in tight formation with his mother T19." -Debbie Stewart

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16:30 - There were 4 or 5 with the attached male as the most identifiable. This would have been at 4:30 PM Tuesday. -Brad Wellman

["The pod was the T18s. This guy with huge leaning dorsal is T19B. The lateral dark scratch on his saddle patch is relatively new." -Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network]

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15:41 - Sarah McCullagh T18s southeast side of Lopez approaching Watmough, trending south. -Sarah McCullagh

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15:06 - John Miller, WSF Marine Ops emailed report: C/M reports 3 orca moving East in Thatcher Pass.

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Tue, Sept 8 - E Strait of Juan de Fuca - T65Bs continued west. At around 6:30 PM the T18s were heading west as well. The T65Bs were coming back East (they had gone further west in the strait). They were both on a heading and speed to meet very soon after. -Debbie Stewart

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~12:00 - Saw T65B, B1 and B2 today around noon off Hein Bank. ---Caught up with the T65B family off Hein Bank, heading slowly south. They crossed in front of our bow, heading east and went on a (mostly underwater) hunt. Matriarch T65B, Chunk (b.1993), son T65B1, Birdsall, (b.2011) and 2019 calf T65B2, Nettle. -Bonnie Gretz

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GRAY WHALES - Tue, Sept 8 - Northern Saratoga Passage - ~10:00-11:15 - I just had a long and amazing visit with 2261. Gray came up from the happy meal mudflats to the south of us about 10am (right around high tide, 9'), feeding and showing off, and slowly worked its way right up to our house (southern tip of Mariners Cove). After more feeding and fin-waving, it surprised me and turned around and went back to the mudflats, fed for a good half hour, and then came back up here to our house once again! Double-bonus!! It was still feeding as it moved along, but not as much as the first pass. So awesome - just me and Gray, no boats or nothin'. By around 11:15am, a bunch of crossing boat traffic started showing up, so Gray dove down and headed out into the channel toward northern tip of Camano, where I finally lost sight of it in the smoky haze. Also, my neighbor says he saw it here at Mariners Cove at 7:30am. -Marianne Parry

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MINKE WHALES - Tue, Sept 8 - we saw two minkes and common murres and a puffin near Smith and Minor Islands. -Bonnie Gretz

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Set out today from Edmonds in thick wildfire smoke that blew in overnight from various parts of the state. We found a very curious Minke whale in the Strait of Juan de Fuca that circled the boat to check us out. -Janine Harles

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DOLPHINS - Tue, Sept 8 - 18:07 - Cinco sighting 6:07 pm Sinclair Inlet 9/8/2020 across from Port of Bremerton headed NE. No photos. [type or individual dolphin ID unconfirmed -alb]



September 7

BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Mon, Sept 7 - Boundary Pass (T18s) - ~11:00 - Transients rapidly moving by East Point region of Saturna about 11 am on Sept 7. Photos of three members of the group are included. -James McLarnon, Vancouver

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GRAY WHALES - Mon, Sept 7 - Northern Saratoga Passage - ~15:45-16:00 - Our pal Gray 2261 was back for his third day in a row of pre-happy-hour snacks. It came cruising by moderately close to shore at 3:45-4ish here at Mariners Cove, so about 15-30 minutes later each day. It stopped at our flagpole for a minute to wave, but then continued on to the happy meal mudflats just south of us. It appeared to feed a little bit, but rather than continue south toward Polnell, it turned toward Camano and did an impressive sprint toward Utsalady. That whale can really haul a__ when it wants to - lol! It's so amazing to watch it do the big back arch, followed by that huge tail flip - just wow. -Marianne Parry

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Mon, Sept 7 - Possession Sound - 16:33 - Second gray a bit to the north on delta. Didn't see close enough for ID but likely 2259.

16:32 - #2261, entrance to Skagit Bay.

15:23 - Looks like 2262.

1515: one gray whale between Gedney and Everett. No ID yet. -Renee Chamberland

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11:35 - One Gray whale between Tulalip and Hat Island at this time. -Josh Adams



September 6

BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sun, Sept 6 - Haro Strait (T18s, T65Bs) - Orca Sighting Time: Sun Sep 6 - 14:10 PDT - Sighting Location (Lat/Lon): 48.63665,-123.17167 Number Sighted: 4 -Byron Mutchler (via Whale Alert App)

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They passed Land Bank northbound at 11:30 this morning. photo - T18 and T19C -Cindy Hansen, Orca Network

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11:05 - T18s, with the T65Bs further offshore. -Pete Ancich

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10:59-11:34 - 2 orcas were sighted 1/2 mile south of Edwards Point and were reported to be the T065Bs. Far out, they were northbound. As I watched the T065Bs the T018s appeared close in moving north. I noted that T019B "Galiano" had a new scratch on his saddle patch since last I saw him on 8-3-20. T018, T019, T019B and T019C moved together in a tight group passing Edwards Point. This is a lovely family, the males massive next to the females. -Michelline Halliday, SJI

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10:45 - Report of the T18s offshore of Pile Point aiming for San Juan Island. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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Sun, Sept 6 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - Flat calm day on the water with Transient Killer Whales (T065A's) today off Victoria! -Paul Pudwell, Sooke Coastal Explorations

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BIGG'S TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sun, Sept 6 - NE of Texada Island, B.C. - 08:20 - pod of 4 orca we saw in Jervis Inlet (east of Egmont, BC). I'm wondering about the T18s as it looked like at least two big males and one definitely had a "floppy" fin. It was about 8:20am on September 6th, and I heard the T18s were in the Juan de Fuca strait a couple of days later. -Samantha Sampson

[I'd say it's the T101s (mom T101 and her 3 adult sons). I'll do some more looking around and confirm. Prelim is based on the 3 males...the one leaning likely T102, he's oldest and big right leaning dorsal. -Alisa]

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GRAY WHALES - Sun, Sept 6 - Northern Saratoga Passage - 15:30 - Back to our buddy Gray 2261 - it came by Mariners Cove heading south at 3:30pm, feeding a bit at the happy meal mudflats and continuing on toward Polnell. -Marianne Parry



September 5

Sat, Sept 5 - Strait of Juan de Fuca and Haro Strait - 21:15 - All is quiet. I'd guess they are off False Bay or south now. Good night.

20:56 - Still hearing some distant blows in the dark offshore (probably more than a mile) and South toward Edwards Point from Landbank. -Michelle Savoie

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20:00 - Taken off the Land Bank Cliff at 8pm. - Cy Scammell, PNW Protectors - video - https://vimeo.com/455251978 photo - Cy Scammell - L88 Wave Walker

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19:04 - Seeing and hearing them off Eagle Point spread up island past Pile Point...Erin Corra

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20:15 - Much more intense calls repeated suddenly on Lime Kiln.

20:13 - Faint calls getting fainter (confirming southbound?)...

20:00 - Female & juvenile leading two males southbound mid-Haro between Lime Kiln & Victoria skyline. Possible direction change as Kellett tides reverse...

19:39 - Another group farther offshore in Nbound ship lane between Lime Kiln & Discovery.

19:35 - Ship noise [MSC Antonella cargo ship] masking, but seeing breach & spy hops of at least 4 milling off Deadman's.

19:17 - Calls more intense, clear clicks.

19:00 - Faint calls and likely clicks on Lime Kiln hydrophone. -Scott Veirs, Orcasound

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18:45-20:25 - Observed from 1/2 mile south of Edwards Point north towards Landbank. As all 3 pods gathered, 73 individuals traveled leisurely north, some spread out and some in groups. They socialized while milling back and forth; some moving north past Edwards Point. Twice I heard vocalizations as they called to friends and family at the surface. Many floated on their backs or drifted upright. Sea snakes were displayed for companions. Gentle stretching spyhops and a few tail lobs were observed. After sunset at 20:04 they changed direction and moved with purpose to the south. There was celebration in the air. It was communicated all along the shore inviting all watchers to join in. Photographed from shore. -Michelline Halliday, SJI

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15:35-21:45 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #40 (Sequence 2 & 3): " While we were working this group, we got a call over the radio from "Kestrel" saying that it looked like J35 had had her calf. We left the group and headed about a quarter mile northeast of the other whales to where the J35s were. J35 had indeed had her calf! It had not been there on the morning of September 3rd. Its' dorsal fin was not flopped over so the calf was probably born somewhere between the evenings of the 3rd and 4th. J35, the new calf J57, and J47 were non-directional and made a big circle before slipping back over the Canadian border. We decided to give them some peace and quiet and went to find other whales. " [See CWR Encounter #40 (Sequence 2 & 3) for full encounter summary and more photos] - https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-40-2-3

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Orca Sighting Time: Sat Sep 5 - 14:19 PDT - Sighting Location (Lat/Lon): 48.28631,-123.19229 - Number Sighted: 20 - Patrycja (Whale Alert App)

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14:05-17:57 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #40 (Sequence 1): " As Mark was passing south of Trial Island, he got word that the whale watch fleet saw the incoming group approaching at the southeast corner of Coyote Bank. Mark decided to turn and head for the trailing main concentration of K's and L's, which were now slightly southwest of Race Rocks still spread out and moving slowly east. He started the encounter at 1405 when he came across K21 eastbound leading the procession 1nm south of Race Rocks (48 17.0/123 30.8). There were a few groups that were quite animated and were generally pointed northeast towards Constance Bank. " [See CWR Encounter #40 (Sequence 1) for full encounter summary and photos] - https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-40-1

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11:18 - Js picked up again near Hein Bank, likely heading out to meet the others.

08:40 - Several miles offshore of South Beach near the fog line aiming south, lots of splashing there and in the further distance.

07:45 - At least one orca offshore of Eagle Point heading down island. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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We had Southern Resident Orca inbound [near Sooke, B.C.] (we carefully took a couple pictures from afar to confirm (L Pod). -Paul Pudwell, Sooke Coastal Explorations

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BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sat, Sept 5 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - (T069's) near Sooke, B.C. -Paul Pudwell, Sooke Coastal Explorations

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HUMPBACK WHALES - Sat, Sept 5 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - A whale of a day with around 30 humpback whales south west of Sooke BC today! -Paul Pudwell, Sooke Coastal Explorations

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08:43 - Humpback (solo whale) spotted ~1mile north of Minor Island - heading north. Wasn't able to get pic - only couple puffs - (we under sail heading SW and whale heading north). was humpback with strongly curved dorsal (not "straight up" for sure!). -Ashley Bystrom

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GRAY WHALES - Sat, Sept 5 - Northern Saratoga Passage - Gray Whale #2261 was in our neighborhood this afternoon, entertaining throngs of Labor Day visitors. Thankfully, the boaters were being responsible. -Greg & Terra Parham, Oak Harbor, WA

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17:30 - I saw puffs way out in the channel, presumably 2261, and it was over by the southern end of Utsalady, heading north.

15:10 - Gray 2261 passed by Mariners' Cove heading southbound at a pretty good clip, feeding a bit at the mudflats but not lingering very long. -Marianne Parry



September 4

Fri, Sept 4 - Strait of Georgia - 21:02 - Update that J-Pod was confirmed in the Strait of Georgia this afternoon, so they spent the day up there. Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Fri, Sept 4 - North Puget Sound/Admiralty to Haro Strait (T37As) - 18:59 - They are in Open Bay by Kellett Bluff/Henry right now. -Mae Cannon

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17:14 - Those will be the T37As. -Ellie Sawyer

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17:10 - 4-5 orcas northbound at Edwards Pt. -Michelline Halliday

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10:55 - The T37As are northbound at the Admiralty Head Lighthouse, close to the Whidbey shore. -Justine Buckmaster

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10:28 - T37As are south of the Keystone ferry heading north. -Trevor Tillman

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09:21 - Mike Waite called reporting 4 orcas northbound, W side Whidbey, probably 100 yds off Lagoon Point housing area. Were very deep in Smugglers Cove, 100-150 yards off shore. Not so fast, but at decent clip. Male and smaller.

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Bonnie at Bush Point B & B called to report just before 9, 2 orcas swam past end of dock and surfaced. They swam up into the cove. My guess is there were more further out.

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HUMPBACK WHALES - Fri, Sept 4 - North Puget Sound - 14:50 - Laurie Baker, WSF Marine Ops, emailed report at 15:08: Humpback reported off Edmonds terminal (per log entry at 14:50)

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14:45 - We just spotted a small humpback whale about a half mile out from Edmonds Marina breakwater. No direction. It was not Two Spot. -Bart Rulon, Puget Sound Express

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09:55 - Humpback whale off Kingston in Fairy Ln., Friday morning. Closer to Kingston, maybe 1/3 distance to Edmonds. Maybe heading south. Ferry slowed to allow it to clear area. -Deb Limb

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Fri, Sept 4 - Hi, just wanted to report that around 15:30 we saw what looked to be a minke whale just off Indian Beach on Camano. It was close, but I have never seen one, so I just wanted to report the possibility in case you get any other similar reports! It was heading north and hugging Camano shoreline. (updated with: I would say that the coloring was more tan. Are there many Steller sea lions up in the Saratoga Passage? It was very large but it was heading away from us so we could only see the girth as opposed to the length.)



September 3

Thu, Sept 3 - Haro Strait - ~22:00 - J-Pod went through Active Pass around 10 PM. -Monika Wieland Shields, OBI

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16:12 - Faint calls and clicks on Orcasound. -

15:54 - At Lime Kiln now headed north. - Cindy Hansen, Orca Network

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14:54 - J19s off of south Land Bank. -Ellie Sawyer

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14:25-15:35 - Over the course of an hour spread out traveling both singly and in small groups, 20+ individuals northbound from Pile Point area towards and past Edwards Point. Many breaches within those groups. At 15:00 J56 Tofino bounced along with a group of seven. J56 breached 10 times. She jumped and jumped, launching herself so high in the air. She aborted a few jumps and flopped over sideways making a big splash. She tail lobbed; big slaps. Practice, practice, practice little Tofino. What a spirited girl.

13:35-14:05 - Blows seen in the Pile Point area trending north. At 13:45 a lone orca, J36 Alki, milling for 10 minutes 1/4 mile south of Edwards Point before returning to the south.

9:45-10:00 - Seeing blows to the south off the Pile Point area. I saw one large male before the group turned S then SW away from the island until out of sight. -Michelline Halliday, SJI

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09:43-12:50 - J19 was foraging offshore by herself while J37 and J49 chased a salmon to the southeast of her. To the south of the J37s, we found J46, J53, and J56 milling and rolling around together. About a quarter mile west of this group, we found another threesome rolling around together. This was J44, J47, and J51 ... [See Center for Whale Research Encounter #29 for full encounter summary and more photos] - https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-39

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09:50 - Possibly trending out towards Hein [Bank] now.

09:30 - I see many blows offshore of False Bay, appear to be milling, some in a little closer too. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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10:35 - Group of orcas just off of Eagle Point. Research drone above them.

08:38 - So many breaches I have lost count!! Orca from Eagle Point to Pile Point SJI.

08:26 - Sorry, I have to go to work. But I can still hear them from my home office so yes, they are out there. Some turned back, some hanging, some going more north. very spread out.... and happy. I can hear them breaching.

08:17 - Last update: A LOT of whales.

08:10 - 8:10 update: breaching like crazy. at least 12.

08:00 - Hey! Just saw an orca go by. Heading north from Eagle Point, SJI. Sorry, no more details than that for now. Update: at least 6. Better count coming up in few minutes. -Chris Wilson

["It's very possible Js came down Rosario last night and it could be them!" -Monika Wieland Shields, OBI]

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BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Thu, Sept 3 - Haro Strait - 19:13 - T65B matriline north east bound from Beaumont Shoals toward Lime Kiln. -Matt Stolmeier

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Thu, Sept 3 - North Puget Sound/Possession Sound - [17:18 - Point Wilson] - Orca Sighting Time: Thu Sep 3 - 17:18:48 PDT - Sighting Location (Lat/Lon): 48.14428,-122.75472 - Number Sighted: 1. -Nicole C Shore (via Whale Alert App)

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15:19 - Corey Stosich just called to report pod of orcas (several w/one large dorsal) in Everett Bay, near shore Mukilteo, first seen near ferry terminal heading east towards Port Gardiner, downtown Everett. His wife is watching pod from Harborview Park. Navy ship is slowly creeping into port.

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14:42 - Maija Holston, WSF Marine Ops, emailed: MV KITSAP Log entry: Master reports 3-4 orca off Mukilteo Lighthouse - frolicking, maybe moving North. Vessel is unable to depart until orca have cleared the area.

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14:20 - [orcas] Spotted off Mukilteo beach 2:10. Heading north towards Everett. -Elizabeth Johnston

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Thu, Sept 3 - North Puget Sound/Admiralty Inlet (T65As and T137s) - 18:22 - Three orca east of Partridge Point, 6:22 pm, heading west. One large-male? -Cyrilla Cook

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18:06 - Only seeing one and it's heading out to mid channel.

17:57 - Orcas can be seen at Fort Ebey now, 5:57. -Becca Pommer

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16:37-16:50 - Saw the male north of Pt. Wilson past Ft. Worden, pretty far out. Then at about 4:50 saw 2-3 more around the buoy that's out from Admiralty Lighthouse.... northbound. ---Lovely distant glimpses of Transients from Ft. Casey in the sparkling evening light. Just north of Pt. Townsend. -Bonnie Gretz

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15:50 - Allie Hudec called: She and Chris are on the ferry from Port Townsend to Whidbey and are seeing orcas on port side and further off. Looked like heading back out, heading north, but others milling. Right out from Fort Worden in ferry lanes, ferry had to turn wide to avoid.

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16:20 - Jill Hein texted again to report the orca she has eyes on is finally past (west of) Port Townsend. She has only been seeing the male. She reports a lot of sun glare. This guy is just about to Fort Worden.

15:40 - Jill texted: Orcas seem to be milling and slightly drifting south. They are still not at Port Townsend.

15:30 - Jill called: She is still seeing orcas closer to Port Townsend side, appear to be just west of ferry traffic lanes.

15:05 - Jill Hein texted that she is seeing whales from Fort Casey. From her point of view, they're not just passing Port Townsend. A couple of boats with them, 8-10 whales, too far for pics. Northbound.

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13:35 - We saw the T65A pod and T137 pod exiting Puget Sound at Point Wilson, westbound, pretty spread out but on the Port Townsend side. -Bart Rulon

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12:46 - [orcas] Spotted them off of Fort Flagler about five minutes ago! (looked like they were headed north. I spotted five or six, but am not quite sure on the exact number.) -Poulami Wielga

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07:57 - Pod is at least 10 orcas with a very large male. They are still flipping salmon up in the air just north of Kingston. Sorry for the grainy photos, didn't want to get too close.

07:45 - Pod of [Bigg's] orcas feasting mid channel off Rose Point/Eglon. Counted at least 8 so far. I'm a ways away but hopefully one of these photos helps identify the pod. -Tom Rider

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GRAY WHALES - Thu, Sept 3 - Northern Saratoga Passage - 23:15 - We stepped out on the deck late last night and wondered where Gray was hanging out, and it literally answered with a big puff from the "happy meal mudflats" just south of Mariners Cove. It sounded like it was feeding out there, slowly moving toward Polnell. 9/3/2020, 23:15 - assuming it was 2261 but obv couldn't see it.

~12:30 - A Gray (presumably 2261) popped up at the mudflats just south of Mariners Cove around 12:30 today (9/3/20). It was probably a little early tide-wise for a proper feeding because it disappeared around the corner toward Polnell, where I was told that it took off across the channel to Camano. Have a good one! -Marianne Parry



September 2

Wed, Sept 2 - Active Pass/Strait of Georgia 13:29 - [J pod] Currently foraging around the coal docks by Tsawwassen. It was really hard to get a count, they were spread over about a mile and a half and being very erratic. I would estimate about a dozen, though. -Andrew Harpster

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Came off the ferry to Galiano this morning, just in time to see members of J-pod exit Active Pass and head north into Georgia Strait. Multiple breaches, some tail slaps, motoring along quickly. Thrilled to have seen them! All photos taken from the shore of Galiano Island. -Karoline Cullen

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09:00 - There's a report of what is likely J Pod at 9:00 heading north in Swanson Channel up in the Canadian Gulf Islands. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Wed, Sept 2 - San Juan Islands (T65Bs) - 1845 - A couple miles north of Cattle, still southbound.

17:00 - Southbound in SJ Channel aiming for Cattle Pass.

16:20 - [T65Bs] Now westbound in Upright Channel. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

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~16:00 - On The ferry from Anacortes to Shaw, on Sept 2., we were held at the dock on Lopez about 4pm so a group of two adults and a baby could pass behind us. -Linda Carpenter

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15:20 - T65Bs in Thatcher Pass headed toward Orcas [Island]. -Clinton Duckworth

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Wed, Sept 2 - North Puget Sound - ~12:45 - I saw 3 or 4 orcas off Mukilteo Lighthouse Park today around 12:45, they were traveling south. Anne Dubert

[note: depending on what pod is doing, it can easily take orcas up to, and often more than, an hour to reach Edmonds. - Alisa]

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09:45 - 5 orcas, 1 male, 4 female, feeding mid channel in Port Susan in a line between Tillicum Beach and Kyak Point Park. After feeding all 5 breached simultaneously and then multiple times before heading south, still breeching/spy hopping /rolling. Didn't get pictures of the aerobatics but a few photos as they were leaving to follow. Taken from the bluff at Tillicum beach looking east across Port Susan. I've never seen 5 orcas in the air at once completely out tails and everything, couldn't put the binoculars down to pick up the camera. -Paul Belshaw

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09:56 - [orcas] multiple breaching heading southbound. Repost from group chat: At 9:40, 5 orcas reported in Port Susan, midchannel between Tillicum beach and Kayak Point. As of 9:50, sounds like they're on a kill. -Rachel Haight

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We had two orcas in Port Susan sound this morning. It was a bit unusual to see just the two and not the rest of the pod. They looked like they were going after the dolphins. But it was a mother and it appeared to be a half grown baby. Going north. I have not seen them come back but I have not really been in a place to keep an eye out. -Terri Smith, South East Camano Island

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Wed, Sept 2 - South Puget Sound (T65As and T137s) - 20:12 - [orcas] They are getting close to Al's [Market] in Olalla but light is gone. -Noelle Morris

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20:06 - [orcas] Mid Colvos Passage. Almost to [Point] Richmond beach. -Tiffany'and Raymond Iannielli

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~19:40 - Colvos Passage around 7:40pm. Around the Point Richmond Beach area. -Katrina Flowers-Piercy

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18:51 - Spotted here [north of Point Defiance]. Looks like they are heading into the passage right now. Still mid channel. -Jayce Lemmer

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18:52 - Directly between GH and Ferry at Vashon.

18:47 - Looks like they're choosing north into Colvos. Moving fast.

18:44 - [orcas] Mid passage. 2 groups, maybe a pair and a single. -Charlene Engelland

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18:58 - At least a big male, maybe one more, have gone north in Colvos Passage. No longer visible from Old Ferry Landing.

18:40 - [orcas] Visible from Gig Harbor Old Ferry Landing now. Headed north by Pt. Defiance, around Colvos Viewpoint. -Stace Gordon

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18:15 - [orcas] Large group across from Salmon Beach actually heading north now. -Jenna Iams

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18:14 - North of point Evans.

18:12 - [orcas] In the Narrows now. West side. -Jack Sasser

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17:59 - [orcas] One big one across from Salmon Beach and more under bridge 5.59 pm. -Gill Chard

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17:45 - [orcas] Continuing to hang out under the bridge... another two north of the bridge close to Tacoma side, but in no hurry. -Eileen Mccaffery-Lent

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17:50 - Donna Sivers called again to report the orcas are now directly across from them, in front of the power line in middle of the channel traveling with the incoming tide. Mainly wanted to call back to report now clearly seeing at least 2 males with 5 ft. dorsal coming out of the water. Said it's been a wonderful evening, so beautiful. Orcas looked to be having a lot of fun out there.

17:20 - Donna Sivers called to report seeing pod of orcas from their home overlooking the Narrows. There are ~12 orcas just north of Tacoma Narrows Bridge, on east side of Narrows, heading kind of northwesterly. From this distance, can't see if any males. They are just surfacing, traveling.

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18:11 - Heading N Gig Harbor side 6:11.

18:08 - West side of Narrows heading N 6:08.

18:00 - In front of 16-mile marker on Gig Harbor side heading N.

17:11 - [orcas] Heading toward Gold Creek (by Narrows). 5:11 North. -Sharon Myers Andersen

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I thought I'd try and catch the pod by the Narrows Bridge as they left the area yesterday (Wed 9/2), but as they went through on the far side of the water, the quality is not very good unfortunately! It was fun to watch them pass in front of the trains tho, and great to meet other whale watchers too! -Jennifer Swenson

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~17:00 - We saw a pod near the Tacoma Narrows Bridge closer to the Tacoma side. around 5 PM. Very exciting. Viewing from Point Defiance Outer Loop Trail. -Danita Day

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18:46 - Heading north passing Point Defiance.

17:12 - Seeing a group very close to Tacoma, northbound, just north of Narrows Bridge.

16:55 - [orcas] They are under the Narrows Bridge right now. -Ed Rickert

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16:47 - On the far shore. 100 yards from the bridges.

16:26 - [orcas] They're swimming into a very strong incoming tidal current so they're slow. Almost to Titlow -Amy Bliss-Miller

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16:23 - [orcas] Mid channel, nb, almost to the Narrows. -Amber Stanfill

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16:15 - Was at Titlow Beach when the Orca came through around 4:15pm was there a baby with them. Looks like a lil one in this. -Cherie St.Ours

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16:09 - [orcas] Just passed Day Island headed north to the Narrows. -Charles Steward

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16:33 - Straight off Narrows, way on the Tacoma side moving north toward bridge.

16:04 - [orcas] Can see big splashes via binoculars at Narrows just north of Chambers Bay, Tacoma side. -Mallory Piekarski-Rabinowitz

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16:35 - They are just going under the bridge, mid channel.

16:19 - They are NB headed towards the bridge, mid channel. 4:19.

16:00 - They are just south of Day Island, closer to the mainland. 4:00. NB, I think. -Karen Caldwell

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15:54 - [orcas] Still heading toward Narrows. Still just south of Fox Island fishing pier. -Emily Kennedy

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15:50 - [orcas] Mid channel now between Fox Island and Chambers. -Christina Griffin

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17:00 - We got there about 10:00 and waited all day until they came under at 5:00. Long wait but so many came through!! At least 12!!

15:33 - Seeing blows now off Chambers Bay, spotting from mid span Narrows bridge! 3:33. -Noelle Morris

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15:28 - Appear to be headed into the Clambers Bay Area, between Sunset Beach Fox Island. Still traveling north, at a good clip. Still spread out. 3:28 pm.

15:20 - Off the north tip of McNeil. Still heading north at a fast rate.

15:10 - There are at least 7, including at least one male, passing midchannel between Sunnyside Beach in Steilacoom and McNeil Island. Heading north and moving fast. 3:10 pm. Seen from our home above Sunnyside Beach. (Very spread out. Male was behind the others.) -Tari Poe Norris

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15:29 - Definitely heading from Steilacoom towards direction Chambers Bay, possibly Narrows. grouped back together 3:29

15:02 - [orcas] Watching from Steilacoom, they are coming from Anderson Island, mid channel, seems heading towards Chambers Bay. Very spread out. 6 or 7. -Silke Price

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15:02 - [orcas] They are just past the north point of Ketron. Continuing to head towards Narrows. -Steve McNally

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15:33 - Heading east near southern end of Fox Island 3:33.

15:14 - Mid channel between Sunnyside Beach and McNeil Island.

15:00 - [orcas] Off north end of Ketron now. -Rick Womack

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15:03 - Passing north end of Ketron. Heading north.

14:33 - [orcas] Between Anderson and Ketron, 2:33, heading toward Narrows bridge. -Lane Sample

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~13:40 - We saw a pod cruising by Lyle Point (southeast Anderson Island) last night and about an hour ago [reported at 14:40]. Beautiful. -Andi Bernardoni

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13:29 - [orcas] They put on a show in front of Devil's Head off Johnson Point Dogfish Bight circling a geoduck barge, seal hunting for 5 minutes. Now moving towards Tolmie State Park. -Lorrie Dozier Hall

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13:20 - [orcas] Just saw them pass in front of Tolmie State Park.1:20. -Gale Riordan Glenn

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13:20 - Five(?) orca headed from Johnson Point towards Tolmie State Park. One mom and baby. -Shingo Yamazaki

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13:15 - Just saw 7 orcas pass our beach on Johnson Point heading south to Nisqually. -Alex Player

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12:49 - [orcas] About to pass in front of Zittel's Marina right now at 12:49. -Shawn Bashor

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12:47 - [orcas] Eastbound through the Nisqually Reach. -Cindy Klein

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11:58 - [orcas] Spotted from Joemma Beach Park. Heading south. -Heather Miller

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11:45-12:00 - Case Inlet, mid-channel, heading south between McMicken Island and Herron. At least 1 male, and 2-3 females (maybe more). Now south of Fudge Point at 12:06pm, traveling steadily south. -Dave Berliner

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10:50 - [orcas] They are just north of Herron Island, heading south in Case Inlet. -Jerilyn Evans

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09:20 - Case Inlet by Allyn. Turned - heading south. 1 male, a few females and 2 calves. -Deer Kay

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09:00 - This morning, heading north to Allyn (Case Inlet) and then back South. Moving pretty quickly. Lots of tail slapping. One male, three smaller. -Beverly Lynch McCallum

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12:36 - [orcas] Off of Johnson Point, eastbound through the Nisqually Reach. -Cindy Klein

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09:00-09:15 - Four medium size orcas traveling north inNorth Bay, Case Inlet. Played for about 15 minutes and then traveled back South towards Rocky Bay and Vaughn Bay. They seemed to be having a really good time! -Sue Overton

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09:00 - A female orca spotted in Allyn, Washington at 9am. -Anne Johannsen

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06:30 - [orcas] 9/2. 3 heading south down Case Inlet. Mid channel along Harstine Island. -Liz Wolk

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GRAY WHALES - Wed, Sept 2 - Northern Saratoga Passage - 06:23 - #2261 was back this evening @ Polnell Pt., in Oak Harbor. By the time he/she heads north, most of its buddies will probably be heading south. -Greg and Terra Parham

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18:56 - On 9/2, Gray whale sighted off the tip of Mariner's Cove at 6:56pm. Whale headed across Saratoga Passage to Camano Island then proceeded to feed slowly offshore to Utsalady. -Paula Despins

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[gray] was feeding in our cove [Polnell Shores] this morning. -Greg Parham



September 1

Tue, Sept 1 - Haro Strait (J pod) - 20:09 - [J pod] Also some still very spread out between False Bay and Eagle Point. Everyone slowly heading south. -Chris Wilson

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20:00-20:10 - [J pod] Past American Camp - lost them in the darkness. -Fred Horn

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18:35-19:15 - 18-20+ members of J-Pod traveled from Edwards Point southbound towards Pile Point. They quickly made their way past me in the fading light, activity included porpoising and a few members breaching. Most were spread out except for a group of 3 with possibly J51 Nova and one group of 4 with J31 Tsuchi and J56 Tofino. J26 Mike, very majestically zig-zagged behind. -Michelline Halliday, SJI

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16:10 - [J pod] Still four going N of County Park, many others went down island. -Nan Yates Simpson

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J-40 from September 1st. - Cy Scammell, PNW Protectors

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14:56 - [J pod] Distant calls on OrcaSound, still hearing them on Lime Kiln, also. -Michelle Savoie

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14:50 - Clearer calls on Lime Kiln; still nothing on Orcasound Lab (5 km north of Lime Kiln).

14:35 - No calls on Orcasound Lab hydrophone (5 km north of Lime Kiln) in last 10 min.

14:23 - Confirming SRKW calls... S4s, S1s. (They really make my canary sing down here in Seattle!) -Scott Veirs, Orcasound

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12:20-15:40 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #38: "Orcinus" arrived on scene at about 1220 and soon got on some whales about 3/4s of a mile off Pile Point. J16, J19, J36, J37, and J49 briefly formed up in a tight group heading slowly down island. J49 was being very active and did several half breaches. Two other females were spread out inshore of this group. A few minutes later, J26 showed up out of nowhere and began chasing a salmon. The group broke up and began milling in the same area. J42 showed up, logged at the surface, and then rolled over to do a pec slap while blowing a raspberry. - [See CWR Encounter #38 for full encounter summary and more photos] - https://www.whaleresearch.com/2020-38

*

14:45 - I was able to catch the continuation of J-Pod's vocalizations on the LK hydrophone, lovely varied calls with chortles, clicks and whistles.

13:20-14:35 - 18+ members of J-Pod spread out, moving northbound towards and past Edwards Point, some in small groups including J-31 Tsuchi with J-56 Tofino at 14:10.

13:05-13:20 - 1/2 mile or more south of Edwards Point, J-Pod moving north into my view again, spread out, breaching and slowly moving north.

11:57-12:21 - I/2 mile south of Edwards Point, a large male traveling north was joined by 2 other orcas including a second large male. Too far away to see most activity, the 3 changed direction and breached 4 times before heading south and out of sight. -Michelline Halliday, SJI

*

11:34 - It's J Pod!!!!---And just like magic on the morning of September 1st J-Pod emerges from the fog on the west side of San Juan Island, with J19 Shachi leading them up Haro Strait. After putting up the goose egg in August it looks like the Southern Residents aren't ready to completely give up on September just yet! -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute

*

12:15 - 4 or 5 orca still just north of Eagle Point. Milling. Kelping. Includes one little one. No direction.

11:39 - Yep, several orca going north from Eagle Point, SJI.

11:36 - I see it again, maybe two. A big male and?? A bit further out now and headed north.

11:10 - Out of the fog, up island from Eagle Point (and Cove) SJI, just saw an Orca surface. Heading South, close to shore. -Chris Wilson

*

BIGGS/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Tue, Sept 1 - North Puget Sound (T37As) - 19:50 - The T37A pod is southbound mid-channel and closer to the Camano Island side seen from Bells Beach area on Whidbey Island. They are very spread out across the channel. -Bart Rulon

*

15:19 - Bonnie Gretz called. She and Jill Hein are at Long Point watching the 4 orcas (2 females, 1 male, 1 calf) who exited Penn Cove. This pod is heading southbound towards Camano Island, really slowly far out from Long Point. (Jill thinks is the T37s)

14:50 - [orcas] 4 exiting Penn Cove north side. A distant breach, and could hear them exhale it was so quiet and glass smooth water. Another beautiful day with distant looks and lovely orcas...caught glimpses of them from Long Point as they were leaving Penn Cove, and they headed slowly southeast toward Camano Island. -Bonnie Gretz

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14:40 - At least 4 and are now going past Snakelum Point.

14:23 - Orcas about to blow Coupeville Wharf! (I am across the Cove by Glencairn pier with binoculars.) -Jesse E Chandler

*

12:25 - At least two groups/pods of orcas heading north in between Madrona on Camano and Penn Cove, Whidbey. The first group of three are probably at Rocky Point by now. I watched them go after a seal. The water was going crazy and all of a sudden a seal went straight up in the air flipping head over tail about 5 times as it went up and then back down into the water with the whales. Then one of them did a spy hop. Following them a bigger pod of 6 or 7. They are doing the same, disappearing in the water for several minutes at a time. They are closer to the Whidbey side in front of Penn Cove. There might be another pod, but not sure if it joined up with the second pod or not. -Wendy Nelson (Camano Whale Watch)

*

Tue, Sept 1 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - Transient Killer Whales in action again today! The (T060's & T109A's) were on the hunt around Race Rocks Lighthouse. We also had the pleasure of visiting a Humpback whale in the fog! -Paul Pudwell, Sooke Coastal Explorations

*

Tue, Sept 1 - Central to South Puget Sound (T65As and T137s) - 22:30-23:30 - I was excited to see the post regarding the T's in Case Inlet this morning. Last night, my husband and I were enjoying a moonlit stroll on our beach, 10:30 -11:30 pm 9/1; (southeast end of Harstine on Dana Passage) when a pod of 5 orcas swam southbound then reversed course and headed northbound. We didn't bring our phones. One of them has a very distinctive blow, like a human blowing their nose. It was mystical to see the dorsal fins backlit by moonlight! -Cindy Klein

*

19:29 - [orcas] Directly across from Tolmie State Park. Headed west. -Paige Backholm

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19:20 - [orcas] A group was hugging the Anderson Island side up through Nisqually Reach, crossing the passage between Anderson and the bottom of Key Peninsula, then they headed north towards the tip of Johnson Point. We saw them from our house on Dogfish Bight on Johnson Point. -Lorrie Dozier Hall

*

19:08 - [orcas] Heading south and west towards Zittel's. We followed them (from afar) from Anderson Island. Breaching, tail slapping and other such activities. Couldn't have asked for a more perfect night. -Candy Burden Hughes

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19:00 - 5 orcas south of Anderson Island. -Mary Kendall

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18:54 - Yep we see four, heading south west now.

18:41 - [orcas] They're at Lyle Point hanging out. -Megan Jourdan

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19:45 - Passing Lyle Pt. now, heading into Nisqually... 6 for sure. Maybe 7. Yes, 6:45.

18:36 - Currently off Cole Pt., Anderson Island, at 6:35pm ... They are playing. -Corey Feldon

*

17:00-19:00 - Last night [8/1] between 5 pm and 7pm, there were several orcas between Nisqually Reach and Anderson Island (Lyle Point), heading towards Olympia. There was plenty of spouting and surfacing. Very tall dorsals - I'm guessing based on history that these are Transients. There were at least 5, possibly 6, and it looked like there may have been a baby. I saw them from my yard on Oro Bay. Julie added: I just found out today that my neighbor happened to be out there fishing when the orcas came by, and he said they actually bumped his boat. That must have been a thrill, even for an 82-yr-old. -Julia Roth

*

16:22 - Orcas just off Day Island spit. 3 total headed towards Steilacoom. -Larry A. Capps

*

18:16 - Southbound, now nearing Oro Bay on Anderson Island. (It seemed to be the whole group!)

17:51 - It's a milling sort of day, big splashes, at least 6.

17:46 - At least 3 split and headed north west again, near East tip of McNeil.

17:32 - Almost at the north end of Ketron Island, southbound, heading toward the west side to pass. So frolicy!!

17:10 - Meandering south, not yet south of Chambers Creek inlet.

17:02 - Drifting south, lots of tails & splashes.

16:54 - Headed west toward Anderson Island from Chambers. Mid water in the darker water now.

16:48 - From Anderson Island, multiple Orca in the center close to Chambers golf course, there was lots of splashing and trail lobs a few minutes ago. ---photo: From yesterday in Chambers Bay, in 2 hours of shooting with 2 cameras, we must have caught more than 2 dozen tail lobs or inversions, and I know we didn't get them all. It was an upside-down sort of day. -Belen Bilgic Schneider

*

16:05 - [orcas] Two more just passed the Narrows Park on the Tacoma side, juvi and male going fast with incoming tide. -Amy Bliss-Miller

*

16:05 - 2 orcas porpoising south of bridge (SB), still closer to Tacoma side. Viewing from Narrows Park.

15:58 - 15:58 - Just saw a breach north of the bridge, Tacoma side. -Gayle Swigart, Orca Network

*

15:45 - [orca] Just saw the single continue south as the others, Fox Island side. Viewing from Hale Passage. -Brooke Casanova

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15:35 - [orcas] Just passed the concrete fishing pier on Fox Island, fast transit south. 3 maybe 4. -Stacey Crofoot

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15:47 - Two more headed southbound, south of Pt. Defiance headed to the TNB. Closer to the mainland side.

15:30 - Single [orca] heading south quickly right under Tacoma Narrows Bridge, right up the middle. -Ryan Campbell

*

16:05 - 2 individuals moving fast southbound past Narrows, Tacoma side.

15:29 - [orcas] Just flew past Narrows and Fox Island fishing pier moving south...FAST. -Mallory Piekarski-Rabinowitz

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15:22 - [orcas] Passing Steamers on Fox Island side. -Loba Perkins

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15:50 - Right in front of Chambers Bay.

15:21 - [orcas] They just passed Steamers. -Silke Price

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15:20 - [orcas] Just passing north tip of Day Island. -Teri Fields Mattsen

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15:20 - [orcas] Passing Titlow. Closer to Gig Harbor side. -Sar N Victor Gonzalez

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16:10 - Adult and juvenile headed quickly SB towards Fox Island Pier 4:10.

16:03 - Lone orca NB towards bridge Tacoma side. Surface somewhat close to shore on West shore of Day Island. Surfaced several times.

15:23 - Approaching Fox Island Pier, swiftly. 3:23, SB.

15:16 - [orcas] They are right under the Narrows bridge now. Headed SW at the base of the W tower of the bridge. -Karen Caldwell

*

14:50 - [orcas] Heading south approaching Point Defiance. photo - Taken from the Point Defiance Marina, they were traveling from west to east on Vashon side and then headed south at the tip of Owens beach and headed up to the Narrows. -Cherie St.Ours

*

14:43 - They are passing the Pt. Defiance ferry. Headed towards Owen Beach... moving at a fast pace. Counted at least 7 individuals. -Candace Gavin

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16:43 - Slowly drifting further away from Chambers. South west of McNeil still. Viewing from Chambers.

16:27 - Male and juvenile off the southwest tip of Fox Island. Looks to be mid-channel or so. Slowly meandering south towards the other group that's down this way.

16:05 - Lots of surface activity. Viewing from Chambers. Tails slaps and spy hops.

15:50 - Viewing 5 or 6 just south of Chambers milling. One male one juvenile and a few females.

14:57 - Just rounded the point of Point Defiance headed south towards Narrows. Traveling very quickly. [Not] quite sure how many, as they were going so fast. Counted at least six.

14:42 - Saw one male dorsal off the southeast tip of Vashon headed west toward the ferry dock. Pretty sure I saw two dorsals all the way out by the yellow buoy, but can't confirm. -Ashley Whitman

*

14:18 - [orcas] Just passed Dash Point, Vashon side heading south. -Mollie Segall

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14:10 - [orcas] 3 passed Sandy Shores SB and more hugging mainland at 2:10. -Marlin Black

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15:46 - They are at Pt. Defiance where the lighthouse used to be across from Gig Harbor - this was minutes ago - there is a huge group of seals that hang out there along the rocks.

14:09 - Just passed through East pass heading to Browns Point to the yellow bouy - big sea lion sleeping on top of it - 7-10 orcas. -Dayna Campbell

*

13:34 - [orcas] All of them just passed Point Robinson headed south 1:34. -Carly Hanson

*

13:38 - Group headed south.

13:30 - Passed Point Robinson now.

13:17 - More coming from the south now!

13:00 - [orcas] 2 just passed point Robinson headed north. Everyone was looking to the north and they came around the point from the south headed north unexpectedly! -Shelby Middling

*

~13:00 - So amazing! Thinking this is the same two groups that passed by Vashon around 1pm yesterday! My two-year-old loved it. -Ali Starner Nedrow

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13:43 - Seems like they had a meet up and came back south. Larger group passed Pt. Robinson southbound.

12:57 - [orcas] Northbound from Pt. Robinson. -Caroline Martin Matter

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12:47 - [orca] I spotted a fin from Des Moines pier on Vashon side. North of Des Moines. -Bridget Gallagher

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12:10 - [orcas] Also see from Three Tree. Past the point now but closer to the Vashon side. -Lily Olivier Cohen

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12:00 - Joe Armstrong called to report seeing a pod of 7-10 orcas (range of sizes including couple small and 2 massive) pass by Vashon Island at Pt. Robinson heading south.

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13:40 - Craziest pass ever, lol!!! For 20 minutes some going northbound off Point Robinson, some southbound, very close to shore, all have met up now it seems (T65As and T137s) in a confusing and fun pass headed southbound, still Vashon side loosely grouped.

12:00 - T65A's just passed Dilworth, Vashon side, travel mode south, loosely grouped. --- Craziest pass ever at Point Robinson as we were watching a pod drift down from the north headed southbound so all of our eyes were trained north, then out of nowhere, T137A and T137D surface behind us, super close to shore startling all of us, headed Northbound, they catch up with the southbound pod ahead of us, they all start heading south, and then another sub pod comes charging in from the south again, headed north, they finally all meet up, with all of us yelling and pointing at different directions because they are everywhere going in both directions, then they take down a seal, take their meal to go, and all finally head southbound. Whale soup! SO fun, and kept the adrenaline pumping with all the passes being so close to shore, what a rush! Love those wiley T's!! -Marla Smith

*

11:56 - I'm viewing from the north side of 3TP, they just passed Dilworth heading south.

11:45 - [orcas] Heading south on the east side of Vashon. -Megan Hansen

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11:23 - [orcas] I'm at Harper Pier. I see them way off in the distance between Southworth ferry dock and Arroyo Heights. -Jim Pasola

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10:40 - They are committed to headed south down the East side of Blake Island and picking up the pace!

10:20 - Large group of transient orcas including the T137s spread out and southbound just north of Blake Island. (edited: T65As are here too). -Justine Buckmaster

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10:18 - At least 3 KW moving south fast past Restoration Point. One male, female and juvenile. No other information at this time. -Michelle Savoie

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10:05-10:10 - [orcas] Two groups of 3-4 each just passed Restoration Point heading SW toward Blake Island. First group passing Restoration Point around 10:05a Second group passing Restoration Point around 10:10am. -Becca Tiger Musser

*

HUMPBACK WHALES - Tue, Sept 1 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - [HB] Whale tales today off Sooke! -Paul Pudwell, Sooke Coastal Explorations. -photo

["MMZ0030 migrates to Mexico !!" - ID: Alethea Leddy]

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GRAY WHALES - Tue, Sept 1 - Northern Saratoga Passage - 15:30 - [gray] Slowly feeding and moving East. Seen from the far east end of Polnell Shores Drive on Sept 1 at 3:30pm. -Suzanne Sewester

*

We had a surprise visitor at Polnell Point in Oak Harbor today, 9/1/20! We were on the opposite side of Whidbey Island when a kind neighbor alerted us to its presence. And we thought "whale walking" season was over! -Greg & Terra Parham, Oak Harbor, WA

["From the fluke I can see It's everyone's new buddy 2261." -Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network]

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13:30 - Gray doing leisurely feeding off Hunskor Hill, just east of Mariners Cove. First spotted at 1:30 pm. Moving towards Mariners Cove now. -Paula Despins

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23:38 - I was just finished writing up the email I just sent you from the 5pm sighting when I heard a puff outside! We ran outside and spent a few magical minutes watching and listening to a gray feeding and slowly cruising by Mariners Cove in the light of the full moon on the water!!! It was incredible! What an amazing whale day!

17:00 - I have a third 2261 sighting to pass along today! We took our little inflatable boat out to go drift and have happy hour down by Polnell Point, and on the way we spotted our pal 2261 spouting way over by the shore by the Polnell Shores boat ramp. I only had my iphone, but zoomed in as well as I could - I can't believe how close to the beach the whale appeared to be! Cool to see it from the water side for a change. It hung out on the north side of the spit heading out to Polnell Point for a good half hour and then started working its way back northward. It was interesting to see the slightly different feeding pattern at this beach. At Mariners Cove, there's usually a lot of pec fin waving with the tail fluke popping up here and there - down at Polnell, there seemed to be more tail fluke and less pec. No clue if that's legit or means anything - lol.

14:00 - Gray 2261 popped up again, southbound, at Mariners Cove, and I've been watching it feeding out in the happy meal mudflats for prob about an hour! It lingered a long time in the vicinity of the rocks that stuck way out in the water and are exposed at low tide (just the tips visible now), and finally headed off toward Polnell Shores rather than heading back into the channel. It was beautiful to watch - no boats, no crab pots, pretty calm water, just a whale and his foodies.

11:50 - A gray just cruised by Mariners Cove about a quarter of the way out into the channel, southbound, and appeared to be heading for either the mudflats or Polnell, but now as I'm watching it in binoculars, it has turned left toward Camano (in line with the beach south of Utsalady) and now appears to be doubling back and heading north toward Utsalady. Must have realized the tide was too low on this side. Enjoy your day! -Marianne Parry





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