SKA Blog

What an fantastic week for wildlife sightings on our July 17-22 Johnstone Strait Orca Waters Expedition. We saw a humpback whale from our kayaks (we could hear its deep breaths), porpoises, bald eagles, seals, sea lions, and even a minke whale. We found several wolf tracks while hiking in the forest and we listened to their howls one night.  But the thrill-of-a-lifetime moment came when a pod of resident killer whales arrived in front of our campsite to rub on the beach gravels just a few meters from where we were standing! We quickly placed an underwater microphone (hydrophone) in the water and heard some amazing vocalizations from these fish-eating orcas.  And, to top it all off, we had flat calm seas which made the paddling quite enjoyable, we really are in paradise! 

To view a video of an orca passing close by a kayak, click here.  To see more photos from our Johnstone Strait tours, click here.  Call us at 1-800-616-1943 to book an orca tour in August.

We just came home from the first God's Pocket Resort kayak tour of the year and had a fantastic trip! A little rainy, but no wind made for excellent paddling on glassy seas. Great group of people, abundant wildlife and of course tons of great food prepared by Annie. Highlights include viewing Humpback whales almost daily, watching resident killer whales from Bill's boat at sunset, seeing dozens of eagles dotting the tree tops and massive Steller sea lions feeding on salmon! Space available on the July 25 tour.

On our first Johnstone Strait orca kayak tour of the season last week, we were thrilled to see orcas, humpback whales, Dall's porpoise, Pacific white-sided dolphins and harbor seals, and a wonderful time was had by all. We still have room this July and August on our 4 and 6-day paddling tours in Johnstone Strait, northern Vancouver Island, home to the world's only orca preserve Robson Bight Ecological Preserve - the best place we've found to be close to orcas in pristine wilderness.

BC Canada - The northern resident salmon-eating orcas are back in Johnstone Strait, as per 2 whale watching day cruise boats in Johnstone Strait: Stubbs Island and MacKay

Also exciting news reported by Stubbs and MacKay are that there are many more humpback whales than ever before in the area, and they are seeing minke whales, transient orcas, Dall's porpoise and Pacific white-sided dolphins.   

It's not too late to book a wildlife kayaking tour of 4 days or 6 days in length, suitable for novices, in Johnstone Strait this summer - we have room still on selected July and August 2011 tours.

BAJA - And a reminder of our special offers for Baja tours! Some folks calling us to book 2012 Easter and spring break trips recently reported that flights to Loreto are already filling fast for prime dates. There is only one carrier into Loreto, only one flight a day, and only 70 seats per flight - so don't miss out if you are planning to visit Loreto soon.

Nancy just flew home from Port McNeill after a pre-season meeting with Terry and our BC guides - we are super excited for the season to begin with such a great team in place! The area is as stunning as ever with still plenty of snow on the BC coastal mountains to serve as our backdrop of paddling the waters of northern Inside Passage.

Some of our favorite things to check out traveling to or from BC's northern Vancouver Island:

1) Bill Reid's Jade Canoe sculpture at the Vancouver International Airport is the size of a VW bus and the airport's focal feature.

2) Tim Horton's restaurant chain (lovingly called Timmy's) is the coffee/breakfast sandwich/donut place beloved by BC folks of all walks of life.

3) The Whale Interpretive Centre/Museum at Telegraph Cove

4) Umista Cultural Centre - Alert Bay - if you have an extra day in Port McNeill

5) Half day or full day orca cruises with Stubbs Island or Bill Mackay 

1.    Do whales sleep? Not the way we do.  Because breathing is a conscious act for whales, they cannot sleep for very long periods, and they need to move up and down to the surface, keep moving to prevent stranding and watch for potential dangers, so they do not fall deeply asleep.  They must rest, but they require very little sleep.  Evidence suggests that whales require less sleep because the marine environment induces a brain state that resembles sleep.  Even humans who spend a lot of time in the water, require less sleep. Whale relatives, dolphins and porpoises are able to “sleep” half their brain at a time.

Why this trip:
1. It’s home to the only orca preserve in the world Robson Bight;
2. The “Jane Goodall”of orcas (scientist Alexandra Morton has studied these unique orcas here for years);
3. The single best time and place in the world to paddle with these salmon-eating orcas when the salmon runs peak;
4. Sheltered location perfect for novices new to sea kayaking;
5. We provide all gear and instruction, hearty meals and naturalist guides - just bring yourselves!

Additional details about this trip can be found here!

Book selected July 2011 Johnstone Strait tours by May 31, 2011 and receive $100 off the listed price. View all available tour dates here!