SKA Blog

Kayaking with orcas and humpback whales often takes center stage on our sea kayak tours off of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. However, this picturesque wilderness also hosts a wide variety of other interesting marine mammals to delight kayak guests. Here are some of our favorite marine animals in British Columbia:

Harbor Seals: These social, curious pinnipeds are frequently seen on our kayak tours, and will even occasionally approach our sea kayaks for a closer look. These seals typically lounge on outcrops or shoreline in groups but are excellent swimmers and fishers. They are common both in Johnstone Strait and God’s Pocket.

Pacific White-Sided Dolphins: These chipper cetaceans roam Vancouver Island’s Inside Passage in pods searching for summer fish. They are very active and prone to great displays of acrobatics. Curious about ships, these dolphins enjoy bowriding and make entertaining escorts on whale watching tours. We see them frequently on our kayak tours both at God’s Pocket Resort and in Johnstone Strait.

Dall’s Porpoises: Every now and then, reports of entire pods full of “baby orcas” turn up in Telegraph Cove.  It’s easy to see why visitors might mistake a young killer whale for this small cetacean: Dall’s porpoises have black bodies with white sides and bellies – not dissimilar from the markings of their larger cousins. Despite a rather stocky appears, these porpoises are very fast swimmers and rather playful, even interacting with dolphins and boats.

Harbour Porpoises: This shy, gray porpoise is one of the smallest marine mammals. They travel in small groups, foraging for crustaceans, squid and fish, but rarely take part in aerial displays or acrobatics. They are sometimes called “puffers” because the sound of their breathing resembles that of a snorting pig.

Steller Sea Lions: This species of sea lion ranges down the Pacific coast from the Bering Sea, but in recent years the declining population was added to the Endangered Species list. Stellers are the largest sea lion species, with males weighing over a ton – three times larger than the females! We often kayak past sunbathing sea lions on our BC tours.

Sea Kayak Adventures office staff member and first time kayaker Amber Crane recently returned from a tour in Baja (Oct 30-Nov 4, 2011).  She will chronicle her adventures in a new blog series:

Voyage of a Novice Kayaker

Part 4: Baja Bliss

The first few minutes of kayaking started, as with all new ventures, with adjustments.  It took time to figure out where to brace my knees, make the most of every stroke, and keep paddling while taking in the sights. However, even as we acclimated to kayaking, fortune smiled upon our group.  Within a few minutes and just a few hundred feet of our launch site, I spotted a sea turtle bobbing at the surface of the water, surveying us.  She lingered for a short time as we gasped, pointed, and fumbled for cameras, before deciding we were of little interest to turtles and diving out of sight.  “This group has good karma,” Alex remarked.

Just 15 minutes later, I stuttered and pointed again, trying to expel words faster than my brain could provide them.  A huge splash announced the leap of a flying mobula ray.  I was downright giddy with excitement at this point, as these strange creatures were at the top of my wildlife bucket list.  These rays often travel in large groups during the spring which are more easily spotted than single jumpers, so I feel quite privileged to have seen one leap in front of my eyes.

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.