SKA Blog

Kayaking with whales sounds like an adrenalin-high adventure, akin to cliff diving or whitewater rapids sought by robust 20 year old thrill-seekers. Consequently, many of our guests are surprised to find our tours are suitable for novices of any age or even those with no kayak experience at all. Sea kayaking is a versatile sport that allows for wonderful wilderness adventures at any level. Experienced paddlers may choose open-ocean or rapids, but Sea Kayak Adventures specializes in bringing nature-lovers closer to wildlife, seeking calm waters. Co-owners Terry and Nancy dedicated their lives to finding the best places to whale watch that also host calm, sheltered paddling conditions. Many of our guests have little or no kayak experience, but seek the opportunity to see whales up close.

Sea kayaks allow for complete immersion in nature. There is no glass between you and the outdoors, and no motors to scare away animals. The gentle paddling of a kayak is largely non-invasive to wildlife. Flocks of birds that would take wing at a human on foot or a motorboat do not flee the sight of a kayak, allowing closer encounters. Pinnipeds like sea lions and seals find the kayaks a curiosity, and will even approach for a closer look. And while we proudly adhere to all Be Whale Wise regulations, a raft of kayaks tucked respectfully into the kelp bed may have extraordinary views of a passing pod of orcas as they make their way along the coastline. In Baja, dolphins often pass near or through our kayaks, and great blue and fin whale spouts may alert their presence.  In Patagonia, we float in our kayaks near gently breathing mom and baby southern right whales on a warm hiatus away from the cold of Antarctica.  Whale watching has never been so intimate!

Shallow-bottomed kayaks, which can float in just a foot of water, allow exploration of inlets and channels that host tidal life wonders and beaches inaccessible from boat. Akin to backpacking on the ocean, kayaks allow for expedition style tours – without leaving behind all of the creature comforts. The hatches of the kayaks allow for carrying a full set of camping equipment, cooking tools, and fresh food. Because of this space, your wilderness adventure won’t be sustained by jerky or trail mix. Instead, enjoy freshly prepared meals like lasagna or a salmon-bake, along with fresh salads daily!  We even bake cakes in dutch ovens on our tours!  And because these are guided tours, you can enjoy your wildlife vacation while letting our fantastic guides show off their culinary skills and do all of the cooking.

Join us to kayak with whales and experience in person – and at eye level – these ocean wonders in their natural environment. 

Extend your stay in Loreto before or after your kayak tour for a low key, sunny vacation spot. If you desire extra nights hotel stay in Loreto, we have preferred rates at two hotels in Loreto and we are happy to set up day tours exploring the greater Loreto area and Coronado Island. 

View our full list of our Loreto Day Tours.

(Click on the "details" tab for descriptions and pricing)

Here are a few options we offer:

Kayak and Snorkel Day Trip to Isla Coronado

Join us for a fun, action packed day kayaking around beautiful Coronado Island below towering cliffs, relaxing on white-sand beaches, walking on nature trails and snorkeling with reef fish. Tour includes lunch, drinks, experienced bilingual/kayak guide, snorkel equipment, single and two-person kayaks with paddling gear and motorboat support. No experience is necessary. Daily tours 8:00 am-3 pm.

Blue Whale Tour in Loreto Bay National Marine Park

Join us for a fun, thrill-of-a-lifetime day tour watching blue whales cruise the waters of Loreto Bay National Marine Park.   Words cannot describe the incredible experience of witnessing a 100-foot blue whale surfacing near your 25-foot boat, its blow is 25 feet high and its tail is the width of a 747 tail section.  You will stare gap-jawed when the massive tail comes out of the water as the whale prepares to dive.  Blue whales are the largest animal to ever inhabit the earth, with a body mass equal to 24 elephants and a mouth that could swallow a railroad box car.  They cruise the local waters near Loreto searching for tasty krill in February and March. Tour includes lunch, drinks, experienced bilingual guide, and motorboat.  Daily tours 8:00 am-3 pm (February and March only).

Sept-Dec, spring in the southern hemisphere, is the "right" time see the southern right whale. Pods travel up from Antarctic waters to give birth in the sheltered lagoons of Peninsula Valdes UNESCO World Heritage site in southern Argentina. This offers an excellent opportunity to be in close proximity to these ungainly looking but acrobatic whales. They were called "right" whales by the early whalers because they floated once harpooned, making them easier to harvest.

We still have room on our Dec 3-10, 2011 departure to kayak with these whales and their calves, and view them also from our campsites and by small boat.   We also tour penguin colonies and view rheas and guanacos (a llama-like creature) in this splendid World Heritage Site.

Curious about these unusual whales? The following video clip is a research documentary on Southern Right Whales primarily in Peninsula Valdes: Whale Trackers: Southern right whales of Argentina

Patagonia: What is the best time to travel and see whales?

Patagonia offers a unique experience for whale watching.  Southern right whales choose the shallow coastal areas to give birth and are often visible directly from the beaches surrounding these coves. However, these whales are migratory and have only a limited window during which they calve in the protected lagoons of the Peninsula Valdes UNESCO World Heritage Site. The rest of the year they are at their feeding grounds in Antarctica - where most of us will never venture to view them!

So what is the best time to see the whales? RIGHT NOW! These right whales begin to arrive in mid-September and return southward in mid-December.  These three months host incredible sightings of right whale acrobatics, adorable baby antics, and a variety of other other interesting creatures.

Even better, this time frame is spring in the southern hemisphere and the lagoon is a sheltered, protected body of water. Thus the weather and location make it perfect for sea kayakers of most ability levels. Imagine kayaking near a family of frolicking right whales! Are you ready to sign up yet?!

We provide all gear and guides on this camping/lodge kayaking/whale watching combo (airfare not included).  To any of our kayak tours can be added an extension to explore the Fitzroy mountains and Moreno Glacier.  Call now to reserve your spot for this fall!  We only have a few spaces left for 2011 on Oct 3-10 and Dec 3-10, 2011 tours.

Sarah's Report from the Field

As we mentioned in our last blog entry, the July 31st - August 5th trip to Johnstone Strait was a fantastic success.  Trip leader and long time SKA guide Sarah Hauser reported the following:

"Last week's trip to Johnstone Strait was packed full of wildlife and calm seas. Our first night out we had a visit from the Straitwatch girls and they chatted with us around the campfire with fresh baked dessert about what they do in the Johnstone strait educating people on the marine wildlife viewing guidelines. Another highlight would be the northern resident orcas that came right along the shore of our campsite and two of them came into the shallow waters of the beach just meters from us for a little rub on the pebbles.  Amazing!"

Orcas prevail this summer! Rarely have we witnessed a season so full of wonderful wildlife sightings.  The humpbacks seem to be ranging farther into the Johnstone Strait this summer, making them more visible to our sea kayak travelers as they navigate the many untouched island channels in these calm waters.

This weekend marked the end of two more successful trips in the Johnstone Strait.  A charter group of high school students followed orcas between Robson Bight and KaiKash on only their second day of paddling. A close sea lion encounter also enthralled the group, whose younger members initiated a drenching water fight with their parents and chaperones after a day exploring the Broughton Archipelago Marine Provincial Park.

The other kayak group hosted no water fights, but was thrilled nonetheless with a variety of wildlife experiences.  Seals, sea lions, and black bear were spotted as well as Humpback, Dall’s porpoises, harbour porpoises, birds, and of course, orcas.  The Orcas were present a number of times and enjoyed a good belly rub near the shore.  One pod chose to make a dramatic appearance by swimming right past the group at the end of an orca presentation by the Strait watch warden - talk about perfect timing! All were delighted by this display and the marvelous opportunity to view these animals up close in the wild. 

Both trips enjoyed beautiful paddling weather with little rain in this secluded, idyllic location, offering a cool respite from the blazing temperatures elsewhere in the continent.

Sound like fun? Don’t miss your opportunity to secure one of the last 4 spots on our August 14th or August 28th departures. This summer is truly a year of abundant orcas and magnificent marine mammals.  NOW is the time to book and take home memories to last a lifetime.  Visit our website at www.seakayakadventures.com for more information on all of our BC tours.

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.

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.