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Off to the Island

Posted March 11, 2015 in Learn More by Michael Mountain

(Second in the series Superpod One – Where It All Began)

Day One: From Seattle to San Juan Island

July 11, 2011:  It’s all aboard the Victoria Clipper for a 7.30 a.m. departure. My dinky camera doesn’t do the Seattle skyline justice on a dark cloudy morning, but we leave Pier 69 for the three-hour journey to San Juan Island.

We’ll be meeting about a dozen of the world’s most knowledgeable scientists and whale watchers for an informal get-together. We’ll be tracking some of the orca pods (killer whales live in extended families called pods), both from the shore and on boats, and meeting up in the evenings to exchange knowledge and experiences about the orcas who live just off the coast of the islands, and about what we can do to help the ones who are held in captivity at marine parks like SeaWorld.

The ferry is full of local people and tourists, who crowd up onto the top deck at various times along the way for glimpses of dolphins, harbor seals, eagles and other animals, and then as we approach Deception Pass, where two of the many islands meet and a bridge connects them. Beyond lies the Pacific.

One of the crew, a conservation biologist, explains how this huge system of waterways, estuaries and basins that leads out to the ocean was carved out by glaciers about 15,000 years ago. The islands are all volcanic, all part of the Ring of Fire. And the whole region, including Seattle, is subject to earthquakes and eruptions like the famous Mount St. Helens eruption of 1980.

Waiting for us at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island is Candace Calloway, a marine mammal biologist with a passion for rescuing horses. It’s a short ride across the island to Snug Harbor, a small inlet with a marina and cabins, where several of us will be staying.

After a quick lunch we head over to the Center for Whale Research, where Ken Balcomb and his team of interns have been tracking various orca pods from his home and offices on a cliff overlooking the ocean.


Journalists David Kirby and Tim Zimmerman, researcher Dr. Astrid Vanginneken, Ken Balcomb, and documentarian Gabriela Cowperthwaite.

“Here they come,” shouts one of the team as she scans the water below through binoculars.

We’re about to see some orcas.

Table of Contents

Superpod One – Where it All Began
In the summer of 2011, a group of scientists, journalists and former orca trainers met up on San Juan Island. Their week together would eventually lead to the formation of the Whale Sanctuary Project.

Off to the Island
On the ferry to San Juan Island everyone crowds onto the top deck for glimpses of dolphins, harbor seals, eagles and other animals.

First Sighting
At the Center for Whale Research, we see dorsal fins popping out of the water … just a second or two as the orcas come up for air.

Grandma J2’s Birthday Party
Grandma J2 has celebrated her 100th birthday. San Juan Island held a party in her honor. But how do they know she’d just turned 100?

T Is for Transient
As well as the “resident” pods, who spend most of their time around the islands, there are “transient” pods whose lifestyle is quite different.

Luna: the Orca Who Wanted to Be Friends
Orcas need each other’s company. So, when Luna got separated from his family, he started making friends with humans on their boats in Nootka Sound.

Out on the Ocean, Surrounded by Orcas
We’re headed out toward the open sound, and our captain is confident we’re going to see some orcas.

Orcas at the Other End of the World
The orcas line up and create a wave that will lift one side of the ice floe and tip the seal into the water.

Orca Dinner Party
The whales need 200 pounds of food every day, and Chinook salmon is the only food that the resident orcas will eat.

Super-Intelligence
Whichever way you look at orca brains, you have to conclude that these guys are super-intelligent.

Custody Battle Over a Captive Orca
An unseemly custody battle is going on between SeaWorld and Marineland over orca Ikaika, whom SeaWorld has “loaned” them.

We’ll Meet Again . . .
The group needs a name. I suggest “Superpod” in honor of what we’ve seen and shared this week. It’s agreed … and it’s just a beginning

Also on the Blog

  • How We Can Give Sanctuary to the Whales Who Cannot Wait
  • A Tale of Two Baby Orcas
  • Orca Brains and Intelligence
  • Canada Bans Captivity of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises
  • A Deep Dive into Environmental Analysis
  • TEDx Talk “Whales Without Walls” by Charles Vinick
  • Whale Aid Russia

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What is an authentic sanctuary?
Latest discoveries about beluga whale societies.
The psychology of captivity.
Free Willy and the legacy of Keiko.
… and many more.


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