February 2022 Whale Sightings

Click here for Map of February 2022 whale sightings.

February 28
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Mon, Feb 28 - Haro Strait - 00:59 - David Bain noticed a probable SRKW detection last night in the wee hours. No human listeners detected them via the Orcasound - Listen for Whales web app and there was only a single 60-second candidate ["sounds like S40s" - Monika Wieland Shields, OBI] -Scott Veirs, Orcasound/Beam Reach
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GRAY WHALES - Mon, Feb 28 - Haro Strait - Here we are, on Monday, February 28, 2022, and solitary Grey Whale CRC 2440, aka The Haro Strait Grey, is back at Glencoe Cove, where it was first spotted almost seven weeks ago. -Gerald Graham
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Mon, Feb 28 - N Saratoga Passage - 10:30 - I was lucky and happened to look out over the water as a gray was passing by Mariners Cove - looks like a repositioning cruise because I only saw two puffs and then nothing, so I'm not sure which direction it went. It was closer to Whidbey than Camano, not terribly far out. -Marianne Parry

February 27
GRAY WHALES - Sun, Feb 27 - Haro Strait/SE Vancouver Island
Cascadia Region Whale Sighting
Gray Whale Sighting:
Sighting Time: Sun, Feb 27 @ 15:46:30 PST
Sighting User Reported Location (Lat/Lon): 48.40842,-123.33225 [Victoria, BC/Hollywood Crescent]
Number Sighted: 1
Submitter Name: Kathy Connolly
Whale Alert App
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We finally saw the grey whale CRC 2440 at Ten Mile Point. [video] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFAvV1v6ypw -Rachelle Hayden, SSOS
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10:50 - Grey Whale off Glencoe Cove in Saanich, on the west side of Haro Strait. Appears to be CRC 2440.
----As this IMovie would attest, Grey Whale CRC 2440, aka The Haro Strait Grey, has returned to the same point on the west side of Haro where it was first observed by a local resident on January 12, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsvRpjxXflk -Gerald Graham
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Sun Feb 27 - W Whidbey/E Strait of Juan de Fuca
14:18 - Northbound still and now due west of Moran County Park about 3/4 mile out. Long downtime of 18 min.
14:00 - Had lost track for at least an hr. I'm viewing from Moran County Park. S/he is now on north edge Ault Field and about 3/4 of a mile out from shore. Super long downtimes.
12:47 - Northbound and appears to be mid Ault Field and now closer towards land.
12:17 - Gray whale, assume, viewing spouts from Deception Pass State Park, s/he is pretty far away so I can't really tell direction. [whale west of Ault Field, per Marilyn's map] -Marilyn Armbruster
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09:43 - [gray] One blow seen about a half mile out from Joseph Whidbey State Park, still northbound. No photo though, too quick and too far, and very loong down times. -Jill Hein
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08:13 - Looks like a gray whale about 1 mile north of Hastie Lake County Park, very close to shore and heading north. Did not get photo. -Rod Johanson

February 26
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Sat, Feb 26 - Gulf Islands, BC (J pod) - 14:50 - [J pod] Per Pender sightings page they are now southbound in Swanson, 1450. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute
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14:14 - J Pod at Southwest of Pender Island heading northwest; J56, 57, 58 are all very active. -Yifan Ling BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sat, Feb 26 - Active Pass (T137s) - Close encounter with T137's today! Bigg's pod T137's came close to shore [Galiano Island] https://youtu.be/Fs1XX5ym0AQ -Rachelle Hayden, SSOS
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Sat, Feb 26 - Strait of Juan de Fuca - 09:30 - I recorded this group of 4 or 5 Orcas between Protection Island and Diamond Point on the morning of Saturday, February 26th. They were heading towards Discovery Bay! [video https://www.facebook.com/OrcaNetwork/posts/10166454675070601] -Greg Ring
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GRAY WHALES - Sat, Feb 26 - N Saratoga Passage - We had a gray whale visitor in our neighborhood cove this morning! This seems early to us. -Greg & Terra Parham, Oak Harbor, WA
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Sat, Feb 26 - Possessions Sound - 15:50 - Gray turned around and headed south, 3:50, traveling mid-channel as the tide went out.
15:19 - [gray] Kayak Point. -Katrina Goodwin
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Sat, Feb 26 - Port Susan - 14:50-15:03 - Gray whale sighting, 2:50 to current time, heading north in Port Susan just south of Kayak Point and mid-channel. Update: Two, possibly three. One adult and at least one smaller. The bigger one has white under its tail, but it's too hard to see any distinguishing features for ID'ing. [From back-of camera photo shared by Linda and taken by "Wendy": "This is #22 Earhart!! -Jill Hein]
Update: I wanted to clarify that there were two grays initially spotted south of McKees Beach. The first was a much smaller whale, with a dark tail, with shorter and more frequent surface time. The second was the larger gray with the white tail, later identified as #22 Earhart. In the time it took me to get from McKees to Kayak Point, there was only the one large whale, Earhart. There was no sign of the smaller gray. -Linda Raines Tyner
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Sun, Jan 23 - ID Update - Based on photos sent to Cascadia Research Collective (CRC) of a gray whale encountered off of Anacortes on February 26th, Alie Perez, CRC, was able to match the whale to one of two grays encountered on January 23rd in Burrow Bay who was included in our January 28th Whale Sighting Report. Alie assigned that whale the ID of CRC2441. photo - by Tyler McKeen, January 23, 2022, Burrows Bay

February 25
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Fri, Feb 25 - Haro Strait (J pod) - 17:50 - 2 seen down island from the South Beach overlook, much closer in. Headed down island. -Fred Horn
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17:11 - Total now counting nine. And first spyhop of 2022. Awesome.
17:06 - Large male headed out away from Eagle Point. Four other orca with the little one are still a bit up island from Eagle Point.
16:51 - Looks like four other orca. Including a little one. Between False Bay and Eagle Point. Close to shore.
16:41 - Seeing one male close to shore at Pile Point. Heading down island. -Chris Wilson
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16:49 - Big spread!
16:26 - [orcas] Now 2-3 miles off Pile Pt. Still south. -George Hamilton
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16:05 - Passing Land Bank [Westside Preserve]. One big male closer to shore and a couple further out. -Sarah Garett
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~15:45 - Video of some members of J Pod of Southern Resident Killer Whales southbound in Haro Strait this afternoon. Filmed between 15:48 and 15:47, from a vantage point on Ten Mile Point in Cadboro Bay, Saanich. [video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sMeYkuAPCM ] -Gerald Graham
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15:12 - [orca] Clicks still intermittently audible on Orcasound under engine roar. -Chloe Kotik
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14:45 - [SRKW] I'm hearing them intermittently on Orcasound hydrophone now, 2:45 PM! When I first tuned in I heard a few S4 calls, but after that it was all echolocation clicks. -Justine Buckmaster
["I saw one male surface twice around this time close to Sidney Island, as viewed from County Park, but nothing since. He appeared to be aiming SW. -Monika Shields, OBI]
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15:45 - Passing Lime Kiln, moving decently fast with the ebb.
15:25 - Large resting group abeam of County Park, several miles offshore, southbound.
13:15 - J-Pod, Turn Point, southbound. -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute
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GRAY WHALES - Fri, Feb 25 - N Saratoga Passage - 13:11 - Now in front of Maple Grove, getting to be out of my viewing from Mariners' Cove, i.e. distant.
12:55-13:05 - One Gray Whale moving rapidly from Utsalady Point to Maple Grove - mid-channel closer to Camano side. -Paul E. Belanger
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Fri, Feb 25 - Possession Sound - 12:51 - I had to take one more look from Legion Park in Everett. There are definitely 2 grays feeding off of Priest Point right now.
10:45 - Ok, there's one in between Tulalip and Hat Island, heading north, that I'm nearly 100% sure is a gray. It's possible there's another one that I quickly saw through binoculars and looked to be quite a bit closer, heading southwest towards Clinton/Mukilteo, but I haven't seen it again, so it's hard to confirm.
10:15 - Popped up again. Roughly the same place, but seem to generally be heading west. [gray whale confirmed from distant back-of-camera image by Sara] I'm not fully convinced there aren't multiples out here, though. There was another one that popped up a little closer.
10:00 - Just spotted a few blows and then a tail (viewing from the side at Harborview [Park], so couldn't tell ID based on that) in between Priest Point and Hat Island heading southwest. -Sara Montour Lewis
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UNCONFIRMED SPECIES - Fri, Feb 25 - Port Susan to Possession Sound - 08:00 Judy and Tom Nowak called to report seeing 2 large whales, they are reporting as sperm whales knowing how improbable that sounds. The Nowaks are familiar with grays and all other large whales, and know the grays are here but state with confidence they are not gray whales. Described as ~60 feet in length, uniformly gray, and exhalations extend to the right. They've seen at least 20 blows as the whales moved from Port Susan to now Port Gardner Bay, Everett, keeping to deeper water as they appear to be heading toward the Mukilteo/Clinton area. We did make him aware that there are at least 4 grays here and are seen daily, feeding or passing through in those very areas, but they are confident they were not grays.

February 24
GRAY WHALES - Thu, Feb 24 - N Saratoga Passage - 11:30 - At least one gray was seen in upper Saratoga Passage off Maple Grove, Camano Island, heading west at 11:30. -Lois Trim
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Thu, Feb 24 - Port Susan - 13:30 - [gray] Here are the photos I took today from my home on the south end of Camano Island (Camano Head). I look east over Port Susan to Tulalip Bay and Mt. Pilchuck. I'd be happy to send you any photos I take. I can usually get pretty good pics of the whales that come through here. -Leslie Whaley
[First confirmation of annual arrival of North Puget Sound gray whale 723, ID'd by Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network]
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12:11, 12:30, 14:00, & ~17:30 - Port Susan. We had a gray spotted off Tillicum Beach, Camano Island, heading south mid channel at 12:11. It was tracked off Tyee Beach at 12:30 and passing Camano Head at 2PM. Deep long dives followed by 3 spouts then down again for a long time. Pretty much the same path as yesterday except the passing by Tillicum Beach was about 5:30PM. -John Storbeck
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COASTAL ORCAS - Thu, Feb 24 - OR Coast - 17:16-17:26 - On Feb 24 Brenda posted on the Oregon Coast Whale Watchers Facebook page, photos of orcas northbound off of Brookings that afternoon, which a friend in Crescent City noticed, emailed me, I did the message routine, Brenda emailed me the photos, then full resolution images, here they are cropped and level adjusted for contrast. It looks like three males who put the terror into the gang of sea lions near the buoy out front, what else do you see, especially in that last photo, a breach? From EXIF data the first photo was taken at 5:16 pm, the last at 5:26. photos - https://www.facebook.com/OregonCoastWhaleWatchers/posts/4966838786731559 -Brenda Ziviello-Howell via Jeff Jacobsen

February 23
GRAY WHALES - Wed, Feb 23 - N Admiralty Inlet/W Whidbey - I enjoyed watching a gray whale passing by Ebey's Landing when I was out for a walk at sunset tonight. So close to the shoreline! -Karen Bishop
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Wed, Feb 23 - N Saratoga Passage/Skagit Bay - 11:00 - There's a gray (and prob two) spouting way out in the channel out from Mariners Cove, and it's working its way southward just in line with Maple Grove beach now. It's too far away to be positive, but the frequency, location, and direction of the puffs makes me think there could be two.
09:45 - Gray in Skagit Bay. Good morning! I just spotted puffs waaaaay out in Skagit Bay - so far away (to the north) that I can barely see them - but I think maybe it/they are heading this way (toward Mariners Cove). Might be wishful thinking. photo - 15:45: "The tide was out a few minutes ago so I snapped this photo of the whale pits at the northern end of the Happy Meal Mudflats." -Marianne Parry
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(~09:23) 10:23 - Last I saw it was about an hour ago and seemed to be heading out of the bay.
07:36 - Spotted a spout in Utsalady Bay just now! -Whitney Sparling
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Wed, Feb 23 - S Saratoga Passage - 15:00 - Saw this gray at Pebble Beach at 3:00 pm. He didn't move much, stayed in the same place for at least 30 minutes, sometimes at the water's surface like he/she was resting. Took a blow now and then. Photo poor, darn. -Peg Boley
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Wed, Feb 23 - Possession Sound - 11:00 - 2 grays spotted off Jetty Island, southbound. -Lori Christopher
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Wed, Feb 23 - Port Susan - 08:52 - A whale seen by several between Country Club Beach 1 and 2 the past hour, last reported heading south at 08:52. -via Camano Whale Watch

February 22
UNIDENTIFIED ORCAS - Tue, Feb 22 - Gulf Islands, BC/Strait of Georgia
Cascadia Region Whale Sighting
Killer Whale (Orca) Sighting:
Sighting Time: Tue, Feb 22 @ 8:20:00 PST
Sighting User Reported Location (Lat/Lon): 48.87885,-123.30092 [Active Pass/Strait of Georgia]
Number Sighted: 5
Submitter Name: Jonathan Hunter
Whale Alert App
ON Follow-up: They were stationery in Sturdies Bay, one was spy hopping, great show. I am a second officer on the BC Ferry Salish Eagle. They moved on after a few minutes and were heading away from Active Pass in a northern course. Also, I saw a pod on the other side of Active Pass heading along the west side of Galiano Island heading north just about 20 mins before spotting the other pod; this pod only had about 3 or 4 in it. -Jonathan Hunter
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HUMPBACK WHALES - Tue, Feb 22 - N Admiralty Inlet - 16:49 - At 18:39 John Miller, WSF Marine Ops, emailed report: KENNEWICK - Humpback Whale Report 2/22/2022. 1649hrs: Vessel reports via 800MHz 1 humpback, southbound off Admiralty Head.
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GRAY WHALES - Tue, Feb 22 - N Saratoga Passage - 16:54 - Gray(s) been between Utsalady Point and Mariners' Cove most of the afternoon - mid-way - slightly closer to Camano side. -Paul E. Belanger

February 21
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Mon, Feb 21 - San Juan Islands - Js were just outside of Eastsound slightly to the west of the entrance moving east. -Dawn Fujino Redmond
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There was a 12-noon report of possible orcas in Eastsound [Orcas Island], so that must have been Js! -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute
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UNIDENTIFIED ORCAS - Mon, Feb 21 - Boundary Pass - 10:00 - Good morning. We have a pod of Orca heading to the east side of Stuart in Boundary Pass. They came south through Plumper Sound. Sorry, in the chop hard to count, but between 5 to 8. Baby in the group and very large male. Male has wavy dorsal. -Kath Durant
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GRAY WHALES - Mon, Feb 21 - N Saratoga Passage - 14:50 - [gray] Going back and forth off Mariners' Cove jetty - I think only one gray. -Paul E. Belanger
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14:04 - Based on location of last blow, the whale I saw appears to be trending towards Mariners Cove.
13:42 - I'm at Maple Grove on Camano and see a blow straight across, 1/2 way between Polnell Pt. and Mariners Cove. Too far for pic or direction. -Krista Paulino
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13:19 - Second whale identified, #56 is currently heading into Crescent Harbor.
13:04 - Gray whale #53 is the whale hanging around Rocky Point. Getting on scene with second gray now heading toward Crescent Harbor. -Tyson Parker Reed, Naturalist, Island Adventures
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14:48 - More follow-up info - I've been staring out here trying to figure out if it's one or two grays. There is one here (still looks like just one) but I spotted a spout waaaaay in the distance between here and the point south of Maple Grove on Camano.
14:37 - I may have mis-spoken - I could swear I saw two grays out there initially, but I think I'm only seeing one now. Unless they're really good at taking turns spouting. At least one gray is passing the Mariners Cove marina area heading north now, but still fairly far away from shore.
13:45 - Two grays popped up frolicking mid-channel just out from southern tip of Mariners Cove.
10:35 - I can confirm two grays out in the channel, spouting simultaneously right next to each other. They're near the south end of Mariners Cove, but not close enough to get photos. I can't really tell where they're heading - maybe south/west, but if it's 53/56 then they are apparently fond of taking the scenic route so hard to know.
10:00 - Just looked up from my laptop and was lucky enough to catch a huge puff out in the channel (10am). I think it was heading north/east, approaching Utsalady from the south, but I haven't seen a subsequent puff so I'm not positive. -Marianne Parry
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Mon, Feb 21 - Possession Sound - 11:26 - Alice Moyal reports seeing 2 grays close in mid-way up northside Hat Island. Partial breach then another breach! Then the two grays went on their way, appeared to be heading eastbound toward Everett.

February 20
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sun, Feb 20 - North Puget Sound to E Strait of Juan de Fuca - Think we saw these same ones [orcas] off of West Beach [NW Whidbey Island/Oak Harbor] at sunset. They were really far offshore, too far for pics. There were also a couple of baleen whales about halfway between shore and the Orca. -Melanie Holbrook
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12:00 - Had a wonderful siting of 4 orca (one of which a large male) east and then northbound close in on the SE shore of Marrowstone Island at noon on the 20th. This being the month's anniversary of my husband's death, seeing these magnificent animals where we've never seen them before (They are usually much farther east.) opens my heart and gives me hope. -Janet Welch
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UNIDENTIFIED ORCAS - Sun, Feb 20 - Strait of Georgia
Salish Sea Region Cascadia Whale Alert Sightings
Orca
Sighting Time: Sun, Feb 20 @ 8:18:20 PST
Sighting Location (Lat/Lon): 49.31083,-124.21071 [Strait of Georgia, E. of Parksville]
Number Sighted: 3
Submitter Name: H Goebel
Whale Alert App
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GRAY WHALES - Sun, Feb 20 - N Saratoga Passage - 12:50 - Gray whale straight off Rocky Point heading south. Whale watching boat following. -Susan Person, CWW
[Whale was CRC53 "Little Patch" per Tyson Parker Reed]
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Sun, Feb 20 - Possession Sound - 16:25 - Both are back again. When looking today at 4:25pm, two spouts spotted. [Gray whales, Possession Sound off Jetty Island] -John Shackman

February 19
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sat, Feb 19 - North Puget Sound/Saratoga Passage (T46s) - ~17:00 - We saw at least three orcas pass Cama Beach around 5pm on 2/19. They cruised through to the north. One male for sure. -Valerie Gan
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Thanks to enthusiasts on Orca Network for reporting the T46s. This was my first time looking for Orcas in the wild, and I got some great tips from Bonnie Gretz and others at Hidden Beach. The pod was far away but it was great to see them. -Shamik Ghosh
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16:20 - Our Langley whale Center manager Katie Watkins texted an update: they are watching the T46s from Hidden Beach, pod is south of Cama Beach State Park, east of mid channel, northbound. -Katie Watkins, Langley Whale Center/Orca Network
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15:25 - They passed Fox Spit northbound. Lovely looks at T46D and T46E traveling close together while the other 3 are traveling together nearby. -Rachel Haight
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~15:15-15:30 - NB from Bells Beach/Fox Spit area. Love that big wavy fin! -Donna George
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16:15 - Steady NB, midchannel. Long downtimes [west of Camano Island State Park].
15:54 - Just south of Baby Island now.
15:09 - [orcas] Slowly NB close to Whidbey [SE of Fox Spit]. -Serena Tierra
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14:41 - Looks like they are slowing heading north again, pretty sure we see 4.
14:27 - [orcas] Appear to be circling about mid channel. -Ryan Horner
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14:20 - We are at Camano Island State Park and are looking towards Langley and see 2, maybe 3 orcas, north past Langley and still NB. They are much closer to the shore on Whidbey Island. -Steph Horner
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~13:45 - We saw 2 orcas looking north from Seawall Park in Langley. They were swimming between Whidbey Island and Camano Island. -Julie Van Stralen
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13:27 - [orcas] In Langley just passing Boy and Dog Park, northbound. Looks like they're midchannel. -Durand Dace
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13:12 - [orcas] Past Sandy Point - slow travel NB approaching Langley. Only see one so far. -Dori Dace
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12:36 - On Brighton Beach in Clinton, 3 orcas in mid channel heading towards Camano. For sure 1 large male. -Alexa Lamey
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~10:00 - Ariel called: she reported seeing at least one of the males continuing north, in NE direction toward Possession Point, then they disappeared.
10:03 - I have 2 different fins in my photos, one looking like T46E Thor. -Ariel Yseth
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09:47 - Only one male spotted off Edmonds, trying to get ahead of him. -Steph Horner
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09:41 - [orcas] At Edmonds Marina beach now, still heading north. -Ryan Horner
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09:05 - 2, possibly 3, orcas off of Kayu Kayu Park headed northbound at 9:05AM. Follow-up - I believe there was one male as I noticed his fin sticking out of the water first. The others seemed smaller. -Adam Star
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GRAY WHALES - Sat, Feb 19 - Haro Strait - [gray, north Haro Strait] This is all I got. -April Ryan
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14:42 - It's now out of my view, moved off NNE.
14:35 - Just saw a Grey Whale blow on the LK camera. West of Henry Island, moving NE. -Fred Horn
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Sat, Feb 19 - W Whidbey Island/N Admiralty Inlet - ~15:30 - Just got a visitor report for yesterday (Feb 19) they saw two gray whales from Fort Ebey at around 3:30pm. They stayed there for a while. No feeding behavior. Positive gray whales because they saw the mottling and no dorsal. They were southbound at slow pace. -Katie Watkins, Langley Whale Center/Orca Network
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Sat, Feb 19 - Possession Sound - 14:30-15:00 - Today, Saturday, February 19th between 2:30-3 pm, possible gray seen in distance. Just off Jetty Island. With my binoculars I can see spouting. Sorry too far away to take pictures. -John Shackman - Clinton, WA
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17:20 - At least one Gray still feeding in same area as 16:20 update. At times I thought possibly two but never distinct distance to be certain. Gulls opportunistically swooping and scooping scraps.
16:20 - Repositioned to Boxcar Park in Everett Marina. See one Gray off Jetty Island, sightline between Boxcar and Marina Parks, slow trend northbound.
15:00 - 2 grays feeding Sno Delta: out from Naval base; one a couple hundred yards off the very south end of Jetty Island (off rock jetty) and 2nd whale ~1/4 mile west of them. Fins swirling in shallows and deeper shallows. Likely same two unless more out here.
13:55 - This whale has traveled a bit west, but still in same general area.
13:35 - 2nd gray whale in Possession Sound/Snohomish Delta just off NE side of anchored cargo ship.
13:30 - Gray whale milling around Possession Sound off the Snohomish Delta, north of channel marker between Mission Beach and Priest Point. -Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network
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Sat, Feb 19 - N Saratoga Passage - 15:50 - [gray] We were just watching a whale or two from Mariner Cove County Park. Probably 200 yards off shore. -Nick Sue
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The same gray as earlier this morning [in photo] came by for a quick snack at the Happy Meal Mudflats/Mariners Cove, but moved on pretty fast (10 min). I saw that distinctive white diagonal line in the binoculars so I'm sure it was the same whale as before.
~10:50 - They both have turned and headed toward Camano.
10:43 - There are two of them.
10:30 - Peeked at the mudflats again and Gray is back! 10:30am. Looks to be heading north now.
09:50 - Happened to spot the puff of a gray cruising by Mariners Cove, and it slowed down to feed at the Happy Meal Mudflats (just south of Mariners Cove) but is gradually moving south/west toward Polnell. -Marianne Parry
photo - #53 ID: ALB

February 18
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Fri, Feb 18 - Saratoga Passage (T46s) - 17:28 - Four orcas southbound just north of Langley, Whidbey side. We were on the water when we spotted them just before sunset. They were in hunting mode and had a snack judging from the flurry of bird action overhead, before picking up the pace into travel mode and heading south. It's two years since we last saw gray whales and orcas on the same trip, so it was an unexpected bonus to spot a large dorsal fin, followed by three more, as we approached Fox Spit, Saratoga Passage, after leaving Sounder #53 (see earlier post). The hunting party was the T46s, led by the legendary T46 (Wake), who survived the last infamous (but then, weren't they all?) Budd Inlet capture in 1976. The orcas were focused on finishing off a meal, as evidenced by hovering gulls, under a stunning sunset of multiple hues of red and gold, all-in-all a breathtaking spectacle in every respect. As tends to be the way, there was a sudden change of tack and the whales regrouped, moving into fast travel mode as they headed south toward Langley in the waning light (photos zoomed and cropped Richard Snowberger/Sandra Pollard) photo - T46E and T46 (not T46D) as captioned by Sandra. -GS -Sandra Pollard, Author
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14:55-15:25 - Jeanne Hamilton, Langley Whale Center/Orca Network, received report from Tabitha Jacobs-Mangiafico, SWS, initially reporting 3 orcas in Saratoga Passage hanging around off Bells Beach, Whidbey. She then reported they were a pod of 5 who then moved on southbound toward Langley. -Tabitha Jacobs-Mangiafico
[T46E ID'd by Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network, from Tabitha's back-of-camera image.]
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UNIDENTIFIED ORCAS - Fri, Feb 18 - San Juan Islands - 07:25 - Orcas off Cattle Point heading east. 3-4? -Peggy Schellen
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COASTAL ORCA REPORTS - Fri, Feb 18 - WA Coast - 11:10 - I just saw two orcas. 46 13.78N and 124 18.54W [west of the mouth of the Columbia] at 11:10 am today, Feb. 18, 2022. If I had to guess, it was a male and a female. Although one looked particularly small to me. But sometimes it's hard to size perspective. -Paul Kujala
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GRAY WHALES - Fri, Feb 18 - N Saratoga Passage - 16:10 - Smelled whale breath then saw a gray whale ahead of us closer to Mariner's Cove traveling into shallower water toward Skagit Bay. Ten minutes later spotted a blow behind us - pretty sure this was #53 Little Patch traveling closer to Utsalady Bay, also heading toward Skagit Bay. Perhaps Sounder #53 Little Patch should be renamed The Scarlet Pimpernel ("They seek him here, they seek him there"). After inhaling the inimitable aroma of whale breath on the still air, we saw his dorsal knuckles rising ahead of us in what seems to be currently a favored triangular feeding area between Mariner's Cove, Whidbey, and Utsalady Bay, Camano. After watching him dive and disappear we expected that would be the last we saw of him knowing we were running out of time, so didn't expect to see him surface 10 minutes later some way behind us as we idled in the glassy waters. His distinctive patch quashed any doubts as to whether this was a second whale. After making another dive he reappeared closer to the shoreline of Utsalady Bay, once again heading toward Skagit Bay, before we turned for home and - unbeknown to us - a stunning sunset and a big surprise! (separate post to follow) Photos Sandra Pollard/Richard Snowberger, zoomed and cropped. (part 2): It's two years since we last saw gray whales and orcas on the same trip, so it was an unexpected bonus to spot a large dorsal fin, followed by three more, as we approached Fox Spit, Saratoga Passage, after leaving Sounder #53 (see earlier post). The hunting party was the T46s, led by the legendary T46 (Wake), who survived the last infamous (but then, weren't they all?) Budd Inlet capture in 1976. The orcas were focused on finishing off a meal, as evidenced by hovering gulls, under a stunning sunset of multiple hues of red and gold, all-in-all a breathtaking spectacle in every respect. As tends to be the way, there was a sudden change of tack and the whales regrouped, moving into fast travel mode as they headed south toward Langley in the waning light (photos zoomed and cropped Richard Snowberger/Sandra Pollard) -Sandra Pollard, Author
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14:35 - I see a gray out here prob mid-channel just past the northern tip of Camano. At the moment, heading into Skagit Bay, but they seem to turn around as soon as I report.
13:15 - I think they are staying closer to Camano and heading south/west down the Camano coast, approaching the point just south of Maple Grove community.
12:40 - I just happened to see a puff waaaaay over by Camano, and after watching for a few minutes, there are definitely two grays. It looks like they are heading toward Whidbey/Mariners Cove/Polnell, but they are still way out in the channel.
~10:45 - A neighbor texted me about a gray at the Happy Meal Mudflats around 10:45 this morning. I barely caught a glimpse of it before it went around the bend toward Polnell. -Marianne Parry

February 17
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Thu, Feb 17 - Gulf Islands - 10:50 hr. first sighted: At first travelling fast northward through Sansum Narrows, BC (my location: Stoney Hill, Outside Maple Bay, BC). Exiting the Narrows, they crossed NW to near Grave Point and appeared to be feeding in that area for about 15 min. I am certain there were at least 4 (3 surfaced at once with another surfacing shortly after but too far away to have been in the trio), but I suspect there were more animals. Observed one incidence of spy hopping. They were far from me (1-2 km). -Karen Lund
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GRAY WHALES - Thu, Feb 17 - N Saratoga Passage - 14:00 - Lois Trim observed grays from Maple Grove, Camano, moving eastbound.
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11:50 - Two grays in upper Saratoga Passage, mid channel between Harrington Lagoon, Whidbey, and Madrona Beach, Camano, heading towards Whidbey side. -Terra Parham

February 16
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Wed, Feb 16 - Boundary Pass (Js) - J POD today in Trincomali Channel. Trincomali Channel, Galiano island. BC, Canada. ["Trincomali Channel, almost all the way to the top" -Rachelle Hayden, SSOS] [video] https://www.facebook.com/maeva.hamon.7568/posts/1276296349525625 -Maeva Sayag
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08:30 - Southern Residents this morning in Boundary Pass, spread out, unsure if they are heading into Haro or north through Swanson. I captured a little one breaching thought I'd share with you. A little splash from a little one. [video] https://www.facebook.com/OrcaNetwork/videos/937430373441460/ -Kath Durant
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GRAY WHALES - Wed, Feb 16 - N Saratoga Passage - 17:40 - 2 grays exiting area heading to Polnell Point - one very close to shore, the other further out - as of 15 minutes ago (1740). -Paul E Belanger
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~18:50 - One of the grays came back (presumably from Polnell) right before sunset and was feeding at the happy meal mudflats around 6:50pm, so there are some orange-y photos in the bunch from that visit.
16:30 - As of 4:30pm, the one that was consistently feeding was out in the happy meal mudflats but not super close to shore, heading down the beach into the sunset, and the other one was just a little further out, weaving back and forth and not quite sure about this feeding business.
15:50 - Heard a puff in the distance and finally spotted the gray way out in the channel between Mariners Cove and Utsalady. It's staying under a long time between spouts. As I watched, I now think there are two of them, unless the one is lightning fast underwater. Not positive though.
----OK, so this was a treat! As I was watching the spouts out in the channel trying to figure out if it was one or two grays out there, one of them popped up with a huuuuge blow literally right in front of me (I was sitting on the beach). -The second one came in toward the beach as well and they met up right in front of Mariners' Cove - very exciting to watch! ... But very frustrating to try to photograph - whack-a-mole with the camera. Quite a bit of feeding going on, although one of them was more skittish and would head back into the channel a bit and then back to the beach (this is also the "stick my head up and look around" guy). The other one was consistently feeding and working its way southward down the beach. -Marianne Parry
[your sunset whale is 53 Little Patch, and the earlier two I am pretty sure is him on the left and for sure 56 on the right. -Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network]

February 15
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Tue, Feb 15 - San Juan Islands (Js)
18:40 - Sounds like maybe they ended up going south. The last blows I could hear were south from RT.
18:15 - Passing Reuben Tarte northbound in the moonlight.
16:55 - [orcas] Got a visual from Reuben Tarte of blows west of Yellow Island in San Juan Channel - too far to determine direction.
---- After spending a few days up in the Strait of Georgia, J-Pod made an appearance in the San Juan Islands today. They remained out of our view until close to sunset, when we saw them heading back into San Juan Channel in a large, slow-moving group. We thought that distant look would be all that was in store for us, but then as the light was fading, the whales made a turn towards us on shore at Reuben Tarte County Park. Seemingly waking up, they picked up speed and started becoming very surface active with breaches and tail slaps. As dusk fell, their blows became audible. Through binoculars, we could somehow still glimpse them in the near-darkness, and it looked like they were going south. But suddenly the blows became louder. The clouds parted, revealing the nearly full moon, and in a bucket-list moment, several dorsal fins were visible in the moonlight, heading north. (Despite how bright it looks in Jason's video, that's the moon track at the end of this video clip!) [video] https://www.facebook.com/orcabehavior/posts/2814868292150479 -Monika Wieland Shields, Orca Behavior Institute
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14:57 - At 15:13 John Miller, WSF Marine Ops, emailed: SEALTH - Orca Sighting 2/15/2022 1457hrs: Vessel reports via 800MHz 6 orca due south of the ORC [Orcas Island] ferry landing, moving west.
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14:50 - [J pod] At @ 2:50pm I saw a pod of 5 cross westbound within the interisland ferry as it was about to head to Shaw at the Orcas dock. They came within 20 feet and seemed to have at least one baby hanging close. What a gift! This passby included two spy hops which I have never seen before with my previous dozen or so sightings mostly from when I lived at Three Tree Point. I was hoping it was the Southern Residents and sounds like it was. -Carole Blakey
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13:17 - At 14:04 Laura Baker, WSF Marine Ops, emailed to report: SEALTH spots possible J-Pod, 2/15 Log entry 1317hrs: Vessel reports spotting J-Pod headed in an easterly direction in Upright Channel off Flat Point. The pod size ranges from 10-13 in total.
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13:32 - They went north.
["Just to clarify, NE up Upright Channel. They didn't head back north up San Juan Channel." -Monika Wieland Shields, OBI]
13:04 - They are slowly drifting north to the channel between Shaw and Lopez. Still just visible from FHL campus.
12:48 - They are STILL there.
12:36 - They are still there just circling around.
12:22 - They've been in the same spot for a while now right between Lopez, SJI, and Shaw. A lot of flipper splashes and at least one big splash.
12:14 - [orcas] I agree with 7 or so. We can see them from FHL [Friday Harbor Labs/UW] out in SJI Channel now. They did some fin flaps and are sort of hanging out now. -Mason Wiley
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12:05 - [orcas] They just passed Brown Island heading south. At least 5 or 6. -Kimberly Arzadon Stein
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11:46 - At 12:08 Laura Baker, WSF Marine Ops, emailed to report: SEALTH spots Orcas in SJ Channel, 2/15 Log entry 1146hrs Vessel reports sighting a pod of orca whales heading in a SE direction in San Juan Channel. Pod numbers in range from 6 to 8.
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11:52 - Spring Street Landing. End of the dock. Haven't seen them in a few minutes. About seven. Too far for ID.
11:42 - [orcas] Seeing them from Spring Street [SJI]. WDFW is on scene. -Ellie Sawyer
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11:35 - Another male southbound on SJI side of channel.
11:31 - 3 more individuals southbound, between mid-channel and SJI side.
11:28 - Large male about mid-channel southbound, just north of Point Caution.
11:11 - At least 2 orca headed down island in San Juan Channel near Point Caution. Spread out on SJI side of channel. -Stephanie Reiss
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GRAY WHALES - Tue, Feb 15 - N Saratoga Passage - 20:25 - A neighbor alerted me to a gray puffing out in the dark tonight, so we hustled outside to take a listen. It was dark so no visuals, but I could hear puffs at the Happy Meal Mudflats (just south of Mariners Cove). Based on the frequency, I'm guessing that it was just one whale. It was too cold to stay out for long so I don't know how long it stuck around, but I hope it had a good nighttime snack. Also, I noted that the tide was only around 1.5'. Hearing a whale breathing so close by in the darkness is just.so.cool. -Marianne Parry

February 14
GRAY WHALES - Mon, Feb 14 - N Saratoga Passage - 15:15 - I'm seeing two grays spouting way out in the channel just at the south end of Utsalady Bay. They are close together and conveniently puffed at the same time. They're staying under for several minutes at a time, and appear to be heading north. -Marianne Parry
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14:57 - Paul Belanger called back, same gray whale is moving back toward mid channel near red buoy. He is seeing flukes (does not have camera powerful enough to get IDs). The whale has been doing deep dives the last couple of times.
13:30-13:45 - Paul Belanger called to report watching at least one gray whale from 13:30-13:45, there may be two. He is observing from Mariner Cove, Whidbey; the whale(s) is over toward Utsalady Bay. They had been west of the red channel marker and are now east of, so traveling in eastbound direction closer to Utsalady Bay.

February 13
GRAY WHALES - Sun, Feb 13 - N Saratoga Passage - 11:10 - I believe the same gray whale now moving west towards Maple Grove boat launch area - close to Camano side (blinding sun glare for me).
10:30 - [gray] Off Mariners' Cove - continued activity closer to Camano, slowly heading east - breaching gently. -Paul E. Belanger
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10:10 - The fog that rolled in earlier has lifted, and I'm seeing a gray spouting out the channel (closer to Whidbey) between Mariners' Cove and just south of Utsalady. I think it's "Mr. Too-Embarrassed-to-Ask-for-Directions" because it seems to be changing direction every couple of puffs.
07:15-07:45 - Another stunning sunrise complete with gray whales joining me for coffee. One gray has been slowly cruising by Mariners Cove feeding loudly and vigorously (northbound) from around 7:15-7:45. Still here and doing the "I'm leaving now, no I'm not" behavior that we saw yesterday. The second one is way out in the channel but heading this way.
----My guess is that this was the same whale as the past two mornings, but that's based on behavior not positive ID. This gray friend is a super vigorous feeder - it really churns and splashes a lot, compared to some other grays that we've seen that are typically more leisurely. The reluctance to leave the buffet and going back for more was another repeat from yesterday. Also, the head-bob action was repeated - it lifted its head fully out of the water a couple of times. Maybe it just likes sunrises... Is this considered a spy-hop? The pictures I've seen of whale spyhopping are always more vertical, but this was more almost-horizontal. We've seen this very rarely from other whales over the past few years, and I get really excited when they do it - so cool. -Marianne Parry
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UNIDENTIFIED BALEEN WHALE - Sun, Feb 13 - Deception Pass - (~12:22) 12:42 - Baleen whale of some kind by Deception Pass about 20min ago, lots of people trying to get second visual but it never resurfaced-was heading under the bridge toward the bay/Strawberry Island side. -Bonnie Leavitt
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PORPOISES - Sun, Feb 13 - Central Puget Sound/E Vashon - I did see a couple pairs of porpoises in Tramp Harbor around noon today. My daughter was like "porpoises aren't interesting, only Orcas." My son and I thought they were pretty interesting when one grabbed a fish in its mouth though. -Scott Hill
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Sun, Feb 13 - South Puget Sound - Just sending a few pics and video of porpoise activity again out at Sunnyside Beach, Steilacoom. Even more activity and more porpoise than last time! -Cherie St.Ours

February 12
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Sat, Feb 12 - Gulf Islands, BC (Js) ~09:00 - A beautiful morning graced by Jpod transiting eastward through Active Pass. Here's a link to Gary's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvVJctv_p_k Photos and video taken from the shore of Galiano Island. -Karoline Cullen
["They went up the Strait of Georgia upon exiting Active Pass." -Monika Wieland Shields,OBI]
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BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sat, Feb 12 - NW Strait of Georgia (T65A5, T87) - T087 and T065A5 off Comox today. -Ella Smiley, CVWS
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HUMPBACK WHALES - Sat, Feb 12 - South Puget Sound - ~14:40 - Humpback (I think) between Harstine Island and Herron Island. It seemed to be headed north, slowly. -Charlie Elliott
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GRAY WHALES - Sat, Feb 12 - Haro Strait - 14:15 - Unidentified whale, Haro Strait, S of D'Arcy Island moving slowly north. WW boats are with it. Just watched a blow through the Lime Kiln camera. -Fred Horn
["Yes, a gray whale." -Sara Hysong-Shimazu][gray whale CRC2440 per Ellie Sawyer]
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Sat, Feb 12 - Deception Pass - 17:08 - Seeing what looks to be a Gray Whale off of Deception Pass Beach, heading south. -Sara Montour Lewis
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Sat, Feb 12 - N Saratoga Passage - 09:50 - Live update one Gray Whale now heading west, mid-way between Whidbey and Camano (between Utsalady and Maple Grove) At 08:56 - Paul Belanger called, he's seeing a gray whale from Mariners Cove Beach Club. Gray is in Skagit Bay, closer to Camano side now heading east. Sightline is from Utsalady Bay toward Maple Grove. -Paul Belanger
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11:00-11:15 - I've been watching a gray far out in the channel, and it is waffling about which direction to go. It's taking several puffs and then going under for a long time. Will keep watching. Very impressive puffs! (As of 11:15 it is heading south/west, but it changes its mind every time I write.)
07:15-07:45 - Gray whale northbound passing Mariners Cove 2-12-22 7:15-7:45am...Another gorgeous morning complete with a gray feeding outside my window at sunrise! Gray worked its way northbound almost to the marina entrance and then headed out toward the channel for a minute or two, changed its mind and came back for round two, chowed down for a few minutes, back out into the channel again for a few minutes, turned around again and came back for round three. At that point it was moving out of sight from my viewing angle. -Marianne Parry
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Sat, Feb 12 - Possession Sound - (~17:19) 17:49 - [gray] We saw blows from something from Mission Beach in Tulalip around 30min ago. -Ashley Jurasek
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15:25 - Seeing blows from one large cetacean, likely a gray whale, between Hat and Jetty Island (in line with green channel marker), swimming N towards Tulalip; 12 Feb 2022 at 15:25. No vessels with it at this time. -Amy Willoughby
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11:38 - [gray] I have one between Hat [Island] and Tulalip. Closer to Tulalip side. -Jaime McBroom
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12:42 - Janine Harles called: Still feeding between Hat Island and Tulalip area, circling around, feeding. 2nd whale: while with Earhart, they spotted blows of who would be a 2nd whale between Hat Island and Mukilteo. They think this whale is possibly heading in northeast direction.
11:40 - I think this is Earhart, she's been feeding between Everett and Hat Island.
10:28 - Resighted in front of Everett waterfront heading towards Jetty Island
09:25 - Got another one between Mukilteo and Hat Island. (when I posted it was heading south towards Mukilteo.)
----Great day on the water with a gray whale who I thought was Earhart, then thought it was Little Patch but now I'm thinking Earhart again. We had a second gray nearby, could see its blows but every time we went looking for it, we lost sight of it. -Janine Harles
[CRC22 "Earhart" confirmed by Alisa Lemire Brooks, Orca Network]

February 11
SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Fri, Feb 11 - Haro Strait - 23:45 - The OrcaHello AI (and maybe a human listener?) picked up SRKW calls last night close to midnight (maybe as early as 22:52) on the Orcasound - Listen for Whales at Orcasound Lab (between Snug Harbor and the Center for Whale Research. -Scott Veirs, Orcasound/Beam Reach
["sound like S2s - Monika Wieland Shields, OBI]
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Fri, Feb 11 - Strait of Juan de Fuca (Js) - 10:20-11:08 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #12: "The animals were travelling steadily east, but moving slowly over the ground against the start of the ebb current, and in a tight group of 20-25 individuals spread laterally. They were quickly identified as members of J pod when Mark picked J26's notably wavy fin out of the crowd. The whales dove as Mike 1 neared, but over the next few breath sequences they were able to confirm each member of the pod ..." [See CWR Encounter #12 for full summary, photos, and a video] https://www.whaleresearch.com/2022-12
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GRAY WHALES - Fri, Feb 11 - N Saratoga Passage - 11:45 - One gray was feeding actively here just in the south end of Mariners Cove, and while trying to get photos, I saw puffs in the distance so there are two of them. Both are now headed toward the community in Camano near that point south of Utsalady. This never gets old - just amazing to watch up close.
07:45 - There was one gray feeding at the "Happy Meal Mudflats" just south of Mariners Cove [Oak Harbor area, Whidbey] at 7:45am, heading north along the shore. By the time I dashed out on my deck to take photos, it made a right turn and headed straight out into the channel (so no pix), and appears to be heading toward Utsalady, but zig-zagging a little bit. Enjoy this glorious day - it's beautiful out there this morning! Go Grays!
---- Looks like it has three nubbins going down its forehead. One of the photos is kinda cool because I discovered that there is a second spout way in the background, but right in the middle of the closer whale puff - an unexpected surprise. -Marianne Parry

February 10
GRAY WHALES - Thu, Feb 10 - N Saratoga Passage - video of the gray feeding at Polnell Shores. https://www.facebook.com/OrcaNetwork/posts/10166407325410601 -Terra Parham
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13:00 - Two gray whales feeding under bluff east of Polnell Point, Whidbey.
---- February 10, 2022: Not one but two gray whales heralded our first Sounder sighting of the year - and there may have been three. After watching the back of a gray whale rising mid-channel between Mariner's Cove, Whidbey, and Utsalady, Camano Island, with flat calm seas and good visibility we waited patiently for a second sighting. The next was some 10 minutes later when we spotted a heart-shaped blow close to the bluff east of Polnell Point, Whidbey, a fair distance from the original sighting. Another blow confirmed there were two gray whales feeding close to shore. There was no 'fluking' due to the shallowness, although a sudden lunge by one of the whales seemed to be the precursor for a change in direction toward deeper water (all photos zoomed and cropped).
[CRC56, along with CRC53, confirmed by Alie Perez, Cascadia Research Collective] -Sandra Pollard - photos - RSnowberger, SPollard [#56 confirmed by Alie Perez, CRC]
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09:00 - Gray (assuming) south of Utsalady, 9:00am 2/10/22 - southbound northern Saratoga. I'm excited to report my first sighting of the year! (I'm assuming it's a gray, but it's too far away to see for sure.) Looks like a single gray mid-channel between Mariners' Cove (Whidbey) and southern end of Utsalady on Camano. It's not spouting often, and I lost it for several minutes, but now it has popped up again close to the neighborhood right on the beach (can't remember what it's called), so it's not covering a lot of distance. -Marianne Parry
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Thu, Feb 10 - E Strait of Juan de Fuca/NW Whidbey - ~16:45 - I saw a single whale off the beach at Joseph Whidbey State Park. It was appropriately 4:45. It was heading towards Port Townsend. We did not see a dorsal fin and suspect it was a single gray whale. -Carla Field McCoy

February 9
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Wed, Feb 9 - Haro Strait (T36s, T36Bs, T99s, T137s) - 13:01-14:53 - Center for Whale Research Encounter #11: "The whales were well spread, and T137A surfaced nearby to give away the ecotype as Bigg's. The animals were clearly hunting a harbour seal, and it seemed possible that there were two simultaneous predations taking place. This suspicion was confirmed after watching the animals for a few minutes while collecting acoustic recordings from the periphery. ..." "T137s and T036 were slightly north and inshore of the T099s and the T036Bs." [See CWR Encounter #11 for full summary and photos] https://www.whaleresearch.com/2022-11
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Wed, Feb 9 - Strait of Georgia (T65A5, T87) - We just received photos of a special encounter that occurred yesterday off Bowser, BC (north of Qualicum Beach). Louis Jobidon sent along these images of the 60+ year old T87 Harbeson with 8-year-old T65A5 Elsie. this report gave us all the feels because T65A5 has been wandering away from his family (and occasionally reuniting with them) since at least the end of 2019 when he was just five years old. Meanwhile, T87 is one of if not the oldest male orca that visits the Salish Sea. Forgive us a moment of anthropomorphism if we say it's heart-warming to see the old legend taking the young tyke "under his fin". The duo was apparently hunting a sea lion! There is so much we don't know about Bigg's killer whale society, including what motivates dispersal from natal family groups and the social associations that follow. Sightings like this one are another piece of the puzzle that give us another glimpse into their complex social world. -Orca Behavior Institute
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Wed, Feb 9 - San Juan Islands (T46s +) - 14:40 - They're still slow northbound just north of the ferry lanes in Rosario Strait, with one whale watch vessel on scene. -Fred Horn
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14:16 - Pretty blurry after zooming but it's Bigg's.
13:57 - Dozen or so killer whales northbound outside Thatcher. Two groups. -Matt Stolmeier
[From Matt's photo: "Sara Hysong-Shimazu says T46E and F." -Ellie Sawyer]
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GRAY WHALES - Wed, Feb 9 - S Rosario Strait - 09:43 - We have another that is hanging in Burrows Bay this morning. -Tyler McKeen
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Wed, Feb 9 - N Skagit Bay - 08:30 - Juvenile grey still feeding near Hope Island. -Roger Baker
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Wed, Feb 9 - N Saratoga Passage - 13:23 - Single gray heading south off Madrona Beach. Mid channel.
10:30 - Single gray traveling south off Mabana Beach, Camano side of Saratoga Passage. -Anya Vahlolo
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Wed, Feb 9 - S Saratoga Passage - 13:15 - Single grey just north of Langley. Was feeding and now headed out toward center of channel. (So quiet, no boats, just lots of birds!) Heading south in middle of channel. -Katie Pugh
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PORPOISES - Wed, Feb 9 - Central Puget Sound - Not much in central Puget Sound lately so I will report: I just saw 2-3 porpoises in Tramp Harbor off Vashon. -Scott Hill
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UNCONFIRMED SPECIES - Wed, Feb 9 - San Juan Islands - 10:56 - On the ferry to Anacortes and just passed a large group, maybe 20, dolphins or porpoises heading west in Upright Channel across from Indian Cove. They were moving fast and breaking the surface frequently. Not the behavior of harbor porpoises that I'm used to. -Dan Shelley

February 8
GRAY WHALES - Tue, Feb 8 - N Skagit Bay - 09:45 - Same grey whale between Ala Spit and Hope Island feeding again today!...it is a juvenile I spy with my scope. Definitely a grey heart-shaped spray pattern. -Roger Baker
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Tue, Feb 8 - Saratoga Passage - Email received at 19:48 - There was a gray whale on the west side of Camano in Elger Bay the last 2 days. -J. Nark
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(~12:00-12:30) 13:00 - At least two, lots of feeding at Mabana Beach and headed north, last seen close to Camano side about 30 minutes to an hour ago. -Hillary Butler
b.o.c. photo - #22 ID: ALB - photo - #22 ID: ALB
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10:18 - Gray whale (Little Patch??) feeding feeding feeding Mabana Beach or a little south. Hoping it will come down here and we'll try to get a picture to post. It's been there over an hour!! hee hee hungry! -Diana Guild
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Tue, Feb 8 - Possession Sound - ~16:20 - Gray whale seen from Whidbey Island around 4:20 PM today. This was just off the Clinton ferry dock. -John Strong
Email w/photo of who looks to be 53 Little Patch -alb

February 7
NORTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Mon, Feb 7 - Strait of Georgia (pos. A42s) - ~08:20 - On the seabus this morning in Vancouver, and a few whale sightings. Location- near Lions Gate Bridge enroute into Vancouver, BC, on the sea bus transit approx. @8.20am. Follow-up: Yes! They looked like orcas (I'm not too sure) and going the same direction as the sea bus- headed to Vancouver from North Vancouver. FB post about this sighting: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10160378976273949&set=gm.781822116108865 -Mona Sharma
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GRAY WHALES - Mon, Feb 7 - N Skagit Bay - 16:30 - Gray whale between Ala Spit and Hope Island, 430 pm till dark. Feeding. -Roger Baker
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Mon, Feb 7 - Saratoga Passage
17:00 - Decided to take an evening look and both grays pretty much same area as earlier (14:00). So, assuming they have been milling back and forth. Tried for a 2-blow photo, difficult. But they are together, not too far apart.
14:22 - Moving a little faster now. A mile or so north of Mabana Shores, southbound.
14:15 - Trending slowly southwest. Still north of Camp Diana area.
14:00 - I'm viewing from Baby Island Heights, 2 grays milling about a mile or so from Camp Diana and a few miles south of Elger Bay. Out about 1/4 channel from Camano side. -Marilyn Armbruster
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~12:00 - I spotted a gray whale today around noon in Elger Bay off of Camano Island. He was traveling west toward Whidbey Island and the Saratoga Passage. This is very unusual for this time, as the earliest I've ever seen a Gray was March. -Ed Baran

February 6
NORTHERN RESIDENT ORCAS - Sun, Feb 6 - NRKWs (A42s) - 16:00 - Just reporting a sighting of a pod of Transient Orcas [NRKWs] seen around Grebe Islets moving south towards Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver. There were approximately 10-12 animals. [Confirmed A42's (Northern Residents)" -Rachelle Hayden on Howe Sound FB group page] -Mike Klotz
Follow-up: It could have been 6-7 as there were 5 smaller whales breaching together and two larger at the front for sure. The breaching was sporadic after that with different groups. -Mike Klotz
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BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Sun, Feb 6 - NW Strait of Georgia - There were a few whales together on this day. Several sea lions were in a group fairly close to shore. There were others that were further out of course and I saw the whales take a sea lion. But, on February 6 I also saw the whales in a resting line. Several of them rested for about five minutes and at least one whale continued to rest for nine minutes. Light was fading and I thought about packing up my gear. My inner voice said, "just one more minute" and I was happy I did not put my camera away as one of the whales breached twice. The whales were in no hurry to move on. When nightfall came, I remained there on shore just to take it all in and to just listen to the sound of the whales breathing! -Patti Perepeluk
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Sun, Feb 6 - Haro Strait - 21:58 - [Bigg's] Still hearing calls on Lime kiln, getting stronger. -Jim Pasola
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22:37 - Still faint calls on OS.
21:28-21:34 - [Bigg's] Started hearing some faint calls on OS [Orcasound Lab hydrophone] starting at 21:28. Getting a little stronger now at 21:34. -Ariel Yseth
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21:22 - Hearing them adjacent to Lime Kiln - a great above-water vocalization!
21:11 - [Bigg's] Hearing blows and splashes from Deadman's. -Ellie Sawyer
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21:09 - Crazy calls! Love this! Now definitely sounds like Ts/Bigg's.
21:06 - Buzzes and whistles getting louder!
20:57 - I'm hearing echolocation buzzes on the Lime Kiln hydrophone -Justine Buckmaster
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21:04 - I still hear a few in the Edwards Point direction (just south of landbank).
20:51 - Multiple orca blows northbound, 1 mile south of Land Bank [Westside Preserve]. Spread out, they sound close in, moving up island. -Michelline Halliday, SJI
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UNIDENTIFIED ORCAS - Sun, Feb 6 - Strait of Georgia - Cascadia Region Whale Sighting - Killer Whale (Orca) Sighting: Number Sighted: 5. ON follow up: They were heading towards Nanaimo (north). I tried to get a shot but they went around the corner. That was the second time I saw them yesterday. First time had to use the telescope they were about the third of the way between us and Vancouver. sApparently, the herring was running, there was quite a few boats in the area. Yes, that is correct. We are on Gabriola Island. Our view is almost 180 degrees from Sechelt to the Tsawwassen ferry terminal. Our 12 o'clock is UBC and downtown Vancouver. -Patrick Mulvaney
Original report via Whale Alert App- error in gps lat/long- details from ON/alb follow-up
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HUMPBACK WHALES - Sun, Feb 6 - South Puget Sound - ~15:00 - Taken around 3. Humpback north of Herron Island on the Harstine side. -Stacey Crofoot
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13:09 - I headed south to look for the humpback. I stopped at Port of Allyn and saw blows for the distance to the south. -James Pasola
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10:46 - Humpback Whale is back today (Feb 6th), in north Case Inlet. Northeast from the northern tip of Harstine Island. Lots of porpoises and sea lions in the area too. -Dave Morton
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GRAY WHALES - Sun, Feb 6 - S Rosario Strait - 12:00 - There is a grey whale off Rosario Beach. Right now. 12 pm. Follow-up (direction of travel?): Not really. He was just swimming around near the big rock. You can see him off the top of the trail. -Anya Sika
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Sun, Feb 6 - S Saratoga Passage/N Possession Sound
14:00 - See location on map [between Sandy Point and Tulalip, just a tad further over to the east. Appearing NB now.
13:50 - Looks like 2 grays, sb 1/2 mile or so east from Sandy Point.
13:30 - Just pulled up above Sandy Point [Whidbey Island], I see at least one Gray out from Sandy Point and Camano Head, mid channel. Direction unknown right now. -Marilyn Armbruster
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PORPOISES - Sun, Feb 6 - South Puget Sound - Just sending a couple pics of the Porpoise out at Steilacoom yesterday. I see them all the time out there but they were breaching a lot which I've only seen once, a long time ago. The one out of focus video 2 collide! Anyway, just thought you might enjoy seeing these! -Cherie St.Ours

February 5
HUMPBACK WHALES - Sat, Feb 5 - South Puget Sound - 14:41 - It just did a close pass along the Harstine Island shoreline.
13:33 - [HB] It is right in front of the Herron Island ferry dock on Key Peninsula. Traveling south. We are watching from Harstine island. -David Morton
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12:45 - Humpback heading north in Case Inlet. Mid channel between Herron and Harstine [Islands]. -Jerilyn Evans
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GRAY WHALES - Sat, Feb 5 - Saratoga Passage
16:39 - Now angling over more towards Camano side south of Summerland, still sb.
16:30 - About a mile and a half north of Langley, appearing to me about mid channel or just on the Camano side of mid, southbound. Beautiful blows..2 grays. -Marilyn Armbruster
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16:14 - [gray] We are on Bells Beach. We can see spouts periodically south of us on Camano side towards Langley. Hard to tell if it is the same whale or two. -Kristin Platt Rose
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16:26 - Still trending south on Whidbey side towards Langley. I have to leave now, so can't continue reporting position. Definitely 2 whales.
16:16 - It appears they turned and are now trending south again, back towards Langley at a steady clip.
15:50 - I see 2 spouts, so maybe Patch and Earhart have reunited. Still trending north towards Bells Beach.
15:38 - Gray is northbound approaching Bells Beach. I'm over at Mabana but can see spout. -Krista Paulino
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14:46 - Earhart is between Camano and Langley now heading north.
11:11 - Janine Harles called to report North Puget Sound (NPS) gray whale CRC53 Little Patch is making his way from Mabana area, now heading southwesterly of from between Bells Beach and downtown Langley.

February 4


February 3
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Thu, Feb 3 - San Juan Islands - 13:20 - [orcas] Seen in Upright Channel between Shaw & Lopez at 1320 via the ferry. -Chelsey Elizabeth
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07:37 - At 07:51 Laura Baker, WSF Marine Ops, emailed: SAMISH spots two Orca, 2/3. Log entry 0737hrs: Vessel reports via 800MHz spotting two orca located between Reid Rock and Brown Island, heading in an easterly direction.

February 2
GRAY WHALES - Wed, Feb 2 - SW Haro Strait - Here's my Encounter Report for the latest sighting, at Glencoe Cove earlier today. [see photo] -Gerald Graham

February 1
BIGG'S/TRANSIENT ORCAS - Tue, Feb 1 - North Puget Sound/Admiralty Inlet (T124A2s, T124Ds)
15:51 - Moving now. NB.
15:47 - [orcas] Viewing from mid Ebey's Landing, a little milling going on. See map [between Ebey's Landing and Point Wilson, closer to Pt. Wilson].
ID note by Marilyn: My best guess, I would say so [Bigg's KWs]. Saw about 4-5 and very long downtimes. Saw bird activity on possible kill out from Point Wilson Lighthouse. So my best guess would be Ts. Too far for my camera for photos. -Marilyn Armbruster
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15:22 - [orcas] They were still very slowly NB, passing Point Wilson Lighthouse, when I lost track of them (a few minutes ago). PT side.
15:03 - Viewing from Ft. Casey - 3 or 4 closer to Port Townsend side. Slowly NB. -Jennifer Fulton Carpenter
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15:10 - Almost to Ft. Warden. More on that side now.
14:41 - [orcas] Mid channel at PT Townsend. -Bonnie Gretz
photo - "Very distant look at four Transient orcas just past Pt. Townsend northbound. Nice to see though far away!!!"
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13:00 - 3 orca northbound passing Lagoon Point at 1:00 PM. 200 yards off shore moving fast. 2 smallish females (?) and one very little one - the new calf? Cheers! -Bill Setter
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UNIDENTIFIED BALEEN WHALE - Tue, Feb 1 - N Skagit - 16:44 - Yesterday [2/1] in Similk Bay, we saw a whale roll and blow and go back down. It was very large and traveling in a southerly direction toward open waters and Saratoga Passage. We watched for it to come back up but it did not show again in our view. We spent many years on Maui and this was definitely a whale. We have lived here 18 years and only one other time early on was there a report or one here and it was sick from what we heard. Follow-up: It had no dorsal fin just appeared as a smooth back as far as what we could see that came above surface. It was not on its side. It was very dark gray, though wet so looked nearly black and very large. All I have is a picture of the water after it went down... I took the photo at 4:44, Feb 1, 2022. -Karen Wolf