On a rock? With a fox?

That was last year.  This year, we were back at South Beach - we go there every year on our San Juan Islands trips (up in the Pacific Northwest, near Seattle). Every trip is different, and you never know what you'll see, but I was keeping my eyes open for foxes.

This year, we saw a black fox, nosing around near the same spot.  The black one looked scrawnier, and seemed to be hoping for scraps around someone's picnic table, rather than hunting for wild prey like the red one from last year. 

I read that all the foxes on the island are red foxes, but that they come in different colors, including black.  So that would mean last year we saw a red red fox, and this year we saw a black red fox! 

Another week at South Beach this year, we saw an otter cross the beach, and take off into the water.  Just minutes later, he came back out of the water and across the beach, with a fish in his mouth.  It sure didn't take him long to find breakfast!  It was wonderful to see, but unfortunately, I was camera-less.  We also saw orca whales, quite close in to the beach, and easily visible from shore.  We normally see orcas out whale watching, but this was a first for me, seeing them from the beach here.

Driftwood on the beach

If "South Beach" makes you you think of Miami, this is the complete opposite.  This one isn't about neon and nightlife - it's about wind and wildlife.  It may be foggy or blue, chilly or warm, but it's a beach where you can stroll for miles, rarely encountering anyone else.  It's a place to feel the wind and smell the sea, and contemplate the patterns of the waves.  All that, and the biggest piles of driftwood you could ever hope to see.

This is also the site of the American Camp, during the "Pig War" vs. the British in the 1800s.  But that's another story!

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If you ever feel like getting away from the rat race to a place that's exceptionally peaceful and beautiful, the San Juan Islands is a good choice. As soon as I step onto the ferry heading out there, I can feel it, and just writing this post makes me want to go back. That's one danger of writing a blog!
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Related posts:

1. San Juan Islands - scuba diving (video)
2. San Juan Islands by float plane (video)
3. San Juan Islands - The ferry ride (video)

Satellite view of the islands

One of the highlights of our trips to the San Juan Islands each year is an orca whale-watching trip.

The San Juan Islands are a group of hundreds of islands, islets, and rocks located near Seattle, WA.  Most of these are very small - in fact, so small that many disappear at high tide!  The majority of islands are uninhabited by people, and many have been set aside for wildlife.  It's a very beautiful area, and a great haven for birds and marine life.

The archipelago is west of the US mainland, and east of Vancouver Island, so they're right along the boundary between the US and Canada.  This border location caused some interesting problems in the past, but that's a story for another day!  Right now, we're talking whales.

The water in this area is home to 3 pods of orca whales (known as the "residents"), and other orcas occasionally pass through too (known as the "transients").  Despite the name, the residents aren't in this area all the time.  Orcas (also called killer whales) travel great distances, and sometimes they head north to Canada, or take off into the wild blue Pacific.

Experts can identify specific whales by their markings and the shape of their fins.  Every whale is given a designation like L-87.  This means it's a member of the L-pod (the resident pods are J, K and L), that was given the sequential number 87.  Once a whale survives a certain amount of time, it's also given a nickname.  L-87 is also known as Onyx.

See whale list and photos...

On a whale-watching day, it's never sure what you'll see.  If there are whales in the vicinity, though, the boat captains will find them!  The captains stay in touch with each other, sharing information about where they've spotted whales, which direction they're heading, and how fast.

Orca whales seen on one of our trips

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Responsible whale-watching boats follow strict guidelines designed to avoid interfering with the whales, and that's something people take seriously here.  The resident orcas are listed as endangered, and irresponsible boating behavior is one of the many problems they face.  You'll hear a lot more about the whales, their habits, and their threats, from the on-board experts.

I just ran across a post by whale-watching expert and local San Juan Islands naturalist Monika Wieland, that gives a great account of an orca-watching outing.  She also includes some of the other wildlife that you're likely to see on the way, and has some good pictures, too.

Orca Watcher: Whales on the westside - but who are they?

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We take a whale-watching expedition every year on our San Juan Islands trips.  Every trip is different -- whales and other wildlife have minds of their own, and you never know for sure what you'll see!  We've been lucky enough to see orcas every time we've been out, and they're magnificent creatures!
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Related posts:

1. San Juan Islands - old friend foxglove
2. So there we were... with baby orca and big daddy
3. Killer whales and navy sonar

The San Juan Islands are beautiful from land and sea. Whether you're hiking, biking, kayaking, sailing, or just riding the ferry, you can't help but be struck by that. But what about from the air?

This video is primarily about the plane, but I like it because it gives you a real sense of what soaring over the islands in a small plane would be like.

It's an amphibian plane called the Nardi FN.333, which first flew in 1952. Out of the 26 such aircraft built, only half a dozen are believed flyable today, and it's a very cool looking plane!

It really makes me want to go find a small plane, and fly around the islands, landing in little harbors here or there. How incredibly cool that would be!
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We wrapped up our San Juan Islands tours for this year back in August, and I'm already looking forward to going again! And if I ever lose that feeling, I'll just watch this video again.
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Related posts:

1. San Juan Islands - The ferry ride (video)
2. San Juan Islands - scuba diving (video)
3. Fox on a Rock, on San Juan Island

OK, I'll say it right up front. We do NOT go scuba diving on our San Juan Islands trips! I'm a wimpy warm water diver (think British Virgin Islands)!

However, even though that water looks pretty chilly to me, it's fascinating to know what lives down there! The undisputed rulers of the local seas are the orca whales, but there are a ton of other lesser-known, and much less-seen species that live on rocks, walls, and tidal areas around the islands.

When we go kayaking, you can see some underwater stuff, but only a few feet down into the water. Think starfish, mussels, clams, kelp, and seals (who visit any depth they want, and look like they're having fun doing it!) This video takes you further down than we can see from our kayaks, to give you a deeper glimpse of "what's down there".

Me, I'm happy to stay above the water, peering in to see what I can see. Maybe someday global warming will warm these waters up enough for me...  But then, everything that lives here now would be dead.  OK, let's not do that, OK?

In the meantime, have a look at some underwater video shot by other, warmer-blooded souls!
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Our San Juan Islands trips for women run every year in August. If you're on the trip, and newly inspired to try the scuba diving, I bet we could arrange for you to join a dive with one of these groups. Just let me know!
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Related posts:

1. San Juan Islands - The ferry ride (video)
2. San Juan Islands by float plane (video)
3. Fox on a Rock, on San Juan Island

Wondering about the San Juan Islands? This video (first in a series) shows you what the ferry travel is like out to the islands, and around the islands.

If you're going on our tour, you can ignore the part about which highway exits to take -- we'll handle all the driving! Just enjoy the part about being out on the water. It's a beautiful ride, to a beautiful place.

I always think the ferry ride is very special. There's truly a feeling of leaving the "real world" behind, and entering something different. As soon as we pull away from the dock, I start feeling it, and half an hour (max) into the trip, it's a palpable sensation. I know I'm somewhere different. And this different place is beautiful, peaceful, and relaxing.

I know that being out on the water and breathing fresh sea air has a restorative effect. I'm a sailor, and any time on the water is good time! But it's more than that, too. If we were taking the 3-hour cruise and heading back to Seattle, it wouldn't be the same at all.

The ride is charming, and I love it a lot! But knowing that you arrive in the San Juan Islands is the other half of the magic.
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We'll be doing our next women's trip to the San Juan Islands this August. We've been going there for years, and I simply adore it. If you ever need a serious break from the stresses of normal life, this is an excellent place to do it. So close, and yet so far!
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Related posts:

1. San Juan Islands by float plane (video)
2. San Juan Islands - scuba diving (video)
3. Photo: Ferry boat arriving Orcas Island

The famous, historic resort on Orcas Island - Rosario Resort - is up for auction this month. We were just there last month as part of our San Juan Islands tours.

There's a beautiful mansion built by retired tycoon Robert Moran back in the early 1900s, that's the heart of the resort. It's well worth a stop - a beautiful place, with historical exhibits and an amazing pipe organ, and it gives you a sense of how the very wealthy lived in those days. (Of course, once the property is sold, who knows if the mansion will still be open for visitors?  I sure hope so!)

Moran was a man ahead of his time.  Much of Orcas Island is now protected as a State Park due to the fact that he was tenacious in his desire to donate the land.  The state didn't want to accept his donation, but he kept trying.  It took 10 years before they accepted his gift!

View from Mt. Constitution

Thank goodness he kept trying, because today Moran State Park is a wonderful place to visit, with camping, boating, and miles of hiking trails.  The high point (!) is Mt. Constitution. As the tallest peak in the islands, it offers terrific vistas.
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Nobody knows right now what will happen with the Moran Mansion and Rosario Resort.  But thanks to Robert Moran, we know that we'll still be able to hike up (or down) Mt. Constitution - a memorable part of all our San Juan Islands trips.

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I've been contemplating expansion options, so what do you think -- should we buy Rosario? It is a very cool place. And hey, we'd never need to wonder where the Adventurous Wenches would stay when we visit Orcas Island!
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Related posts:

1. Photo: Ferry boat arriving Orcas Island
2. Killer whales and navy sonar
3. Mysterious tremors near Seattle

Every trip is different, and you never know what you're going to see, but this year our two groups were fortunate to see a couple of very special things.

On our first trip, we found a group of four resident orcas (aka killer whales). The area around the San Juan Islands is home to three pods of "resident orcas", and the whales we saw were part of the L pod. This group seemed to be hustling to catch up to the rest of the pod that was further away. Our on-board naturalist pointed out that there was a baby orca with the group, which could explain why these were traveling slower than the rest of the pod.

Then the big news... We found out the next day, that on August 12 (the day we were there), in Haro Strait (where we were), there was a new L-pod orca calf discovered! I didn't get any decent shots myself, but you can see nice photos of the baby orca (called L111) that someone else captured in the Seattle Times article.  Is that cool or what?

(Update:  Sadly, later in 2008 L111 was reported missing and presumed dead. We hope that other young ones fare better. With a population this small, every new calf is important.)

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On our next trip, the resident whales had taken off for the big, blue Pacific. (They don't stay in their home waters all the time, but follow their food supply, which can take them far afield.) When the resident orcas are away, that leaves the coast clear for the "transient orcas" to come through. The two groups keep to themselves, with no mingling, and don't seem to like each other.

Orca whale T102, San Juan Islands

Transients often travel in small groups, or even solo, but this time we were treated to a group of 12 transients, swimming through the waters near the US/Canada border. Most of the group were females and young orcas, but there was one large male with them, known as T102.

The naturalist explained that T102 is usually a loner, so it was unusual to see him with such a crowd. He certainly wasn't there to help with the kids or the chores, and their best guess was that he was "courting" one of the females in the group (T101), who had probably mated with him before. In fact, perhaps one of the youngsters was his offspring, making it a family reunion.

T102 gave us a nice show, veering off course to swim straight towards our boat. When the big male dorsal fins (up to 6 feet tall) are this close to your boat, it's impressive!

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We do San Juan Islands women's tours every summer. Though the whales come and go (traveling a hundred or more miles in a day), we've always been fortunate enough to see them. And yes, I am knocking on wood as I write that.
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Related posts:

1. Orca whale watching in the San Juan Islands
2. Killer whales and navy sonar
3. Whales trump Bush

Old friend foxglove

It's almost time for our San Juan Islands trips this year, and I'd be wiling to bet that we'll see bald eagles, orca whales, and foxglove (digitalis). We often see them when we're hiking on Orcas Island. (The foxgloves, that is, not the whales!)

One of the cool things about this flower, aside from the purple spots, is that we just saw these growing in Ireland, too.

Traveling halfway around the world, and then seeing a stand of the same flowers growing out by an iron age ring fort, is an odd feeling. It's kind of like connecting through the Minneapolis airport, and hearing a friend from Phoenix calling your name -- what? they're not supposed to be here!

Actually, these San Juan Islands trips will be an opportunity for me to see transplanted friends of the human variety, too! That's one of my favorite things. You can meet somebody in the British Virgin Islands, then see them again in the San Juan Islands, or meet someone in Greece, and then see them again in Alaska.

It's way cool to travel all over, and see friendly familiar faces. It's like having a bunch of "plane pals" -- much more exciting than pen pals!

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I'm heading for the Pacific Northwest and our San Juan Islands trips. It's so gorgeous up there! And I'm looking forward to meeting long-distance friends again, and making new ones too!
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Related posts:

1. Orca whale watching in the San Juan Islands
2. Photo: Ferry boat arriving Orcas Island
3. Killer whales and navy sonar

(click for larger image)

The San Juan Islands are an archipelago of hundreds of islands near Seattle. It's a gorgeous area, and full of wildlife -- "the land of orcas and eagles". Ferries ply the waters, and are the most common method of inter-island travel. This ferry is arriving at Orcas Island, the largest island of the chain.

Orcas is also home to Mt. Constitution, a "must-climb". You climb to the top (OK, some people drive instead!), and catch the view out over the top of all the other islands. Simply spectacular! Guess that's another photo I'll have to publish...

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We do a San Juan Islands tour for women each summer, and have two lined up this August. It's a peaceful place, with a slower pace, and I quite adore it. August is a wonderful time of year there (as well as an ideal time to escape from Phoenix!)

Related posts:

1. San Juan Islands - The ferry ride (video)
2. Orcas on the beach, Peninsula Valdes, Argentina
3. Photo: Greek Islands, relaxing on the yacht

Environmentalists have fought the use of sonar in court, saying it harms whales and other marine mammals. They won an injunction that created a no-sonar zone, but President George Bush signed a waiver in January exempting the Navy and its anti-submarine warfare exercises.

In reinstating the ban, the judge wrote that she had "significant concerns about the constitutionality of the President's exemption". White House spokesperson Tony Fratto said. "We believe the orders are legal and appropriate."

One round for the whales.

National Geographic News: Navy Not Exempt From Sonar Restrictions, Judge Rules

Previous installments:

1 - Killer whales and Navy sonar
2 - Bush trumps courts, Navy trumps whales

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We visit the territory of the resident killer whales on our women's trips to the San Juan Islands each year. These orca whales face many threats, but hopefully navy sonar will no longer be one of them.
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Related posts:

1. Bush trumps court, Navy trumps whales
2. Killer whales and navy sonar
3. Whales came from tiny deer-like mammals