We made a decision at the last minute to go on a Whale Watching Expedition with a small company in Cowichan Bay called "Ocean Ecoventures." We are aware that recently there had been an accident involving a Whale Watching boat tour near Tofino which is on the other side of the island.
I wanted to make sure we would be safe. These suits are worn by everyone going on the tour. Used by the Coast Guard and other rescue teams in the area. Ok....I'm definitely good with that. Because honestly I already told Debbie that she and I would be donning a life jacket no matter what the others would be doing. Safety first.
Similar to the floatation suits our snowmobilers wear. Look how attractive we are?
Heading to our tour boat. Look at that smile.
A Zodiac? A Zodiac? OMG!!! I thought we would be in the safety of a bigger boat? Yikes.
Beautiful blue skies, and such a sunny, calm sea day......
This is going to be a great adventure even though, yes, I am thrilled, but also very nervous and scared.
It took about 30 minutes at a great speed to get to where the whales were spotted.
Here we go.....
And this is what we see when we arrive.....
An Orca or Killer Whale, with a Harbour Seal in its mouth! Nooooooo.
Apparently they play with their food like cats do......But we didn't witness that.
But look at that monstrous creature.....my adrenaline is definitely pumping now.
Our guide believed there were between 12-15 Orcas at our destination.....dorsal fins everywhere.
There can be many generations of Orcas travelling together.
Frolicking around in the water. This pod of killer whales are referred to as Transient. Dieting on mostly marine mammals....seals, sea lions, etc. Usually in small groups, but this is a few groups travelling together. They roam along the coast as far north as Alaska and south to California.
The term 'Transient' was believed to mean that these killer whales were outcasts of Resident whales. But the thought now is that they are not born into a Resident pod. It is more about their eating habits and lifestyle that distinguishes the two species. Resident killer whales eat more fish and squid and return to visit the same areas yearly.
Lost sight of them for a few minutes...but wait there is a tail.
This is one of the biggest killer whales out here. Their dorsal fin can be as tall as 6 feet! Reminds me of 'Jaws.' Unbelievable how close they came to the three tour boats (including us) that were mooring near them.
Getting awfully close to us!
Cormorants hanging around on an ocean buoy. Some killer whales will kill the birds but not these killer whales. They are all about the seals.
However, as an example of how clever they are, a Killer whale in captivity, MarineLand, realized that if it regurgitated the fish it was fed, it would attract birds and then the killer whale would eat the birds? At the time, four others mimicked the behaviour and killed birds in the same fashion.
Debbie is having a great time because this is unbelievable out here.
The killer whale is the largest member of the dolphin family which was news to me. They are found in every ocean. Killer whales are considered predators, with no natural predators.
Killer whales and Orcas are the same thing. Didn't know that either.
An adult male killer whale with a HUGE dorsal fin.
In 2005 the British Columbia and Washington population of killer whales were placed on the Endangered Species list. They have been around for 11 million years.
There are only about 50,000 Orcas in the world!
The other Zodiac Tour boat (exactly identical to ours) on this beautiful ocean water. An incredible day...we couldn't ask for better weather today.
But hey...what's that......
It is a male Orca getting scarily close to the other Zodiac.
OMG......it's right behind them....they were all looking at the wrong side of the boat.
Crazy close call......yikes.
The male killer whales range in size from 23-30 feet long, and can weigh over 6 tonnes. Females are a bit smaller at 20-26 feet long and can weigh 3-4 tonnes. It is one of the fastest marine mammals, swimming at speeds up to 59 miles an hour.
But what's going on now...they are right in front of our Zodiac. The girl with the animal hat is sitting directly in the seat ahead of me. I spent most of the time standing to get the shots which was perfect. I was on the side of the boat with Deb right behind me.
There are two coming towards our Zodiac. And then they disappear......right under water.....I sit quickly because the two killer whales are so close I can see them beside me. OMG!!!!
Please don't come up yet.....
Seriously...keep swimming......
Get going......and pop up somewhere else........
Whew.......
Spending much of the time going between the three boats, they put on quite a show.
Females can live between 50-90 years? Males have a shorter span of 29-60 years.
Captive Orcas live a much shorter life of less than 25 years.
Killer whales are sometimes referred to as the 'wolves of the sea.' Mainly because they hunt in packs.
A killer whale eats about 500 lbs of 'food' per day.
They have been known to eat sharks, stingrays, or even other whales.
Sometimes they kill and do not eat the animal? I sure hope I don't fall out of this Zodiac...I am going to sit now.
Oh oh.....fly little birds.....
Beyond these playful Orcas you can see on the horizon the city of Vancouver.
WHAT an amazing day that we will both never forget.
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