CWR encounter #57 | Bigg’s Killer Whales

EncSummary: The team had received reports of a group of 9 killer whales making their way east through Boundary Pass, and left Snug at 13:13 with the hopes of conducting some drone work.

When the team arrived on scene at 14:10, the whales were just passing Monarch Head eastbound, heading into the vessel no-go zone. The first whales the team saw were the T100s, but they heard that the T109As were just ahead of them, nearing East Point. With the whales in the no-go zone, the team circled around wide to wait for the whales northeast of the point. Before too long, the team spotted the T109As moving offshore from Boiling Reef. The whales were moving slowly and being very cooperative for a left- and right-side photo ID pass as they made their way northeast towards Tumbo Reef. Meanwhile, the T100s stayed deep in the no-go zone, hugging the Saturna shoreline, preventing the team from approaching them for photo-ID.

After their two passes, the team got an update that the T65Bs had been sighted in Friday Harbor. Given T65B2’s recent stranding, the team decided to prioritize checking in on him and his family. They ended the encounter at 14:50, right near Tumbo Reef, and headed south (see Encounter 58 for observations of the T65Bs).