Some wind greeted us as we boarded onto our open Zodiacs Cascadia and Keta. Getting cozy and comfortable in our seats, Naturalist Hayleigh and Rosalie chatted about what the day had in store for us. The day would begin with us heading south, peeking around through the Southern Gulf Islands, before heading out into the Strait of Georgia. Setting off, we exited the harbour, turned… and to our surprise, dorsal fins came into view before we reached Dodd Narrows!

Several small dorsal fins zipped between the adults, with one taller, chunkier fin in the mix. This appeared to be a larger matriline, and after comparing our photos to our ID catalogue, it was confirmed to be the T046Bs, with both T046B2 Akela and her sister T046B3 Sedna (as well as their calves) present, for a total of 9 whales:

T046B Raksha ♀ (1988)
T046B2 Akela ♀ (2008)
T046B2B Takaya ♀ (2023)
T046B3 Sedna ♀ (2011)
T046B3A Munro ♂ (2025)
T046B4 Quiver ♀ (2013)
T046B6 Sol ♀ (2019)
T046B7 Tala (2023)
T046B8 Pi (2026)

These orca were zig zagging along a ton as we observed. At times, they would come together face to face before darting away again. We believe they may have just finished a hunt, and were busy prey sharing when we arrived. Hunting and meals are very important social events for orca where catches are split up amongst the pod members. The T046Bs have several young members, so hunting takes up much of their day as they work to catch enough prey for the growing youngsters.

Transient orca pods often start fragmenting once they reach around 6 members, so this is considered quite a large pod. Two of the eldest daughters, Akela and Sedna, occasionally break away from their natal matriline with their calves in tow, so seeing them all together today was extra special!

After enjoying our morning with the T046Bs, it was time to continue onward. Heading through the Southern Gulf Islands (for real this time!), we made our way out through Porlier Pass. It didn’t take long to find another commonly spotted whale species: a pair of humpback whales!

Fluking side by side, we got a good look at their tails as they dove. We identified these two as Kappa (BCX0158) and Geometry (BCZ0338). Kappa is one of our ‘original’ humpbacks, first seen back in 1996. At that time, seeing humpback whales in our waters was incredibly rare. The population had been decimated to near extirpation due to whaling activity, and the species had only just started to return to the area. Since then, the population has made an incredible comeback, and they are now a commonly spotted species in our area.

Not long after our initial pair sighting, we spotted two more on the horizon, bobbing along and blowing away. At first, these two weren't fluking at all, just drifting along in the current. They may have been resting, as humpbacks tend to take many shorter naps instead of sleeping in longer blocks. However, near the end of our time with them, they woke up and dove deep. Flukes came up, and soon we confirmed they were Beak (BCX1606) and BCX2316. After a couple more surfaces with them, we headed out and explored again.

We had already had an excellent time with not one but two different whale species, but there were still more sightings to be found! Heading along Valdes Island, we headed north and made our way over to Stinky Rocks. Many Harbour Seals and Steller Sea Lions were up and out of the water, chattering and scratching away. The Steller Sea Lions in particular are always incredibly impressive to see, with the large males sometimes weighing up to 1,120 kg (2,470 lbs)!

It had been a wonderful day, but it was time to head back to home port. Coasting along, we watched the landscape change as we made our way back. Nanaimo’s skyline soon came into view, and we chattered about the day's beautiful encounters, from the surprise orca to the graceful humpbacks and the noisy pinnipeds.

Please enjoy these photos taken by Marine Naturalists Hayleigh Hilbert and Rosalie Burauen.