After a lovely morning, we were eager to get out for an equally lovely afternoon. Once more, our full fleet departed, with excitement buzzing amongst us as we wondered what the day had in store for us. The plan was to head across the Strait of Georgia, the large body of water separating the mainland of British Columbia from Vancouver Island, and try our luck on the Vancouver side. Beautifully flat seas once more greeted us as we exited the harbour, and soon after, we picked up speed, with the vessels spreading out to cover more area.

With so many whales around earlier, it was only a matter of time before we found a few! Spreading out meant we had slightly different whales at nearly the same time.

Kula made their way over to a single blow, which turned out to be a lone humpback whale travelling along. Naturalist Jordan raised his camera up, and after a quick peek at the familiar fin and fluke, it was confirmed that this was Arial (BCY0767).

Arial was busy travelling and fluking along, raising his fluke high up in the air. Arial is the 2007 calf of Houdini (BCX0022), meaning he is 19 years old this year. Houdini was one of the first humpbacks to return to our area after the population was decimated during the whaling era. Sadly, she has not been seen since 2008 and is now likely deceased; however, her legacy lives on through her three surviving calves: Niagara (BCY0057), Kelp Creature aka KC (BCY0291), and Arial (BCY0767).

At the same time, Cascadia and Keta had made their way over towards Bowen Island. Just to the south in the middle of the Strait, a small group of black fins could be seen travelling together. Naturalists Evan and Vanessa grabbed a few photos and confirmed this was the T046B1s travelling with T046C2:

T046B1 Tread ♀ (2003)
T046B1A Tsakani ♀ (2015)
T046B1C Tide ♂ (2022)
T046B1D Tashi (2025)

T046C2 Sam ♀ (2009)

The pod was having a very nice and relaxing afternoon as we observed them. Travel makes up a large extent of an orca’s daily routine, and today was no exception. With pods often travelling over 100 kilometres daily, checking out pinniped haulouts as they go, this is the most common behaviour to witness when you spot an orca. Amongst the pod members, the youngster T046B1D Tashi was the most rambunctious, often bringing their face fully out of the water while travelling alongside their mother, T046B1 Tread. The pod slowly trended southbound as they went, leading to many picture-perfect moments with the city of Vancouver behind them, showing the dichotomy of the busy city life skirting right alongside the wilds of the ocean.

Eventually, Kula departed and made their way over to join the orca encounter. Cascadia and Keta headed out and began searching for humpbacks of their own. This soon proved fruitful, as a pair of blows was spotted. Once more, cameras were raised, and identities were confirmed. This pair is identified as Fukurō (BCY1473) and X-Ray (BCX1851). X-Ray in particular was very interesting, as this individual is a new-to-us whale. With only a handful of sightings on Happywhale over the years, we do not currently know which breeding grounds they go to.

Once we had had our fill of whale time, we headed out and began looking for other wildlife to see. Once more, the fleet went separate ways, with Cascadia and Keta heading to Stinky Rocks and Kula heading to the White Islets. Both of these locations are heavily populated haulouts, where Steller Sea Lions and Harbour Seals rest and recuperate after traversing through the sea. Our Harbour Seals are the quieter species, often snoozing away and only occasionally sneezing or yawning away. The Steller Sea Lions, on the other hand, are usually very loud and proud, belching and grumbling away.

The day wasn’t quite over yet, though, with one more quick peek to happen close to home port. Along the edge of Gabriola Island are the Gabriola Bluffs, a towering cliffside full of nests of various bird species. Here, many Cormorants could be seen on their nests. We took in the beauty of the area in awe before turning away and continuing onward. Nanaimo’s skyline soon popped into view, and we pulled into the dock a few minutes later. It had been another fantastic trip full of fantastic whales and other wildlife, and the day would live on in our memories for years to come!

Please enjoy these photos by Marine Naturalists Evan Hessels, Vanessa Vereschahen, and Jordan Robinson!

July 12, 2026, 3:30 PM - Familiar fins as well as a new fluke!

Arial

Fukurō

X-ray