“If we can teach people about wildlife, they will be touched…Because humans want to save
things that they love.”—Steve Irwin
We had a great time aboard the 65 foot Odyssey with Captain Pete and two of his amazing and knowledgeable naturalists on Puget Sound. The Odyssey was originally a US Navy search and rescue vessel built in 1941 that was later converted into a private yacht. The wildlife is quite diverse. The first sighting was that of a bald eagle, the most inspiring birds in nature. Nearly on the brink of distinction in the continental US they have made an amazing recovery. Though we didn’t see the majestic and powerful orca (killer whale), we did see Steller sea lions hanging out on rocky outcroppings and harbor seals lounging around, and soaking up the sun. Sometimes referred to as “dogs” of the sea, these adorable, playful, little animals resemble dogs swimming in the sea, often with their heads barely above water. Other more elusive creatures in the San Juan Islands that we got a glimpse of were minke whales that come up for a breath of fresh air and as quickly as they arrive, they’re gone again. Minke whales will often stay under water for 20 minutes or more and are considered the most populated whales in the world. We also saw the abundant Dall’s harbor porpoise often mistaken for the much larger orca whale due to their black and white coloring. They are very playful and tend to ride the waves of the boats bows with little effort. For us bird lovers, we spotted the gangly Double-crested Cormorant, a prehistoric-looking, matte-black fishing bird with yellow-orange facial skin. They resemble a combination of a goose and a loon.
Postscript: Thanks to San Juan Island Excursions for providing us all complimentary copies of the photos of the wildlife they took with their large zoom cameras. The other photos of sunrises and sunsets, the live crabs catch including a video clip were taken by us at the dock of Anacortes.
