Whale Trip One – My 40th birthday.

There are two groups of resident orcas that commune in the Pacific Northwest. The Northern Resident Whales (Vancouver Island area) and the Southern Resident Whales (SRW) (San Juan, WA area). I wanted to see SRW. After all, Lolita, an SRW whale, was captured in 1970 in Penn Cove, Puget Sound, Washington.

She is the last living orca from this capture in captivity at the Miami Seaquarium. Her mother L 25, an SRW, was still alive and swimming free in the Pacific Northwest. As one of my goals, I wanted to meet the whales that the captivity industry nearly wiped out. I wanted to tell them sorry for all the bad that had been done to them by humans. I was educated and awake now, and I needed to apologize.

Although we were going to spend my 40th Birthday in San Juan, WA, we decided to spend a couple days on Vancouver Island. I thought if we could possibly see both pods of whales the NRW and SRW, that would be awesome. When we arrived in Victoria on Vancouver Island there were plenty of whale watching boats. I was excited, couldn’t wait so off we went. After about an hour and a half on the water, there was still no whales. In fact, the boat operator was just advising that there seems to be no whales out and about today, but we could go look at other wildlife or go back in.

Then suddenly he gets a call – whales!!! We circled the boat around, and off we went as fast as we could go. I will never forget the feeling of seeing an orca in the wild for the first time. It was so beautiful, it sent goosebumps through my entire body. I had tears of joy when watching them in the pools at the aquariums. When an orca fin slices through the water it is so breathtaking. When they exhale at the surface, it is so powerful that you can hear and see it yards away.

I asked the operator if he knew what whales we were seeing and he said yes, it was J pod. J Pod is part of the SRW. I couldn’t believe I was seeing Lolita’s family in the wild where they belong. I was so emotional that I cried and cried. The whales were well feed and just playing around. One orca breached 10 or more times. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and feeling. What a great way to start my first whale trip!

The next day we ventured off to San Juan. We spent every day on the shore of the west side of the island watching for whales. One morning, at 5:00, am, my husband and I were sitting on the rocky cliffs, with our binoculars, at Lime Kiln park watching for whales. The sea was calm, and it was so quiet because the whale crowds were not up yet. About 30 minutes in we were thinking about heading out, but I saw what I thought was a fin surfacing around a bend as far south as I could see with binoculars.

The funny thing is neither Eric or I said anything because we didn’t trust what we were seeing, but then Eric said, “I think I see something” and I said me too. Sure enough, we found out later J2 (Granny) was leading her pod from the south end of the island to the north end to feed that early morning. Not only did we get to watch and see the orca by ourselves that morning, but we also got to witness the matriarch of J Pod leading her pod. In fact, the following weekend locals had put together a party for J2 (Granny) to celebrate her 100th birthday. She looked really good and strong for 100.

The next day coming in again from the south, we saw whales. We waited for their arrival and boy did they put on a show for us. They stopped and hung out in the waters below the cliffy rocks we were sitting on. They came in so close to shore. I was so excited, I tried to get down the rocky cliff to get a closer look only to lose my balance and start sliding down the rocks. My husband came running yelling my name.

He could hear me sliding down the hill. The rocks get very slippery that close to the water. My husband tried to warn me, but I wouldn’t listen. I had to get closer to the orcas. Lucky for me I stopped myself just before landing in the Pacific. A little scraped up but I was ok.

There was a baby orca close by who was such a showoff. We were told that the orcas loved being clapped and cheered for, so we did, and they loved it indeed. Not sure who the adult orca was babysitting, but on several occasions, he/she tried to get the baby back into moving north and the baby would trail a little bit then turn around and head back to the cheering crowd.

I have to imagine the older orcas were getting frustrated, but they continued to let the baby come back for more fun. The joy that resonated with him/her and the joy that was given to me having that time with him/her was unforgettable. As a result, I went to bed so happy.

We enjoyed watching the orca from shore but decided to take a boat out and experience them again in the ocean. We ended up being the only boat out because a storm had come in and most people didn’t want to be out there. I got seasick in the harbor, but there was no way I was going to not see orca. As we were out at sea with the boat rocking and swaying, the orca showed up. Keep in mind that it was very difficult to see them in the choppy waters but there they were playing in the waves, an adult and a baby.

I remember looking over the edge of the boat just as the adult and baby rode a wave right under the boat, sideways looking up at me. I don’t know what came over me, but I almost jumped in the water to swim with them, not thinking twice. I felt like they were inviting me in and I didn’t want to say no. Eric my husband felt worried as he was sure I was going in. In fact, he grabbed my arm as I went over the boat further than he was comfortable within rough seas. This was the first time I felt out of control with whales. Where I would do something without thinking about the consequences. It felt like an out of body experience.

We had one more trip out on a boat before our time in San Juan was over. We were lucky again to see the orca. There was a woman on board whose background was in nursing. She came to the island for recovery and healing. She was working on her spiritual life and was trying to connect with the whales more telepathically. As she and I sat on the bow of the boat with our feet dangling, she said to me send them love. Send the whales love and light.

We held hands and sent love to the whales together and I am not kidding you as we sat motorless keeping our regulated distance from the whales a large male orca came over to say hi. Male orca fins are huge and up close they make a presence that is impressive and leaves you speechless. This island and the whales were turning my life upside down. I was hooked; I didn’t want to go home and leave the orcas.

The day we were to leave the island was the day of Granny’s 100th birthday celebration. We decided to risk taking a late ferry back and missing our flight to be part of the party.

Around 4:00 in the afternoon we were going to have a ceremony for her and sing happy birthday. If I hadn’t seen this with my own eyes, I am not sure I would believe it, but Granny showed up for her birthday celebration. What are the chances? I left the island changed like I left the filming of The Cove changed. My 40th Birthday celebration was life-changing for me. I went home planning the next whale trip feeling more alive than I had in years.