After transiting overnight through Seymour Narrows and south along Vancouver Island, National Geographic Venture saw the sunrise midway down the Strait of Georgia. A beautiful and productive body of water, this area is part of the Salish Sea we have been learning about for the past few days. We slept in for a change and were treated to a fabulous brunch, complete with a mimosa or bloody mary. A few talks were presented, an illuminating discussion about smart-phone photography with the photo-team, and a discussion about environmental restoration of this area, from Katie Mills-Orcutt, our naturalist / expedition diver. Low and behold if we didn’t discover a loose group of perhaps a dozen humpback whales! Whales can communicate over vast distances, so while these animals don’t form pods, they certainly were in the same area together, exhibiting what looked like feeding behavior. A mother and calf pair approached the ship slowly, and after twenty minutes or so of the ship being clutched out of gear and drifting, the whale pair swam right next to us! Our afternoon saw us ashore at Wallace Island, one of the Gulf Islands of Canada’s portion of the Salish Sea. We went ashore in the sunshine for leg-stretching walks, interpretive ambles, and a few took to kayaks and Zodiacs for a sea-based tour. The day finished as usual with a fun and entertaining recap from the staff, a delicious dinner from the galley, and libations from the bartenders.
10/20/2022
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National Geographic Venture
Friday Harbor, San Juan Islands
After days of sunshine and warm temperatures, the “raincoast” delivered some authentic fall weather today. The day started with a thick fog as we cruised into Friday Harbor and cleared Customs. By the time we reached Lime Kiln Lighthouse on the west side of San Juan Island, the fog had lifted, giving us picturesque views of the Strait of Juan de Fuca with Vancouver Island silhouetted along the horizon. We were able to tour the gorgeous lighthouse that, in addition to still being operational, serves as an interpretive spot for the southern resident orca whales that frequent the area. In recent years, this unique population of whales has shrunk to 73 individuals due to a variety of reasons, especially decreased salmon populations. In the evening, two members of the Center for Whale Research came aboard to discuss their most recent findings and what must be done to ensure that these intelligent and charismatic animals continue to populate these waters for generations. The San Juan Islands are also home to a little-known piece of U.S./U.K. history. Known as the Pig War, a nonviolent confrontation over the border took place between the two countries. It was settled after much dispute. For twelve years, American and British camps occupied opposite sides of the island until an arbitrator ruled in favor of the Americans, and the border was drawn in Haro Strait, west of San Juan Island. The sites of the two camps are now national parks, and the eerie fog that drifted up the treeless hills added to the overall environment, reminding us that, despite the dry weather, fall and Halloween are right around the corner.
