whale watching

I woke up on yet another rainy Vancouver day with gray skies and big globs of water firing on my window. I thought to myself, "how am I going to whale watch in this weather?" I walked downstairs to see my mom and dad already dressed to head out on our adventure. I was immediatly rushed to the table for some cereal and shot back upstairs to get dressed. We had to be in Steveston(a port town where we would go whale watching.) at 10am sharp to check in with Vancouver Whale Watching. Steveston also doubles as Storybook, Maine on the popular tv show Once Upon A Time. As we drove through the streets of this town, it seemed oddly familiar to me. I was half expecting too see my favorite characters boarding the boat to go whale watching with us!!!

I could not wait for the whale adventure to begin. All my life I had wanted to see a whale in the wild. I was hoping to see Orcinus Orca, also known as an Orca. I also wanted to see a Minke whale, They are rorqual whales, commonly associated with the blue whale exept much smaller.  Both Orcas and Minke live off the coast of the pacific north west with Humpbacks and Grey whales. You could say British Columbia was whale watching heaven if you are lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. There is never a guarantee that you will see a whale at the surface from your boat, but I hoped that we would be lucky!

We walked up the worn wooden stairs to the small office to the check in and get our parking pass. My sister looked at some stuffed animals while I read a book on whales. When my mom got the parking pass, we moved our car across the block to a lot. We walked a short distance to a small cafe called Pier side Cafe. The trip could take up to 5 hours so we watched to pack a lunch. When we left the cafe with our sandwiches,  we walked down to the docks where somehow the sun was shining. It was a beautiful view with the water glistening in the sun and the mountains surrounding the small town. All of a sudden the screeching sound of metal being drawn along concrete peiced the air as the captain opened the steel gate to the entrance to the boat. We filled in our Zodiac double decker boat and prepared for the long journey through the Georgia Straight and out into the Pacific Ocean that surrounded the Gulf Islands.

The water was very choppy as we headed out. Our guide welcomed us and told us she hoped we would be lucky enough to see whales, but we would also see other marine life and birds of prey.

We had left the dock not 20 minutes when I saw him. "Bald Eagle!!",  I exclaimed.

There he was soaring through the air as if he was an ancient dragon leading us out to sea. He was beautiful and graceful. I could almost feel his power as he flapped his wings only one time and glided along the glistening ocean. We were lucky enough to see glimpses of this beautiful species 3 other times throughout our journey.

An hour into the journey we could smell something very fishy!We were all aware of the smell when at once we heard the barking of what must have been a hundred Stellar Sea Lions. They were baking in the sun on a small patch of rock in the middle of the ocean. We stopped pour boat to watch these playful creatures (who must have had really bad gas) interact with each other. It made me a bit homesick as they reminded me of my dogs.

We continued another 30 minutes when in the distance I saw a splash of the fluke (tail fin) of what looked like a giant Orca! Our guide pulled out her binoculars and looked for a moment as we all held our breath in excitement. "Over there! 12:00  o"clock!" Our guide pointed straight as she continued, "There is a pos of Transient Killer Whales and they are in the process of hunting a seal. We will cut off our boat jets and follow along for the next hour."

Transient Orcas are some of Vancouver's most common Orcas yet they are not so common to see unclose as they are always on the move. Transient Orcas diet consists mainly of fish and sea mammals. Today, there were five Orcas in the pod eating a seal. There was absolutely no blood as the Orcas kill their prey by drowning. It was amazing to watch these graceful killers working as a team to conquer their prey. The teamwork was incredible to watch. Orcas live as a family for their entire lives. They never leave their mothers until their mothers pass away. It was clear to see how smart and dedicated to each other they were.

Just as we thought it was over, a big spout of water sprayed in the air so c;one to our boat that we could feel the water spray us. Our guide told us that we could never drive this close to the whales, but if the whales decided to come to us, we could stay perfectly still and watch. It was hard to make a noise as being this close to them sucks all of your breath away. It is truly AWESOME.

After about 10 more minutes of close contact with our boat, they swam away and they took all of the magic of the sea with them. We were left speechless. We turned our boat around and began to head back the hour and a half to Steveston. We passed tiny islands with lonely houses on them. It seemed like we were watching a movie because the landscape was so beautiful and perfect.

When we finally docked our boat and got off, we headed back to Vancouver with our brains filled with the beautiful memory of our time on the Pacific Ocean watching Orcas in their natural habitat. I don't think I would ever want to see one anywhere else. They truly belong in the ocean so they can be together and be free.