10% Off 2014 San Juan Cruises Gift Certificates

Looking to get your holiday shopping done early? San Juan Cruises has gift certificates available for our 2014 season. It’s the perfect holiday gift for friends, family or co-workers. Gift certificates for our Whale Watching Adventure Cruise, <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www web based project management tool.whales.com/Cruises/Cracked-Crab-Evening-Cruise.aspx” target=”_blank”>Chuckanut Cracked Crab Dinner Cruise, Sucia Island Picnic Cruise, unWINEd On The Bay Wine Tasting… Continue reading 10% Off 2014 San Juan Cruises Gift Certificates

Whales & Wildlife Report – August 12th, 2013

Orca whales are back in abundance now! This past weekend we had sightings of all 3 pods of resident Orca whales – so great to have them all in the area once again. Today we spent time with K-Pod just south of Lopez Island, then found a Minke whale a little later. Overall a great… Continue reading Whales & Wildlife Report – August 12th, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – July 27, 2013

We left the harbor on another wonderful summer day. We cruised to Chuckanut Bay to observe the nesting Pigeon Guillemots and the Glaucous-winged gulls. The Glaucous-winged gulls have chicks that are a ball of fluffy grey.  Glaucous-winged gulls are the only gulls that stay here year round and nest here. The other gulls that we… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – July 27, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – July 20, 2013

Our bird cruise is getting birdier!  As eggs hatch and juveniles fledge, the populations of our typical Salish Sea breeding birds are soaring.  Glacuous-winged Gull chicks, for example, are now numerous at several of the sites we visit – the Glaucous-winged Gull is the only gull that breeds in our area (although several other Gull species are also… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – July 20, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – July 13, 2013

One of the most interesting sightings of this cruise was this Common Murre spotted near Colville Island, just south of Lopez Island.  Unlike most Common Murres that we encounter, this one was adorned with a lengthy antenna – if it hadn’t been swimming and moving about, one could easily mistake it for a remote-controlled toy! … Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – July 13, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 29, 2013

As one would expect of a birding cruise, our primary focus is on waterbirds, and the trip is, of course, full of Auklets and Guillemots and Murrelets and Oystercatchers and Gulls and Terns and Cormorants and Harlequin Ducks and others.  This past saturday we also spotted a few Common Murres, just beginning to wander back… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 29, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 22, 2013

Our June 22 bird cruise was blessed again with pleasant weather, interesting folks, breathtaking scenery, and repeated encounters with the typical summer avifauna of the salish sea.  Eagles and Ospreys are still incubating their eggs; we check three active Eagle nests and three active Osprey nests during our cruise, and are eagerly anticipating the sight of young birds any… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 22, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 15, 2013

Our June 15 bird cruise was blessed both with beautiful weather and many interesting encounters.  Four different active Bald Eagle nests and three active Osprey nests along our route hold the promise of wobbly-legged fuzzy young soon to come; for now, it is a treat just to see the impressive adult raptors incubating their eggs… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 15, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 8, 2013

It is now late spring, and the resident birds of the Salish Sea are primarily focused on one activity now: nesting.  Glaucous-winged Gulls have decorated many of the smaller islands and rocks with their twiggy cups.  Pelagic Cormorants cram their nests into the narrowest of crannies and crevices on steep and inaccessible (to those lacking… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – June 8, 2013

Bird Watching Cruise Report – May 25, 2013

Harlequin Ducks were certainly one of the star birds this week, with no fewer than thirty-six spotted at three different sites, far more than we have typically been encountering on our bird cruises, although we have seen at least a few on every trip so far.  The largest concentration was in the vicinity of Chuckanut… Continue reading Bird Watching Cruise Report – May 25, 2013