Seattle pt. 3 - Whale Watching out of Friday Harbour

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 On the way to Friday Harbour, sadly, no frequent flyer miles.

I will admit that this trip was not planned out as well as it could have been, so I kind of crammed my whale watching tour into a one day frenzy. I could have taken my chances with a tour closer to Seattle, but I wanted to increase my odds, so I booked a tour with San Juan Excursions who also helped me coordinate the flight to Friday Harbour on Kenmore Air. The flight provided an aerial view of Seattle and was really nice, although very loud. Once I landed and checked in for the tour, I had a couple of hours to walk around town, get some breakfast and just relax.
from the plane


We boarded the boat and the crew talked us through the game plan for the day, explaining some of the expectations and guidelines for watching the whales. The boats have to stay a certain distance from the whales, and if the whales get closer, the engines are cut, there is also a flag that gets put on the boat to let other boats know there are whales in the area. The photos don't really do it justice because to keep the animals safe, you really can't get too close, but we did see seals sunning themselves, and three pods of orca swimming, jumping, seeming to be having a great time. It was a gorgeous day if a tad bit hot. 

a seal in the distance



It was so cool to see these creatures in real life. I wish I would have planned a little better to maybe have another day in Friday Harbor, go on another whale watching tour, but I am glad I did get the one day. 

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