Discovery Passage Orcas
August 19, 2001
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| Telegraph Harbour |
As we drove into our new campsite overlooking the waters of the Strait of Georgia, we were greeted by a bald eagle, who flew low and close in front of our motorhome. Seemed like a reasonably good omen – maybe we were in for a wildlife treat here. The rugged, glacier-clad mountains of the British Columbia mainland, across the strait from our new home near Campbell River on Vancouver Island, were surrounded by just enough sea haze to give them an appealing purple tinge. The weather was clear and children were swimming at some sheltered beaches. Our beach was very rocky, which provided excellent preening perches for a flock of about 70 Harlequin Ducks. They paddled back and forth in front of our motorhome as they dove for crustaceans and mollusks that hide among the rocks in the shallow water. The males had lost the brilliant plumage that makes them a favorite of birders when they nest near cold, mountain rivers. A very slight breeze blew from the water and provided instant air conditioning. We were at peace with the world.
A raft of about 60 Common Mergansers mingled with the Harlequin Ducks and then separated again. Every once in a while the Mergansers would run in unison across the water as if being chased by some large predator and then settle down to feed again. Maybe it was some sort of group nervous twitch as they prepared to migrate south to California. A Merlin falcon flew with rapid wing beats as it chased finches in the area, but was really too small to threaten the ducks.
A few miles north, the city of Campbell River modestly proclaimed itself the “Salmon Capital of the World.” Hollywood celebrities such as Bing Crosby once fished the river for trophy “Tyee” Salmon. To qualify for membership in the Tyee Club, they were required to catch a 30-pound Chinook salmon on a 20 lb. test line and a hand-operated reel from a rowboat. It is here that the narrow Discovery Passage expands into the Strait of Georgia. Several species of salmon are funneled through here as they migrate from the sea to spawning streams. Consequently, it is a good place to fish for salmon, and when we arrived on Sunday afternoon, the boats of salmon fishermen dotted the strait. Of course, overfishing has led to dramatic reductions in the number of salmon, but there are still enough to attract fishermen and resident killer whales.
We had read several brochures from the whale-watching boat companies and had tentatively planned to take one of these trips out into one of the marine parks near Port McNeill, where resident whales can be seen. The larger Gray and Humpback whales do not usually enter the waters of the Strait of Georgia through the Johnstone Strait, but the Orcas follow the salmon and may congregate in these waters.
I quizzed my neighbor -- a native of BC and who fishes these waters -- if I would likely see an Orca if I scanned the strait with my binoculars. “Unlikely,” he said, “but a large pod of individuals has been seen recently in the Johnstone Strait. They move a lot, so it is hard to predict exactly where they can be found. Find out where the salmon are congregating and you might find the whales.” It was looking more and more like I was going to shovel out a bunch of our precious dollars for a chance to see these whales by boat. One company even guarantees a whale sighting. If you don’t see a whale, you ride free next time.
But before we got too serious about whales, we also planned to visit and hike in the oldest Provincial Park in British Columbia – Strathcona Park. It would take a full day to make the long drive to the park and then hike for about three hours. Driving along the coast through the town of Campbell River, Pat said, “I see some large animal out in the strait.” We stopped quickly! A fellow in another car pointed excitedly out into the strait. “Orcas!” he exclaimed. Now we could see them clearly. It must be the pod of about 59 Orcas that our neighbor had mentioned, I thought. Apparently, the larger pod divides into smaller matriarchal groups of related individuals that hunt together. We observed several groups of five to ten individuals swimming closely together. When they surfaced and blew, the exhaled breath could be seen against the early morning sunlight like a dense, round ball of fog. Then they quickly rolled forward into their next dive, exposing the large dorsal fin. Males have the largest fins and females have curved ones so we could pick out the sex of the mature animals.
“Wow! Look at the size of those fins,” someone said. Then, bringing up the rear, came a male with the largest fin – over 5 feet tall and almost twice as big as the others. This pattern repeated itself over and over across the Discovery Passage. We did not actually count the whales, but it was easy to believe that we had seen at least 59. No! We did not see any of them jump out of the water like they do in the “Sea Worlds,” but they were very impressive anyway. They were the first Orcas we had ever seen outside of TV shows and in captivity. We were very impressed. Maybe this is the reason we continue to live our gypsy lifestyle – just to have a chance to see some of these sights keeps us going.
A local newspaper article reported that the number of Orcas is declining. It once had something to do with the fact that the Canadian and US Air Force were using them for target practice. Fishermen were shooting them with machine guns cause the Orcas compete with humans for salmon. Now, the thought is that whale-watchers disturb them to the extent that some are dying and their numbers are declining -- especially in Puget Sound near Seattle, WA where 85 whaleboats watch 78 Orcas. Whaleboat operators would probably be quick to deny this and might claim that they stay a proper distance from the whales while watching them. But, it would be a shame to lose some of the magnificent creatures. Worldwide, these animals are not endangered. As least for now, my guilty feeling about possibly taking a whale-watching boat was eased somewhat by having seen these handsome creatures from land. But, was it really enough to see them at a distance? Guess not! When we arrived at Telegraph Cove on Northern Vancouver Island, we could not resist the temptation to see the whales up close from the deck of the Stubb’s Island Whale Watching boat.
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| Pat doing her Titanic impersonation |
When we left the historic little cove at 9 A.M., fog hovered over the strait in patches and it did not give the impression of being a good day for viewing whales. Our captain received a call that underwater microphones had picked up Orca Whale conversations further north in Blackfish Sound, so we changed direction quickly. Soon we saw our first large dorsal fin in a distance. The fog lifted and when it became clear that the whales were headed in our general direction, our Captain stopped the boat, turned off the large diesel engines and we waited for the whales to pass. Within a few minutes, two mature males headed straight toward our boat. They surfaced, blew and dove within about 200 feet from the boat. We could see their bodies and white spots in the crystal clear water as they passed directly under the boat and surfaced close on the other side. We wished to see Orcas up close but did not expect this outstanding display. Even our naturalist/guide claimed that it would be a special sight that she would remember. In all, we may have seen twenty whales, learned about the difference between transient and resident Orcas and watched one breech completely out of the water. (Resident orcas live in inland passages, prefer fish, live in family groups and communicate noisily. Transient Orcas live in smaller groups in the ocean, hunt seals, porpoise, dolphins, sea lions, other whales and an occasional polar bear while remaining mostly silent.) Finally the whales we were watching entered Robson Bight Whale Preserve, where whale watchers and other boaters are not allowed and our whale watching ended.
We had a great time and even added a Rhinoceros Auklet to our bird list. Certainly, the 3 ½ hour trip was well worth the $111.28 Canadian ($81.50 US) cost. If our trip disturbed the whales, then they are due our apology. And yes, I do feel a little guilty for our small contribution to whale disturbance, but our boat maintained the 100 yard limit (by law) from the whales and hopefully, our disturbance of the whales was minimal. The male whales we saw up close chose to wander our way; our Captain did not chase them.
The water, islands, wildlife and mountain views were spectacular, especially for this couple of senior, flatland tourists from Texas. Now we are considering a 15-hour ferry trip from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert and maybe . . . .
Ps – For “live” whale websites of audio and video transmissions, check out: www.whalelink.org, www.orca-live.net, www.racerocks.com, www.seasound.org, www.orcacam.com, and www.wildwhales.org. For information on freeing captured orcas, see www.orcalab.org and Mreppy@tchild.org.
1 comment:
Not too bad!
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