Captain’s Blog

Port Renfrew Tour, A Whale Extravaganza

September 14, 2017

The last tour of the season brought us more whales than we could count! Cruising up to Carmanah lighthouse. Taking in the epic beauty of the ocean carved shorelines we soon spotted a few blows in the distance. A group of killer whales appeared. Quickly ID as members of J-pod of the southern resident. After […]

September 6, 2017 – Transient & Resident Orca Pods

September 6, 2017

Today was the perfect example of the amazing differences between Transient and Resident Orca. This morning we spent the tour with two groups of Transients travelling together – the T10s and T109As. These orca were hunting harbour seals close to the shoreline, and we got some looks at the big male swimming sideways along a […]

September 3, 2017 – Humpback Whales, Seals & Sea Lions

September 3, 2017

10am Tour Glass-like waters met the Pacific Explorer as we headed out past Ogden Point and on to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We started our search to the west, looking for any signs of blows, splashes or fins breaking the surface. Whale watching boats spread out across the water in directions, working together […]

Transient Orcas, Whales, Sea Otter, Seals & Sea Lions

September 1, 2017

Today was a stunning day out on the water. It seemed like everywhere we looked whales popped up! This morning we headed west to a place called Beecher Bay and found the T60 Transient Orca matriline. After following this orca family along the shoreline we headed a bit south and ended up with some phenomenal […]

Humpback Whales & Race Rocks Ecological Reserve

August 25, 2017

Today was humpback whales galore! This morning we departed heading towards the scenic Olympic mountain range in search of marine mammals. Hugging the Vancouver Island shoreline, we stopped at Race Rocks Marine Ecological Reserve to check out the abundance of male California and Steller sea lions spotting the rocks as well as Ollie the Sea […]

Watching Whales On A Saturday

August 5, 2017

10am Tour Spending a Saturday morning whale watch is never a bad weekend decision! Aboard the Pacific Explorer, we aimed our efforts and our hopes to the southwest of Victoria. As the fleet fanned out, orcas were discovered! We caught up with a mammal-hunting group of orcas known as the T18 & T19 family. T18 […]

Gray Whale, Southern Resident Orca & Humpback Whales

August 4, 2017

Today was one of those great west coast days where you are amazed by how much wildlife you can fit into 3 hour tours! Starting first thing this morning we headed out into calm seas only to come across a Gray Whale after only 15 minutes out of the harbour! It isn’t often we have […]

Spotting Orcas Whales At Race Rocks Marine Reserve

July 24, 2017

10am Excursion We departed the dock on the MV Pacific Explorer and proceeded southwest in the Strait of Juan de Fuca in search of cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises). In the Strait of Juan de Fuca off of Race Rocks Marine Ecological Reserve, we encountered one of our southern fish-eating killer whale pods (L pod). […]

NEW TOURS : Whale & Ocean Wildlife Tours in Port Renfrew

July 15, 2017

Orca Spirit embarks on a new adventure! In partnership under the umbrella of Wild Renfrew, we now offer ocean wildlife tours all summer in Port Renfrew. Join us aboard our open zodiac as we take you on a truly wild and authentic journey into nature. It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen! From dramatic ocean, carved […]