September 25, 2009

Good morning from the Float House in Discovery Harbour Marina

Yesterday it was tough for Whale Watchers from Campbell River to Port Hardy! The Transient Orca from the previous day had disappeared to the south and all the Resident Orca were so far west that even Bill from MacKay Whale Watching in Port McNeil, came south to look for Orca.
We picked up some very playful Dolphin in choppy waters off Okissolo Channel at about 11:00 am, about 20 Sea Lions resting on the rocks at Jimmy Judd and playful Dalls Porpoise in Lewis Channel but no Orca!

On the Grizzly front, it was a banner day! Grizzlies on the estuary when we arrived at the Orford River, Grizzlies waiting for us at both tower 4 and 5 when we arrived and when we left we had Grizzlies walking down the road in front of the Van! The good news is that the females are getting very large (fat) and look extremely health. We watched one female catch 2 fish in 10 minutes. While there are still no cubs in sight it appears as though these females, if pregnant will have enough reserves to take them and their offspring through the winter.

Fishing was unusually slow yesterday with only a few fish brought back to the dock. Hopefully today will see some improvement. A few Chum Salmon have arrived but the main flow is still a few weeks off. Perhaps that is where the Resident Orca are, chowing down on the Chum far to the west of Campbell River.

Enjoy the sunshine!

Cheers

Jack
Hurricane Jack Adventures
Campbell River Whale Watching