When is the best time of year to see killer whales?
Success rates for different species shift throughout the year. Southern Resident orca, especially J pod, are sighted reliably from April to November. K and L pod show up in June and are observed quite regularly in our area from then until November as well. Transient orca are observed all year, though not as regularly as residents due the smaller traveling group sizes and the distance they travel looking for prey. Humpbacks have been observed regularly for the last several years, especially during high summer (July/Aug.) through October. Gray whales are intermittent visitors as they stop off during their epic migration from Mexico to the Bering Sea. There appears to be a small resident gray whale population in the area as well. During the summer minke whales are located fairly nearby Victoria and we keep tabs on their movements, providing important information to researchers about this little-understood blue whale cousin. So, the best time of year for watching whales is when the sun is
