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Published: August 16th 2013
Orcas
I doubt this fisherman will be reeling this catch in!August 14, 2013
Today, what we lacked in good weather, we made up for in wildlife. A tiny spitting of rain, a little bit overcast although still the sun kept breaking through, we went back into Sooke and explored the marine boardwalk that stretches from Ed Macgregor Park to the foot of Murray Road. Here we were entertained by a rather cute little seal who performed underwater acrobatics in the clear waters before surfacing on his back and lazily drifting off into deeper water, still floating on his back.
A few more curious little fellows kept popping their grey little heads (with their big puppy dog eyes) out of the ocean around Iron Mine Bay in East Sooke Regional Park when, later that afternoon, we walked the half hour trail down from Pike Road car park.
That morning we’d also seen a hummingbird helping himself to nectar from a flower as we sat eating lunch in Sooke. Such delicate, tiny little birds - instantly recognisable by the way they hover, rapidly beating their tiny wings, as they stick their long, fine bills deep into the flower. We'd first seen hummingbirds on Galiano Island many years back, feeding from
Oracs
Orcas breaching off of Donaldson Island near Pike Point a feeder that someone had hung in their garden. What an excellent idea! How wonderful to attract these fabulous little birds into your garden. All you need is a sugar-water solution, a feeder (apparently red is the preferred colour) and you're away!
The boys spotted a few squirrels and a chipmunk in the forest but best of all, as we stood out on Pike Point, having made the last minute decision to include the extra little trail to our walk (not a decision that at the time went down well with all members of the family! It was getting late and had started to rain a little) we spotted a couple of whale watching tour boats that were hovering expectantly out in the Juan de Fuca Strait in front of us.
And sure enough it wasn’t long before we could see the fins of quite a large pod of Orcas surfacing every now and again. We enthusiastically passed around the binoculars and took a few photos as we enjoyed the show in front of us.
We’d been wondering whether to do the whale watching tour but it’s not cheap. Not when you multiply the cost by four.
Seal in Sooke Harbour
This little fellow was enjoying swimming on his back! And then what if you don’t see any? We weren’t sure we wanted to risk the feeling of disappointment and frustration. We could all think of other ways of spending £300 plus.
But now we didn’t need to. And better yet as the orcas moved away from the tourist boats in our direction they decided to put on quite a show. One after the other they breached the water, splashing down hard and hitting the water on their backs. They seemed to be having just as much fun as we were watching them! We were close enough to hear the unmistakable puff of air as the whales exhaled through their blowholes. That was when we really knew we didn’t need an expensive whale watching trip to experience this amazing sight. And besides, any trip now would have to be incredibly good to surpass this. Plus we even managed to get a few photos too!
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Mum and Dad
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Orcas!
Great - so you saw them without paying that exorbitant cost of a tour. You are certainly having some wonderful experiences (and walking miles). Sam said when you get home he won't think twice about a mile's walk that you used to coerce them into doing!