A fine day for Orcas...

Want to make a work day a delight?  Here are some suggestions...

* Commute to work with a scooter...

May not seem like a big deal, but instead of having to park a half mile away, in a dusty gravel lot, I was able to take advantage of the motorcycle/bicycle parking that is very close to the docks.  Besides the convenient parking spot, the 10.5 mile ride is beautiful... and even better by scooter.

*  Get outdoors.  Yes, the scooter ride was all outdoors.  Duh.  My job puts me on a boat.  I get to drive.  Someone else pays the bills.  Really, fueling up this boat doesn't hurt a bit.  ;-)

*  Make it a short commute.  You're probably thinking: "You just said, '10.5 miles,' above."  I'm not talking about the scoot-commute to get to the boat... rather, the whales were really close today.  Yeah, I have no control over that.  When I first got to the boat, there were no whale reports.  Then, one report that put them about an hour and a half away.  As we were leaving the harbor, another report put "a group of about 5 or 6" close... as in: less than a half hour away and moving right for us.  Some days, you just get lucky - this was definitely one of those days.

*  Get plenty of exercise.  No, not me - the resident Orcas of J-Pod were very active today.  The wind had kicked up a bit, so I had my share of exercise on the helm, but the Orcas were as active as I've ever seen.  I counted over 15 full breaches.  I quit counting all the spy hops...

All I brought today was my little pocket camera.  Plus, I was pretty busy at the helm.  Not a lot of opportunity to take photos, but I have a full album in my mind!

*  Avoid crowds.  Because the whales were quite close to Roche Harbor, we were one of the first boats on the scene.  For the first 45 minutes, there were only two other boats getting to watch this outstanding viewing.  After a bit more than an hour with the whales, there were only 5 boats with this group when we left.

Another report told of 3 transient whales east of us... seems like most of the other boats went there.  One little girl on our boat really wanted to see seals.  I enjoy showing off all the wildlife we get to see - but, honestly, most people are disappointed if they don't see Orcas.  I'm not sure today's guests believed me when I told them what we were seeing today was unusual and way more... more whales and more activity.  When I turned off from the whales and went where I can usually find seals... the transients that were reported east of us were leading about 20 boats right for us.  We moved aside, saw the transients (no where near the viewing we already experienced), watched the line of boats follow along with them... and no seals to be found.  Seals are not dumb: they know when transients are in the area, and they get outta there!

I found us 4 bald eagles, then headed for another spot where I can usually find seals... bingo!  Plenty of seals hauled out on the rocks, including a couple brand new pups.  The little girl was delighted.  Her family was delighted.  Makes me happy, too.

Another fly-over with a bald eagle, and we headed for the harbor.  A very pleasant first day on that boat.

Then, the scooter ride home.

Ours are the ones under the covers - a Vespa got in there between us while I was gone.

I will remember this day for a very long time.  Wish I could take my own advice above every day.  ;-)