International...

Turns out my charter was travel writers... from Germany and South Korea.  The rest was as I was told: they fly in, we head out, I get 'em back (on time!), and they fly out again.  Their goal: to see Orcas.  Turns out that's my goal, too.  ;-)  I understand why people go out on our boats.

Fortunately, I had a good report.  While we were talking before heading out, one lady told me, "I've been on three whale watch trips and have never seen a whale."

"Get off my boat - right now!"  No, just kidding.  "Let's see if we can change your luck today."  The local Visitors Bureau lady had lunch for them on the boat.  We were ready to roll when they got to our boat.

The charter flight that brought them in was a bit late... I was counting on every minute for a successful trip.  If this was going to be the only impression of Friday Harbor and the San Juan Islands for these folks, I wanted them to have a great experience.

We got to the whales in about 50 minutes - I didn't stop for anything else along the way.  I got the boat positioned for their best viewing and... "Oh! My first whale!!"  It was a happy group.  They got to have about 45 minutes watching L-Pod forage.  The big male, Mega, cuts an impressive figure with that huge dorsal fin.

Heading back in, I was able to stop to see some other wildlife, since the current was working in my favor.  I got them back to the dock with a few minutes to spare, so hopefully they got to see some of Friday Harbor before they boarded their seaplane.

Any pressure is self-induced, but there were a lot of smiles and thank-yous when we got them back.  A good day "at the office."  ;-)