..Kayaking Tours with The killer whales of Johnstone Strait..Kayaking Tours with The killer whales of Johnstone Strait..Kayaking Tours with The killer whales of Johnstone Strait
"We loved the trip!!! Guides were exceptional cooks, great guides and super hosts!" Micaelai & David Brummett, Palo Alto, CA
Orca Galore, is a four day sea kayaking adventure designed for paddlers to explore the shorelines, passages and amazing wildlife of Johnstone Strait. The adventure allows you time to enjoy paddling the waters that surround the Michael Biggs/Robson Bight Ecological Reserve. Our trip is designed to with a maximum of sea kayaking but is still complimented with a daily short hikes in the rainforest. Our camp is located on a small secluded island that offers a central location in the core area for whale viewing in Johnston Strait.
From our island basecamp we can access many sheltered and open water passages. Wildlife often visits us. Our guides love to share and teach. We maintain a number of monitoring devices to know when whales are in our area but like to use the element of surprise to enhance each trip. As the passage of pods of orca, porpoise, and dolphins can happen at anytime, sightings are most often seen during the daytime and sounds are often heard through the evenings. At camp and on the water we have the ability to listen to passing whales We have become familar with the vocals of numerous families of whales. It is often the case that our guests see whales before the guides do. This frequently occurs a number of times in a 24-hour per iod.
From you tent sites you can experience the frequent calls of eagles, orca, sea lions and a myriad of songbirds. Our camp is comfortable, private and sheltered from the elements. Camp is in a setting of an intact rainforest ecosystem. It is a combination of towering fir trees, groves of ferns and mosaics of moss. At the shoreline the marine life is abundant and alive. At low tides we will introduce you to an amazing numbers of critters and organisms of this saltwater environment. Special features like the bio-luminious of the water after a series of warm days is possible on any of our trip dates.
This is our most popular tour and offers the best value for the money. This tour starts in Telegraph Cove . As space fills very fast with this tour it is best to book as early as possible to ensure that your preferred dates are available. The first tour starts June 15, and prime whale viewing is late July through early September.
Johnstone Strait is unquestionably the best place on earth to sea kayak with the Killer Whales in the wild. Most of British Columbia's 300 Killer Whales return to these waters to feed, sleep, play, and rub their bodies on the pebble beaches of the world-famous Robson Bight Ecologically Reserve.
Day 1: - This is always the most exciting day. The morning starts with a short but scenic paddle to our base camp. We will take a short time to store your gear and then get on the water to paddle around two small islands where often pods of Orca pass by and eagles can habitat is visible. The day is spent exploring coves, beaches, and small islands on the sunny side of Johnstone Strait. As daytime reaches evening we often finish our day with a beach-fire or a sunset paddle.
Day 2: - We venture out this morning to hike a trail through a lush rainforest with large trees and a maze of small wildlife from squirrels to deer. We have to paddle a short distance to get to the hike and we will be spending the bulk of the after and early evening paddling in a new direction to see the rich marine environment that support Orca Whales around Robson Bight and area adjacent to it.
Day 3: - A day to paddle in a different direction to meet summer researchers and enjoy a little fishing or catch pictures of our resident eagles nest. Today is a day to explore larger passages, hike a trail to see the sights and capture some good photos of whales, porpoise or minke whales. This evening is always special and is spent around the beachfire after a stroll around the island.
Day 4: - Our last day often finds everyone early eager to face the day. A morning paddling session will take us on a journey into Johnstone Strait and to a different shore where the chance of spending more time exploring and seeing Orca for our last time. Often July and August are the summer months that attract large salmon runs and numerous pods of Orca to Johnstone Strait. Arrival back at our put-in is approximately 3:30 pm.
Note: *This itinerary is flexible.
Orca Galore
Departure Dates...2009
June 15-19, June 22-26, June 29-02
July 02-05, July 06-09, July 09-12, July 13-16,
July 16-19, July 20-23, July 23-26, July 27-30
Aug 04-07, Aug 11-14, Aug 18-21, Aug 25-28,
Aug 31-03, Sept 07-10, Sept 14-17, Sept 21-24, Sept 28-Oct 01, Oct 05-08,
(***Family Rates Available)
Trip Deposit: CAD$250.00 per person