Summer in Blackney Pass

It’s been another few days without our black and white friends out here on the water. The first day of summer had me in short sleeves with temperatures at near twenty degrees Celsius. Though there were no orcas around, just about every humpback frequenting the area came through at some point before dark and I got lots of practice taking pictures of their flukes as they sounded in order to id them. The people who run orcalab came back yesterday, and so my week of solitude ended. It’s nice to have some company again, even though it was fun to be alone in the middle of nowhere for a while.

Not too long ago I acquired a shadow. There is this pesky, but very adorable, blue jay that follows me wherever I go. When I’m inside it chases me around through the windows and I have a video of us playing hide and seek in the kitchen. The squirrels, on the other hand, don’t seem to enjoy my company. They constantly chatter in an angry manner and love throwing pinecones at any building I’m in.

Since there are no showers or baths here until one gets set up later this month, the ocean becomes a great big tub (and a rather cold one). There I am one day, lying flat on a few rocks, head dangling into the sea at low tide amidst the giant gumboot chiton, feeding barnacles, and curious seals, trying to wash my hair. It would’ve have been a comical sight for anyone watching. During this process I made a very strange observation. I had chosen a spot where the rocks dropped off to show clear water a few meters deep so that the current would carry rinse water away. At the beginning there were no creatures aside from a few crabs, some seaweed, and a couple of dog whelks visible at this location, but when I was finished I noticed that there were five moon jellies the size of dessert plates hovering and pulsating just below the surface of the water. Could there be a chance they had been attracted to the shampoo? I looked around but could not see any others in the surrounding ocean. Another example of the mysteries of the sea!

On Thursday evening there was a torrential downpour. It was one of those storms in which a person gets soaked standing outside for a few seconds. I think all the plants were grateful for it as the summer has been rather dry thus far.

Only five days until my birthday! Time is passing way too fast for my liking. However, it will be awesome to see family again and spend the day at the cabin. Perhaps I will even be able to make ice cream (there is nothing cold here at orcalab so it would be sweet to have something like ice cream while I have the chance). Well, I probably won’t write for a while as there is a lot to do in the next few days before the orcas arrive. The dolphins continue to keep me awake at night with their chatter over the hydrophones. I don’t mind though because it is extremely cute and always makes me smile.

Fair Winds

Of Transients and Dolphins

A week has passed and the orcas have remained quiet. Yesterday the first ones passed through, a group of transients chasing around a thousand dolphins up Johnstone Strait (that would have been a site to see). Unfortunately I was on the wrong side of Hanson Island and had to be content with reports I recieved by phone and radio. Since they use silence as an element of surprise while hunting their prey, it is common for them to come through without vocalizing. Yesterday we had many marine creatures swim by including Dall’s and harbour porpoises, seals, and humpbacks.



The squirrels have constantly been throwing pinecones at the roof of a cabin that I spend a fair portion of the day in. It took me a while to realize what it was, especially since their first target was the door and I thought it was someone knocking. As I write they continue to bombard the skylights above.

It’s a somewhat lazy, slightly overcast day here and there is lots of work to be done before other people arrive later this month. The good news is that I found out that I get my birthday off so I can spend it with family! That was a nice surprise I wasn’t expecting when I came up.



Settling into the routine of waking up at all times during night is interesting to say the least. It makes naps a lot more appealing later in the afternoon. When the tug boats and cruise ships come through the noise is so loud that it makes it hard to get back to sleep. The humpbacks Chunky and Stripe were foraging off the front of the lab all day yesterday and they attracted the attention of the local whale watching boats in the late afternoon. There is not much more to write about today, but hopefully soon I`ll have a whale of a story to share!

Fair Winds

Kelp Creature!

The days are now rolling by, seeming to pass more quickly which each new dawn. This morning the waters in front of the lab were shrouded in a blanket of mist, so thick that the far shore was visible only for fleeting moments ever now and then. Around noon Blackney Pass cleared, but the sun has been shy and came out only for a few minutes before hiding once again. The rain is perpetual. Welcome to another typical day up north!

The tension around here is rising as the orcas draw nearer and nearer with each hour. When will they arrive? It could be today, tomorrow, or even weeks, depending on their moment. Around 9:50 am this morning there were a few calls over the hydrophones. However, it was only a small pod of PWD’s foraging about two-hundred meters off the lab.

The past few days have been quite quiet in terms of marine mammal action. Perhaps this is the calm before the storm. Positively, it has allowed for some time to rest and reflect on the beautiful creation around here. Not even a humpback has travelled through the pass in the last 48 hours, which is unusual as they often seem to be a constant presence on the horizon. A well known humpback in the area, "KC", which is short for Kelp Creature, was spotted by the locals around the corner from us several hours ago. Perhaps he will pass by sometime soon.



Last night, however, was a different story. I sleep with a speaker by my ear, ready to descend the stairs to the lab if the cetaceans decide to become vocal during the early morning hours. Yesterday evening, trying to get some rest was quite challenging as the boat noise never seemed to quiet down and there were strange dragging noises coming from one of the hydrophones. Apparently this is caused by either kelp rubbing or small animals crawling across it.

The intertidal community on the beach out front is amazingly diverse. Taking advantage of the extremely low tides of the last few days, I had ventured down to test my knowledge from the Salt Spring courses. Much to my delight, I found gumboot chiton amongst the boulders near the low tide mark. Quite inconspicuous except for their pinkish colouring, the members of this massive chiton species are very close to the size of my rubber boots and have a sort of furry appearance.

Unlike the marine mammals, the terrestrial life here has been quite active and entertaining to watch. The trees around the lab are a favourite roosting place for many bald eagles who often decide to hop onto the beach in search of a tasty meal of crabs and other invertebrates. The small brown mink, a daily visitor, has been taking advantage of the low tides to gather sea urchins for snacks, though his cache is often confiscated by the resident eagles.

So here I sit, transferring DAT recordings to a hard drive, listening to the lovely boat noise provided by local fishermen, and intently watching the horizon for some sign of life coming up from the depths. Things are bound to get interesting in the next few days considering the circumstances... I just have a feeling. :)

Fair Winds

The First 24 Hours...

So... I have officially survived my first day. In some ways, it feels like I’ve been here forever. I’ve already learned how to run the battery systems around the place and we went to a hydrophone today to check the levels there. Within the next 48 hours I will have learned everything needed to function here for a few days alone. Right now I am listening to some calls from 2008 that are downloading from DAT tapes onto a hard drive.

I must mention the events that took place yesterday as it was a perfect beginning to the next two months. We were on our way over to the lab from the cabin when all of a sudden I saw fins milling about around fifty meters from the boat. We turned off the power not a moment too soon as half a dozen pacific whitesided dolphins (PWD's) raced away from the much larger pod to check us out. They spent about fifteen minutes gracefully gliding under and beside the vessel, jumping in the air and surfacing so close that I could feel their breath below me as I stood on the bow. Such curious creatures these dolphins are.

The lab itself is a creation beyond words. You have to see it to appreciate it! Since I am the only intern for a while, I don’t have to camp by myself. That can wait till the other interns get here. Rather, I sleep near the lab, ready hop into it if anything comes over the speakers. In every building there is a setup broadcasting the sound from the hydrophones so that we can hear it wherever we are. In the next few days I am training myself to wake at every dolphin or orca call heard during the night. Once summer starts and we have set watches (when more people arrive) that won’t be necessary, but with so few around now, it is an essential skill.

Last night I slept on the deck out front of the lab and watched the luminescence crash against the shore with each wave. Twister, the humpback (HB), swam by into the sunset along with a few Dall`s porpoises. We were hoping that he would swim by during the night. The dolphins were chatting around 02:30 and the moon beautifully illuminated the bay. Unfortunately today was rainy with little action on the hydrophones. Even Twister didn`t show up. I got acquainted with `the car`, the aptly-named little boat that feels like driving a car on the water when you`re in it. Well... that`s all for now. Hoping for more action tomorrow and a nice day!

Life is uncharted territory. It reveals its story one moment at a time...

The last week on Salt Spring was amazing! Though slightly less adventurous then the rest of the trip, it was a time of focus and course work. Even so, in the midst of the busy schedule there was time for fun. The last Saturday morning a group of us busked at the market before the final exam. That was a great experience, especially since we had an extremely musical group! One of the guys on the trip even managed to make a fiberglass violin. An epic pillow fight took place through the entire house on the last evening. Luckily nothing was broken, and after a bit of pranking everyone enjoyed a peaceful night before the journey home. It was a bitter-sweet end to the trip. The friendships formed and strengthened made it seem painful to say goodbye. It works out nicely that none of us graduated this year, so hopefully we will see each other around campus in the coming semester. Many of us had more adventures to continue on to, some flying to Haiti, others getting ready to join camp staff, and even some returning to Salt Spring after a week of rest.

The past week has flown by as I prepare to head up north. On Monday dawns the sunrise of another grand adventure. It seems that I have little time to finish up a research paper and pack before then, but I know that somehow everything will get done... For those of you who have never ventured past Campbell River, the northern part of the Vancouver Island contains some amazing ocean and wilderness. I just found out that my favorite bay on the Northwest coast is accessible through a trail from a small settlement, which means that it's on the list of things to do next summer (I've been to the beaches several times with the tall ships from SALTS, but never via land). Most of my work in the next two months will be on the inside of Vancouver Island. If anyone plans on taking a kayaking trip from Telegraph Cove, feel free to stop in and visit!

So on to a world of orcas and rain I go, hoping my tent will hold up for two months and that the grizzlies don't chose to swim over to the camp while I'm there. It is such an amazing opportunity to go out and study God's beautiful creation! I'm sure many adventures and stories will come out of the weeks to come, and I am excited to pursue my passion for the ocean and its creatures, and to learn more about them. Prayer over the next few months would be appreciated as I won't have much access to church or a Christian community during my stay at orcalab.

I will try to write every once and a while, but be forwarned that internet access I will have is unpredictable at best!

~ Fair Winds