Chanterelle mushrooms, harvested from the forests around Clayoquot Sound. These mushrooms grow best in mossy coniferous forests, which are abundant here.
This is the rostrum of Saddle, a male grey whale that has been traced back as far as 1974 in this area. Grey whales are thought to be predominantly right-sided feeders; they roll to the right side of their face when benthic feeding. This puts the right side of the rostrum in contact with the seabed, which can act like sandpaper. This is possibly what caused the discolouration on Saddle's head.
Alys Hoyland surfs a right on a beautiful day at North Chesterman Beach.
Two of the "70s Whales" feed together close to Whaler Island. Big White (CSG27) in the foreground surfaces alongside Saddle (CSG30). These specific grey whales have been documented together in the past, and likely will be again in the future. Big White has been documented since 1979, and Saddle since 1974.
A few miles from shore, with Mount Ozzard's radar station in the background, a Bigg's killer whale porpoises while involved in a hunt. We encountered 7 individuals who spent over 2 hours hunting and toying with a California sea lion.
Fall colours aren't so prominent around Tofino, due to the amount of coniferous forest. It makes it stand out when you do find the reds and oranges of autumn.
On a spectacular evening, the T049Bs travelled through the Tofino harbour and into the inlets. Here is T049B2, a Bigg's killer whale born in 2010, passing the rainforest and mountains of Clayoquot Sound.
Early October provided stunning light and calm seas, before the first storms hit. It's special to be able to get further from shore and look back to the peaks on Vancouver Island. The glaciers in the back have had their first snow.
Saddle's saddle. This marking on the starboard flank of this big, male grey whale is the reason Saddle is named Saddle. It's one the most identifiable markings, and we were delighted when he reappeared, having not been recorded in 2018. Saddle arrived in early October and was documented in multiple locations.
Another of the "70s Whales". Here is Blackjack, a female grey documented here since 1975. Blackjack has spent time in each of my Octobers in Clayoquot with Big White, another female grey whale.
An incredible encounter with an unusual male Bigg's killer whale. Here is T251, born ~1982. He was involved with a California sea lion hunt a little offshore with the T049Bs and two other as-yet unidentified killer whales. You can see Lennard Island Lighthouse in the background.
T251 repeatedly body-checked the sea lion. What you're seeing here is the water displaced as T251 charges up through the sea lion and back onto the ocean. On the right is the dorsal fin of the killer whale, and on the left the tail above the unfortunate sea lion protruding through the water.
Adam, Tami, Ash and Damon with their haul of chanterelles.
Within each forest there's another forest. The mosses, fungi and lichens that cover each tree are vital to the survival of the forest as a whole.
A black-footed albatross and a fulmar surf the wind offshore. Over 95% of black-footed albatross nest in Hawaii. Fulmar breed on sea cliffs on northern sections of the Pacific coast. Though somewhat related this image gives you an idea of the size difference between these two species.
A curious Steller's jay at Hot Springs Cove.
Steller's jays are naturally curious birds. I like that in this image it seems like he or she is sizing up their shot.
T049B (b. 1992) is a female Bigg's killer whale. Seen here on the right, with her offspring T049B3 (b. 2013). Killer whales can have a calf around every 3 years, and T049B had calves in 2010 and 2013. She was documented on October 29th with a new calf. If this one survives it would likely be coded T049B4.
Storm season begins. This is the view through the rocks at Pettinger Point across Cox Bay. On this day 5 metre waves rolled through, and as we left they built to 6-8 metre monsters.
Greg Potter sizes up a wave at North Chesterman Beach, with Frank Island in the background.
Northern Fulmar are polymorphic here on the Pacific. The have a light phase, seen here, and a darker phase. The name fulmar comes from Old Norse. "Full" meaning foul, and "Mar" meaning gull. It refers to light phase birds' loose similarity to gulls, and their "foul" habit of spraying a stomach oil from their mouths as a defense mechanism.
Here is a darker phase fulmar for comparison. They look less like a gull, and would be more easily confused with sooty shearwaters. Fulmar have a salt gland that helps them desalinate their body. During the winter these birds are common offshore.
The port flank of Saddle, a grey whale, on a more typical October day in Clayoquot. Mist, cloud, low light, wind chop but still lots of wildlife. Here Saddle feeds in Cow Bay as water vapour evaporates from the surrounding forest.
One of my favourite views in Clayoquot Sound is this one from the back deck at Jamie's. The jagged peaks above the layers of rainforest always look different depending on the weather and the time of day. Look back to January to see how this mountain ridge looks at first light.
