Kayaking with Orcas

PLEASE NOTE: The information in this article is of 2019. There have been changes for 2020 measures. Here is a Transport Canada News Release.

In addition please check under Interim Sanctuary Zones on this link about special rules applicable to human powered vessels.

From the perspective of a Saturna Island based Sea Kayaker and Paddle Canada certified Sea Kayaking Instructor.

Sea kayaking is a great way to explore Saturna Island and the Salish Sea. BC Marine Trails connect some of the Gulf Islands for kayakers, going around the east side of Saturna. The route connects Narvaez Bay and Cabbage Island campsites that have marine access. We wanted to know if the new Interim Zone to protect the Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW) would mean an end to circumnavigating Saturna Island by sea kayak.

SRKW Boiling Reef Interim Zone – shaded

The image that I drew over a nautical chart illustrates the Interim Zone (Saturna Island portion shown only, gray shade) which prohibits general vessel traffic including kayakers between June 1^st to October 31^st.

Here is a link to the Transport Canada issued Interim Order.

Sea kayakers travelling around Saturna Island must pass the east side of Saturna cautiously; keeping in mind currents, shipping channels and the United States border. A previous article took a look at currents around Boiling Reef. Avoiding the Interim Zone increases risks.

I compared two likely routes from the south east side of Narveaz Bay to Tumbo Island (both locations are en route when circumnavigating Saturna). The white line is the safer shore paddle route (about 2.6 nautical miles (NM)), the black line (about 3.5 NM) that avoids the Interim Zone is less safe.

While it potentially only takes 20 minutes longer to travel this way, it means that about 2 NM (40 minutes paddling for a good paddler and good conditions) would be in waters that are hazardous. Keeping track of the exact location of oneself and the Interim zone while travelling in a sea kayak and avoiding the shipping lane, requires good GPS technology or advanced navigation skills. There are no markers on the water. Sea kayakers most often travel along shores.

A safety-stop at Shell Beach helps a kayaker to assess current conditions for safe paddling (especially if travelling south). Whales do not usually come to Shell Beach, but technically speaking it is in the Zone. I had one close encounter with killer whales in a sea kayak. The whales were Transients and outside the Interim Zone, close to Fiddler’s Cove. The Interim Zone at large is mostly a place for transiting in a kayak due to the strong currents that often prevail… idling for long periods is rarely an option.

Saturna Islander, David Osborne phoned Transport Canada and received an official email response addressing some of his concerns.

Find the full email. Here is an extract:

“However, marine safety is priority. If it is unsafe to comply with the rules, vessel operators are exempted to avoid immediate or unforeseen danger. If this is the case, Kayakers must transit through the area (cannot idle) and stay a minimum 400 metres from whales when safe to do so. ”

So, if you see kayakers transiting the Interim Zone, they are likely doing so for marine safety reasons.

KayakingSkills.com promote best practices regarding wildlife, i.e. to not disturb the animal’s natural behaviour or put oneself at risk and to abide by advised distances when safe to do so.

To conclude, circumnavigation of Saturna Island is possible and if it is unsafe to comply with the Interim Zone, it is appropriate to transit through it.

Read FAQs on the Interim Order here.

Happy & Safe Paddling!

It is Sunday night on Cabbage Island.

Midnight! Tomorrow, Monday, will start within seconds. I should be sleeping…

I can’t. My mind is stirred up. Today was a great day.
No. It was beyond great. Today was an unbelievable day!

I close my eyes and I can see them again, the gentle giants, as they glide through the sea, as they blow water spray up high.

Did they see me?

Did they notice me?

What were they thinking?

Here is a true story. I am too excited to sleep. A whale passed me on the right, another on the left and three others must have gone underneath my kayak. And this is how it happened:

The wind blows strong. I decide to stay close to shore as I leave Narvaez Bay campground. Cliffside’s shoreline protects me from gusting winds. It really is quite pleasant paddling here. It is sunny and my dry-suit keeps me warm. I made the right choice crossing the bay and following the shoreline: no wind and sometimes currents in my favour.
Then I hear the blows. Two of them. Many times had I turned around looking for the source of blow-like sounds and whales, only to find the sound was a creation of a wave hitting an air pocket inside some rocks.

I hear more blows. anticipating nothing, a rock, or maybe a seal, I turn and see two black forms diving and surfacing. I wonder if they are harbour porpoises. I heard porpoises regularly come to Narvaez Bay.

They come closer. They do not move like porpoises. Porpoises create more of a circular shape as they surface and do not show much of themselves. These fins are taller and they also are blowing air and water up high… not like porpoises. Are there orcas in Narvaez Bay? I never heard about that before, so I remain skeptical.

But these fins moving toward me are blowing air and water, making these blowing sounds, too.

They must be whales. As they come closer, I see black and white areas within the shapes. They come toward me. My heart is racing. I pull out my camera, making sure to keep it dry. I still do not own one of these nice waterproof cameras that I really should have right now.

I decide to film rather than take pictures, as this is going to be the sure way to capture something.

Camera ready, I realise I am on my own, on the water, in my kayak, nobody sees me and I count 5 orcas moving toward me.

What if…

I loose my balance?

I drop my phone? My emergency contact would not get her 4 pm message as arranged and worry about me.

I come back to the moment, camera ready and filming.

Now, no whales in sight. Nothing for 5 then 10 seconds, my hands slightly shaking.

Then, on my right: a slow moving gentle giant of the sea. Graceful, majestic, magnificent, blowing air and water. The moment he is under water, I see another on my left. Wow. Beauty, just beauty. What happened to the other three? Their dorsal fins appear out of the water, some 20 metres away, in front of me. They must have gone underneath my kayak.

What would they be thinking? What are they doing?

I am in love. I pause as I see the gently giants move into the distance till they dive out of sight.
It is time to carry on with my journey. I don’t want to follow too close. Leaving a gap, I paddle on.

My heart is overjoyed, my hands still shaking; I am happy I had this experience. What more can one wish for? It was a unique encounter, just me and 5 whales. They have disappeared. I do not see them anymore. I keep paddling. I am happy.

There they are again; they turn around.

Really? I see them getting closer.
This time I put my camera away and just enjoy their magnificent movements and their impressive size.

The gentle giants pass me once more.

I am in love, in orca love. I watch as one dives down, followed by another in the same location; another follows. It seems like a dance. Maybe they are feeding. I do not know. They stay in the same spot for 10 minutes, maybe 20, maybe longer.

Time is confusing, I watch the orcas and their continuous dance.
It is time to depart to go to my 4 pm check-in appointment with Kate. I already know I do not get a signal with my phone and I have to get around Boiling Reef when currents are slow; I cannot risk being late. I say farewell to the whales and paddle on, happy in my heart.

Video footage of my orca encounter below. I have edited into a 2 minute movie titled: Kayaking with Orcas.

Tag Archives: Kayaking with Orcas

SRKW Interim Order and Sea Kayakers