Looking to see Orcas and Whales in the San Juan Islands? You’re in luck! Read this article for the best way to see whales on San Juan Island near Seattle.

why this blog? Hi there! I’m Maddy, and this blog was written by a person. I worked summer 2023 as a sea kayak guide in the San Juan Islands, and I’m here to help you find all the best places to see whales on San Juan Island.

note: this article contains affiliate links. That means if you choose to make a purchase based on my recommendations, I make a small kickback at no additional cost to you.

Seven Ways to see Orcas and Whales on San Juan Island:

Whales are wild animals, and species like the Southern Resident Killer Whales are endangered; there is no guaranteed way to see whales in the San Juan Islands. However, this blog post is designed to help maximize your chances. Allegedly, the San Juan Islands are the best place to see orcas in the wild in the US.

What to pack for whale watching on San Juan Island:

Weather in the San Juan Islands is generally sunny in the summers and cool. If you plan on taking a whale watching tour, you’ll want to dress very warm and bring a raincoat. Here’s a quick packing list:

• Quick dry shots: I like the Stio Goodwin, quick dry with a built-in belt
• Sun shirt: Grab a UPF sun hoodie for a trip to Orcas Island! The San Juan Islands are very sunny, and if you’re on the water you may get sunburned from the reflection off the water as well.
• Hiking day pack/travel bag: The Perimeter 35L from Granite Gear is my go to weekend hiking bag. I can usually pack an entire weekend in this bag both for car camping, backpacking, or travelling to a hotel, and I’ll use it as my day bag on the trail as well.
• Hiking boots: I love my Oboz Bridger Mids for longer more rugged hikes and a good pair of trail runners for shorter hikes or hikes with stream crossings because they dry very quickly.
• Something fancy to wear out! Orcas Island has lots of fine dining options. (I worked as a kayak guide in the islands and I wouldn’t know about those lol)
• A swimsuit: There is so much great swimming on Orcas Island!
• A wetsuit if you want to snorkel or for extended swimming
• Binoculars: You’ll definitely want a pair of binoculars for watching wildlife on the ferry over. I’ve owned a few different pairs while sea kayak guiding in the San Juans, and the best pair I’ve had are the NOCS Field Issue, they are absolutely worth the money

If you plan on overnight kayaking to see whales, check out this guide to beginner kayak camping.

1) Book a Whale Watching Tour

The best way to see whales in the San Juan Islands is to book a whale watching tour. Whale watching boats in the San Juan Islands strictly observe the marine mammal protection act, and stay the appropriate distance from wildlife at all times. In the San Juan Islands, whale watching boat captains work together to local whales, and enforce that everyone is observing from a safe distance. While it might appear boats are “chasing” the whales, it’s worth noting that these boats will often alert boaters to whales in the water requiring them to turn off their motors, or even report violators.

a Minke whale as seen from a whale watching tour offshore of Lopez Island

I recommend booking with Maya’s Legacy based in Friday Harbor. Maya’s Legacy offers small boat tours of the San Juan Islands and focuses on orca sightings. While it is never a guarantee that you will see orcas, almost all whale watching trips in the San Juans see orcas.

Honestly, the highlight of our Maya’s Legacy whale watching trip was not the whales for me! I’ve been very lucky to have some incredible experiences with whales while sea kayaking. On our Maya’s Legacy trip we saw endangered puffins and a sea otter, extremely rare in the San Juan Islands. I was way more excited about glimpsing these rare endangered species than I was seeing the orcas.

On a whale watching trip, you will almost definitely be observing Biggs Orcas, which hunt and eat marine mammals. The Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW) who eat salmon and are known globally for their playfulness and vocalizations, are highly endangered with under 80 individuals alive. It is illegal to approach the SRWK population.

2) Visit Lime Kiln State Park

Looking for a great place to whale watch from land? San Juan Islands Lime Kiln State Park is one of the best places to see whales from land in the world and is an official whale watch state park. Here on any given day you have the best chances of seeing Southern Resident Orcas on any given day in Puget Sound.

When the Southern Resident Orcas pass through the Salish Sea, they seem to always pass by Lime Kiln at close proximity. This is also a great place to see humpbacks, minke, and even gray whales.

In general with two summers on the water in the area, I’ve noticed very anecdotally a few things about tides and whales. Orcas, like any creature, follow the food. Areas with turbulent currents and high tidal exchanges tend to be full of marine life, and the largest tidal exchanges tend to be feeding frenzies as micro organisms, small fish, and algae are swept through chokepoints and around corners and a fast pace.

Once in British Columbia, I sat above a small chokepoint where the ocean flooded into a small lagoon and watched crabs fill the chokepoint as the current increased, picking jellyfish and nudibranchs out of the water and eating them.

Anecdotally, I’ve seen the most active marine life including whales and porpoises during the days of the largest tidal exchanges and in or near places with turbulent tides. The San Juan islands in general are noted for their tides, but Haro Strait in particular acts as a highway with strong currents making for easy travel. Much as the sea kayaker uses the waters off Haro Strait as a superhighway, so does the whale. Off shore near Lime Kiln, turbulent currents offer shelter (and food) for a variety of marine life.

How likely am I to see whales from Lime Kiln State Park?

The only garanteed way to see whales in the San Juan Islands is to book a whale watching tour. Even then, you still might be unlucky. That said, spending a whole day at Lime Kiln State Park watching the water I would put your odds of seeing a whale above 50%. While there are absolutely whales somewhere off Lime Kiln on any given day, Haro Strait is large, and whales are often underwater.

3) Book a Sea Kayaking Day Trip

For many whale watches, it’s a dream to kayak with orcas! Sea kayaking off Lime Kiln State Park is a great way to try your odds at kayaking with the orcas on San Juan Island. Lime Kiln State Park day trips are the best kind of kayak trip if your goal is only to see whales.

If you only care about seeing whales, do not book a multi-day sea kayaking trip. It will not increase your chances of seeing whales, as most multi-day trips do not paddle past Lime Kiln. Multi-day kayak trips can be strenuous and are not a good fit for someone who’s primary goal is “kayaking with the whales” and not an overall adventure trip.

As a guide in the area, I would put your odds at seeing whales on your Lime Kiln kayaking day trip at roughly 10%, perhaps higher on spring tides. I guided more overnight trips than day trips and saw whales roughly every third trip; this was much more often than many other guides. Only twice was I actually in a kayak when I saw whales, both times from the Lime Kiln State Park area.

The Marine Mammal Protection Act and Kayaking with Whales

There are a few things you need to know about kayaking with whales, particularly when the endangered Southern Resident Orcas are involved. Firstly, it is illegal to launch your kayak and paddle out towards whales. If you see someone doing this, they are breaking the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

It is really important to understand when setting expectations that, especially in the San Juan Islands, you cannot approach whales. If you see whales, your kayak guide will firstly make sure you are in a safe place to observe for both you and the whales, then have you link kayaks with the rest of your group and hold position until the whales have passed. It may also be necessary to get out of the whales intended path.

The only time I actually had orcas all around me, we had stopped, were well out of there way, and then they approached us and played around on all sides. This is extremely uncommon and should not be the expectation.

4) Book a Sea Kayaking Overnight Trip

If you love adventure, marine life, beautiful sunsets, and camping, an overnight sea kayaking trip in the San Juan Islands might be for you! This can be a great way to get out in the home waters of the Southern Resident Orcas as well as Biggs Orcas, wake up to views of humpbacks, paddle with harbor porpoises, and more!

As a guide, these trips were so much fun, and my favorite part was talking people out for a sunset and bioluminescence kayak the second night (best during a new moon). On these trips, I saw whales roughly every third trip (not day, trip), and usually from land and not the water. Most often, we would see Biggs Orcas.

While we didn’t see whales every trip, overnight sea kayaking trips in the San Juan Islands are absolutely a great way to experience a variety of marine wildlife! Almost every trip, we were able to see crabs, porpoises, seals, sea stars, sea urchins, and much more.

5) Whale Watch from Cattle Point

Another excellent place to see whales from land in the San Juan Islands is Cattle Point in San Juan Islands National Historic Park. 

As mentioned above, choke points between straits and islands with fast tidal currents tend to be some of the best places to watch whales. If you’re looking for a very scenic location to whale watch looking over the Cascades, with the iconic Cattle Point Lighthouse in view, check out Cattle Point in the San Juan Islands National Historic Park. 

This point offers a variety of viewing options, including on hiking trails along the Strait of Juan de Fuca (I like Grandma’s Cove to South Beach, and have seen whales here twice!), beaches, and along roadside pullouts from above. 

Note that if you see whales from south beach headed northwest, they are probably headed “up island” and will pass very close to shore at Lime Kiln State Park. If you see or hear whales are offshore south island and heading “up island”, head to Lime Kiln for optimal viewing opportunity. 

Love exploring the San Juan Islands? Check out the best easy day hiking trails in the San Juan Islands!

6) See Whales from the Washington State Ferry

Did you know people often see orcas and whales from the Washington State Ferry? Personally, I’ve never seen orcas from the ferry, but I’ve seen porpoises and have plenty of friends who have seen whales this way!

7) See Whales at Jackson’s Beach

One surprising place to see Biggs Killer Whales is Jackson’s Beach on San Juan island. Jacksons Beach is about a mile walk (one way) from Friday Harbor, and a great spot for swimming! Here, you can occasionally spot Biggs Killer Whales hunting seals off Dinner Island.

I’ve seen Biggs Orcas here about three times in one summer, one of the times in very close to shore. 

When is the best time of year to see whales on San Juan Island?

Allegedly, whales are most active in the San Juan Islands in late August when the salmon migration comes through, but there are so many factors influencing whale behavior in the area that it’s really hard to say one way or another when the “best time of year” is. There are whales (and orcas!) in the area year round, and humpbacks, minkes and gray whales also migrate through at different times of the year. 

It seems to be a common misconception that summer is the “best time” to see whales in the San Juan Islands because of the tourist season; with more people on the islands to observe the whales it creates the illusion of more activity. 

Looking to see the best of Washington State in just a few days? I planned the perfect one-week road trip to see the best that Washington has to offer!

Is there a guaranteed way to see Orcas on San Juan Island?

No. Orcas are wild animals that can travel up to 30 knots (nautical miles per hour) underwater, surfacing only briefly for air. Your best chance of seeing orcas is to book a whale watching tour. 

If seeing orcas is make or break for your San Juan Islands experience, prepare to be disappointed; for as many people see whales while visiting the San Juan Islands, many people also do not. 

But worry not! There is so much to do and see on San Juan island other than see whales! Check out 25 Things to do in the San Juan Islands. 

How do I see the Southern Resident Killer Whales (Orcas) from San Juan Island?

Many visitors to San Juan island aspire to see the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW), who call their summer home the Salish Sea and the San Juans! These guys are basically Puget Sound celebrities. 

SRKW consists of less than 80 individuals as are considered endangered. The travel in three pods J, K, and L and can often be seen in sub pods as well; spotting sub pods of the L-pod in the San Juans was particularly common last year. SRKW were the relatives of captive orca Tokitae until her death in 2023, and all three pods assembled the day after her death off shore of San Juan island in a “near superpod” event. Wow!

Unfortunately, the best way to see SRKW is just to be in the right place at the right time— I missed paddling with the 2023 superpod by one hour, and was on clean up duty so didn’t get a chance to drive to Lime Kiln and watch. Rest in peace to me. 

SRKW has expanded protections under the Marine Mammal Protection Act including a now 1000-yard minimum approach distance. This means the only way to view SRKW legally is from shore, or by total and provable accident from the water. It is illegal to approach them, even in a kayak!

you can read more about my experiences personally with orcas in the Salish Sea here!

What resources can I use to learn more about orcas and whales in the San Juan Islands?

Looking to learn more about orcas and whales in the San Juan Islands? Check out Orca Network, Salish Sea Orca Squad, and the Whale Museum on San Juan Island!

Headed to the San Juan Islands? Check out these articles for more on visiting the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound Region:

• Check out nine incredible spots to kayak in the San Juan Islands!
• Check out a detailed guide to packing for the San Juan Islands
• Visit beautiful Orcas Island for hiking, waterfalls, and a rich food and art scene!
• Check out the best hiking off the Mt. Baker Highway near Bellingham, Washington!

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