We have always wanted to see Orcas on a whale watching tour in the San Juan Islands like in the movies and advertisements. Will we really see them or is it like down here in Southern California where you end up seeing dolphin, "a sighting", instead of the grey whales you were hoping for. Where is the best place to actually see Orcas on a tour? Any ideas? Thanks!

Yep. Like in S. California, at least for me, with my luck. Take a whale watching boat tour. You can pick one up in Anacortes or Friday Harbor.

There was a recent discussion on this on this forum. See if you can search for it in Washington, using Orcas as your search.

Michele, oops. Didn't read your post well enough. Yes, I think you're pretty likely to see the Orcas if you take a tour. The Orcas actually live around the islands, and circle them, rather than migrating from Hawaii to Alaska, like the greys. So, it's just a matter of all the boaters communicating by radio finding the pods and hunting them down, so to speak.

I'm sure you can phone the tour operators and ask what percentage of times they actually find the whales during the season you'll be there; which time of day they'd suggest; how long a trip, etc. I think they'll be able to give you a good idea of your chances, and I think they'll be pretty good.
Hope this helps.

Hope you're not getting tired of me. I just seached the internet on your questions. Most of the tour operators say their success rate during the summer months is 95%. And, they give you a guarantee - a free trip if they miss seeing the Orcas. Maybe they do go away in the winter....Anyways, check out the internet for more info. Particularly interesting is the Friday Harbor Whale Museums web site. They note that Orcas actually are a dolphin, and not a whale. How do you like that?

Thanks tons Lisa! Much appreciated. I have been reading other answers here but there is so much information. We have only a day to look for whales as we will be heading to the Canadian Rockies and then to Glacier in Montana to pick up a friend. We are starting from Southern California. Do you think it possible to hop on a ferry, get to an island and hop on a whale watching boat and then continue North in a day? Any ideas on accomplishing this task? Our goal is to see the whales primarily-2 daughters would love it. Thanks again!

See this article in today's Seattle P-I - http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/getawa..._whale04.shtml

Great article, John.
Michele, You can pick up a whale watching boat in Anacortes, which is on the mainland, but very close to the San Juans. The boat will go into the San Juans, most likely, to find the whales. That way you don't need to go on a ferry at all and can do it in a day.

Thanks a million. The plan is coming together nicely! If there is anything else spectacular that shouldn't be missed please let us know. Done the Underground tour (fun stuff) and other Seattle type things but haven't seen much else. Can't wait to head out!

I've been fortunate enough to see several orcas while just riding on the ferry from Anacortes to the islands.

Michelle,
It depends upon the time you are going. The orcas hang out there in the summer time. We did this trip a few years back, since our son wanted to see them. On August 3rd (his birthday), we went on a whale watching cruise in Victoria. After about 1/2 hour, we finally found them (all of the boats contact one another letting them know where they're swimming), and we got up close and personal with them. It was very exciting.

After that, we took a ferry from Victoria to Friday Harbor. We were tooling around there by car, when we saw a sign indicating the way to see whales off the coast. We stopped the car, walked down the marked path to a bunch of rocks and a lighthouse, and just sat -- there were a ton of them just swimming around just off the coast, doing flips and all that -- and it was free. I don't know where on the island that was, but I'm sure someone on this board does. It was great!

That island the last person spoke of was San Juan island. The town the ferry comes into there is Friday Harbor. The name of the state park where Orcas frequent is Limekiln Park AKA Whale watch park. Saw flipping Orcas there last week right off shore.
A whole pod close up.

We went on a whale watching tour from Friday Harbor last year in June. We saw many orcas. The boat captians keep in touch with each other via radio, and tell each other when they see an orca or a pod. Shannon is right, the summer months are the best times. I think what I read was between mid-June and August.

Also on one of our ferry stops on the way back to Anacortes we saw a bald eagle sitting in a tree. Equally as exciting as seeing the whales!