Family Ties

Paddling on the calm waters of Puget Sound, I suddenly heard it - “wwhooooh” - the breathing sound of Orca whales.  I soon saw them in the distance, their misty breaths backlit by the hazy sun, coming straight for me.  I paddled toward the shoreline to observe their passage from a respectful distance.

As they passed, I was awed by their grace, power, and close family bonds.  Family groups traveled tightly together, bodies almost touching as they surfaced to breathe.  An adult male passed by, his majestic dorsal fin towering three feet above the top of my head.  Just when I thought the show had ended, a female and very young calf unexpectedly surfaced shoreward of me, very close.  I quickly snapped a couple images of the pair moving effortlessly through the water.