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Greater Victoria Whale Watching

Adam's Fishing Charters in Victoria BC

Experience some of the most spectacular fishing on Canada's West Coast. Since 1989, our crew has logged over 10,000 hours of 'on the water' experience, we know where the fish are! Moored in Victoria BC's celebrated downtown Inner Harbour, our high performance fishing vessels give you access to the legendary waters of Victoria's entire fishing region.

Choice Charters

The finest in Salmon and Halibut fishing in Port Renfrew. Operating two boats. "Hit and Run" is our 31' Ocean Master and the ultimate offshore fishing machine."Rosie's Choice" is our 27.5' SeaRay Amberjack. Both boats are equipped with washroom facilities, modern electronics and top quality fishing gear. Our local certified guides are professional and knowledgeable Fishing accommodations available.

Reel Obsession Sport Fishing Charters

First Class guided Salmon & Halibut Fishing Charters out of Victoria BC. Whether you are an experienced angler, a corporate group or looking for an unforgettable time with the family. Reel Obsession Sport Fishing Charters will provide a thrilling fishing experience.

Whale Watching & Sight Seeing Tours

Victoria BC Whale Watching, Sightseeing Tours and more. Experience the best of Victoria, BC with one of our many sightseeing tours. We offer everything from whale tours, combo tours to bus tours.

Featured Listings

Whale Watching Tour Companies

Marine tour companies operate year round. Whale-watching tour companies generally operate between May and October. Excursions can be booked on a variety of boats including kayaks, rigid hull zodiacs, or passenger cruise vessels.

Victoria & Gulf Islands Whale Watching

Area description .. This is the most popular area to whale watch, especially the area around Haro Strait and Juan de Fuca Strait on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. Trips and tours are just an easy jaunt booking out of Victoria.

Species to see .. A variety of whale types frequent these waters including orcas (also known as killer whales), gray whales, minke whales, and humpback whales. Other marine animal species you will see in the area include Dall’s porpoises, Pacific white-sided dolphins, California sea lions, Stellar’s sea lions, harbour seals, and elephant seals. There are also hundreds of marine bird species to discover.

Time to go .. Peak viewing season is from the end of April until the end of October. However, you can easily join a tour year-round since there is always a lot to see.  

Northern Islands & Johnstone Straits Whale Watching

Area description .. At the north end of Vancouver Island, a number of prime whale-watching areas exist. Many of the small communities operate whale-watching tours, including communities of Port McNeill, Port Hardy, Alert Bay, Sointula & Telegraph Cove.

Species to see .. Here you will find transient orcas, migrating gray whales, and entertaining humpback whales. Many of these whale species summer in the Strait. You will also see Dall’s porpoises, harbour seals, Pacific white-sided dolphins, and seals. This is also an important area for some of the greatest salmon fishing the Island has to offer.

Time to go .. There are 19 pods containing over 170 orcas that summer in the Strait. Thus, you should try to visit this area between April and October. By the end of this period, the weather is quite temperamental and though you may still see a number of whale and other animal species, your comfort may be compromised in doing so at this time of year.

Pacific Rim, Tofino & Ucluelet Whale Watching

Area description .. This famous west coast whale-watching area is known for its migrating gray whale population each March and April. The area is rugged and wild, containing many sounds filled with bays, coves, inlets, and channels.

Species to see .. Though the most popular species of whale to see is the gray, you’All also see the occasional humpback. Don’t miss the sea otters, California sea lions, Pacific white-sided dolphins, and many bird species.

Time to go .. The best time to see the gray whale is during their annual migration between March and April. However, whale-watching occurs on the Pacific Rim throughout the summer. Some 40 or 50 gray whales stop to spend the summer feeding off this coast. 

Types of Whales you will see

Orcas (Killer whales) ..The killer whale is perhaps the most recognized, and revered, member of the whale population. With its distinctive dorsal fin standing erect on its back, orcas can be identified easily and are most commonly seen in the Puget Sound and northeast Vancouver Island near Johnstone Strait and Telegraph Cove. Orcas average 23 to 27 feet and between 8 and 11 tonnes, much smaller than their gray whale counterparts. They are swift swimmers, often averaging speeds of 50 kilometres per hour or more. 

They are fun to watch due to their speed and agility. They blow water as high as 10 feet into the air and make loud clicks, whistles, and even screams. They eat anything that swims or floats, apart from humans, and their diet includes seabirds, turtles, seals, and fish, particularly salmon.

Killer whales are often distinguished as either fish-eating, traveling in large pods, or as mammal-eating that travel in smaller groups. In all, 260 killer whales frequent the waters off of Vancouver Island. 

Gray whales .. Primarily seen on Vancouver Island’s west coast, Tofino and Ucluelet are the two favourite gray whale watching communities on the Island. Gray whales range between 35 and 50 feet long and between 28 and 38 tonnes (the females are longer and heavier on average). During March and April, more than 20,000 gray whales migrate past the Pacific Rim on their way to Alaska from their breeding grounds in Baja California. The gray whales are bottom-feeders and get much of their food from the crustaceans in the mud of shallow coastal waters. 

Humpback whales .. Humpbacks are identified by their unique black and white pattern. The average size of a humpback varies from 47 to 49 feet and 25 to 45 tonnes. Though they are less abundant than other whales, they are still mainly seen along the west coast and northern parts of Vancouver Island. Humpbacks are spectacular to watch for their acrobatics, blow hole spraying, and repeated breaching. The feed on fish and are usually found in small groups. Now there are less than 2,000 humpback whales in the northern Pacific and they are an endangered species.

Common Terms

In order to enhance your whale-watching experience, you’All need to know a couple of key terms. Pod: one or more matrilines that usually travel together.

Matrilines: the basic family unit of resident killer whales composed of a mature female and her immediate descendants, sometimes including descendant offspring Community: comprises all pods that travel together; pods from different communities never travel together. Clan: one or more pods that share a related dialect or the sound that they make.

Whale Watching Guidelines

• Be cautious and courteous remember you are visiting the whale in its home!
• Slow down and never go within 100 meters of a whale or it's pod.
• Stay on the offshore side of the whales.
• Stay out of a whale’s path and never approach a whale from directly in front of behind. It’s best to travel parallel and at speeds slower than the whale itself is traveling and of course it probably goes without saying that you should never feed or swim with the whales.
• BIRDS in particular are impacted greatly by high speed craft and often do not have a chance to take flight.
• Take your garbage with you as the impact we have on bird and sea life is all our responsibilities.
• For further guidelines on whale watching as well as for other marine species: National Marine Fisheries Services
  

Whale Watching Links

• Coastal Ecosystems Research Foundation

  CERF is a Canadian non-profit organisation that funds research on whales, dolphins, and their environment through an eco-tourism programme. Here you will find information on the whale research trips we offer, as well as on our research programmes. You will also find some general whale & dolphin information.

• Johnstone Strait Killer Whale Interpretive Centre

  The JSKWICS's mission is to encourage and support research and provide educational resources to further the knowledge of killer whale behaviour and biology and, more generally, to encourage marine research including other marine mammals, salmon, and other components of the marine environment.

• Orca Conservancy Organization

  The Orca Conservancy is an all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization working on behalf of Orcinus orca, the killer whale, and protecting the wild places on which it depends.

• Orca Lab

  The work of OrcaLab is centered around the philosophy that it is possible to study wild animals without interfering with their lives or habitat. A network of hydrophones, positioned around the orcas' 'core habitat', helps us to monitor their movements all year round.

• Orca Live

  While one of our specific aims is to relay live sound and images of the orcas in the natural environment of Hanson Island, we are presently groping to find the most appropriate form for presenting Nature Network via the Internet. Relaying live sound/images from the waters of Canada will start the ball rolling, with the aim of adding new Nature Network bases in natural environments the world over.

• Pacific Whale Watch Association

  The Pacific Whale Watch Association (formerly Whale Watch Operator's Association Northwest) consists of hard-working, dedicated whale watching companies committed to research, education, and responsible wildlife viewing. Member companies depart from 13 different ports in Washington State and British Columbia, Canada surrounding the San Juan Islands.

• Race Rocks

  Racerocks.com is the result of our challenge to make all of this special ecosystem available to all of you, without the impact of you actually being here. With a commitment from sponsors and volunteers, we hope that it can provide an example of how we all can help to manage our special places.

• Seasmoke Sea Orca Whale Watching

  Seasmoke Whale Watching Journal

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