New Births for the Resident San Juan Islands’ Orca Whales! In a little over a year, things have gone from bleak to “more promising” for the Northwest’s endangered killer whales. The Center For Whale Research says that in 2008, eight Orcas in the three pods, J, K, and L, that make up the southern resident population in Washington and southwest British Columbia went missing and were presumed dead.  This included two females of reproductive age and the 98-year-old- matriarch of K Pod. Among the three pods there was only one surviving birth that year. This dropped the total of the…

On June 11  Outdoor Odysseys employees took a few hours to explore the tidepools of Ruben Tarte with Geneva Mottet, a marine invertebrates geek who served as our guide for the day. Geneva brought us some handouts with her own illustrations of local creatures we anticipated finding, and she led us through the slippery-slimy boulders of a perfect low tide. We soon discovered that there’s a lot to be found under the seaweed and cobble… Blood Stars delight me…it’s such a joy to lift up a wad of mucky green sea lettuce and find a tiny, bright red sea star!…