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Mackay Whale Watching

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Port McNeill, BC
Mackay Whale Watching

Join the Mackay family, pioneers in killer whale watching in British Columbia, for a cruise aboard th
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09/22/2024

September 9th found us under lovely sunshine and with so many whales! We watched the I65s, I4s, A25s, and A23s as they worked their way through Weynton Passage (with lots of breaches from the orca), with Pacific White Sided dolphins in tow! We watched humpback whales Sponge Bob, Meteorite, Inukshuk (plus two more) as they travelled, fed, fluked and tail lobbed. We even saw a minke whale lunge feed!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

09/21/2024

September 4th found us with stunning weather conditions and plenty of whales! We started out our day with plenty of sea otters, and an unknown humpback whale (not yet named by scientists) lunge feeding. We watched the orca (the A23s, A25s, A54s, and I04s) as they socialized and fished... All with humpbacks fishing in the same area! We documented so many humpbacks, including Freckles and her calf, Ripple and her calf, Umi, Conger, Yahtzee, Stitch, Claw and her calf, Meniscus, and Hunter. We also saw lots of northern sea lions! September is so special in this area.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

09/20/2024

Sweet, sweet September!

September 2nd found us with SO many matrilines of orca - we watched the I65s, the I27s, and the I4s, along with the A54s, A25s, and A23s. There were Pacific White Sided dolphins, Dalls porpoise, and sea otters... And an astounding 27 humpbacks that we documented!

The humpbacks we recognized were:
Ridge
Freckles and her 2024 calf
Ripple and her 2024 calf
Corporal
Claw and her 2024 calf, Auger
Argonaut

Another beautiful day on the big ocean!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

09/11/2024

August 31st was a lovely trip - there was a wedding on board (congrats you two!), sea otters (with urchins!), the orca (the I65s, I4s, I27s, A24s, A25s, and A54s) were lovely, and the humpbacks (nine, including Conger!) were everywhere. Another incredible day, in a beautiful place, with great people.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

09/08/2024

August 30th was a day full of wildlife! We watched sea otters, humpback whales Black Pearl and her calf, and Ridge. We watched the T090s and T002B, a family of mammal eating killer whales. The Biggs travelled west very slowly, and Captain Bill decided to follow up on a report of residents to the west. We rolled the dice... And went through a lot of fog... But sure enough, there they were. Captain Bill and his orca senses! The A62s were travelling as a tight family unit. This group is something of an anomaly currently, as it's headed by A62, the daughter of A34. A62 has taken her sons and split off, forming a subgroup who is travelling separately from the A34s this summer. We're interested to see if this continues... And as always, we find ourselves curious about the "why" of whale behaviour. We ended our day with the T090s and T002B right inside the harbour in Port McNeill! Another big day in our back yard.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

09/05/2024

August 26th (continued) - the rest of our trip took us into beautiful encounters with humpbacks (we sighted 6, including Corporal, Vulture, Cygnus, Ridge, and Kraken). Vulture and Cygnus were feeding, and we were able to watch a particularly incredible lunge feed from Cygnus on herring and krill! Kraken (pictured here) was in the area that his mom (Black Pearl) brought him as a first year calf in 2022, feeding just like she taught him! Our day included so many birds, harbour seals, northern sea lions, and sea otters. Another busy day on the big ocean!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

09/03/2024

August 26th will be a two part post for pictures! First, to talk about the orca... It was a wild, wet, and blustery day with more whales than we could count. There were a total of 8 matrilines, flooding Johnstone Strait from one side to the other. We watched as the I4s, I27s, I65s, A24s, A25s, A34s, A50s, and A54s spyhopped, socialized, breached, and travelled their way east from Alert Bay. These families were consistently breaching as the chop grew - but despite weather conditions - guests were able to watch an absolutely spectacular gathering of socializing families.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/31/2024

August 24th was full of GLORIOUS weather, and so many amazing views! We started with sea otters, and a breaching humpback calf! After watching Black Pearl and her bouncy 2024 calf, we headed off to see the orca. There were so many families of orca, and even a group of Pacific White Sided dolphins! We started with the A34s, the A25s, and A34s (missing the A62s), before findng the A50s, I4s, I27s, and I65s. Such a busy day on the big ocean!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/31/2024

August 20th found us out on the water with SO many orca! We watched the A23s, the A50s, then the A25s and A34s (minus the A62s). A total of 10 (!) humpbacks for the day, including Claw and her 2024 calf, Auger - Quartz, Freckles and her calf, Domino (tail lobbing), Argonaut, Magician, and Ridge. We saw sea otters, Dall's porpoise (AND a hybrid porpoise!), and even a minke whale on the way home!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/29/2024

This was our morning commute today coming in from Gilford Island. How was your commute this morning?

08/28/2024

Cutest little baby breach

08/28/2024

August 18th was WET, but wild! And honestly... The whales don't care. We spent a wonderful day with sea otters, and the A25 matriline of orca - a little family of 3. They were surrounded at several times by groups of Pacific White Sided dolphins. Among classic misty west (wet?) coast views, we also saw Dalls porpoise, Steller sea lions, Ridge the humpback whale, Claw and her calf Auger, and... Very unusually for our normal trips... A northern fur seal!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/28/2024

August 17th was just... Dreamy. We watched otters (at least 85!) before Captain Bill took us to the orca. We enjoyed a visit with the A50s and A25s - watching them socializing was lovely. We also watched Claw and her calf Auger (who was sadly hit by a vessel recently... However, the calf is being closely monitored by local researchers, and so far, seems to be behaving normally.) We watched humpback whales Bumpy, Inukshuk, and Meteorite feeding - and checked out the sea lions who are back in big numbers to one of their favourite haul outs!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/25/2024

Enjoy these photos from deckhand Jordan from August 15th! Captain Bill and Jordan found lots of sea otters, 7 humpbacks, a minke whale, sea lions, and the A34s. A beautiful day on very calm seas!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/18/2024

August 12th was full of whales! Captain Bill started the day with sea otters near the kelp beds - and then... Orca! We watched the A23, A50, and A34 matrilines (the A25s were in the area, but we didn't see them). The families were fishing and travelling together, with plenty to keep them busy... Including lovely moments in the classic "green" waters of Johnstone Strait. We watched at least 9 humpbacks, including Conger (feeding) and Inukshuk (sleeping!). Another busy day on the big ocean!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/15/2024

August 10th found us in dreamy calm conditions - with fog, and gorgeous moments with the wildlife! We watched rafts of sea otters, before heading out to see the A23 and A50 matrilines. We watched A60 cruising up the shoreline by himself, with the rest of his family ranging behind him, as the A50s headed west up the Vancouver Island side. The A25s were in the area, but we didn't manage to see them on this trip. We next found a humpback that the deckhand couldn't ID... And potentially, they hadn't been documented yet! We noticed two whales socializing - we quickly figured out one whale was Raza (named for the terrible prop scars that mark their back), and had to take a minute to figure out the second whale... Who was Inukshuk! Raza was recently disentangled in Campbell River by and the team from DFO. We were very glad to see them gear-free!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/12/2024

August 5th was quite busy! Our morning started with rolling sea otters fluffing their fur, before Captain Bill took us to the orca! We watched the Biggs family of the T060s (plus T002B) as they travelled as a tight group. Our day included an astounding 12 humpbacks - which never fails to make us think about how few humpbacks there were here only 20 years ago. We watched Quartz, Claw and her 2024 calf, Conger, and Ripple and her 2024 calf. We even saw a minke whale for a quick moment on the way home!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/10/2024

August 4th was non-stop! From sleepy sea otters, to zipping Dall's porpoise, to the fishing A34s... We enjoyed all the signs of incredible abundance as orca, humpbacks, and birds fished hard - little fish boiling and jumping against rocks while salmon splashed in deeper water. We watched an astounding 11 humpbacks, with the list of individuals including Inukshuk, Corporal, Conger, and Insomnia. We even saw Yahtzee and X Wing! Yahtzee lunge fed explosively a few times. For both Yahtzee and X Wing, we believe it's the first documentation in 2024! It's so nice to see them both back again.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/09/2024

August 2nd found us out on the ocean with stunning conditions - nice and calm! We saw sea otters (munching urchins!), Dall's porpoise everywhere, snoozing northern sea lions, and at least 11 humpbacks! We documented Tag, Nippy, Graffiti, Cutter, and Dot Narrows. Dot Narrows and Cutter lunge fed repeatedly on a HUGE area of prey - it was wild! Dot Narrows hadn't yet been documented in 2024, so it was wonderful to see them this year! (Known thanks to the research efforts of the .)

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/02/2024

July 30th took us out of the month in fog and drizzle... But the wildlife doesn't care! So neither do we - in fact, we are so grateful that we have the damp weather to help the rivers and air.

We started out watching sea otters, but Captain Bill took us quickly to the whales! We watched humpback whales Ridge and Magician fishing at Cracroft Point (Ridge even tail lobbed several times!). We checked out Corporal and Insomnia (Insomnia trumpeting several times!), Quartz, and Argonaut... As the A34s fished and vocalized, spread out and heading down toward Johnstone Strait.

We ended the day by checking out humpback whales Freckles and her 2024 calf - we had been seeing the calf breaching and head lobbing constantly for about 45 minutes in the distance! What a bouncy baby. Freckles even joined her calf in several synchronized breaches as we headed home! We hope both Freckles and her baby are getting plenty to eat, bulking up before Freckles heads back to the breeding grounds... and her calf learns about life in these rich waters on their own.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

07/31/2024

July 29th found us in heavy fog and rain... But it was a beautiful day for wildlife regardless! Our guests were troopers! We visited the sea otters, and watched the fishing A34s. There were so many fish jumping EVERYWHERE! We watched the (drenched) eagles perched in the trees, and then found several humpbacks in the fog. We caught up with Conger, Jigger, and Jigger's 2024 calf who tail lobbed briefly! .

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

07/31/2024

July 26th was a day full of beautiful moments with wildlife, and great folks on board. We started talking about the ecosystem powerhouses that are sea otters as we watched a group rolling around and cleaning their amazing fur.

Off we went to see humpbacks - we watched Ripple and her 2024 calf, Freckles and her 2024 calf, Conger (tail lobbing and feeding), and (in the distance) Corporal.

After some time with humpbacks, Captain Bill decided that with no sightings of orca to the east... We'd go home the "long way" - to the west! After a lot of scanning, as always - Captain Bill's instincts are the very best. Who did we find but the intensely fishing A24s! Another lovely day out in our back yard.

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

07/29/2024

July 25th found us under beautiful sunshine! We checked out more than 20 sea otters hanging out in small groups, before we headed out to see the whales.

Captain Bill quickly took us out to see the killer whales - we think we saw both the A34s and some of the A35s; although our ability to do IDs was a little tough given lighting and ... Spread out fishing whales! We love watching these fish eating orca engaged in purely wild behaviour - our goal is always to bring our guests out to view whales, doing anything those whales want to do... as though we aren't present at all.

We also watched an amazing 9 humpbacks! Our sighted humpbacks included Ripple and her 2024 calf, Freckles and her 2024 calf, Conger, Dapple... And Sponge Bob! This is Sponge Bob's first known documentation this year (information shared by the ) - welcome back, Sponge Bob. We saw Ripple trap feeding, and her calf playing (briefly interacting with Freckles' calf!) - including her calf popping their nose out of the water next to Ripple WHILE she trap-fed. Can't wait to see if this young calf becomes one of the humpbacks using this amazing feeding strategy in the future!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

07/28/2024

July 23rd was another busy day on the big ocean! We watched the A24s fishing - and listened to members of the I04s and I65s on the hydrophone. A wild day for humpbacks - we saw a total of 9 for the day. We watched Ripple (BCX1063) and her 2024 calf as they fed and travelled - and her 2021 calf Dapple also popped through, just meters away from his mom and younger sibling! We also watched groups of Dalls porpoise, and humpback whales Merge, Conger, and Corporal.

Can't wait to get out and do it all again...

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

08/22/2023

August 19th was PACKED! We started off our day watching humpbacks Mensa and Stingray - Mensa was repeatedly tail lobbing, which was AMAZING to watch. We believe that these pictures of Mensa will allow the humpback researchers at the Marine Education & Research Society to prove that Mensa is male! Stay tuned. We hadn't yet documented Stingray and Mensa this year, so it was great to see them. We watched the northern resident matriline of the I16s as they rested together; with full grown male I98 fishing and travelling slightly away from the resting family group. Also our first look at the I16s this summer! Black Pearl, Quartz, Stitch, and two other humpbacks fished and cruised through calm water. Sea otters, sea lions, and eagle chicks (still in the nest!) completed our busy day. Already looking forward to the next one!

All photographs taken with a telephoto zoom lens and cropped for spacing; taken 200+ m from all wildlife. Care is taken in order to not disturb wildlife we are viewing. Relevant photos are submitted for data and research purposes.

Address

1514 Broughton Boulevard
Port McNeill, BC
V0N2R0

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 4pm
Tuesday	9am - 4pm
Wednesday	9am - 4pm
Thursday	9am - 4pm
Friday	9am - 4pm
Saturday	9am - 4pm
Sunday	9am - 4pm

Website

http://www.whaletime.com/

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Videos

This was our morning commute today coming in from Gilford Island. How was your commute this morning?

Cutest little baby breach

What a magical day today. 15 minutes after we left the dock we encountered twelve Biggs Orca. They were being very social with one another, spy hopping and breaching. We then found three groups of resident orca all spread out and fishing with Pacific White Sided Dolphins leaping beside them. We slowly idled our way to a sleeping humpback where we turned off the boat and watched it snore. Snoring until a pesky Northern Sea Lion jumped on her back and woke her up! She seemed quite startled, the sea lion had no regrets. Another day on the beautiful ocean. #explorenorthisland #mackaywhalewatching #vancouverislandnorth #northisland #broughtonarchipelago #orca #killerwhale

Beautiful trip into the head of Kingcome Inlet. Pacific White Sided dolphins galore and Northern Phalaropes escorted us at the end. #beautifulbc #mackaywhalewatching #travelbc #northisland #vancouverisland #dolphins #whales

Its the "woooow" at the end for me Nicole checking in! It's been a few years since I've been on the boat but I'm back a couple days a week this summer. This video was taken on my Samsung phone with its 30x zoom! Proof you don't need a big ol camera, some days a phone will do. Or like some of our passengers told me, they wait for the big cameras to download to their phone then they airdrop it to others on the trip! I'm behind on the times. Can't wait to see some old friends and meet new ones. Happy traveling everyone! #mackaywhalewatching #portmcneill #travelbc #westcoast #humpbackwhale #whalewatching #whales

August 12, 2023 Another day in paradise. Our 2023 season has started with a lot of activity. Sea otters, foraging Biggs Killer Whales, humpback, minke whale and birds galore. 4 Biggs were on the hunt of Dalls Porpoise, a rare and thrilling sight. . . . #mackaywhalewatching #broughtonarchipelago #wild #gonorthisland #whales #humpbackwhale #seaotter #eagle #ottersofinstagram #explorevancouverisland #explorenorthisland #explorebc #vancouverislandnorth #vancouverislandguide #westcoast #northisland #beautifulBC #emptythetanks #natgeo #naturephotography #cangeo #wildlifephotography

Northern and Californian Sea Lions foraging.

The sea lions have been very active out front of Port McNeill as the spawning herring continues. They have started to spawn across the bay from McNeill to Ledge Point and they're nearly to Hyde Creek. Video taken with a whole lot of zoom from a kayak. It's very exciting to see so many sea lions but please keep your distance to allow them the space to forage and socialize. Even at 200 plus meters away they can get spooked from their activities. When paddling stick close to shore and tap on your kayak when sea lions are nearby so they can hear your position and keep their distance.

Herring spawning right in front of Port McNeill!

This is something we don't see every day, heck we haven't seen it ever!! Herring spawning right out front of Port McNeill. Northern Sea Lions are enjoying their feast. Now to wait and see if Transient Orca arrive on the scene. We're feeling incredibly lucky to witness this event.