When Erica Farrell booked a wildlife/adventure tour for her family, visiting from England, she was ever hopeful.
A whale, maybeB次元官网网址� perhaps a small pod.
What they got was more than anyone could have expected. Even the tour guide was beaming at dayB次元官网网址檚 end.
The six-hour tour produced a family of orcas, a shoreline of sea lions, and a dozen humpback whales breaching, belly-flopping, and swimming right up to the boat.
B次元官网网址淪ince IB次元官网网址檝e been doing these tours, 20 years, that was probably one of my top 10 of all time,B次元官网网址� said Garry Henkel, owner/operator of B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e done more than 3,000 tours, but today was a special day. Some days you just see humpbacks. Some days you just see orcas. Some days, you just see spouts. But today was special. I donB次元官网网址檛 get to do this often.B次元官网网址�
| Orcas at play in Desolation Sound. (Terry Farrell/Comox Valley Record) |
The British contingent was awed.
B次元官网网址淎lmost speechless with admiration for the beauty, the wildlife,B次元官网网址� said EricaB次元官网网址檚 mother, Brenda Nevard, who was visiting Vancouver Island for the first time. B次元官网网址淒ifficult to put into words. A once in a lifetime experience.B次元官网网址�
BrendaB次元官网网址檚 son, Phil Nevard, and his wife, Lythan, were equally impressed, not only with the wildlife experience, but with HenkelB次元官网网址檚 expertise as well.
B次元官网网址淚t was great to have such a knowledgeable guide with a First NationsB次元官网网址� respect for nature and the sea,B次元官网网址� said Phil.
B次元官网网址淚t was one of the best days of my life and to be out with someone who respects the animals and is as excited to see them as we are was amazing,B次元官网网址� added Lythan.
| A humpback goes for a deep dive.(Photo by Erica Farrell) |
Henkel said the re-emergence of humpback whales to the area has made the adventure tour experience that much better.
B次元官网网址淲e never used to see any humpbacks here until probably the last four or five years,B次元官网网址� said Henkel. B次元官网网址淢any, many years ago, they were hunted, back in the 1800s, early 1900sB次元官网网址� almost hunted to extinction. I think they are making a comeback now finally because thereB次元官网网址檚 less pressure on them, and because thereB次元官网网址檚 a lot of krill.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 great, because we used to just look for orcas and dolphins and stuff, but now we have the humpbacks as well so it really adds to the experience.B次元官网网址�
EricaB次元官网网址檚 son, Ian Bowen of Grande Prairie, Alta., was also on the boat.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e very lucky as Canadians to have this in our backyard,B次元官网网址� he said.
Henkel concurred.
B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 not many places in the world you can see that - orcas and humpbacks,B次元官网网址� said Henkel. B次元官网网址淚n our area, in September, now you can sometimes see orcas, humpbacks, grizzly bears, black bears and sometimes dolphins, all in one day.B次元官网网址�
For more information on adventure tours, visit
