Whale watching with Puget Sound Express - On the trail of the whale, from north to Alaska

A juvenile orca whale -- probably less than a year old -- was the star for passengers in Puget Sound Express.

The "L" Pod was photographed off Victoria. Puget Sound Express shares its knowledge and love of whales in extraordinary top-rated adventures.

ORCAS IN THE WILD THRILL OUR TRAVELERS, WITH HUMPBACKS APLENTY,

THRILLS FROM VICTORIA TO JUNEAU

STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS

PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER

"The Carpe Diem Kids"

Editor's Note: This article has been reviewed and updated to reflect current travel information, attractions, schedules, pricing, lodging options, and visitor recommendations.

If seeing whales in their natural habitat is on your travel bucket list, a tour with Puget Sound Express is one of the best ways to make it happen. Family-owned and operated for decades, the company has earned a reputation for knowledgeable naturalists, comfortable high-speed boats, and an exceptional record of whale sightings. Departing from Port Townsend and Edmonds, each cruise offers the chance to spot orcas, humpback whales, gray whales, porpoises, seals, sea lions, bald eagles, and countless seabirds while taking in the spectacular scenery of the Pacific Northwest. Whether you're a first-time visitor or a returning wildlife enthusiast, a Puget Sound Express whale watch is an unforgettable experience that showcases the beauty and diversity of Washington's coastal waters

Pete Hanke and his wife Sherri have been operating whale watching tours with Puget Sound Express for more than 35 years, and in that time they have always endeavored to make your trip a lasting memory. In 1981, Pete Sr. provided week-long sailing adventures in the Pacific Northwest aboard the 80ft schooner, Alcyone.

Over the years, they moved from sailboats to powerboats, but always made sure the whale watching experience and the vessels were first-rate. They continue to operate what we feel is the best whale watching company in the Pacific Northwest.

Whale watching with Puget Sound Express

I FELL IN LOVE with whales when I was a kid. I was a young musician and vocalist when I first heard that whales could sing, too.  I asked my parents for a recording of their elaborate vocalizations. Ear-popping! It changed my life -- introducing me to the lyrical language of another species.

Watching an orca breach was a thrill of a lifetime this week on Chilkat. A family run enterprise shares decades of experience in Puget Sound Express.

LATER, AS A  newlywed, my late husband and I honeymooned in Maui and heard whales off the shores of Lahaina, the same year Roger and Katherine Payne's wonderful "Songs  of the Humpback Whale" came out. That 1970 album from respected musicians and "bio- acousticians"  showed the world that my revered childhood whale tunes were indeed communication: my beloved whales' complex and haunting methods of sharing joy, fear, longing and  more.

Chilkat Express takes its name from the Tlingit native people of Southeastern Alaska and pays homage to the peoples' reverence for whales.

 BRUCE KELLER AND I  have  followed the magical world of whales on seas, bays and oceans. We are lucky lad and lass to follow them in the U.S. and Canada, watching, photographing  -- and listening --with joy.

Thrilling sight: three humpbacks feed, frolic in Alaska's Stephen's Passage. We were aboard a delightful Juneau Tours vessel when we found these gems.

We're reveling in  early autumn whale watching out of Edmonds, Washington, finding Orcas, which are frolicking in the Straits of Juan de Fuca -- as many as 50 surrounding our Chilkat boat, one of three vessels run by Puget Sound Express.

Three generations  of the marine-life loving Hanke family run the operation, which specializes in close-up whale encounters that leave shivers up the spine. Our trained naturalist, Justine, driver Brian and boat host Wendi took 60 of us into the Straits of Juan de Fuca,  up towards Victoria, where the orcas cavort, feed, feast on salmon and teach their young the whale ways. Our "preview" was a half-dozen humpback sightings.

Each humpback has a distinctive tail or fluke, allowing Puget Sound Express to identify each and name each whale.

 SINCE MY first sightings off the shores of Lahaina, I've watched whales on several continents -- and in our wintertime backyard of San Diego.  Never have I had a wealth of sightings to compare to our day on Chilkat with the Puget Sound folks.  The crew knows every whale by name -- thrilling in itself. And for this "Cookie," it was pure bliss to meet a whale who shares my nickname. She's a revered auntie who helps raise the young.  Whales operate much like a kibbutz or my big Irish and Norwegian clan. They help one another, share child-rearing chores, feeding and babysitting to give each other a bit of down time.

SEEING THESE magnificent creatures in the wild gives one a whole new perspective on their imperiled life. And using radio communication with fellow "spotters," moving at more than 40 miles an hour, you cover the waterfront with Puget Sound Express, which also offers three-day excursions to the San Juans with expert instruction on whale watching and wildlife viewing around Friday Harbor and Port Townsend. Our Chilkat naturalist  and Puget Sound Express delivered a thrilling two weeks of whale watching. If you're staying in a Seattle hotel, Tours Northwest can book you for the Puget Sound trip and pick you up at your hotel.

LATER IN THE week, we had more whale thrills with Juneau Tours and Whale Watching. We set out in a 15-passenger smaller vessel, and  the whale revels continued (more next blog). They amped up aboard Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas, as we exited the Tracy Arm Fjords and headed back toward Victoria, through a sea of playful humpbacks. Listening to the humpback's haunting song, watching them move in ice as tall as three-story buildings is bound to  thrill. Spending time with three pods of salmon-feasting Orcas on their Puget Sound kibbutz is off the charts.

A well fed sea lion suns, snoozes. The sea lions are part of the "extras" on whale watches off Seattle and in Alaska.

Our tips on where to get more information about whale watching in Puget Sound

•  www.orcanetwork.org  pugetsoundexpress.com 

• juneautoursandwhalewatching.com

UP NEXT:  Watching three generations of orcas an  listening to the humpback's haunting song --  watching them navigate around ice bergs as tall as three-story buildings -- all this alters a person forever.  There simply is not enough room in a single story to do justice to the magical, intelligent and graceful whale, and to the wildlife one sees on the whale trail. We continue our marine watch with sea lions, otters, and bears aboard Juneau Tours with 15 other passengers, then with a cast of thousands aboard Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas.

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