Kayak with Orcas
Vancouver Island, British Columbia

Kayak with Orcas, Killer Whales
(Orcinus Orca)

The Northern Resident Killer Whale pods make regular visits to the pebbly beaches to rub and roll themselves, possibly to relieve themselves from a skin parasite unique to the Northern Residents. Across from the rubbing beaches, perched high atop a cliff is a research outpost that is occupied by a group of very dedicated people that collect data on the Orcas activities all summer long.

Whale sounds from the
Hydrophone
The Orca makes sounds while underwater that can be heard with a special underwater microphone called a hydrophone. A good quality hydrophone will pick up the clicks from the Orcas echo location signals as well as the inspiring sounds of the calls them selves. The "calls" the Killer Whale makes are made with its blowhole much like we would whistle. Incredibly, the Orcas calls are unique for each pod, allowing researchers to identify the pods just by the sounds they make. They don't even have to see them to tell who is there.

Exciting Wildlife Viewing
This area is also home to a host of other animals both land and  marine wildlife. There are Bald Eagles, Black Bears, Black Tailed Deer, Mink, River Otters, Sea Lions, Pacific White Sided Dolphins and Dalls' Porpoises. Low tide reveals a cornucopia of discovery with star fishes, sea anemones, shell fish, jelly fish, and the list goes on. Adventure is abound.

Kayak with the Orcas
Out For Adventure Wilderness Tours Ltd. offers kayak adventures across Canada specializing in kayaking with Orcas in Johnstone Strait, British Columbia. More information can be found about these tours by the following links.

Orca Research
More information on the research of Orcas of Johnstone Strait, British Columbia can be found at Orca Lab

Kayaking with Killer Whales

Kayaking with Orcas is an amazing experience and is very popular in British Columbia. Each year, many excited guests join Out For Adventure Wilderness Tours Ltd. for an experience of a lifetime- kayaking with the Orcas. As you learn more about the wild Orca, the more intriguing the idea of paddling a kayak with them becomes. A kayak leaves no tracks, no marks on the water. It makes no mechanical sounds, emits nothing into the water or air, uses no animals for propulsion. It glides across the water with ease and grace like a whale cruising the surface. When we read about the wild Orca in BC, we inevitably will read about kayaking the rubbing beaches in the Robson Bight Ecological Reserve.

Robson Bight Ecological Reserve
The Robson Bight  is an Ecological Reserve for the whales located on the Vancouver Island shore at the Sitika valley. Extending either side of the valley and one kilometer off shore the entire area is out of bounds to all but the whales and the commercial fishermen during an opening. Within it's boundaries are the famous rubbing beaches.