Last night as the vibrant day faded into a dramatic golden evening, excited dolphin chatter began to tickle the underwater soundscape of Johnstone Strait. After about 40 minutes this joyful banter subsided, but the night sky began to come alive. At 11:15PM we were thrilled to notice the beginning of a true spectacle: Aurora Borealis just beginning to light up the northeastern sky in a two-hour long symphony waterfall of green and orange. It was absolutely stunning. As if the previous night's dolphins were a promise of what was to come, we woke first thing this morning to a few short but distinct Bigg's calls. The encounter was short-lived, and seeing that we did not know which hydrophone they were heard on, we tuned in even closer throughout the day awaiting their arrival. Sure enough at around 2:30PM, clear Bigg's calls arrived on our Main Rubbing Beach hydrophone. They continued off and on for about an hour. We were pleasantly surprised when at 6:05PM the distinct blows of a group of orca rang out from across Blackney Pass near Parson Light. For the first time in a while we rushed to our stations and enjoyed the passing while the usual documentation and discussion occurred. However, the heat shimmer across the water left our photos somewhat unhelpful. We saw four Bigg's orcas total; one distinct male and two females with a smaller orca alongside. Quite the mystery it was when even our friend and colleague Jared Towers proved unsuccessful in the search to photograph these whales today. Nonetheless, as another beautiful night sets in we wait patiently for the return of the orcas and the northern lights. Quin 17 Apr 2021 22:14:33 PDT