A pod of orcas took a family by surprise by popping up in Horseshoe Bay Monday.
Lionel Jensen tells CityNews he and his dad, Randy, spotted the killer whales at Sewell’s Marina.
In a video posted to social media, at least three orcas can be seen surfacing around docks and the small boats moored there.
“Hey, you hold onto something there, dad,” Lionel says in the video as the animals crest and blow water just feet from Randy. “They might be after you.”
He says he and his dad had just completed a sailing race from Washington to Alaska when they were surprised by the orcas. Lionel says they were “blown away” by the experience.
The Jensens later learned the orcas were likely hunting seals around the marina, and the pod stuck around for 20 minutes.
The Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA) says sightings of killer whales in the Salish Sea are up 70 per cent compared to this time last year — with a least one whale seen every day since March 12.
July was particularly noteworthy, the PWWA says, with 214 unique sightings of Bigg’s Killer Whales last month alone.
According to the association, as many as 41 individual whales have comprised some of the groups spotted.