While most British Columbians need to pick up a ticket on a whale watching boat to get a good view of a killer whale, a lucky few managed a close encounter with the big marine mammals without even leaving the dock on Saturday.
Orcas made a rare appearance in Vancouver’s Coal Harbour around 5:30 p.m.
Harbour Air worker Rob Johnson managed to capture part of the experience on video, describing it as “surreal.”
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“I have never seen an orca, let alone two, in Coal Harbour in the three years I’ve been employed at Harbour Air,” he said.
“I knew whales were great big creatures, but one seemed to span the length of our seaplanes.”
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The pod of orcas was spotted about two hours earlier near the Lions Gate Bridge, thrilling viewers in Stanley Park.
While not a common occurrence, transient or “Biggs” killer whales are known to frequent the Burrard inlet hunting for seals.
Orcas made a rare appearance in False Creek in 2019 and made a big splash when they showed up in Coal Harbour back in 2016.
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