If you were following along on Instagram to see where our journey to find orcas in the wild would take us, you may have already solved the mystery through my stories. Our adventure led us to Seattle, Washington and beyond—and while the trip didn’t unfold exactly as we had planned, it still became one we’ll never forget.

We arrived in Seattle on Saturday after a very long day of flying from Tampa. By the time we landed, picked up our rental car, and made our way north, my daughter Jenna was beginning to show signs of being sick—coughing, congestion, and complete exhaustion. After waiting nearly an hour for our rental car, we headed to our hotel in Lynnwood.

I had originally booked our stay there because we planned to do a whale-watching tour out of Edmonds, but after more research, I changed our tour to depart from Anacortes and kept our hotel reservation as it was.

By the time we reached the hotel, Jenna was down for the count. We made a quick trip to Target for medicine and then let her rest.

Sunday morning, she wasn’t much better. In fact, she was probably worse. Without a fever, I wasn’t sure if it was simply exhaustion from travel, maybe a reaction to the change in elevation, or something more. She kept saying she still felt like she was flying.

But our whale-watching day had arrived, so we loaded up the rental car and headed toward Anacortes.

Jenna slept for much of the drive, but we woke her long enough to experience one of Washington’s beautiful surprises—Deception Pass. We stopped at the state park, walked along the beach, and took in the incredible scenery before heading into Anacortes for lunch ahead of our 1:00 p.m. tour.

After a lot of research, we chose Island Adventures because of its proximity to the San Juan Islands and the reputation of its tours.

The boat was wonderful—a large catamaran with three decks, plenty of indoor seating, warm spaces to escape the wind, a snack bar, and a knowledgeable naturalist guiding us throughout the trip.

Unfortunately, Jenna slept through much of the excursion, and my husband and I had to divide our time between whale watching and caring for her, since vessel rules required children to remain under supervision.

Our first wildlife sighting was a humpback whale. We watched quietly as it surfaced a few times before moving on.

Then came the moment I had been dreaming about for years.

We traveled to the far side of the San Juan Islands and met up with a pod of four orcas: T019 Nootka, T049A2 Galiano, T049A3 Spouter, and another member of the pod. The naturalist did an incredible job explaining how researchers identify individual whales and sharing stories about each one, making the experience feel deeply personal.

For about thirty magical minutes, we watched these orcas travel, surface, and play in their natural environment.

It’s hard to put into words what that felt like.

For someone whose fascination with orcas began years ago through visits to SeaWorld Orlando, seeing them wild and free in their own waters was a true bucket-list moment. It was beautiful, humbling, and every bit as incredible as I had imagined.

One thing I appreciated throughout the trip was learning more about these animals and the efforts being made to protect them. The future of the Southern Resident Killer Whales remains uncertain, and organizations, researchers, and conservation groups continue working to support them.

After our whale-watching adventure ended, we headed to Monroe, Washington, where my husband had work commitments.

The following day, Jenna felt a little better—just enough that we could plan one adventure.

We decided to drive to Diablo Lake Overlook in the North Cascades. The drive itself was spectacular, winding through mountains and forests before opening to the stunning turquoise waters of Diablo Lake.

The glacier-fed lake, surrounded by mountain peaks, was one of the most peaceful and breathtaking sights I have ever seen.

We stopped at a few overlooks, took in the scenery, and headed back toward Monroe.

Then it was my turn.

Whatever Jenna had been fighting caught up with me quickly. By mid-afternoon, I was in bed and slept until the next morning.

I’ll admit—I was disappointed.

We had hoped to see so much more.

We didn’t make it to Mount Rainier. We didn’t make it back to the islands. We didn’t spend more time along Puget Sound searching for whales from shore. We didn’t make it into Canada like Jenna had hoped.

But sometimes travel reminds us that not every trip goes exactly according to plan.

Even with sickness, missed experiences, and unexpected changes, we still saw wild orcas. We stood beside one of the most beautiful lakes I’ve ever visited. We watched waterfalls, explored beaches, and discovered just how much there is to love about Washington.

So, Seattle definitely deserves a redo.

There are so many incredible places to explore, but one thing we learned quickly is that everything is spread out. It’s difficult to see multiple major sights in a single day, and next time we’ll plan a longer trip so we have room for rest days, rainy days, or simply time to slow down.

And next time?

We’ll be back for the orcas.

Because some dreams are worth chasing more than once.