Port Townsend

This is a great location to hear the Southern Resident killer whales as they pass through Admiralty Inlet in search of salmon. This can happen any time of year, but is more common in the fall when coho and chum salmon return to Puget Sound rivers.

You will also hear ships bound for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma, and the ferry that runs between Port Townsend and Whidbey Island. Occasionally we've heard Bigg's orcas and male harbor seals vocalize in the summer months. Can you be the first to hear a gray or humpback whale here?

Two Labcore-40 hydrophones were first deployed at a depth of about 7 meters in 2006 underneath the pier that supports aquariums and a teaching classroom. Especially when the tide is low, you can hear the aquarium overflow splashing down on the sea surface. The node is hosted by the Port Townsend Marine Science Center.

Learn more about the Port Townsend node

Status update 3/20/26: The right channel seems normal, but the left channel may have failed (after having experienced increased 60Hz hum and altered sensitivity intermittently since late Nov 2025).

9/13/25 update: Divers Keyla and Tim deployed two hydrophones prepared by Jon and Eric via boat and climbing skills. The new CRT-40P hydrophone cables are encased in copper tubing for the first 12m above the sensors which are secured to the pilings via custom 3D-printed mounts 1m above the seafloor.

5/28/25 update: Only one hydrophone is still working, but Eric McRae is planning a new deployment of CRT and/or Aquarian elements with support from WDFW.

A 2023 upgrade to this node was funded by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife through The Department of Ecology’s Equipment Grant program to improve location detection of Southern Resident Killer Whales and other marine mammals during oil spills (SPPREG-2123-WaSDFW-00025).