The skull you see with Jeff Hogan from Killer Whale Tales is labeled “please touch!” – just one of the welcoming aspects of the first-ever OrcaFest, happening right now at Alki Bathhouse. KWT is a co-sponsor of OrcaFest, as is Donna Sandstrom‘s Whale Trail organization:

Jeff and Donna are both West Seattleites – and both devoted to making sure people of all ages come to know and love Puget Sound’s orcas even more than they do now. (Donna’s group has just won a matching-fund grant for more local signs to tell the orcas’ tale, as we reported here.) The tree that Donna’s standing next to in our photo, by the way, is being decorated with cut-out orcas, onto which you are welcome to write your vision for our whales as they continue their journey toward recovery:

There are lots of other interactive activities and exhibits at OrcaFest – admission free, but there are opportunities for you to donate to the nonprofits that are making this happen (other groups on hand include Seal Sitters) – you also have the chance to see whale bones in a Seattle Aquarium setup (volunteer Darcie will be happy to help you guess which human bones they correspond to). OrcaFest is scheduled to continue till 3 pm. ADDED 2:16 PM: Duwamish singing and drumming welcomed and blessed visitors in the first hour of OrcaFest:

At the Duwamish Tribe’s West Seattle home – the Longhouse at 4705 West Marginal Way – you can learn even more about orcas this Wednesday night at 7, during a presentation by NOAA’s Brad Hanson, sponsored by The Whale Trail (admission $5; tickets available online; ticket link and more info here).