ROCHE HARBOR, Wash. - If you are in the Seattle area this summer and want to experience whale watching beyond Sea World's capacity, try Washington state's San Juan Islands.

Attending both presession and first summer session, I was due for a vacation - a vacation away from the heat and homework. I turned in my final exam at 3 p.m., and I was on the plane by 5 p.m., headed for the Northwest.

I had expected the highlight of my trip to be leaving the desert and the 105-degree weather behind, but my encounter with killer whales was the biggest splash of all. My trips to Sea World hardly prepared me for the real thing.

I went sailing in the San Juan Islands, about 60 miles north of Seattle, for three days over the Fourth of July weekend. I sailed out of Roche Harbor, San Juan Island, and through the channels connecting several islands where giant orca whales swim.

I had never seen so many whales at one time. I could see almost as many whales as I could boats. At one point, I saw nine whales while on the boat.

Several pods of two or three whales swam past our boat every 20 minutes. Some whales were as close as 5 feet from the boat, others only 50 feet away. In the course of a couple hours, I saw about 15 whales.

Most people have only seen orcas, otherwise known as killer whales, at an aquarium. Sea World, for example, is one that comes to my mind. Although Sea World is exciting and has a lot to offer, including a chance to let you pat Shamu, nothing compares with seeing whales in the wild.

The whales showed their tails, just like at Sea World, and even did flips without the incentive of dead fish. While I was frantically loading film in my camera, a mother whale, with her calf close beside her, came within 3 feet of our boat. I thought only dolphins were playful.

One pod of whales swam around a group of sea kayakers, blowing water from their blow holes. The whales' size dwarfed the kayakers, and I wondered how these graceful creatures could ever be called killers.

One of the differences between whales at Sea World and whales in the ocean is that ocean whales have a straight dorsal fin. As I looked around our boat surrounded by whales, I did not see the usual bent fins, and I wondered if there was something wrong wi th the whales. Later, I was told only whales in captivity have bent fins. After seeing ocean whales, aquarium whales have lost some of their appeal. Willie and Shamu ought to be free.

Whale watching is a sport of luck. You may be out for hours and never see any. Our group was lucky. We saw whales the first time out. Some days you are not always so lucky. Knowing where to look is an important aspect.

The San Juan Islands have several companies that provide guided tours that last for a couple of hours. The islands are a pretty safe bet if you want to see them. If you ever have a chance to see whales outside of a big pool, you will witness their true be auty.

San Juan Safari is a company operating out of Roche Harbor, and there are about a dozen other whale-watching companies located on the island. The price for a three-hour tour through San Juan Safari is about $39 for adults and $29 for youths 17 and under. The San Juan Safari claims a 90 percent success rate for viewing whales. Its telephone number is (306) 378-2155.