Depoe Bay Whale Watching
Whale Watching Report:
12/19/2025
As soon as the ocean weather clears up we will be running whale watch trips as the northerly migration of the Gray whales is underway. The whales will be moving by the Depoe Bay Area well into January and beyond so as soon as the weather clears up we will get going. Right now the power is off because of the wind and rain in the Depoe Bay Area so we will be calling you back as soon as things get back to normal in the area. Though the computers and phones are off right now you can still book online and we will get back to you as soon as we can.
12/02/2025
The northerly migration of the Gray whales is only historically about 2-3 weeks away. We will let you know when we see the first pods of whales going by Depoe Bay. Normally it\'s sometime between a week or so before Christmas and the 1st of the year. Get ready to come down and see this yearly event.
11/27/2025
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Dockside Charters
11/16/2025
One would think by past years that this would be a slower time for whale watching but on Saturday we had really good sightings that meaning possibly the whales are back in the area early.
11/03/2025
We did get out on a fishing trip a few days back but then the weather went back to not being so nice in the afternoon. We are really in a bad weather pattern as it was several weeks before we got out on the one trip last week and the forecast for the next week or so does not look very nice but we are looking for some decent days to get out on the whale watch tours. However the weather does change so stay in touch with our office for any weather updates and trips we are planning.
Depoe Bay Whale Watching Report Archive...
Depoe Bay is the Whale Watching Capital and Dockside Charters offers Premier Whale Watching Excursions.
Dockside Charters runs whale watching excursions on a daily basis during our whale watching season. The season typically goes from mid-December through October. Our whale watching season actually is two part: migration and residential. The migratory season begins in December and usually extends until mid May. Mid to late May is when our “resident” whales begin to arrive. Our resident whales are a group of roughly 20 whales that, though they do migrate don’t go all the way to the Bering Sea but rather feed during the summer season within just a few miles of Depoe Bay and stay in the area until late October. The same whales return year after year and we are able to identify returning whales by their individual markings and the skippers even have them named.
Pacific Gray Whales have the longest migration of any animal on earth going from the Bering Sea to the Baja Peninsula and even into the Sea of Cortez. Their migration allows calves to be born in the warm waters of the Baja lagoons, that is vital to the survival of the newborns because they have no insulating blubber layer at birth. As the new calves and their mothers slowly migrate North the calves gain about nine to ten pounds per day. What makes that even more remarkable is the fact that the cows (mother gray whales) feed very little if at all during the migration. This is often quite evident by the physical appearance of the cows when they reach Depoe Bay, they are literally racks of skin and bones, having used their fat reserves to support the calves during migration.
After they arrive here feeding is the priority. Pacific Gray Whales are baleen feeders, they filter food they need from the water by straining it through their baleen plates. Organisms they feed on are quite small, one of the whales most important food sources are Mysid Shrimp. Mysid Shrimp live in and around kelp forests and never get more than about a half inch in length. They resemble mosquito larva more than shrimp and the whales will consume up to 2000 pounds of them a day. At other times they will feed on copepods they filter by taking mouthfuls of muck from the bottom or even skim feed on schools of very small fish.
Humpback and Blues whales are also seen occasionally though not as frequently as Gray Whales. We are fortunate here in Depoe Bay to have whales nearby for us to see for most of the year.
At Dockside Charters we run our Whale Watching excursions from safe comfortable 50 foot Delta Charter boats. They are Coast Guard Certified and have everything required for your safety and piece of mind. They have all the amenities: comfortable heated cabins, rest rooms, indoor seating, seating out on deck. You are able to walk all the way around the boats and are elevated above the water for excellent whale sightings. Our captains have decades of experience and a wealth of knowledge they share during the excursions making them interpretive tours. Our boats have access doors to walk on and off with ease or provide wheel chair access. We can accommodate large groups.
Reservations are recommended for our whale watching tours, to make yours call 541-765-2545
Whale watching excursions seven days a week, subject to marine conditions.
Whale watching report archive...
(541) 765-2545
