Depoe Bay Whale Watching
Whale Watching Report:
02/19/2022
Dockside had whale watchers out again today and they did have good sightings. The whales are still migrating, we are months aways from seeing our residents return. That usually occurs in late May. We are still doing the one and a half hour excursions. Make your reservations by phone or online.
02/14/2022
The marine weather has kept us from whale watching g for a couple of days. The forecast doesn\'t look good again until Friday the 18th and Saturday the 19th, Sunday the weather takes a turn for the worse. We have had some good sightings when we have been able to get a weather window to get out. Call us or make your reservation online.
02/07/2022
We continue to have 1 1/2 hour excursions on a weather permitting basis. The whales are still very much in their migration. We will not start seeing our residents until May but we continue having good sightings of migrating whales as they are moving to and from the warm water lagoons of the Baja peninsula. You can make your reservations at 541-765-2545 or online.
02/05/2022
We continue to have 1 1/2 hour excursions on a weather permitting basis. The whales are still very much in their migration. We will not start seeing our residents until May. We are having good sightings of migrating whales as they are moving to and from the warm water lagoons of the Baja peninsula. You can make your reservations at 541-765-2545 or online.
01/28/2022
We have whale watching tours scheduled each day the weather allows. At this time of the year we offer only the 1 1/2 hour excursions because the whale are migrating and take longer to find. We have enjoyed good sightings so don\'t miss your opportunity to get offshore and see these incredible animals. \r\nGove us a caller schedule online up to half an hour before departure.
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
