Depoe Bay Whale Watching

Archived Whale Watching Reports:

05/31/2026

Really good whale watching today as we finally got some good ocean weather to get out there to see them..It made it even better as not only did we see a number of Gray whales but the Orca whales are in the vicinity as well. Both put on really good shows for the Dockside folks.

05/28/2026

This almost week long stormy period will be out of the area sometime in the afternoon on Friday and we will be starting the engines once again and heading out to the whale watch grounds Saturday. Call our office for fishing and or whale watch reservations to secure you spots on the boats.

05/26/2026

We are presently in a bad weather pattern for the next few days and we are looking ahead to Friday being our next day that looks do-able. As we look ahead next weeks forecast really looks good so summer might just be around the corner. Pay attention to the marine forecast and give our office a call for any updates to the forecast.

05/17/2026

We cancelled all of our whale watch trips for the day as the ocean conditions did not come down as we had hoped after yesterday\'s rough conditions. Things look much better for tomorrow.

05/16/2026

Dockside has cancelled all of its activities tomorrow (Sunday) just like today due to rough ocean conditions.. Monday morning looks a whole lot better.

05/11/2026

Three to five whales outside of Depoe Bay that we had cruise boats out looking at them Monday afternoon. They appear to be our resident whales and they are putting on good shows for our customers

05/09/2026

We had teriffic whale watching today and there were even some Humpbacks that were a little further up north that the fishing boats got to see. The weather is good and a great time to come down and see the resident whales as they feed in the inshore reefs.

05/07/2026

Excellent whale watching today as it has been very good here for the past week or so. Looks like a lot of the whales we get to stay here for the summer and feed on our inshore reefs have arrived.

05/06/2026

The Tacklebuster and the Surfrider had 82 young children out on a whale trip today from one of the local schools. The skipper of the Surfrider had his children out on that trip and the skipper of the Tacklebuster had his grandkids out on the same trips. Whale watching was really great as it has been now for quite a while. The whales were as they have been for a few days now up off of Government Point about a mile north of the harbor.

05/03/2026

Really good whale watching this afternoon for the guests on our whale watch boats as there were between \r\n3-5 whales about a mile to the north of the Depoe Bay entrance feeding close to shore.

04/08/2026

An update on the whale watching around the Depoe Bay Area is that the whales are beginning to get closer and closer to the shoreline which should be an indication that they are beginning to start feeding in our area and might be the ones that will be here all summer long. The weather is really good and should be for the next week or so and will be a great time to come down and see the Gray whales in their habitat.

03/22/2026

The whale watching is really good going on right now as the migration continues north and some of the whales are beginning to drop off in our area for the summer months. Give our office a call for information on the next whale watch adventures. We offer 1Hr and 2Hr tours.

03/15/2026

The spring whale watch season is here and we have been seeing whales on our whale watch trips every day we go out there. If interested give our office a call and they can let you know about the ocean weather coming up and on days we have openings.

02/20/2026

We did see some whales about a mile and a half offshore today (Friday) as they are probably late migrators. So there are some around the area but have not seen as of yet anyhow some of the locals that stop by for the whole summer.

01/30/2026

After two weeks plus of nice summer time weather in the winter we are back to the rough ocean conditions for the foreseeable future. We will let you know as soon as we see a break in the weather pattern so we can get back out there on the water watching the Gray whales go by.

01/19/2026

Whale sightings the last few days has been teriffic with great whales and lots of whales to see. The summer type weather should be really good all the way by the forecast thru this next weekend. Great time to come down and watch the migrating whales.

01/17/2026

We had good whale watching today but the whales that were found migrating were around 5 1/2 miles offshore. So as a suggestion a 2-hour trip would be recommended.

01/10/2026

Looks like some good ocean weather for whale watching the migrating Grey whales will be next Thursday thru the weekend. Give is a call and book a cruise.

01/01/2026

The whale watching right now is terrific with lots of migrating whales going by and some great trips aboard the Dockside boats. You have a choice of either one or two hour trips and a suggestion would be to opt for the 2-hour trips because sometimes the migrating whales are further offshore.

12/30/2025

Happy New Year to all of our past and future customers from the skippers and staff at Dockside Charters. Have a great 2026.

12/28/2025

Good whale watching today and should be good for the next 3-4 days as the ocean weather should be good thru that period. The northerly migration is underway thru the waters off of Depoe Bay.

12/24/2025

We will be running fishing and crabbing trips from Saturday through next week and 2 hour and 1 hour whale watching trips throughout the day for the Grey whale migration

12/24/2025

The skippers and staff at Dockside Charters want to wish you a very Merry Christmas and holiday season.

12/21/2025

Looks like our next trip is Christmas Eve for you whale watch folks. Keep in touch with our office for more information as we get closer. The worst of the weather with the rain, wind and flooding activity seems to be over so we are day to day this next week.

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.

10/20/2025

The ocean weather sounds very questionable for the next 7-10 days Heavy swells and some windy days in the extended forecast. Much to rough to schedule trips. It will get better so keep in touch with our office as they know exactly what to expect. It is the oncoming of winter.

10/15/2025

The ocean weather forecast for the next two days (Thursday and Friday) looks really nice so it would be a good time to get on a whale watch excursion. Things by the forecast are looking a little iffy for the weekend

10/09/2025

Have not been updating the whale watch information as things have pretty much stayed the same for months now. The Gray whales usually take off sometimes towards the end of October to go down to the Mexican breeding and birth grounds. The whale watching is still really great with quite a few of the resident whales still in the area. If this picture goes thru this is a Rizzo dolphin which was in the area with the pod a few days ago. \r\n

10/01/2025

The ocean weather is looking much better Friday thru the weekend. Might be a good time to come down and go out with Dockside on a whale watch adventure.

09/29/2025

We are dealing with rough ocean conditions possibly thru Thursday and looking towards Friday into the weekend when we will get back out there. Give our office a call for more weather updates. The whale watching has been great pretty much all the way thru the summer and we still are looking at a few more good weeks.

09/18/2025

No whale watching boats going out today (Thursday) because of rough ocean conditions. Hopefully will be back running trips tomorrow (Fridays).

09/15/2025

Still a bunch whales out there but not a lot of time left as the weather is slowly turning so you will have to pick a good day. Also we are within 30 days or so that they will be leaving the area for the most part to make the southern journey down to the Mexican waters for the winter.

09/11/2025

Still almost halfway thru September there are sill plenty of performing Gray whales just outside the Depoe Bay channel and also some north and south of Depoe Bay. Great sightings and worth the ride down here to check them out.

09/03/2025

Still lots of whales in the area every day and on a good day there can be more then 10 Gray whales real close to the harbor entrance feeding in the kelp beds. It\'s a great time to come down to Dockside Charters and watch the whale shows.

08/28/2025

Lots of whales in the area as one day this week we had up to 10-11 whales feeding in the area very close to the Depoe Bay entrance. A great timer to come down and see the resident whales spout and possibly breach as you are out there. Lots of opportunities every day as we run normally around 10am thru the afternoon hours.

08/14/2025

It was a very special day out on the ocean waters watching whales as we had at least 12+ whales around our area today. One of the whale watch skippers commented that wherever he went he had 3-4 whales around sometimes right next to the boat. the whales at least some were literally standing on there heads feeding on the shallow waters where the kelp beds haver been growing very quickly in the past few weeks. They stand on their heads while they are feeding and there flukes were on top of the water at the surface. Quite the day.....

08/05/2025

As it has been for the past 3-4 weeks the whale watching has been terrific this summer as we have been seeing the majority of them are Gray whales. We have been also seeing Blue whales and Humpbacks occasionally. We also see an occasionally Orca whale.

07/27/2025

With the summer in full swing the whale watching has been great with quite a few Gray whales in the area and the occasional Humpback whale swimming by the area. We have also half three occasions to find Blue whales in the vicinity.

07/23/2025

Whale watching out of Dockside this afternoon was once again quite special as we spotted another Blue whale about 4-5 miles offshore and our guys ran out there to take a look & here is one of the pictures of the whale with the Samson in the background.

07/06/2025

The whale watching continues to be really good with multiple whales in the area today and it was really good sightings and a little luck was involved as well. The whales were right out in front of the city and the ones we were watching were inside the north and south points outside of the harbor. That was really a good thing because it was quite windy this afternoon but inside those point the ocean was much better as it cut off the winds out of the north.

07/02/2025

The feeding Gray whales are pretty close as they are right outside the harbor entrance feeding in the kelp beds. The Dockside whale watchers had a great day and the entire trip they were watching whales.

06/28/2025

Not only did we see Gray whales today (Saturday) but we also saw Humpback whales ad the report was up to 6+ Blue whales. It was a day that might not be repeated in years to come.

06/28/2025

W have had great whale sightings all day today with the Gray whales& we even have had fantastic sighting of a Blue whale which is. making a rare appearance to the area out in front of Depoe Bay. These whales are the largest animal on the earth getting as long as 100 feet and weighing up to 200 tons. They put out a very large spout There are estimated up to 10,000 to 25,000 of the great Blue whales left in the oceans globally wide.

06/23/2025

Whales both north and south of the harbor entrance as Dockside boats were out watching the whales as they were feeding in the kelp beds. Quite a few of the resident whales are in the area the same ones that we see most every year with a few new ones from time to time.

06/22/2025

The Depoe Bay bar crossing was quite rough overnight into the early morning hours but as of 9am things were very much improved so hope to see you down here for some Sunday whale watching. The ocean weather looks good all the way thru the 1st of July.

06/18/2025

Lots of whales today on a beautiful ocean which is suppose to stay with us thru this weekend into the end of the forecast period sometime next week. Finally summertime weather. On the first trips of the day the whales were only 1500 feet right out in front of the channel entrance and then moved a little further out during the trip. Then about two hours later they located another pod of whales about a mile or so just north of the ciiy. All that produced great resident whale aching

06/16/2025

We have lots of our resident whales in the area and they are so close to the shoreline north and south of the Depoe Bay harbor entrance we are watching them within just a few minutes after leaving the harbor. That makes for almost the whole length of your trip is watching whales.

06/15/2025

All of the whale watch boats were up off of Government Point this afternoon about na half mile or so on a really nice afternoon really close to shore. They were up there in the kelp beds putting on great shows for the folks on the Dockside boats.

06/14/2025

Lots of Gray whales on display on the Dockside boats as we celebrated such a beautiful day on the ocean to go out and see them on this Saturday in June.

06/10/2025

No boats out this morning or afternoon because of rough ocean conditions. Hopefully looking forward to tomorrow,

06/04/2025

Really good whale watching the last few times we were out as the resident whales are feeding in the kelp beds and other places in really close to shore and easily found which helps putting the folks onboards on the whales for pretty much the entire length of the trip.

05/24/2025

Quite a few whales are back in the area for the summer as our resident whales seem to be here and showing off out there for our customers. Come on down and see the Gray whales as they should be in the area thru September.

05/07/2025

The not so good news today was that out on our whale watch trips we could not find a whale for the folks onboard but the good news as we try to spin this a little is that the resident whales are beginning to show up. That means we should start seeing the resident whales as more of them show up in our area and they will be really close to the shoreline and not so far to go.

04/23/2025

The ocean weather all the way thru a week from this Friday looks pretty good for springtime whale watching.\r\nLooks like a good time to come down and go out on a whale watching trip with dDockside charters.

04/12/2025

We saw whales on every one of our boats/trips today. Nice ocean and excellent whale watching

04/09/2025

Besides a few days in the next ten days or so the weather looks pretty nice on most days. There are a few days that might show a little swell in the morning hours but not bad. Best thing to do is call our office for the up-to-date ocean weather and make your decision based on that for fishing and or whale watch excursions..

04/06/2025

The weather came back to keep us off the ocean for about three days including today and we will see you hopefully as it looks now that Wednesday of this coming week will be our next day to fish.

04/05/2025

Had a slower start to the whale watching today but it really picked up really well for the other half of the day. This is a normal thing this time of year with the migration as the whales have one thing in mind and that is to move north as fast ad they can. You don\'t see very many migrating whales feeding as they are in a hurry to get where they\'re going.

04/01/2025

Starting Wednesday we have good weather coming in thru Sunday so it will be a great time to go fishing or whale watching with us. Next Monday and Tuesday it appears by the extended forecast that a little swell will be with us and then back to nice weather by Wednesday. Call our office at Dockside Charters for reservations and up-to-date forecasts.

03/30/2025

Really good whale watching today on all of our trips except for one. On that one it just wasn\'t as good as the migratory whale watching we have to sometimes chase after them from trip to trip as they are almost all are moving very quickly to the north. They almost never stop to feed as they are all just interested in getting to their ultimate destination. If that happens we then have to go south and find a new pod(s) coming out of the south heading north and a times we can\'t find any.

03/30/2025

Really nice ocean weather begins today with the ocean forecast for the next week or so looks really nice with some rain during that time. There is one day with a rising swell but for the rest of the days the ocean will see very little swell and wind. Starting Wednesday of next week for the next ten days after that nice ocean weather, sunshine and no rain forecasted. Might be a good time to come down for a fishing or whale watch adventure at Dockside Charters

03/25/2025

Whale Watching was pretty good with most trips seeing whales. Two hr trips were 100% successful, and 1 hr trips saw whales on 75% of the trips. We had a terrific day taking out multiple trips with lots of people looking at the migrating whales. The two hour trips are a small bit more expensive but this time of year the migrating whales tend most of the time to be further offshore. The 2-hr trips allow us to get out there faster and spend more time finding them.. Just a little tip for whale watchers.

03/24/2025

Best days to whale watch the next few days will be all day tomorrow and the morning hours on Wednesday. Then some bad ocean weather looks to be moving in late Wednesday into Thursday.

03/24/2025

Had really good whale watching today with loads of trips going out on the start of Oregon spring breaks. We saw quite a few migratory whales and even some Orca whales moving by. Good day watching whales.

03/11/2025

We did send one whale watch boat out this morning and they found quite a good number of migrating whales passing by. Normally we have the migratrors here towards the end of March but they are here early this year for whatever reason. If you see a nice day down here ocean weather wise it looks like the whale watching should be great. Keep in touch with our office.

02/26/2025

Looks like we have some good weather for ocean whale watching next week Tuesday thru Friday. The weather looks really good as we see it right now. Call the Dockside office for reservations and we will see ya then.

01/26/2025

We had whale watch trips today and yesterday on all of our boats and today and we are seeing migrating whales go by Depoe Bay on their northerly migration up to the north.

01/18/2025

Lots of great sightings today (Saturday) as you get to see a lot of ocean water as we\'re finding the whales about 6-miles offshore. Not unusual for this time of year as the migratory whales are going by Depoe Bay heading north and are normally offshore a bit.

01/16/2025

It\'s been a while since we had a WW report but the weather is pretty good right now and should be thru this weekend into the first part of next week. We ran a trip today and saw a number of migratory whales right out in front of Depoe Bay so if you want to see the whales on there northerly migration right now might be a pretty good time.

10/18/2024

We got out fishing today and ran two whale trips and we had a terrific day on all accounts. The whales are still out there even though this time of year they should be beginning their journey down south to the Mexican waters. They are however still here and we had an easy time finding them this afternoon. Call our office for the up-to-date information on if we are still finding them.

09/30/2024

Were right up against the time when the whales begin their southerly migration but not yet. There are still a bunch of them other so should be a great weekend to see the whales down here this weekend.

09/26/2024

(Weather alert)\r\nThere is some chance that we will. be able to sneak in whale watching this afternoon. Keep in touch with our our office staff.\r\n\r\nOur next whale watching trip after possibly this aftertnoon probably will not be going until Sunday as we have some ocean weather to deal with and the next nice ocean might not be until then. Keep in touch with our Dockside office staff for the latest information.

09/21/2024

Whale watching is holding steady as we have multiple whales in the area but it is getting close to the southerly migration as the whales begin their move down to the Mexican waters. So if you want to see the whales you need to make your reservations to Depoe Bay and make your reservation at Dockside Charters.

08/22/2024

Really good whale watching. around the area now especially since all of the kelp beds seem to be growing. They are right out in front of the harbor and another bed is about one mile or so to the north. Some will tell you that they find the food they are looking for is found in those kelp beds

08/16/2024

After the fog went away which was the exact time that our whale watching tours were starting for the day. They were pretty easy to find also without the fog as they were right out front of the harbor entrance about a half mile offshore. Great for all of Dockside\'s passengers.

08/14/2024

Its been good whale watching here lately maybe that because the kelp beds are growing that means good food for the whales.

08/05/2024

After about close to a week with poor whale sightings a lot of the whales have returned and they have been easy to find and many just minutes away from the harbor on our boats.

07/23/2024

AFTER ONE DAY LATE LAST WEEK WE HAVE HAD EXCELLENT WHALE WATCHING TRIPS WITH MULTIPLE WHALES IN THE AREA AND THEY ARE VERY CLOSE BY FEEDING IN THE EXPANDING KELP BEDS NOW IN THE AREA. IT IS A GREAT TIME TO. VISIT THE COAST AND GO OUT WITH DOCKSIDE AND SEE THE FEEDING GRAY WHALES.

07/19/2024

A tough day on the whale front as we did see a whale on one of the trips but there was so much fog close to shore that finding the whales on most trips today was very difficult. Tomorrow is another day and hopefully better.

07/10/2024

Really good whale watching as for the first time in a week or two we have multiple whales in the area. The whale watch boats were all watching these whales in three different spots we were told with an average of about 1/2 mile from one group to the other.

07/05/2024

Today\'s whale report saw the same thing we have been seeing for over a week now with two whales in the area. Heard a report today that there were three up around the Lincoln City area and that the lack of kelp beds in the area might be the issue. The whales are not going to frequent anyplace where there is no food for them and the kelp beds are really important to their eating habits. Last season the Depoe Bay Area was the kelp bed capitol of the worlds oceans but this season not as much. However we are seeing some kelp beds beginning to form in the area like happens in most summers.

07/03/2024

Whale watching was good this morning but as of the last few days not a whole lot of them in our area right now. I think they were watching two today and the day before so hopefully there number will increase in not so many days.

06/26/2024

Just like yesterday we had really terrific whale watching trips today as up to around mid-afternoon the sighting of the feeding Gray whales was excellent on the vessels reporting. They were putting on good shows for the folks onboard.

06/25/2024

Unlike yesterday when we had a windy day today was much better and we had really good whale sightings on all of our trips so far this afternoon.

06/24/2024

Not sure any of the boats saw any of the whales on our trips today as late in the morning into the afternoon the winds got ahold of the water which made it a bit difficult to see the spouts and hunt down the Gray whales. Tomorrow is another day.

06/23/2024

We are seeing whales today as a smaller variety is out there feeding in the beds near the coastline and the rocks. Good sightings for quite a while now so a good time to come down and see the Gray whales.

06/19/2024

Another really good day of whale watching on Wednesday with the whales moving a little north of town and all of the Dockside WW boats saw them on every trip.. Word was there were a few up there today and put on a great show for the folks.

06/18/2024

Our whale watching boats today (Tuesday) had really good spotting of the Gray whales as all of them saw whales on all of the afternoon trips.

06/13/2024

Good whale watching on this Thursday afternoon as all of our boats out there are seeing the whales and they reported they are putting on good shows for the folks.

06/09/2024

NOI whale watching this afternoon as the Depoe Bay bar roughed up to much to run trips out there today. Keep in touch with our office as things will improve.

06/08/2024

Good whale watching today all day with all of our boats seeing whales on every trip. Call our office and when making your reservations ask about what the ocean conditions are suppose to be and they will give you the best days to come down and see the Gray whales.

05/24/2024

Not a whole bunch of information but we did see whales on our whale watch trips today.

05/19/2024

Good whale watching the past few days as the information off the boats was that they are in shallow water & feeding which is a good sign that some of the seasonal whales we have most of the spring and summer into the fall are here.

05/12/2024

Lots of whales all weekend long out in front of Depoe Bay. With the good weather lots of excellent opportunities to see the last part of the northerly migration and the continued arrival of our resident whales. Sounds like good weather for the next few days.

05/10/2024

Had a few whale watch trips out this afternoon and we saw whales on all of the trips. The whales are easier to find as well as they are coming in closer to shore where all of the feed is and were chowing down.