Forecasts for Oregon Coast Whale Watch Week, How Well It Cooperates

Published 12/25/25 at 6:55 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Depoe Bay, Oregon) – What will Whale Watch Week be like for weather? And will it cooperate for seeing the great cetacean migration? (Photo courtesy Leigh Torres / OSU)

Yes, that is tied together, it turns out. Large waves make it difficult to see whales offshore, but this Whale Watch Week from December 27 – 31 (Saturday through Wednesday) will luckily see rather small waves. If you're planning on heading out earlier than that to catch sight of them you may run into issues as the offshore forecast is rather wild and unruly until Friday or so, according to National Weather Service (NWS) predictions.

The special week features trained volunteers that will be stationed at 14 sites from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day to help visitors spot gray whales as they migrate south toward the calving lagoons in Mexico. Oregon Coast Whale Watch Week Comes as Scientists Worry About Latest Population Numbers - Saturday, Dec. 27 through Wednesday, Dec. 31 from Brookings to Warrenton

Another aspect to factor in is that your chances for spotting the gray whales are much better on one of those whale watch tours, which are copious in Depoe Bay and Newport, but there's also some great names down south in Curry County.

The main point for this week's weather is that it will be cooooold. Especially if you're out at sea or up on those high vantage points - where things get windier. When it gets to the low 50s later in the Whale Watch run it may not feel as icy, however.

“Overnight Saturday into Sunday, temperatures will fall around or below freezing for many of the inland valleys,” the NWS said.

This may translate to the northern half of the coast as well, but it's not as likely to get below freezing in the early week. Even so, day temps will remain in the 40s or 50s.

Forecast from Florence to Astoria:

Photo OSU

The north Oregon coast will see mostly cloudy skies through midweek, with just a slight chance of showers Saturday morning and again Tuesday night into Wednesday. Highs stay in the upper 40s this weekend, warming to the lower 50s Monday through Wednesday. Overnight lows remain in the upper 30s to around 40. A better chance of rain returns by Wednesday as another system approaches.
The NWS said big waves are quite likely at 13-16 ft offshore this week, but then things begin to simmer down.

“Hazardous seas and small craft conditions continue into Friday before marine conditions settle down this weekend thanks to a ridge of high pressure building overhead,” the NWS said. “By Sunday wave heights likely settle in the 4-6ft range.”

South Oregon Coast Forecast

For the areas of Reedsport, Coos Bay, Bandon, Port Orford down to Brookings, the whale watching forecast is largely the same. Overnight lows dip into the 30s and then 40s closer to Wednesday, and it will again be very chilly along the high vantage points or on whale watch cruises.

Just as what happens up north, rather large waves offshore and heavy gales out there are causing marine craft advisories this week, but those also calm down after Saturday. Waves run high at 17 feet or so at times, but once the weekend gets going they also mellow out to seven feet or so.

Each of these weather pages below has weather forecasts for the area, wave height predictions and any weather alerts that may happen.

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