Parade, festival to honor gray whale arrival
Published 1:30 am Friday, April 3, 2026
Orca Network and the Langley Chamber of Commerce will host the annual Welcome the Whales Parade and Festival the weekend of April 10-12, featuring a full schedule of activities for all ages.
The festival celebrates the return of the “Sounders,” a group of gray whales who divert from their northern migration along the Washington coast each spring to spend a few weeks feeding on the ghost shrimp that occur along Whidbey shorelines, according to a press release.
Currently, about a dozen “Sounders” have been confirmed in North Puget Sound by Orca Network’s Whale Sighting Network and Cascadia Research Collective, including-fan favorites CRC53 “Little Patch,” CRC531 “Gretchen” and CRC2249 “Hattie.” In addition, a number of unidentified gray whales have entered inland waters, which may be an indicator of their difficulties finding food in more traditional spring and summer feeding areas in Alaskan waters.
The gray whale population as a whole declined significantly during an Unusual Mortality Event, UME, from 2019-2023. Even though the UME has been declared over, the population continues to struggle with fewer new calves being reported and many whales being seen in poor body condition. The current population is now estimated to be around 13,000, down from a peak of 27,000 in 2016, but many of the “Sounders” appear to have survived thanks to the reliable food supply they have found here.
Welcome the Whales will kick off at 5-7 p.m. on Friday, April 10, with a Whale and Marine Mammal Trivia Night hosted at Thirsty Crab Brewery in Clinton. This free, family-friendly event, hosted by Tabitha Jacobs-Mangiafico, supports Orca Network’s education and advocacy work.
At 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 11 at the Langley United Methodist Church (Third Street and Anthes Avenue), parade preparations are open to all to join in costume-making, face painting and children’s activities. The Whale and Critter Parade in downtown Langley will stage beginning at 1:15 pm at the Whidbey Center for the Arts parking lot (Sixth Street and Camano Avenue) and begin at 2 p.m., following Cascade Avenue and First Street. All are welcome to walk in the parade; no vehicles larger than golf carts are permitted.
Parade participants are encouraged to wear costumes from home or from the costume-making party. A limited number of costumes are also available to check out prior to the parade from a booth in the staging area and may be returned to Langley Whale Center afterward. The parade concludes at the Waterfront “Whale Bell” Park on First Street and will be followed immediately by a Whale Welcome Celebration featuring music, short presentations and a waterside ceremony, while watching for gray whales in Saratoga Passage.
The Langley Whale Center at 105 Anthes will be open from 11 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday with displays about gray whales, staffed by Orca Network and Whale Center docents.
At 11 am on Sunday, April 12, a special screening of the new documentary “The Way of the Whale” will be shown at the Clyde Theater in Langley, featuring a virtual Q&A with filmmaker Franco Campos-Lopez Benyunes afterward. The film follows the gray whale migration from San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja to the arctic, including the Sounders gray whales’ detour into Puget Sound, and explores the relationship between the whales, humans and the changing climate.
Tickets are $16, available at the door or for early purchase at https://givebutter.com/The_Way_of_the_Whale_ticket.
The festival concludes on Sunday with a fundraising boat trip with Puget Sound Express, departing Langley Marina at 3 p.m. to look for gray whales (register for the trip at https://givebutter.com/welcome-the-whales-boat-trip-copy-bold7w).
For nearly 25 years, Orca Network has been connecting people and whales of the Pacific Northwest, through their Whale Sighting Network, Langley Whale Center, Central Puget Sound Marine Mammal Stranding Network and a wide variety of education programs. Anyone who sees a wild whale is encouraged to report it to sightings@orcanetwork.org or by calling 866 ORCANET (672-2638). Sounders Gray Whale ID Guides and symbolic adoptions are available for purchase at the Langley Whale Center or at the webshop at www.orcanetwork.org/webshop/mmdigital-products.
Welcome the Whales 2026 is sponsored by Whidbey Telecom, Gray Whale Gin, Music for the Eyes, Flying Bear Farm and Whidbey Island Kayaking.
For more information about Welcome the Whales weekend or Orca Network’s Whale Sighting Network, visit our website at www.OrcaNetwork.org or contact Cindy Hansen at cindy@orcanetwork.org.
