Dirty Freehub

This is The Connection, a Dirty Freehub podcast connecting gravel cyclists to where they ride through short stories about culture, history, people, places, and lands. The following segment comes from a live conversation between our guest Michael Milstein of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Dirty Freehub. We’ve shaped this interview into this format so it’s easier to listen and enjoy while keeping the guests ideas and perspective at the center.

SPEAKER 2

Welcome, everyone, to the Deep Dive. Today, we’re jumping into something truly magnificent. We are. The incredible world of whales right off the Oregon coast. And look, this isn’t just about, you know, spotting them. We want to understand their epic lives, their history, the vital role they play. OK, let’s unpack this.

SPEAKER 1

It’s a great topic. And what’s fascinating here is how much the Oregon coast really reveals about these incredible animals. Right. So in this deep dive, we’ll explore the best times to see them, the science behind those huge migrations. Huge, right. Some really amazing conservation successes, but also, yeah, some serious challenges they’re facing now.

SPEAKER 2

So it’s kind of a journey into marine life just through the lens of Oregon’s waters.

SPEAKER 1

Exactly. Our mission for you, the listener, is to get a deeper appreciation for these giants, understand the forces shaping their lives, and, you know, figure out how we can all help ensure their future, making you well informed about the deep secrets of the Pacific.

SPEAKER 2

Okay, let’s dive right in then. The big question first. If I want to see a whale off the Oregon coast, when’s the absolute best time? Are there like special windows?

SPEAKER 1

There absolutely are. And it really centers on the gray whale migration. We’re, well, incredibly lucky in Oregon. We’re positioned right on their migratory superhighway. And it’s a pretty healthy population passing by.

SPEAKER 2

OK.

SPEAKER 1

So, yeah, most people hear about whale watching here at two main times of year, both linked directly to this journey.

SPEAKER 2

Makes sense. Tell us about that journey.

SPEAKER 1

Well, the gray whale’s migration, it’s actually one of the longest for any mammal. We’re talking 13,000, maybe 14,000 miles every single year.

SPEAKER 2

Thirteen to fourteen thousand miles.

SPEAKER 1

Yep. They travel from the warm lagoons down in Mexico way up north to the Arctic to feed all summer.

SPEAKER 2

OK.

SPEAKER 1

And then they turn around and head back south again for the winter. So the whole population passes Oregon twice a year.

SPEAKER 2

Right. Coming and going.

SPEAKER 1

Exactly. Northbound heading towards the Arctic. The peak time to see them off Oregon is usually around late March.

SPEAKER 2

Late March. Got it.

SPEAKER 1

Then on their way back south to Mexico, you know, for calving, the peak viewing is generally late December or maybe into January.

SPEAKER 2

OK, winter and spring, basically.

SPEAKER 1

Pretty much. And here’s something really cool about gray whales.

SPEAKER 2

Yeah.

SPEAKER 1

Their existence today, it’s a major conservation success story. I mean, these whales, like so many others, were hunted relentlessly, almost wiped out.

SPEAKER 2

I know the wheeling history is brutal.

SPEAKER 1

It is. But through protection, international agreements, they rebounded. So, well, in fact, they were taken off the endangered species list back in 1994. That’s fantastic.

SPEAKER 2

1994, a real comeback.

SPEAKER 1

It truly is, shows what can be done.

SPEAKER 2

So if you’re out there during those peak times, late March or late December, what are you actually looking for?

SPEAKER 1

Good question. Often the first thing you’ll spot isn’t the whale itself, but its blow. The spout? Exactly. That puff of vapor and water, they exhale, it can hang in the air for a bit, and you can see it from quite a distance.

SPEAKER 2

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER 1

Oregon State Parks are great for this. Lots of overlooks with good views, and during those peak weeks, they often have volunteers out there.

SPEAKER 2

It’s all helpful. Yeah, like the Whale Watch Week program, folks. They help you spot them and tell you more about what you’re seeing. Really useful.

SPEAKER 1

Seen that whole population pass by twice a year. Just incredible. But hang on, does every single gray whale make that massive trip or do some, you know, stay put?

SPEAKER 2

That’s a really sharp question. And no, surprisingly, not all of them do the full round trip.

SPEAKER 1

Really?

SPEAKER 2

Yeah. There are actually several hundred resident gray whales. They basically decide not to go all the way to the Arctic.

SPEAKER 1

So where do they hang out?

SPEAKER 2

They spend much of the summer right here off the Oregon Central Coast. especially around places like Depot Bay. Depot Bay, OK. These residents, you can often see them feeding pretty close to shore. They’ve essentially, well, figured out there’s enough good food locally. What kind of food? Things like ghost shrimp, other little critters living in the seafloor sediment, enough to sustain them without that huge energy cost of migrating thousands of miles north.

SPEAKER 1

Wow, that’s smart. Ecological flexibility, you could call it.

SPEAKER 2

Precisely. It’s a fascinating adaptation. OK, so it’s definitely not just gray whales. And not just during migration season. What else might you see out there, especially in summer when most migrating greys are gone?

SPEAKER 1

Right. Oregon’s coast is much richer than just the gray whale highway. In summer, for instance, you can often spot humpback whales.

SPEAKER 2

The reaching ones?

SPEAKER 1

Yep. Famous for their acrobatics. You also see orcas, both the transient type that hunt seals and sea lions, and sometimes, though it’s rarer, the endangered southern resident orcas that primarily eat salmon.

SPEAKER 2

OK. Orcas too. Anyone else?

SPEAKER 1

If you’re really lucky, or maybe further offshore, you might see fin whales, which are huge, second only to blues, and even sperm whales.

SPEAKER 2

A whole ecosystem out there.

SPEAKER 1

Definitely. And you know, many of these species, just like the greys, were also hunted almost to extinction.

SPEAKER 2

Right. The same history applies.

SPEAKER 1

But their story is also one of recovery, largely thanks to a really important piece of legislation. The Marine Mammal Protection Act, the MMPA, passed back in the 1970s.

SPEAKER 2

Yes, the MMPA. Crucial.

SPEAKER 1

absolutely critical. It basically said marine mammals have a right to exist in the ocean and need protection. It stopped the take the hunting harassing capturing and set up management plans.

SPEAKER 2

And it worked.

SPEAKER 1

It had a massive impact a really profound positive impact. It led to a significant rebound in populations for many species.

SPEAKER 2

So there are more whales now than say a century ago.

SPEAKER 1

It’s very likely yes. many more whales off the West Coast, including Oregon, than there have been in probably a century or more before intense whaling really took hold. That’s amazing. So when you visit an overlook or go on a whale watching trip, you’re not just hoping for a sighting. You’re actually supporting coastal communities that value these animals, communities that are allies in conservation.

SPEAKER 2

That’s a great point. OK, let’s dig a bit deeper into the why of it all. Why do gray whales bother with that huge 13,000 mile trip? What’s the payoff?

SPEAKER 1

It really comes down to, well, energy and survival. Food and babies, basically.

SPEAKER 2

The essential.

SPEAKER 1

Exactly. They go all the way to the Arctic because it’s an incredibly rich feeding area. The way the sea ice expands and contracts there, it fuels huge productivity. Tons of the little bottom dwelling things grey whales eat. Amphipods and things. The amphipods, other small crustaceans, their feeding method is unique too. They dive down, roll on their side, suck up big mouthfuls of mud and sand.

SPEAKER 2

Sounds messy.

SPEAKER 1

It is. Then they use their baleen plates, those fibrous things hanging from their upper jaw, kind of like a giant sieve.

SPEAKER 2

made of keratin, like fingernails, right?

SPEAKER 1

Exactly like fingernails. They push the water and mud out through the baleen, and it traps all those tiny food organisms. It takes a lot of energy, but they get enough calories to fuel that long journey back south.

SPEAKER 2

OK, so Arctic is for feeding. Then why Mexico?

SPEAKER 1

Mexico, specifically the warm, shallow, protected coastal lagoons in Baja. That’s for the calves.

SPEAKER 2

Nurseries.

SPEAKER 1

Perfect nurseries. Relatively safe from predators like killer whales. Mothers spend months there just nursing their young, letting them grow strong before they have to make the trip north.

SPEAKER 2

Makes sense. Food in the north, safety in the south.

SPEAKER 1

That’s the essence of it. And of course, those lagoons are now a big draw for tourists and researchers, too. Right.

SPEAKER 2

But you mentioned challenges earlier. It’s not all smooth sailing, even with the MMPA.

SPEAKER 1

No, unfortunately not. Around 2019, scientists started noticing something worrying. An unusual mortality event or UME.

SPEAKER 2

A UME. What does that mean?

SPEAKER 1

It means a significant increase in strandings whales washing ashore, dead or dying. And many of these gray whales were disturbingly skinny, emaciated. Oh no. Starving. That was the primary concern, that they weren’t finding enough food or maybe easily accessible food up in the Arctic. So they were basically running out of gas on the migration.

SPEAKER 2

That’s awful. Is this new?

SPEAKER 1

While gray whales have gone through these boom and bust cycles before, their food sources can fluctuate naturally. There was a similar decline around the year 2000.

SPEAKER 2

OK.

SPEAKER 1

But this current UME feels more concerning because the population hasn’t bounced back as quickly this time.

SPEAKER 2

How bad is the drop?

SPEAKER 1

It’s significant. The population was estimated at maybe 25,000 to 27,000 at its recent peak. The latest counts are closer to 13,000.

SPEAKER 2

Wow, that’s nearly halved.

SPEAKER 1

It’s a major drop. Scientists are watching it very closely. They have counting stations, especially down in California, tracking the numbers as they migrate past. It’s definitely an ongoing story and a concerning one.

None
13,000.

SPEAKER 2

Yeah. That really puts those strandings into perspective. So when a whale does strand, what actually happens? What can we learn from that?

SPEAKER 1

When any marine mammal strands, it activates the West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network.

SPEAKER 2

A network. Who’s in it?

SPEAKER 1

It’s a collaboration. Museums, aquariums, government agencies, nonprofits. Each group covers a section of the coast.

SPEAKER 2

OK. And what do they do?

SPEAKER 1

Their first job is response. Get to the animal, assess the situation, gather information, take measurements, and, if possible and safe, they perform a necropsy.

SPEAKER 2

The animal autopsy you mentioned.

SPEAKER 1

Exactly. They carefully examine the carcass inside and out looking for clues about why it died.

SPEAKER 2

Like CSI for whales.

SPEAKER 1

Kind of. Yeah. It’s like solving a mystery. They look for things like hemorrhaging blood which might point to a ship strike or signs of entanglement disease malnutrition. Every bit of data helps scientists understand the threats the whole population faces and what might be needed for recovery.

SPEAKER 2

Do you have personal experience with this?

SPEAKER 1

I do, actually. I was fortunate enough, in a way, to witness a humpback whale necropsy on the Oregon coast a couple of years back.

SPEAKER 2

What was that like?

SPEAKER 1

It was a younger whale, and surprisingly, it was in good physical condition, which itself was interesting, didn’t seem starved.

SPEAKER 2

So what did they learn?

SPEAKER 1

Well, in that specific case, the exact cause wasn’t immediately obvious, but it still provided invaluable baseline data on a healthy young humpback. It raises that important point. Every stranding, sad as it is, gives us critical information. It builds the picture.

SPEAKER 2

That scientific dedication is incredible. OK, bring it back to us, the listeners. What can we do? If you love the Oregon coast, if you love these animals, how can you help?

SPEAKER 1

Great question, because individual actions really do add up. First, the basics, right?

SPEAKER 2

Don’t litter.

SPEAKER 1

Definitely don’t litter. Manage your waste properly. Also, think about runoff things, like oil drips from cars getting into storm drains. That all ends up in the ocean. Simple things, but important. Very. But there’s something else maybe less obvious but really crucial.

SPEAKER 2

Yeah.

SPEAKER 1

Support the local coastal communities and the local fishing fleets. Buy local seafood. Support local businesses when you visit.

SPEAKER 2

How does buying local seafood help whales?

SPEAKER 1

Because fishermen are often the most important eyes and ears out there on the water.

SPEAKER 2

Ah, makes sense.

SPEAKER 1

They’re out there every day. They know these whales. They see changes in behavior. They care about the health of the ocean. It’s their livelihood. And frankly, they’re often the very first people to spot an injured or entangled whale that needs help.

SPEAKER 2

So they’re allies in conservation.

SPEAKER 1

Absolutely. Responsible fishermen don’t want to harm whales. By supporting their communities, you reinforce that shared value. We all want healthy whale populations. We all benefit from them being there. It empowers those frontline observers.

SPEAKER 2

That’s a really tangible connection. Buy local, help whales. It’s a powerful link. What an amazing journey we’ve covered today from these just epic migrations and the incredible rebound story.

SPEAKER 1

Yeah, the conservation success is key.

SPEAKER 2

to the really complex ongoing challenges these whales face now in a changing ocean. It shows their resilience, but also how much our actions matter.

SPEAKER 1

It really does. And what’s fascinating is how the story of these whales, the migrations, the recovery, the current UME struggle, it kind of holds a mirror up to our own understanding of how ecosystems work, how resilient they are. or aren’t.

SPEAKER 2

That’s a deep thought.

SPEAKER 1

Well, as we watch this gray whale population fluctuate, it really makes you think, doesn’t it? What does their ability to bounce back and now this current struggle tell us about the health of the wider ocean? And what’s our ongoing role? How much do human curiosity, science and conservation need to keep playing a part in making sure these giants are around for generations to come?

SPEAKER 2

A lot to think about. Thanks for this deep dive.

SPEAKER 1

My pleasure. It’s an important story unfolding right off our coast.

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