Grab your binoculars, pull on your rain pants and get ready to watch the majestic migration of thousands of gray whales.

This winter, migrating gray whales will once again pass along the Oregon coast, where visitors and volunteer whale spotters will gather together to celebrate the annual Winter Whale Watch Week.

The five-day event is organized by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and will run from Dec. 27 to 31, 2019, when some 20,000 gray whales are expected to pass the coast as they head south to their warmer breeding grounds near Baja, Mexico.

The parks department will staff trained volunteers at 24 designated whale watching locations all along the coast, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on each of the five days of the event, to help with whale sightings and to educate visitors.

For those who want a closer look, whale watching tours operate year-round out of Depoe Bay (weather permitting), which also home of the coast’s official Whale Watching Center.

The gray whales will pass again in late March, as they head north to feeding grounds off the shore of Alaska. The parks department will host Spring Whale Watch Week from March 21 to 29, 2020.

Spotting gray whales takes patience. Not every trip to the coast will guarantee a sighting, but the experience of seeing the huge, graceful animals in the open ocean is unforgettable. If you’re looking for a good place to see the migrating whales, or need some tips on how to spot them, check out our previous coverage:

How to see whales on the Oregon coast

6 spectacular whale watching spots in Oregon

Whales you can see in the Pacific Northwest, and how to identify them

30 reasons to love the Oregon coast in the winter

--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB