Current weather forecasts indicate that it will be a partly cloudy weekend in Langley – with a strong chance of seeing costumed marchers Saturday in the annual Welcome the Whales parade.

For over 20 years, South Whidbey residents have been celebrating the return of the “Sounders,” a group of gray whales who divert from their northern migration along the Washington coast each spring to visit Whidbey, where they feast on plentiful ghost shrimp. A South Whidbey Record story from 2004 documented the first ever Welcome the Whales event.

According to a press release from the Orca Network, this year’s festivities span three days, kicking off this Friday, April 11, with a Whale and Marine Mammal Trivia Night hosted at Thirsty Crab Brewery in Clinton, 5-7 p.m. The free, family-friendly event will feature four rounds of engaging questions, and one dollar from every beverage sold will go to Orca Network.

The fun continues the next day, Saturday, April 12, with an opportunity to make costumes at 11 a.m. at the Langley United Methodist Church. There will also be hands-on educational displays, face painting and children’s activities. Staging for the parade begins at 1:30 p.m. in the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts parking lot.

Can’t attend the costume-making party? Borrow a costume from a booth in the parade’s staging area and return it later to the Langley Whale Center. Cindy Hansen of the Orca Network said there are a number of animal costumes available to be checked out, including a few orcas and dolphins and a ghost shrimp. There are also sea life hats and butterfly wings.

At 2 p.m., the parade will proceed down Cascade Avenue and First Street. It ends at the waterfront Whale Bell Park, followed immediately by a celebration featuring music, short presentations and a waterside ceremony. Keep your eyes peeled for any sight of the Sounders. The Langley Whale Center will be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. that day with displays about gray whales.

Visit the Whale Center the next day, Sunday, April 13, at noon for a special presentation, “Gray Whale Chronicles: Past and Present Stories from the Field,” led by Jim Darling, who has been studying seasonal resident gray whales off the west coast of Vancouver Island since the 1970s, and John Calambokidis, who founded Cascadia Research Collective in 1979 and has documented the Sounders since their arrival in north Puget Sound in 1990. For those who can’t be there in person, virtual attendance is also an option. Register for the webinar at https://givebutter.com/0pXScK.

Lastly, board the Puget Sound Express at 3 p.m. at the Langley marina for a whale-watching trip. As of Monday, Hansen said there were still many tickets available. Visit https://givebutter.com/UxhTlZ to purchase yours.

According to a press release, 10 Sounders have been confirmed in North Puget Sound by Orca Network’s Whale Sighting Network and Cascadia Research Collective. An eleventh gray whale has been seen off the northwest coast of Whidbey Island this year for the second spring in a row, but has not traveled south around Possession Point to join the Sounders.

(Photo by S. Tierra) CRC 53 “Little Patch” shows his face while surfacing in Saratoga Passage.