Every November, Florence throws a party for a dead whale, and the whale has never once been able to attend in one piece. This year marks 56 years since the Oregon State Highway Division packed half a ton of dynamite against a rotting sperm whale on the beach near this central Oregon Coast town and turned it into weather. The anniversary weekend runs Nov. 14 and 15, 2026, with screenings of the short documentary Oh Whale at City Lights Cinemas and a free open-house celebration in Old Town Florence on Sunday afternoon.
The guest of honor among the living is Paul Linnman, the KATU reporter whose 1970 story made the blast famous long after the smell faded. He’s scheduled to meet fans, sign autographs, and take questions at the theater on Saturday, then return for more of the same on Sunday. Throw in a Portland band called The Exploding Whales, a community memorial you’re invited to add to, and a toast to the whale at 3:45 p.m., and you have one of the stranger and more cheerful weekends on the coast this fall.
Your weekend at a glance
- What: The 56th anniversary of Florence’s exploding whale, with a documentary screening and the Exploding Whale Memorial Celebration
- Where: Florence, on the central Oregon Coast at the mouth of the Siuslaw River
- Saturday, Nov. 14: Oh Whale at City Lights Cinemas, 1930 Highway 101, at 5:15 and 6 p.m.
- Sunday, Nov. 15: Oh Whale at City Lights Cinemas at 11:30 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.
- Sunday, Nov. 15, noon to 4 p.m.: Exploding Whale Memorial Celebration at Bridgeport Market, 75 Harbor St., in Old Town Florence
- Key times Sunday: Exploding Whale Awards at 2:30 p.m., toast to the whale at 3:45 p.m.
- Cost: The Sunday celebration is free. Movie tickets are sold by City Lights Cinemas (info line 541-305-0014). Siuslaw Pioneer Museum admission is $7 for adults 16 and older and free for kids 15 and under with an adult.
- Special guest: Former KATU reporter Paul Linnman, at the theater Saturday and the celebration Sunday
- Dress code: Whale costumes encouraged
- Event info: xplodingwhale.com, or BeauxArts Fine Art Materials at 541-991-8213
What happened on Nov. 12, 1970
The whale, a sperm whale about 45 feet long and roughly 8 tons, washed up near Florence’s South Jetty on Nov. 9, 1970. Oregon beaches were under the Highway Division’s jurisdiction back then, which is how a road agency ended up in the whale disposal business. The plan, as it’s been retold for decades, was to blast the carcass into pieces small enough for gulls and other scavengers to clean up. Engineer George Thornton’s crew settled on 20 cases of dynamite, about half a ton.
Not everyone on the beach loved the math. Walter Umenhofer, a businessman from the Eugene-Springfield area with military explosives training, later said he warned Thornton that the charge was all wrong, according to Offbeat Oregon’s account of the day. The crew moved spectators back about a quarter mile and detonated the charge at 3:45 p.m. on Nov. 12. Chunks of whale flew up to about 800 feet, and a lot of the carcass stayed right where it was, leaving highway workers to clean up the rest the old-fashioned way.
Umenhofer’s car got the worst of it. He’d parked a brand-new Oldsmobile, bought days earlier at Dunham Oldsmobile in Eugene during a “whale of a deal” sales promotion, and a falling slab of blubber caved in the roof. He told Eugene Register-Guard columnist Bob Welch in 2008 that the state paid him the car’s full value, $7,000, within two days, according to a transcription of the column. Spectators also got splattered, though no one was seriously hurt.
KATU cameraman Doug Brazil filmed the whole thing for Linnman’s report, and Linnman’s script is the reason anyone remembers the alliteration. He described the blast as having “blasted blubber beyond all believable bounds.” The footage got a second life in 1990, when humorist Dave Barry wrote about it in his Miami Herald column, and then a third as an early internet video. For a deeper look at the blast itself, our story on Oregon’s 1970 exploding whale walks through the footage.
Florence isn’t the only one still dining out on the blast. Our Exploding Whale Tee, with a whale, a retro sunburst, and the words “Never Forget Exploding Whale Day, 1970, Florence, Oregon” across the chest, is one of the most popular designs That Oregon Life has ever made, and we have no shame about mentioning it here. It comes in Heather Dust or Black for $34.95, and it’s the rare piece of whale-themed costume you can also wear to the grocery store on Monday.
Saturday: Oh Whale and the man who told the story
The weekend opens at City Lights Cinemas, Florence’s independent theater on Highway 101, with Oh Whale, a short documentary that follows Linnman, the town, and the story that ended up defining his career. The film has been making the festival rounds, so a screening in the town where it all happened is a good excuse to see it. Showtimes are 5:15 and 6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14, with two more Sunday at 11:30 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.
Linnman is scheduled to be on hand to meet fans, sign autographs, and do a Q&A. The theater’s listing doesn’t say which of the four screenings he’ll attend, though event organizers and local coverage tie his theater appearance to Saturday. If meeting him is the main reason you’re going, pick a Saturday show and call the City Lights info line at 541-305-0014 to confirm, which is also the way to check ticket prices.
Sunday: The Exploding Whale Memorial Celebration
The main event moves this year to Bridgeport Market at 75 Harbor St., along the Siuslaw River in Old Town Florence and near the Port of Siuslaw boardwalk. It runs from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 15, it’s free, and it works like an open house, so you can wander in whenever. Organizers bill it as family friendly and “a little quirky,” which may be the most restrained description of a whale-explosion party ever written.
Representatives from the American Cetacean Society will be there to talk about the living kind of whale, and marine-themed artists and vendors will set up alongside them. Portland band The Exploding Whales will play, and Linnman is scheduled to return for more conversations and autographs. The Exploding Whale Awards are set for 2:30 p.m. Organizers also note that the event will be filmed and photographed, so plan your costume accordingly.
Bring a small memento or offering for the community memorial art installation, which grows through the afternoon as people add to it and lights up as the day winds down. The toast to the whale is at 3:45 p.m., the same time of day the dynamite went off in 1970. Whale costumes are encouraged, and it’s hard to imagine a crowd more likely to appreciate a good one.
See the bones and visit the park
The Siuslaw Pioneer Museum, at 278 Maple St. on the corner of Second and Maple in Old Town, has an Exploding Whale exhibit with actual bones from the 1970 whale, plus the museum’s regular displays on Florence history. The museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m., which overlaps exactly with Sunday’s celebration. If you want both, see the bones first and save the last hour for the toast. Regular admission is $7 for adults 16 and up, and kids 15 and under get in free with an adult.
Exploding Whale Memorial Park, at 612 Rhododendron Drive, is a small city park on the north bank of the Siuslaw River with a picnic shelter, a grassy lawn, a short path to the water, and views of the Siuslaw River Bridge and the dunes across the river. The city opened it in May 2019 as the Siuslaw River Beach Access Park, then let residents rename it. “Exploding Whale Memorial Park” took 439 of 856 votes, Eugene Weekly reported, and no other option came close. The park isn’t the beach where the whale landed, but it’s the town’s permanent nod to it, and the picnic shelter makes it a decent stop even on a damp day.
Plan your visit
Florence sits on Highway 101 on the central Oregon Coast, where Highway 126 from Eugene meets the coast. City Lights Cinemas is on Highway 101 at 1930, while Bridgeport Market and the Pioneer Museum are both in Old Town near the river, and the memorial park is off Rhododendron Drive. Mid-November on the coast can mean rain and wind, so plan the Sunday celebration as a come-and-go stop rather than an all-afternoon commitment if the weather turns.
For questions about the celebration or sponsoring next year’s event, organizers point people to BeauxArts Fine Art Materials at 541-991-8213 or WhaleGoBoom97439@gmail.com. The shop, at 2285 Highway 101, Suite H, sells Exploding Whale merch year-round, with proceeds going to youth art scholarships and people in crisis. If you’re turning the trip into a longer stay, our Florence travel guide and the Oregon Coast map cover the rest of the area.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Exploding Whale Day in Florence in 2026?
The 56th anniversary celebration runs Nov. 14 and 15, 2026. Saturday has Oh Whale screenings at City Lights Cinemas, and the free Exploding Whale Memorial Celebration is Sunday, Nov. 15, from noon to 4 p.m. at Bridgeport Market.
Does the Exploding Whale celebration cost anything?
The Sunday celebration at Bridgeport Market is free. The Oh Whale screenings are ticketed through City Lights Cinemas, and the Siuslaw Pioneer Museum charges its regular $7 adult admission.
Will Paul Linnman be at the Florence celebration?
Yes. Paul Linnman, who reported the 1970 blast for KATU, is scheduled to sign autographs and take questions at City Lights Cinemas on Saturday and to appear again at the Sunday celebration at Bridgeport Market.
Where can you see bones from the exploding whale?
The Siuslaw Pioneer Museum at 278 Maple St. in Florence has bones from the 1970 whale in its Exploding Whale exhibit. The museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.
Where is Exploding Whale Memorial Park?
Exploding Whale Memorial Park is at 612 Rhododendron Drive in Florence, on the north side of the Siuslaw River. The city park has a picnic shelter, a lawn, river access, and views of the Siuslaw River Bridge and the dunes.
How much dynamite did Oregon use on the whale?
The Oregon State Highway Division used 20 cases of dynamite, about half a ton, on Nov. 12, 1970. The blast threw pieces of the whale up to about 800 feet and crushed the roof of a spectator’s new car.
