The Ship Report

I always like talking about this ship, because of her unique job and the role she plays in keeping people safe in a challenging part of the world. The USCG icebreaker Polar Star is a ship specially designed to handle difficult conditions that would sink most vessels. She’s an older ship, but well maintained, and […] The post Polar Star returns from Antarctica appeared first on The Ship Report.

Today we talk about the weather – always a fascinating topic in our coastal region. And some interesting details about today’s arriving ships. The post Weather and some ship talk appeared first on The Ship Report.

A few things today: a closer look at our cruise ship du jour in Astoria, a look at ships coming and going, and a reminder of how ships at anchor let us know what the tide is doing. The post Norwegian Jade in town, and a look at tides and ships appeared first on The Ship Report.

The second cruise ship of the season comes to Astoria on Thursday, and it’s a good opportunity to talk more about these big ships, carrying many passengers, and what Astoria will see here as we move through the season. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons: Abxbay, CC BY-SA 3.0 The post Second cruise ship of the season comes to Astoria Thursday appeared first on The Ship Report.

We have an unusual spring snow storm on the way in the Cascades starting today, and colder than usual weather for the coast too. We’ll talk about how conditions up north allowed this cold air to flow down to us, and create winter like conditions in the middle of April. The post Cold weather on the way appeared first on The Ship Report.

So many times over the years I have said on this show that a ship is headed for “the shipyard at Swan Island.” Today we’ll take a closer look at that facility, who owns it, and why it has, for many years, been a great place to take a ship that is in need of […] The post The shipyard at Swan Island appeared first on The Ship Report.

Today the Nieuw Amsterdam, a 1000-foot long cruise ship arriving from San Diego, is the first blue water cruise ship to call on Astoria in 2026. She’ll head for British Columbia when she leaves here. Today we’ll talk about Astoria’s cruise ship visitors and why they tend to arrive in spring and fall. We’ll also […] The post First cruise ship for the Astoria season appeared first on The Ship Report.

Today we’ll talk about a common occurrence on the river that can affect sea state and make it more turbulent to be out there in a smaller vessel: a west wind and an ebb tide. Understanding how to predict such conditions and plan for them is part of being a knowledgeable and safe mariner on […] The post Of ebb tides and west winds appeared first on The Ship Report.

Today we’ll talk about the fate of decommissioned ships. We have one on the river now, the USNS Watkins, which arrived yesterday headed to Vancouver. She’ll be decommissioned, or taken out of service, in July. We’ll talk about what’s next for her. The post What does it mean to decommission a ship? appeared first on The Ship Report.

Note: I’m publishing this podcast a day early because this ship will be arriving in the river around 8:30am Monday, and that’s before the show airs on KMUN. This ship is a US Military Sealift Command ship, designed to be a vehicle carrier, a type of ship referred to a as RO/RO – Roll on, […] The post USNS Watkins, a Military Sealift Command ship, enters the river Monday appeared first on The Ship Report.

Yesterday we had some squalls blow through our area, bringing with them heavy rain, wind and fog. While we on land were turning our wipers on high or clutching our coats a little tighter, or just staying in, mariners were working as usual – just another day at the “office.” The post Mariners keep working even in bad weather appeared first on The Ship Report.

Today we’ll look at a variety of things: weather, ship traffic and cargo – specifically scrap metal which travels by ship and barge on the river. The post Who’s on the river today, a bit about arriving weather, and scrap metal on the Columbia and where it goes appeared first on The Ship Report.

Most locals, if asked this question, could tell you that the Columbia River Bar is where the river meets the ocean. But if you look into the particulars, where the bar is exactly depends on who’s describing it. The Columbia bar is unique among river bars. So among maritime professionals the exact parameters can vary. […] The post Where exactly is the Columbia River Bar? appeared first on The Ship Report.

Today in honor of our marine weather forecast, which suggests strongly that we could have gale force winds on the way, let’s take another look at one of my favorites: the Beaufort Wind Scale. The post What does it mean when the weather is “blowing a gale”? A look at the Beaufort Wind Scale appeared first on The Ship Report.

I got a listener question about marine weather forecasts and why they specify the number of miles offshore the forecast covers. We’ll talk about that today. The post Marine weather forecasts, explained (a little) appeared first on The Ship Report.

Tomorrow I’ll be giving a talk at the Seaside Brewing Co. at 851 Broadway in Seaside at 6 pm. I’ll be talking about a 10-day Pacific Northwest voyage at sea that I took in 2010 on a gypsum carrier sailing out of Rainier on the Columbia, up to Puget Sound and south to San Francisco. […] The post History and Hops – a Ship Report talk in Seaside on Thursday appeared first on The Ship Report.

Last Friday was the spring equinox, and it’s evident that days are indeed getting longer. Today we’ll take a look at how that all works and why the days get longer now and shorter later in the year. And when is the equinox anyway? Turns out it can change from year to year. The post As the days grow longer – a look at the equinox and what it means appeared first on The Ship Report.