We’ve talked about the challenges of the area at the mouth of the river known as “The Bar,” and there’s always more to tell. Today we’ll learn about why this area where the river meets the sea has its own weather forecast and why.

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The USCG Cutter Steadfast was nicknamed “El Tiburon Blanco” by drug smugglers who were chagrined to find she and her intrepid crew were more than up to the challenge of catching them in the act. When she’s not cruising Pacific waters catching bad guys, she calls Astoria, Ore., home. 

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Next time you’re on a friend’s boat, impress them with your nautical know-how with these basic (but very salty-sounding) terms that every mariner knows. 

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What’s it like on board a ship? Today we take an audio stroll through the USCG Cutter Elm. Spoiler alert: there are lots of stairs involved. Good for keeping crew members fit at sea.

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The Coast Guard Cutter Elm is a buoy tender based in Astoria, Ore. Her mission is to repair navigational devices like buoys. Today we hear more from an officer on board about broken buoys and how they get repaired.

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The USCG Cutter Fir is now based in Astoria. She’s our new hometown buoy tender based at the Tongue Point Coast Guard station. To get here, she made a long journey that kept her crew for months at sea.

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On board the USCG Cutter Elm, a buoy tender now based in Astoria, Ore., one of the ship’s crew was recently honored with the title “Cutterman,” which honors his 20 years at sea in Coast Guard service.

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The recently renovated and refurbished USCG Cutter Elm arrived in Astoria Monday. She’s replacing a well known hometown ship here, the Fir. Both are buoy tenders, a specialized ship that installs and maintains navigation aides around the PNW. Which means she creates and monitors the markers, buoys and lights that create the water highway vessels rely on. Without cutters like the Elm, ships would not get very far in our waters.

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Today we’re talking about rip currents – areas at the beach where water is rushing at high speed out to sea. Learn how to read the water and save your life and the life of your loved ones.

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The commercial fishing industry is a huge economic driver on the coast. But most people don’t realize that the fresh-caught, wild fish we love so much is caught, for the most part, by small business owners, fishermen and women who go out in relatively small boats, catching fish and crab in horrible weather. Today’s show is about appreciating the people who catch our dinner.

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