The Ship Report is All Things Maritime!

Ship Report podcasts take you to a special corner of the world: the Mighty Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest. Nautical lore, news and info, mariner interviews, daily international ship traffic, and the inside scoop on our formidable marine weather. Join maritime journalist Joanne Rideout on the Ship Report, as we explore the fascinating nautical world, on the Upper Left Edge of Oregon and beyond.  The Ship Report is proud to celebrate 20 years on the air!

Do all big vessels take a pilot on board?

Today, a listener question about marine pilots: which ships take them and which don't? In the majority of cases, it's a matter of the law. And we certainly see a lot of local domestic vessels, like tugs and excursion vessels, and US-flagged river cruise ships, that...
More

A visitor asks about ships at anchor off Astoria

I got a question about ships at anchor off Astoria, one I've answered before... but it's always good to revisit these very visible and wonderfully local examples of "how things work" on the river. Today we'll talk about tides and their effects on anchored ships, and...
More

When is a sinking ship not a sinking ship? When she’s a split-hull hopper dredge

Today's riddle: When is a sinking ship not a sinking ship? In this case, this week on the lower Columbia, it's probably the split-hull hopper dredge Bayport, a ship that is designed to split in half without sinking.
More

The Pacific Tracker heads downriver today

Today we'll talk about what ships are traveling on the river today. Among them is the Pacific Tracker, a US military vessel that tracks missile testing in the North Pacific region.
More

A look at ship running lights: lights that are on at night

Today, an archive interview about ship running lights, featuring Capt. Robert Johnson, a now retired Columbia River Bar Pilot.
More

Columbia River Ship Traffic

GO
Approximate Vessel Travel Times
  • Portland/Vancouver -Astoria: 6-8 hours
  • Kalama -Astoria: 5 hours
  • Longview -Astoria: 3.5 hours
  • Columbia River Bar – Astoria: 1.5 hours
Times vary according to tidal conditions, current, weather, and individual vessel horsepower.
Water Speed & Currents

Curated Links

Arts
Local
Maritime
NOAA
Photos
Tsunami
Video
Tides

When’s High Tide where you are?  Find Tidal info at www.saltwatertides.com

Tide times are often listed in 24 hour time.  For times after noon, subtract 1200 from the time to get regular clock time. Ex: 1300 hrs – 1200 = 1:00 pm)

MLLW:  Also, tides are referenced to Mean Lower Low Water, a reference point for depth on many nautical charts. MLLW is the average of the lower of the two low tides in a day, over a 19-year cycle. Minus tides are lower than MLLW.

Adjustments: If you’re right on the coast, subtract an hour from these times. Upriver, highs and lows happen later. For instance, in Knappa, add an hour. In Clatskanie, add 2 hours and 15 minutes.

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Ship Report Podcasts

Do all big vessels take a pilot on board?

Today, a listener question about marine pilots: which ships take them and which don't? In the majority of cases, it's a matter of the law. And we certainly see a lot of local domestic vessels, like tugs and excursion vessels, and US-flagged river cruise ships, that...
Listen

A visitor asks about ships at anchor off Astoria

I got a question about ships at anchor off Astoria, one I've answered before... but it's always good to revisit these very visible and wonderfully local examples of "how things work" on the river. Today we'll talk about tides and their effects on anchored ships, and...
Listen

When is a sinking ship not a sinking ship? When she’s a split-hull hopper dredge

Today's riddle: When is a sinking ship not a sinking ship? In this case, this week on the lower Columbia, it's probably the split-hull hopper dredge Bayport, a ship that is designed to split in half without sinking.
Listen

The Pacific Tracker heads downriver today

Today we'll talk about what ships are traveling on the river today. Among them is the Pacific Tracker, a US military vessel that tracks missile testing in the North Pacific region.
Listen

A look at ship running lights: lights that are on at night

Today, an archive interview about ship running lights, featuring Capt. Robert Johnson, a now retired Columbia River Bar Pilot.
Listen

The Ship Report, the show about All Things Maritime, features maritime news and information, local and international, based in the Pacific Northwest in Astoria, Oregon. shipreport.net. Podcasts available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts

The Ship Report is also broadcast  Weekdays at 8:49 am on  KMUN Radio Astoria, Oregon

Columbia River Bar
Pacific NW Coast Bar Closure Info from NOAA.

Also on Facebook and Twitter (US Coast Guard).

“Pilot transfer” is when a pilot disembarks or boards a ship. Ships generally must by law have a river or bar pilot on board when they are on the Columbia or Willamette Rivers. The bar and river pilots have separate pilotage grounds defined by the Oregon Legislature.

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Meet Joanne Rideout
Producer Joanne Rideout is a journalist and photographer who created The Ship Report in 2003. Since then Joanne and has been interviewing, writing and photographing the maritime world and its interesting people as much as she possibly can.
Ship Horn Signals

Commonly Heard off Astoria

One prolonged blast every two minutes or less: vessel operating in fog.

Five consecutive horn blasts: warning signal that means literally “I do not know your intention.” This generally means another vessel is in the way of a ship in the channel, and is being asked to move before they collide.

Three short blasts: Vessel going in reverse

One long blast followed by three short: signal for the change of pilots.