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!

KIng Tides this weekend, and Happy Thanksgiving to US sailors at sea for the holiday

Today we take a look at the upcoming King Tides starting tomorrow, and wish our best to passing ships with US sailors on board, who will be away from home for one of the biggest holidays of the year.
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Rescue on the high seas

Today, another look at the Golden Globe round-the-world sailing race, after a dramatic rescue of one solo sailor by another, 450 miles offshore.
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Another look at ship operating costs

A deeper look at how much it costs to run a ship, and a correction. We'll take a dive into the astronomical amounts of fuel and money it takes to run a ship per year.
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Arctic melting leaves Canada vulnerable

Today, a look at how melting ice in the Arctic is posing national security issues for Canada, as more and more ships traverse the Northwest Passage across the top of the world.
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Golden Globe Race update: one participant makes a surprising decision

Today we take a look at the progess of the Golden Globe solo round the world race, and the extraordinary decision one of the sailors made this week.
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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

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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

A look at the weather

We've got seasonal weather coming in and so today we take a look at the weather, the Beaufort Wind Scale and why Small Craft Advisories pose problems for smaller boats.
Listen

KIng Tides this weekend, and Happy Thanksgiving to US sailors at sea for the holiday

Today we take a look at the upcoming King Tides starting tomorrow, and wish our best to passing ships with US sailors on board, who will be away from home for one of the biggest holidays of the year.
Listen

Rescue on the high seas

Today, another look at the Golden Globe round-the-world sailing race, after a dramatic rescue of one solo sailor by another, 450 miles offshore.
Listen

Another look at ship operating costs

A deeper look at how much it costs to run a ship, and a correction. We'll take a dive into the astronomical amounts of fuel and money it takes to run a ship per year.
Listen

Arctic melting leaves Canada vulnerable

Today, a look at how melting ice in the Arctic is posing national security issues for Canada, as more and more ships traverse the Northwest Passage across the top of the world.
Listen

10-Minute Ship Reports: Monday through Thursday, featuring  Daily Ship Traffic, Marine Weather, News and Interviews Ship Report Minutes:  On Fridays, where we answer listener questions. Short and sweet!

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. Soon after this signal, you’ll see the pilot launch Arrow II head out to a passing ship, to facilitate the transfer of bar and river pilots.