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!

The Columbia River: a salt water wedge estuary

Today we continue our series about the Columbia River. Today's topic: the fact that our lower river is called a "salt water wedge estuary." We'll talk about what that means, and why marine pilots consider it one of the river's many quirks that they need to take into...

More about the Columbia: Its massive riverflow packs a big punch

This week we're talking about the Columbia River, and focusing on a different aspect of the river each day. Today we'll talk about all that water that flows by our doorsteps every day. We'll do a few comparisons that may help you understand how massive and formidable...

A brief history of the Columbia River

Today I thought we might start a weeklong look at the Columbia River starting today with a brief overview of river history.

Who’s on the river today? And, our change in the weather could include snow

We'll take a look at ships traveling on the river today, talk about cargo and why some ships anchor at both ends instead of just at the bow. We'll also talk a little about what might be in store, in terms of snow on the coast, over the next few days.

More on the critical skills mariners and first responders need to have

Today, we'll talk a little more about the critical skills and talents that mariners and first responders need to have, all part of the broad umbrella of skills that comrise situational awareness.

Columbia River Ship Traffic

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
Tsunami
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.

The Ship Report
Ship Report Podcasts

The Columbia River: a salt water wedge estuary

Today we continue our series about the Columbia River. Today's topic: the fact that our lower river is called a "salt water wedge estuary." We'll talk about what that means, and why marine pilots consider it one of the river's many quirks that they need to take into...

More about the Columbia: Its massive riverflow packs a big punch

This week we're talking about the Columbia River, and focusing on a different aspect of the river each day. Today we'll talk about all that water that flows by our doorsteps every day. We'll do a few comparisons that may help you understand how massive and formidable...

A brief history of the Columbia River

Today I thought we might start a weeklong look at the Columbia River starting today with a brief overview of river history.

Who’s on the river today? And, our change in the weather could include snow

We'll take a look at ships traveling on the river today, talk about cargo and why some ships anchor at both ends instead of just at the bow. We'll also talk a little about what might be in store, in terms of snow on the coast, over the next few days.

More on the critical skills mariners and first responders need to have

Today, we'll talk a little more about the critical skills and talents that mariners and first responders need to have, all part of the broad umbrella of skills that comrise situational awareness.

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
“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.