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!

Ship speed: some factors that determine how fast ships go

Today, a look at ship speed, how fast they can go, why they choose to slow down sometimes, and how long it takes to get from one place to another at sea.
More

The Sand Plan: guidelines that address a fact of life on the Columbia, and that’s dredging

Each year, the US Army Corps of Engineers dredges tons and tons (and tons) of sand out of the river to keep the ship channel open and navigable. We all rely on it to receive the goods we need to live our lives. It's also a huge economic driver for the region. But the...
More

Boatlift: Recalling the maritime evacuation during 9/11 in Manhattan, which showed us the best we can be

Today, on the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on NYC and Washington, DC, we remember "Operation Boatlift": a stunning display of people helping people - as hundreds of private boat owners joined the US Coast Guard to evacuate stranded victims from...
More

Is summer gone for good with the arrival of this week’s rain? And a look at who’s on the river today.

A look at our evolving weather - is summer over? And a peek at local ship traffic, with an overview of the kinds of ships we see here on the Columbia.
More

Wheat R Us: our river system is the the nation’s single largest wheat export gateway

If you hear me talk a lot about wheat on the Ship Report, there's a good reason: most ships are carrying it. That's beause the Columbia-Snake River System is the nation's single largest wheat export gateway. That's a lot of wheat, and valuable commerce to drive the...
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.

The Ship Report
Read the Ship Report Blog
Ship Report Podcasts

Ship speed: some factors that determine how fast ships go

Today, a look at ship speed, how fast they can go, why they choose to slow down sometimes, and how long it takes to get from one place to another at sea.
Listen

The Sand Plan: guidelines that address a fact of life on the Columbia, and that’s dredging

Each year, the US Army Corps of Engineers dredges tons and tons (and tons) of sand out of the river to keep the ship channel open and navigable. We all rely on it to receive the goods we need to live our lives. It's also a huge economic driver for the region. But the...
Listen

Boatlift: Recalling the maritime evacuation during 9/11 in Manhattan, which showed us the best we can be

Today, on the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on NYC and Washington, DC, we remember "Operation Boatlift": a stunning display of people helping people - as hundreds of private boat owners joined the US Coast Guard to evacuate stranded victims from...
Listen

Is summer gone for good with the arrival of this week’s rain? And a look at who’s on the river today.

A look at our evolving weather - is summer over? And a peek at local ship traffic, with an overview of the kinds of ships we see here on the Columbia.
Listen

Wheat R Us: our river system is the the nation’s single largest wheat export gateway

If you hear me talk a lot about wheat on the Ship Report, there's a good reason: most ships are carrying it. That's beause the Columbia-Snake River System is the nation's single largest wheat export gateway. That's a lot of wheat, and valuable commerce to drive the...
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.

Ship's Store

FEATURED:

The Columbia River
Ship Report

Quick Guide
to Shipwatching

Shop Now
Follow The Ship Report
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.