Sep 14, 2023
Today an in-depth look at our daily ship schedule and marine weather: we’ve got a good complement of ships on the river today, and they are true to form for us here on the Columbia – mostly dry bulk carriers with a smattering of other kinds of vessels.
And a little about our autumny weather, which includes high pressure here and low pressure to the south. The perfect prescription for gusty northerly winds.
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Sep 14, 2023 | Home Slider, Ship Report Podcasts
Today an in-depth look at our daily ship schedule and marine weather: we’ve got a good complement of ships on the river today, and they are true to form for us here on the Columbia – mostly dry bulk carriers with a smattering of other kinds of vessels.
And a little about our autumny weather, which includes high pressure here and low pressure to the south. The perfect prescription for gusty northerly winds.
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Sep 13, 2023
Right now a cruise ship sits aground in a remote fjord in a Greenland national park, days away from the nearest rescue vessel. So far the crew has been unable to refloat her with the rising tide. The situation so far is stable, but it brings up troubling issues of ships with lots of people on board, traveling where resources to help them are few and the consequences high if anything catastrophic goes wrong.
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Sep 13, 2023 | Home Slider, Ship Report Podcasts
Right now a cruise ship sits aground in a remote fjord in a Greenland national park, days away from the nearest rescue vessel. So far the crew has been unable to refloat her with the rising tide. The situation so far is stable, but it brings up troubling issues of ships with lots of people on board, traveling where resources to help them are few and the consequences high if anything catastrophic goes wrong.
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Sep 12, 2023
Another retro, low tech sailing race began on Sunday – it’s called the Ocean Globe Race. In this race, like the Golden Globe which started a year ago this month, sailboats will retrace the route of the old sailing Clipper ships.
On Sunday, 14 boats with about 12 crew on each left Southhampton, England, headed for their first stop, Cape Town, South Africa. It should take them about a month to get there.
The race could be dramatic, grueling and dangerous – based on past experience. Historically, lots of boats start, but few make it to the end.
The race is billed as a race for “everyman” because it’s much lower cost to participate than the average high tech yacht race. One boat called, “Maiden,” has an all-female crew.
They’ll be finding their way at sea with no fancy electronic gear, racing like it’s 1988. Sextants, paper charts and lots of adventure.
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Sep 12, 2023 | Home Slider, Ship Report Podcasts
Another retro, low tech sailing race began on Sunday – it’s called the Ocean Globe Race. In this race, like the Golden Globe which started a year ago this month, sailboats will retrace the route of the old sailing Clipper ships.
On Sunday, 14 boats with about 12 crew on each left Southhampton, England, headed for their first stop, Cape Town, South Africa. It should take them about a month to get there.
The race could be dramatic, grueling and dangerous – based on past experience. Historically, lots of boats start, but few make it to the end.
The race is billed as a race for “everyman” because it’s much lower cost to participate than the average high tech yacht race. One boat called, “Maiden,” has an all-female crew.
They’ll be finding their way at sea with no fancy electronic gear, racing like it’s 1988. Sextants, paper charts and lots of adventure.
Podcast: Play in new window
Subscribe: Email | | More
Sep 11, 2023
Today, on September 11, we remember those lost on this day in 2001 in New York City, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania.
Today we remember Operation Boatlift.
After the towers fell, hundreds of thousands of people were desperate to get off Manhattan Island. But they had nowhere to go, since bridges subways, and tunnels in and out of the city were closed, and the city was in chaos. Then the Coast Guard issued a call to “all available boats” to come and help. The response was immediate and astounding.
Within minutes, hundreds of tug boats, ferries, pleasure boats, vessels of all kinds, started streaming toward the bottom of Manhattan, from all over NY and adjoining harbors. Together, in a miraculous spur of the moment mobilzation of mariners wanting to help – they evacuated 500,00 people to safety.
If you’d like to watch the memorable short film quoted in this podcast, please watch Boatlift (link below). It’ll be among the best 11 minutes you’ll ever spend. Have a box of tissues nearby. If you’re anything like me, you’ll need it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDOrzF7B2Kg
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Sep 11, 2023 | Home Slider, Ship Report Podcasts
Today, on September 11, we remember those lost on this day in 2001 in New York City, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania.
Today we remember Operation Boatlift.
After the towers fell, hundreds of thousands of people were desperate to get off Manhattan Island. But they had nowhere to go, since bridges subways, and tunnels in and out of the city were closed, and the city was in chaos. Then the Coast Guard issued a call to “all available boats” to come and help. The response was immediate and astounding.
Within minutes, hundreds of tug boats, ferries, pleasure boats, vessels of all kinds, started streaming toward the bottom of Manhattan, from all over NY and adjoining harbors. Together, in a miraculous spur of the moment mobilzation of mariners wanting to help – they evacuated 500,00 people to safety.
If you’d like to watch the memorable short film quoted in this podcast, please watch Boatlift (link below). It’ll be among the best 11 minutes you’ll ever spend. Have a box of tissues nearby. If you’re anything like me, you’ll need it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDOrzF7B2Kg
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Sep 08, 2023
Today we’ll focus on one of our hometown vessels, ones that are based here but are still very unusual-looking no matter how many times you see them. Today we have the Pacific Tracker on our ship schedule – she’s based in Portland and goes out into the ocean regularly. Her job is to track missiles for the US military.
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Sep 8, 2023 | Home Slider, Ship Report Podcasts
Today we’ll focus on one of our hometown vessels, ones that are based here but are still very unusual-looking no matter how many times you see them. Today we have the Pacific Tracker on our ship schedule – she’s based in Portland and goes out into the ocean regularly. Her job is to track missiles for the US military.
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Sep 07, 2023
It’s fall on the Columbia, a time when we may see more ships than usual transiting the river. one possible reason has to do with the seasons: it’s harvest time.
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
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Sep 7, 2023 | Home Slider, Ship Report Podcasts
It’s fall on the Columbia, a time when we may see more ships than usual transiting the river. one possible reason has to do with the seasons: it’s harvest time.
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Podcast: Play in new window
Subscribe: Email | | More
