We see a lot of ships go by on the lower river near Astoria, but the river upstream past Longview is often busier, with a variety of vessel traffic all doing local work: tugs and barges  hauling cargo, ship handling tugs, and ships being moved from anchorages to nearby berths.

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This Saturday the 19th, at 10:30am, I’ll be appearing at the 1015 Theater in Astoria, as part of their big Performathon fundraising event, which runs all day and into the night. I’ll be sharing memories of a trip I took on a cargo ship when I traveled from the Columbia River up to Puget Sound and south to San Francisco. It was an unforgettable experience.

Then at 10:45, my husband, Jerry Middaugh, and I will perform some folk music tunes that we hope will entertain you, and leave you with a feeling of hope about the world.

Many thanks to the organizers for inviting us to perform! We hope to see you there!

So come on down and support community theater – an important thing – a place where locals can share themselves and what they love with their community.

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On January 1, 2026, Oregon will require paddlecraft operators to purchase a Waterway Access Permit.

Permits will be available by the week, year and two year intervals. The new law will apply to all paddlecraft 10 feet or longer. That incudes kayaks, standup paddle boards and canoes. Fees for boat registration will also increase slightly.

Fees will help Oregon fight invasive mussels in waterways, and also improve access for paddlecraft at waterway access points that are currently mostly designed for boats.

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Today we see the Pacific Collector arriving from Honolulu, after a doing her specialized work of tracking missile defense testing. She’s one of a host of US military ships we see on the river, along with her sister ship, the Pacific Collector.

Photo credit: Daniel Ramirez from Honolulu, USA, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

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Let’s take a look at one ship on today’s schedule. It’s path traces a winding route from Russia through the Panama Canal to Portland, a journey of more than a month at sea.

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A look at today’s gusty weather and how to plan accordingly if you’re going out on a boat. One thing to remember: the experience of being on the river is very different when you are out on a boat from the way it is on land, even on the shore. And any precautions you take for the river goes double out in the ocean, where risks can be greater.

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Nothing says summer like the 4th of July, comin’ right up. If you’re looking forward to boating this weekend, perhaps even in the ocean, here’s a bit about how to give yourself the best opportunity to stay safe on our challenging but beautiful Pacific Northwest waterways.

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A little bit of everything today: a look at marine weather compared to land based forecasts, who’s on the river today, and a bit about riverflow and changing tides.

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Today our ship schedule has just a few ships coming and going on the river. It’s a good time to talk about the commerce we often don’t see happening, that includes ships at anchor and ships already in port.

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Today we will see the Pacific Tracker travel up the Columbia to Portland. She’s a military missile tracking ship that’s berthed at Swan Island’s shipyard. An interesting aspect of this ship is her past: she’s 60 years old, and has had various uses and names – including as a  bulk carrier and containership. A case in point about the lives of ships.

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