The Steadfast: USCG cutter and Astoria hometown vessel returns home

Note: Photo of the Steadfast appears here courtesy of the US Coast Guard. 

Today we’ll talk about one of Astoria’s hometown ships: the USCG cutter Steadfast – “El Tiburon Blanco.”

She and her crew just returned home to Astoria from a tour of duty at sea.

Astoria shipyard gets federal grant

A local story about an Astoria shipyard at Tongue Point that has received a federal grant for over $500k.

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Sneaker waves and Rogue waves: waves of a feather

The same sort of resonance that makes sneaker waves rise up seemingly out of nowhere, happens on a much larger scale far out at sea, where giant rogue waves swamp ships with recordbreaking wave heights.

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What’s happening with world trade?

A quick look at world shipping: China may be emerging from its coronavirus woes, and the IMO urges ports worldwide to remain open to maintain the flow of goods, and ship traffic.

Note: The lovely photo accompanying this post was taken by Astoria photographer Scott Saulsbury. You’ll find his iconic shots on his Facebook page, and also in this book: https://www.blurb.com/b/5184191-light-water-and-steel

Many thanks to Scott for the use of his image of a bulk carrier docked in Astoria.

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Oil glut turns tankers into tanks

Off the west coast of the US, there’s an odd sort of ship showing up these days: oil tankers, more than two dozen off California, that have come there not to deliver or pickup up cargo, but to sit at anchor and store it, as petroleum futures hit record lows.

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Whiskey tastes better when it’s gone fishing

A great hometown story about an Astoria fisherman and restaurateur who’s partnered with a local whiskey distiller – turns out whiskey aged at sea tastes world’s better than the landlocked variety.

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More on navigating at night on the river

This is a big topic: getting around at night on the river… Today we talk about what buoys do, what their different colors mean and how their lights match their painted colors. It’s all very important info for people trying to get around on the river at night.

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On the water at night

As part of our continuing look at the natural world around us, at things you might have more time to notice these days, today we talk about nighttime on the river, which can be a time of great confusion for people in vessels, unless they know what to look for.

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Tides in Willapa Bay

Received a listener question from a person who wondered about tides in Willapa Bay, when do they happen – because different tide tables he consulted seemed to have different times on them, even though they were all for Willapa Bay.

Today we’ll talk about tidal variations across areas – and how it’s all relative, so to speak.

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Tidal currents: one of the many challenges offered by the river

Each day tidal currents race up and down the river off Astoria. We notice them occasionally when we stop to look at anchored ships or see a buoy leaning in the rushing water. Today we take a closer look at this ubiquitous aspect of river life.

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