The Ship Report

Cool spring conditions remind us of cold water dangers

A reminder that we live in the Pacific Northwest, a beautiful place with cold waters and strong currents year round. As the weather gets nice, let's keep in mind that our waters remain chilly and life threatening for the unprepared.

A look at how ships load and balance cargo, and why it's so important

Cargo is loaded onto ships very deliberately and with a lot of calculation and forethought. Part of the reason is to anticipate how that cargo must be unloaded and in what order, at the dock.

But even more important, imbalanced cargo can lead to tragedy and loss at sea, and even right at the dock.

Polar Star returns from Antarctica

I always like talking about this ship, because of her unique job and the role she plays in keeping people safe in a challenging part of the world.

The USCG icebreaker Polar Star is a ship specially designed to handle difficult conditions that would sink most vessels. She's an older ship, but well maintained, and she just returned from a special annual mission in Antarctica.

Weather and some ship talk

Today we talk about the weather - always a fascinating topic in our coastal region. And some interesting details about today's arriving ships.

Norwegian Jade in town, and a look at tides and ships

A few things today: a closer look at our cruise ship du jour in Astoria, a look at ships coming and going, and a reminder of how ships at anchor let us know what the tide is doing.

Second cruise ship of the season comes to Astoria Thursday

The second cruise ship of the season comes to Astoria on Thursday, and it's a good opportunity to talk more about these big ships, carrying many passengers, and what Astoria will see here as we move through the season.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons: Abxbay, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Cold weather on the way

We have an unusual spring snow storm on the way in the Cascades starting today, and colder than usual weather for the coast too. We'll talk about how conditions up north allowed this cold air to flow down to us, and create winter like conditions in the middle of April.

The shipyard at Swan Island

So many times over the years I have said on this show that a ship is headed for "the shipyard at Swan Island."

Today we'll take a closer look at that facility, who owns it, and why it has, for many years, been a great place to take a ship that is in need of repairs and maintenance.

First cruise ship for the Astoria season

Today the Nieuw Amsterdam, a 1000-foot long cruise ship arriving from San Diego, is the first blue water cruise ship to call on Astoria in 2026. She'll head for British Columbia when she leaves here. Today we'll talk about Astoria's cruise ship visitors and why they tend to arrive in spring and fall. We'll also take a quick look at other ships arriving this season and when they'll be here.

Nieuw Amsterdam Photo Credit: Jonathan Palombo, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Of ebb tides and west winds

Today we'll talk about a common occurrence on the river that can affect sea state and make it more turbulent to be out there in a smaller vessel:  a west wind and an ebb tide.

Understanding how to predict such conditions and plan for them is part of being a knowledgeable and safe mariner on the mighty Columbia River.