The Ship Report

Updated tour times for the Eagle in Astoria, and a listener question about the ship Here is the latest info, which I received Monday night, directly from the Coast Guard, regarding tours of the USCG Barque Eagle, which will be in Astoria beginning Friday. Note that this differs slightly from previous schedules which had Friday Tours beginning in the morning: Eagle Tours Friday, June 13 Arrive at P...

Good news: Real ID not required for Eagle tours in Astoria The Rose Festival Fleet ships passed Astoria yesterday and headed out to sea. One of them will return to us at the end of the week for tours in Astoria and that’s the USCG Barque Eagle, America’s Tall Ship. She will be at the Port of Astoria for tours beginning on Friday. And before I talk about that more, some really good news that I have...

What's next with the Rose Festival Fleet, and a bit more about that car ship fire off Alaska The Rose Festival Fleet will beginning their return trip downriver and out to sea over the weekend. We'll see the first visiting ship leave Portland on Sunday, and the rest on Monday. He USCG Barque Eagle will head out to sea Monday but will return at the end of next week for tours in Astoria.

Car ship blaze off Alaska shows dangers of shipboard fires, especially involving EVs There’s a car ship ablaze off the coast of the Aleutians, after a fire started on board. The crew has been safely evacuated but the ship remains on fire. We’ll talk about the dangers of shipboard fires, made worse in the modern era of electric vehicles (EVs).

Wednesday Fleet Week update Today we'll take a look at ships heading upriver for the Rose Festival today: the USCG Barque Eagle and the Canadian Navy vessel HMCS Nanaimo. Expect the Eagle to leave Astoria around 7:30am and around 8:30am the Nanaimo will pass Astoria inbound. For info about tours in Portland, go to rosefestival.org and click on the Fleet Week link.

The USCG barque Eagle comes into the Columbia, and the Rose Festival Fleet begins its journey upriver Tuesday morning early we'll see the USCGC Eagle arrive on the Columbia. She'll cross the bar around 6 am and be in Astoria around 8:30am. The two US Navy ships at the Port of Astoria will head upriver to Portland. The Rose Festival Fleet is here and on the move. Today, more details on toda...

The Rose Festival Fleet goes upriver this week This week the visiting ships that comprise the Rose Festival Fleet will pass by Astoria and other points on the river to Portland. Ships will dock at the seawall at Tom McCall Park and be available for tours there. We have several ships heading past Astoria this week. Here's the list of ships and when we'll likely see them: Tuesday: USS Mustin...

A US Navy ship arrives for tours in Astoria, the Rose Festival Fleet, and dredge season on the river An opportunity Saturday to tour a US Navy ship that arrives at the Port of Astoria today. Likely the first of next week's Rose Festival Fleet of arriving ships, including the USCG tall ship Eagle. And it's dredge season on the Columbia River - and we'll be seeing at least one of these s...

Maritime scholarship for students opens doors to education Today we'll talk about a scholarship being offered through the Portland Merchant Exchange. It's an opportunity for students interested in a career in the maritime industry to get some funding assistance with their education.

Should you sail to Hawaii like Oliver Widger? It's a wonderful story about a person escaping a soul-crushing rut, and making a bold decision to pursue a dream. Oregonian Oliver Widger sailed out of Warrenton last month (with his cat) and made it safely all the way to Hawaii. He quit his job, bought a boat and sailed away, despite having little experience as a sailor. We've all dreamed of e...

Where do ships go when they travel on the river? Today we'll take a look at where ships go where they come to the Columbia. When we talk about the ship schedule, we hear that some ships are going to Portland, but some to the Port of Portland. What's the difference? We'll talk about all the options for ships when they arrive and have to go somewhere.

Two interesting vessels arriving in the river today Today we'll talk about the first two arrivals on the river today: one a commercial fishing vessel coming into the river from Canada, and the other a bulk carrier here to pick up scrap metal.

Who's on the river today? Today a look at who's on the river today in terms of cargo vessels. A bit of gypsum, some cars, refined petroleum - and lots and lots of wheat.

Who's on the river today, and was that a containership we saw a few days ago? Yes, it was. A look at today's ship traffic, and a bit about why we are seeing some containerships here again.

Tall ship accident shows the dangers of big rivers for vessels when something goes wrong In the news this week is the accident in NY harbor, where a visiting tall ship hit the Brooklyn Bridge as the vessel was attempting to head out to sea. We'll talk about the dangers of big rivers, and about tall ships that are used round the world to train cadets for the military in different countries, inc...

PNW Offshore Race 2025 On Thursday morning, 19 sailboats set out from Ilwaco, Wash., out to sea across the Columbia River Bar. At an appointed time, they crossed the starting line and began a four-day race northward, 193 miles to Victoria, BC. The annual PNW Offshore Race is underway.

Cruise ship in town today, and a look at who else is on the river Today, another repositioning cruise visits Astoria, as blue water cruise ships make their annual spring migration up the West Coast, to their northern summer vacation grounds in BC and Alaska. And a quick look at today, the Ides of May.

Farewell, Clint Carter Today we honor a local business owner, North Coast Blues musician, and well loved community member who was instrumental in organizing iconic music festivals on the Long Beach Peninsula. Farewell, Clint Carter. We miss you already. Clint passed away yesterday after a long battle with cancer. He was also a person whose voice was heard every year on the Ship Report around the h...

Two unusual vessels on the river today Today we'll see two unusual vessels on the river, the cable ship Global Sentinel and the Offshore Support Vessel HOS Black Watch. Neither one is a cargo ship. Instead, both are specialized work vessels that do specific tasks in the maritime industry.

An unusual cruise ship heads to Portland today Today we'll see the Pride of American cruise ship arrive from Hawaii and head past Astoria (not stopping there) and head upriver to the shipyard in Portland for maintenance. Arriving from Hawaii, she has no passengers on board. An unusual thing about her is that she's US flagged, because her cruise route takes her between the Hawaiian Islands,...

What determines transit time on the river? Lots of factors, that include current, tides and displacement Today we'll talk a little about a somewhat mindboggling topic: what happens when a ship goes by... it's connected to transit time, how long it takes a ship to get from one place to another. Massive ships move lots of water when they travel, and ships here are up against heavy current an...

With another big cruise ship in town, we look at what's next for Astoria this season We have yet another huge, blue-water cruise ship in town, those behemoths that come in from out in the ocean to dock in Astoria for the day. Today we'll take a look at what's ahead for the Port of Astoria's cruise ship season.

A look at who's on the river today A look at ship traffic, with some diversions into the "whats" and "whys" of particular ships traveling on the river today.

Listener question about anchored ships and what it says about sudden public interest in shipping I got a listener question from someone this weekend who asked me why there were ships anchored in the river off Astoria. It's a telling question, in this season of public anxiety about tariffs. We'll talk about why those ships are a normal part of life here, and how to learn more about what may...

Why so many cruise ships in Astoria all of a sudden? The answer is "repositioning cruises" Today we'll talk about marine weather and ship schedules, but also about why there were so many cruise ships in Astoria this week. The answer lies in a cruise industry protocol that happens around this time of year: repositioning cruises, to take ships from their winter grounds to their summer...