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The Ship Report

Joanne Rideout

All Things Maritime ...with Joanne Rideout

society & culture places & travel

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8:22

The Polar Star is home from Antarctica, a sign of...

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/26

We see many signs of fall in the Pacific Northwest, as cruise ships head south and one beloved ship, the icebreaker USCGC Polar Star, heads home to Seattle to prepare for another round of her annual mission: Operation Deep Freeze, where she breaks a navigable channel through pack ice to open McMurdo station to the […]The post The Polar Star is home from Antarctica, a sign of fall in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in Antarctica appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:04

Who’s on the river today?

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/25

A look at today’s ship traffic, and a change in the weather coming this weekend. The post Who’s on the river today? appeared first on The Ship Report.

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7:54

On any given day, there’s a lot going on upriver with...

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/24

The Columbia River is a busy water highway, with lots of vessels working, many of them upriver in places that folks near Astoria and even upriver in Portland and Vancouver, don’t see. Today we’ll talk about some of what happens as vessels do their work upriver. The post On any given day, there’s a lot going on upriver with vessels that downriver folk don’t see appeared first on The Ship Report.

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9:24

The research vessel Atlantis is at the Port of Astoria

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/23

One of my favorite ships is here in town: the research vessel Atlantis. She’s owned by the US Navy and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, located on Cape Cod. She’s been doing research on underwater volcanoes in the Pacific in recent years. She comes into Astoria occasionally to change crews, pick up supplies, […] The post The research vessel Atlantis is at the Port of Astoria appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

The Coastal Jet: an interesting weather phenomenon we...

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/19

Today we’ll talk more about the weather, which is in for a change this weekend, and about an unusual meteorological phenomenon we could see called the coastal jet that happens from time to time here. It causes winds along the coast to speed up, sometimes dramatically, while winds offshore can be much calmer. The post The Coastal Jet: an interesting weather phenomenon we could see here this weekend appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

New moons, tides, solar eclipses – all part of our...

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/17

The next two weeks are packed with astronomical happenings: a new moon, a solar eclipse, and the autumnal equinox. We’ll talk about them in the context of our natural maritime world, where life continues in habitual patterns that play out in tides, moon cycles and waning daylight at this time of year. And, our coastal […] The post New moons, tides, solar eclipses – all part of our cyclic natural world appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

Serenade of the Seas visits Astoria on a...

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/16

Tis morning we’ll see the Serenade of the Seas, a big, blue-water cruise ship that will be docked at the Port of Astoria all day. She’s on her way back down south for the winter, having stopped here in May when she was headed north for a summer of cruises in the Puget Sound region […] The post Serenade of the Seas visits Astoria on a repositioning cruise appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

A bit about the weather, a solo sailor, ships and… a...

The Ship Report ·

2025/09/15

Well, I’m back, at least mostly upright – after a supposedly mild (it didn’t feel very mild to me) bout of pneumonia! I was flat out on the couch last week, but I’m glad to be back, though I’m moving slowly. Looking forward to reclaiming my energy in the coming weeks. Today we’ll talk a […] The post A bit about the weather, a solo sailor, ships and… a touch of pneumonia… appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:00

A gem from the Ship Report archives: Interview with a...

The Ship Report ·

2025/08/14

There are heroes among us – and we usually don’t see them. USCG rescue swimmers go out in terrible conditions at sea to save lives, as part of highly trained rescue helicopter crews. Today, from the Ship Report Archives, we’ll hear an excerpt from a 2009 interview with a rescue swimmer at Air Station Astoria.The post A gem from the Ship Report archives: Interview with a rescue swimmer appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:13

Interview with author and poet Patrick Dixon about...

The Ship Report ·

2025/08/06

Today we’re continuing to hear parts of my interview with Fisher Poet and author Pat Dixon, who just published a book of poetry called Mending Holes, about his memories of life as a commercial fisherman. One of the topics I love to explore with people who make their way in the creative arts, is to […]The post Interview with author and poet Patrick Dixon about his new book, “Mending Holes,” Part 3 appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

Interview with Pat Dixon, author of the new book of...

The Ship Report ·

2025/08/05

Today we continue my interview with fisher poet and author Pat Dixon about his new book, “Mending Holes,” a collection of his poetry, all about his life as a commercial fisherman in the waters of Alaska. Today, Pat shares some poems from the book. Many thanks to Brad Wartman of the FisherPoetry Archive Project, for […]The post Interview with Pat Dixon, author of the new book of poetry: “Mending Holes,” Part 2 appeared first on The Ship Report.

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7:58

Author interview: Fisher Poet Patrick Dixon and his...

The Ship Report ·

2025/08/04

This week I’ll be talking with Fisher Poet Pat Dixon about his life as a commercial fisherman, author, photographer and educator, and about his new book of poetry, “Mending Holes.” Many thanks to Brad Wartman of the FisherPoetry Archive Project, for engineering this Zoom interview. https://thefisherpoetryarchive.com/ The post Author interview: Fisher Poet Patrick Dixon and his new book, “Mending Holes.” appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

An interview with Columbia River Bar Pilot Captain...

The Ship Report ·

2025/08/01

Today begins one of the most anticipated annual fishing events in the region: the Buoy 10 recreational fishery on the Columbia River. Hundreds of boats will dot the river this month, filled with eager folks hoping to catch salmon, and that can spell trouble when small boats get too close to giant ships. Today I’ll […] The post An interview with Columbia River Bar Pilot Captain Dan Jordan, as the Buoy 10 fishery begins appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

We see them every day, but likely ignore this big...

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/23

Today, as part of the answer to a listener question, I thought it would be good to take a look at why tides happen. This influence is huge in our lives here on the coast and on the river, and it’s interesting and helpful to understand what’s driving it.The post We see them every day, but likely ignore this big influence in our lives: What causes tides? appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:12

More on the complex topic of tides

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/22

I was thinking more about tides and thought we could talk more about this complex subject. Yesterday we talked about how high tide happens about 5 hours later in Vancouver than Astoria on the Columbia. Today we’ll look at tidal range, the height difference between high and low tides and how that is also different […]The post More on the complex topic of tides appeared first on The Ship Report.

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7:43

Thank you, a bit about music, being brave and, oh –...

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/21

Today’s show is a bit of a mix: I wanted to thank the folks who came down to the Ten Fifteen Theater to hear my Ship Report talk and to hear Jerry and me perform on stage (eek!), and then a bit about tides, and how there is a vast difference in tidal schedules between […] The post Thank you, a bit about music, being brave and, oh – tides appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:30

The busy upriver Columbia

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/18

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.The post The busy upriver Columbia appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:22

A Ship Report talk in Astoria on Saturday, and some...

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/17

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 […] The post A Ship Report talk in Astoria on Saturday, and some music appeared first on The Ship Report.

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7:48

Oregon Waterway Access Permit takes effect in January

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/15

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. […] The post Oregon Waterway Access Permit takes effect in January appeared first on The Ship Report.

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8:05

The Pacific Collector: another interesting military...

The Ship Report ·

2025/07/14

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 , via Wikimedia […] The post The Pacific Collector: another interesting military vessel on the river appeared first on The Ship Report.

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