Oregon Hailing Port Opinions

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by SV__Grace

IMHO your hailing port is really for others, not yourself.

As a cruiser your hailing port lets others know where you came from and is a conversation starter on the dock. We've never lived in San Francisco but came from the SF Bay area, so San Francisco is our hailing port and more easily recognized by others that the actual town we lived for many years or the location of the actual marina we kept the boat.

Keeping your boat local and having your location (such as Scapoose) as your home port on your transom lets others know that you're one of them, shows pride in your community and is great for local comraderie.

Yes, your hailing port can be a "conversation starter" but that is not the traditional purpose. I think that standing up for maritime tradition is important; I think that boating is rich in tradition, and I try to be a part of it, but Hey!, that's just me.

Originally Posted by dan104

So, my current boat is not documented so my hailing port is "Port of indecision ", my new boat (week away from close), is documented. Reading the CG rules it calls for the hailing port to be where the management (owner) comes from. The current hailing port on the boat is a Colorado town, not many ports there. I live in Maryland but boat is in USVI and of course I don't want Maryland asking for $'s for a boat that might only be in it's waters less than 90 days a year. So whats the best trick to meet the objectives. PS the State reg # will come from USVI

The boat is in the USVI? How about MY BOAT NAME- St Thomas

[Jammer]

I just filled out the form a month ago. USCG says that the state "may" be abbreviated, and that the hailing port on the form must exactly match the hailing port on the boat.


I'm in Minnesota. Slip availability and other factors will determine where we keep our boat from year to year. It was important to us to choose a hailing port that would be readily recognizable worldwide, that is actually a port city that our boat can visit, that has enduring meaning for us, and that is in the geographic area where we typically keep the boat. That reduced the list to three choices -- Duluth, St. Paul, and Minneapolis. We ruled out St. Paul because it's confusing as there are many cities worldwide with the same name, and ruled out Duluth because most people don't know where it is.


We will likely visit Minneapolis on a future journey to the Gulf of Mexico after having the boat trucked from Duluth to Stillwater. The closure of the Upper St. Anthony Falls lock will preclude us docking at the only public docks that would otherwise be accessible, so we'll have to dinghy in.

[Slovak]

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

I am having an agent handle the USCG documentation, and I need to tell her what hailing port I want to use pretty soon. There are USCG stations in Portland and Astoria, so Scappoose or Portland will both work well.

USCG documentation is one or two forms, no real need for an agent which will likely cost more and prolong the process - game of telephone. Your call.

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

Yes, Scappoose is far from the Pacific; I think about half-a-day. I am very inexperienced right now, so I think that gaining experience sailing on the Columbia will be beneficial until I am more capable for coastal sailing.

To get into the Pacific, you'll need a very long summer day, or two days otherwise. That's just making miles, probably under engine and not looking at tides/currents. We spent 3 years on the river(s) before venturing out to the Pacific. There's plenty to see, and lots of experiences to be had.

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

When I say that I am inexperienced, I mean incredibly inexperienced; six, three and a half hour sailing sessions to complete my ASA 101 certificate, a few days of lake sailing, and a BSA summer camp thirty years ago. Very inexperienced. Although, I don't doubt my potential, I am quite aware of my limitations — with the acknowledgment that I know so little, I don't know what I don't know. That's why I am here on this forum.

The Columbia river will train you in many ways! Currents, narrow channels, shoals, ocean traffic, fishing boats & fishing tournaments, etc! Always changing winds, but mostly following the river one direction or another. No two outings will be the same, no two dock approaches identical. You will learn how to manage in tight spaces, with currents, springing off, etc. Getting out onto the ocean or San Juans will be easier, in many ways.

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

Every piece of advice I have heard about getting into sailing has the same theme — time on the water. Medford, where I live, is too far from anything to be able to practice routine skills, network with other sailors to crew for, etc. Many people have suggested moving to the coast, but I cannot quite do that yet. What can/did do, is to purchase a boat. It may not be the ideal situation, but now I can get to the marina on the weekends, and I will be able to spend more time on the water and meeting people. Hopefully, this works.

If you are able, plan multi-day outings. Travel to/from boat, provisioning, general boat maintenance and prep, as well as getting out of the channel will eat up a great % of time.

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

Toddster8, thank you for a better time scale. I don't know much about estimating time. I calculated about 36 miles on OpenCPN, and estimated 6 knots under motor. The boat has a 25Hp Universal and a narrow beam, but I was pretty conservative in my estimate. Hopefully, if the trip is less that an hour, I will have longer day-sails out on the Pacific.

If you're starting from Scappoose, you're most definitely NOT day-sailing out on the Pacific. Per above, it'll take a couple of days to get to Astoria or Ilwaco in a hurry. The Columbia River Bar, aka the Graveyard of the Pacific, is also VERY weather dependent. Even during a nice, sunny, calm day the bar may be closed by USCG, or small craft warnings restricting traffic. Even sailors with much experience and many crossings carefully time their transit through the bar - preferably with the last of the ebb helping you from Astoria or Ilwaco, getting to buoy 10 about slack, and then heading out through the washing machine channel. Know your boat well before "heading out into the Pacific".

[Slovak]

At which marina will your boat be? Beware of the currents when coming and going, we've had 3+ knots on the beam with less than a foot on either side to the dock fingers - which makes for a "fun" departure. Not recommended.

A handful of tips for the Columbia and Snake Rivers, where we've spent 300+ nights aboard and exploring - we've cruised all the way to Lewiston, Idaho with substantial portions under sail. You'd need to navigate through 4 dam locks on the Columbia, and 4 more on the Snake. Takes some prep, both mental and the boat, but doable with 2 on board. Also fun to go up the Willamette River, but expect to motor and see mostly industrial areas until you're downtown. Enter at your own risk.

Also, consider joining a local cruising club, such as SIYC: https://siyc.org - very low cost to join, much to learn from members, and a couple of nights at a reciprocal club pays for your dues.

https://crya.us for the frequent club outings and destinations - either to stop by and check out the crowd, or avoid the limited docks space.

Multnomah Channel destinations:
Hadley Landing: fun shore trail through the natural preserve
Coon Island: small island, we prefer the sturdier east docks.

Columbia River downstream of Scappoose
St Helens - at the city docks, watch the reversing current. Strong! Summer concerts and movies in the park. Fun restaurants.
Sand Island - no services, shore access, lots of good walking
Martin Slough - very narrow entrance, good protection, good holding, no shore access
Kalama - nice city dock, restaurants by the shore
Sandy Island opposite Kalama - anchor in the slough
Rainier - city dock, can be rolly and busy, strong reversing currents
LYC - https://www.longviewyachtclub.org - super hospitable to visitors with full services
Walker slough - club dock available for tie up. Secluded, several anchoring spots. Approach from downstream unless you're absolutely sure of your draft and are on high tide.
Cape Horn (one of two on the Columbia) - watch for currents, wind against currents, and dramatic wind speed increases
Wallace slough - fun hideaway anchorage
Westport slough - narrow but deep channel goes way in until the marina
Coffee Pot Island - nice anchorage in the slough out of the main channel
Cathlamet - great little town. Approach from downstream (much longer distance). Pickup great pizza, walk over to the brewery and enjoy. Narrow entrance channel, ample depth, do NOT cut close around the buoys.
Below Cathlamet, there are TONS of little sloughs to explore: Steamboat slough, Clifton channel, and more - you could spend weeks here. Watch tides & currents.
Lois Island south of Tongue point is a nice anchorage within a quick approach to Astoria.
Astoria east basin or west basin moorage under the bridge. Lots of people stage here to cross the bar or rest after coming from the Pacific. May have limited space.
Ilwaco - Long, narrow channel with ample depth to get in (~1 hour motoring). Fishing town with great places to eat fresh sea food. Day hikes to two different lighthouses.

Columbia River upstream of Scappoose
Willamette River / downtown Portland
Lots of places to check out on Hayden Island
Government island (east and west docks) - shore access, no services
Camas / Washougal - strong currents in the marina, ONLY dock pointing upstream. Great pizza & craft beer within walking distance of the marina.
Fewer places to anchor out of the channel beyond here
Another Cape Horn, with lots of winds going through the Gorge. Currents between here and Bonneville can be intense - in the spring from the snow melt, in the summer due to power generation when everyone is using AC. 3+kn
Beacon Rock: one of our favorite places. Great hike to the top of the monolith, it'll work out your legs and raise your pulse. In August, loads of blackberries for your breakfast pancakes.
From there you're just a short hop to Bonneville Dam - but those 2nm may take over an hour due to currents. Beyond there, another world opens up. Cascade locks, Hood River, The Dalles, and more.

Of the 10% boaters that actually make it out of the marina, 10% of those make it to Beacon Rock or Astoria/Ilwaco. Of those, only 10% go through the Bonneville Dam or out to the Pacific. In August, we were the first visiting boat in Clarkston, WA and not counting fishing boats out for the day, we were the only ones for days.

Resources:
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...co-173311.html
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...-or-39214.html
https://www.wweek.com/bars/2017/06/1...lamette-river/
https://www.passagemaker.com/destina...-clark-fleming
Cruising the Columbia River - Cascade Locks to The Dalles
https://siyc.org/destinations-columbia/distance-table/
https://www.portlandbridges.com/port...idges-map.html
https://pumpoutwashington.org/where-to-pumpout
https://www.estuarypartnership.org/w...columbia-river

PDF Guides:
https://www.oregon.gov/osmb/forms-li...verGuide07.pdf
https://www.oregon.gov/osmb/forms-li...umbiaGuide.pdf
https://www.oregon.gov/osmb/forms-li...ng%20Guide.pdf

Helpful videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0PGkDY2EXc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXkOZzb0ZyQ

[Dooglas]

I think "Astoria" would be a good choice at it is at the mouth of the Columbia River and at the Pacific Ocean. It also has a long history and was the first American settlement West of the Mississippi River. On the other hand, if you like "Scapoose", how about "Skamokawa"? An old Chinook Indian settlement, and an early Lower Columbia River fishing port. If you are torn, you could home port your boat "Astoria" and name your dinghy "Skamokawa". <)))><

[FrankC_OR]

Wow, some really great insights and information.

Slovak, I felt that the USCG documentation would be easy enough for me to do, but without ever dealing with this before and the boat being too old (1966) for the standardized HIN, I decided to have the brokerage handle the paperwork.

Thank you for the great information about the area. I will be at Scappoose Moorage and despite my dreams of far off voyages, I will be learning in the area for some time. My slip is out of the current and my rudder is forward of my prop, which seems to give a lot of control in reverse. I expect docking will be one of the first items that I learn to master.

I appreciate the links to the two clubs. Networking with like-minded people is one of the reasons that I bought the boat so early in my experience — I have to regularly be able to be at/on the water. Driving from Medford for the day is too be an expense, with too little a reward. Now that I can come up to Eos on the weekends, I will have more time to meet new people, and sailing/yacht clubs are a great way to do so.

The more I look into things, the more I understand how far Scappoose is from the ocean. That is fine with me. The Columbia River is a large waterway for me to explore for a long time, and I look forward to checking out the places you listed.

Scappoose is really growing on me as the hailing port. This is where I will keep the boat, and this will probably be where I keep the boat for some time. Documenting the boat with the hailing port where the boat is actually kept is more traditional, and if I didn't have some interest in maritime tradition, I don't think I would have purchased a fifty-six year-old boat.

Great thoughts everyone. I appreciate the time you have put forward, and am learning a lot.

[merrydolphin]

As you probably know, you can use any hailing port that you want, as long as is officially on the map. When I was in San Francisco, I used Miami FL as my hailing port. When I was in Miami, I used San Francisco CA as my hailing port.

Why? It made for great conversation. “ you sailed all the way from Miami”. And We had. Both ways. So was a fun “badge” to wear. In other words, have fun with it. Make it something you want to identify with. Eg if you were a serious poker player you could use Las Vegas.

I have lived in 15 states and 18 countries. So there is really no one “home port” for me, so I have fun with it.

[sailingharry]

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

These are all fascinating comments and raise interesting considerations.

On the one hand, I have learned through fairly-extensive travels that telling people that I am from Los Angeles is more informative than naming my city in the northernmost part of the county. I am often surprised by how many seemingly intelligent people assume that Los Angeles is a close drive to Ney York City. Very few people know where Oregon is located, but Portland says "Pacific Northwest, between San Francisco and Seattle".

On the other hand, the reality is that Eos will probably remain in Scappoose. My boat currently fits the purpose of gaining frequent sailing short-term experience and potentially transitioning to full-time liveaboard in the medium term. Although it is fun to fantasize about the possibility of upgrading one's boat and readying for extended voyages, this is my first boat. When I feel experienced and comfortable enough to travel the world, I may need to look for a better-suited purpose boat.

I am having an agent handle the USCG documentation, and I need to tell her what hailing port I want to use pretty soon. There are USCG stations in Portland and Astoria, so Scappoose or Portland will both work well.

Agents exist solely to make a profit. Seriously, it is a two-page form that will take you 10 minutes to fill out. Agents add no value. If you can fill out the paperwork to register your car, you can fill out the paperwork to register your boat. And if you have any questions, the friendly folks in West Virginia will cheerfully answer the phone and answer the questions.

[sailingharry]

Originally Posted by Bowdrie

No, you don't "spell out" Oregon.

The post by Wingsail is correct, you use the contraction/abbreviation.

As in, "Portland Or."



An aside, I know it's tradition, but I always have to laugh at the term "Down East".

Any perusal of a chart will easily show that when you head south from Maine you are making some westerly progress also. [emoji3]

I guess it's one of those things like saying that Ohio is in the "Midwest", when anyone can see that it's really in the "Mideast" of the US.

Wichita Kansas being almost the geographical center.

It is Down East, because the course is almost 090 magnetic, and prevailing winds make that a downwind run. Going the other way is Up Boston.

[sailingharry]

Originally Posted by dan104

So, my current boat is not documented so my hailing port is "Port of indecision ", my new boat (week away from close), is documented. Reading the CG rules it calls for the hailing port to be where the management (owner) comes from. The current hailing port on the boat is a Colorado town, not many ports there. I live in Maryland but boat is in USVI and of course I don't want Maryland asking for $'s for a boat that might only be in it's waters less than 90 days a year. So whats the best trick to meet the objectives. PS the State reg # will come from USVI

A boat is either documented, or numbered. Not both. If you are going to Coast Guard document it, the state only gets a sticker, no numbers.

[captchetco]

Originally Posted by FrankC_OR

These are all fascinating comments and raise interesting considerations.


On the other hand, the reality is that Eos will probably remain in Scappoose. My boat currently fits the purpose of gaining frequent sailing short-term experience and potentially transitioning to full-time liveaboard in the medium term. Altho

I am having an agent handle the USCG documentation, and I need to tell her what hailing port I want to use pretty soon. There are USCG stations in Portland and Astoria, so Scappoose or Portland will both work well.

I used "Chetco Cove, OR" since it sounds better than Brookings, and is legal as it is the original name and still on the Chart. Starts lot of good conversations: "Chetco cove? Where is that?"

[MVDarlin]

use whatever "floats your boat"

[toddster8]

FWIW, I just got my new certificate. Almost exactly 90 days from electronic submission of the form.

Also FWIW, the cover letter states:
NAME AND HAILING PORT: For RECREATIONAL vessels,the name and hailing port both must be marked together on some clearly visible exterior part of the hull. For COMMERCIAL vessels, the vessel name must be marked on each bow and the vessel name and hailing port must also be marked on the stern. The markings may be made by the use of any means and materials that result in durable markings. All must be at least 4" in height, made in clearly legible letters of the Latin alphabet or Arabic or Roman numerals. NOTE: Hailing port marking must include BOTH a place (city) and a state, territory or posession of the United States (e.g. NY, NY; FT Lauderdale, FL or St Thomas, VI).
(emphases theirs)
Wait... what? If New York can abbreviate, why can't every place else??
That said, pretty much nobody, including the river tugs and cruise ships does it quite exactly like that. (E.g. "The bows," ends up being, "Somewhere on the sides - maybe." Lots of workboats are devoid of markings. As, is my boat, at the moment and for the last 20 years.) Um... nor I think does the Coast Guard. Of course, they are neither recreational or commercial.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by toddster8

FWIW, I just got my new certificate. Almost exactly 90 days from electronic submission of the form.

Also FWIW, the cover letter states:
NAME AND HAILING PORT: For RECREATIONAL vessels,the name and hailing port both must be marked together on some clearly visible exterior part of the hull. For COMMERCIAL vessels, the vessel name must be marked on each bow and the vessel name and hailing port must also be marked on the stern. The markings may be made by the use of any means and materials that result in durable markings. All must be at least 4" in height, made in clearly legible letters of the Latin alphabet or Arabic or Roman numerals. NOTE: Hailing port marking must include BOTH a place (city) and a state, territory or posession of the United States (e.g. NY, NY; FT Lauderdale, FL or St Thomas, VI).
(emphases theirs)
Wait... what? If New York can abbreviate, why can't every place else??
That said, pretty much nobody, including the river tugs and cruise ships does it quite exactly like that. (E.g. "The bows," ends up being, "Somewhere on the sides - maybe." Lots of workboats are devoid of markings. As, is my boat, at the moment and for the last 20 years.) Um... nor I think does the Coast Guard. Of course, they are neither recreational or commercial.

I'm a bit surprised that they say name and hailing port "together". And anywhere on the hull, so that includes sides. Well good. That means I am legal from that prospective.

But I still maintain that one can leave off the state initials and they don't really care.

So, for the OP, because it harkens back to nautical tradition, put on the real home port, as you have suggested (

Originally Posted by toddster8

FWIW, I just got my new certificate. Almost exactly 90 days from electronic submission of the form.

Also FWIW, the cover letter states:
NAME AND HAILING PORT: For RECREATIONAL vessels,the name and hailing port both must be marked together on some clearly visible exterior part of the hull. For COMMERCIAL vessels, the vessel name must be marked on each bow and the vessel name and hailing port must also be marked on the stern. The markings may be made by the use of any means and materials that result in durable markings. All must be at least 4" in height, made in clearly legible letters of the Latin alphabet or Arabic or Roman numerals. NOTE: Hailing port marking must include BOTH a place (city) and a state, territory or posession of the United States (e.g. NY, NY; FT Lauderdale, FL or St Thomas, VI).
(emphases theirs)
Wait... what? If New York can abbreviate, why can't every place else??
That said, pretty much nobody, including the river tugs and cruise ships does it quite exactly like that. (E.g. "The bows," ends up being, "Somewhere on the sides - maybe." Lots of workboats are devoid of markings. As, is my boat, at the moment and for the last 20 years.) Um... nor I think does the Coast Guard. Of course, they are neither recreational or commercial.

I'm a bit surprised that they say name and hailing port "together". And anywhere on the hull, so that includes sides. Well good. That means I am legal from that prospective.

But I still maintain that one can leave off the state initials and they don't really care.

So, because it harkens back to nautical tradition, put on the real home port, as you have suggested (Scappoose), and leave off the dorkey "OR".

[Bill Seal]

How about something "boaty" like Tiller OR?

Maybe a real head scratcher like Drain OR.