USCG rescue off Cape Disappointment, Washington - large breaking sea

[toddster]

Well, that explains why the fenders were out.

Man who was saved by Coast Guard during harrowing rescue stole the yacht he was piloting, Astoria police say

The rescue swimmer — who was on his first rescue just after graduating from the Coast Guard’s rescue swimmer program — was lowered from the helicopter by a cable.

www.oregonlive.com

 

[accnick]

We got ourselves a Canadian Barefoot Bandit on the loose

Probably headed to his winter home in Florida. He'll fit right in.

 

[Off Watch]

Is Oregon becoming the new Florida?

 

[Bull City]

Lee shore

He's in the surf on a lee shore. If anything, more a case for a sea anchor. Or a lot more sea room.

I Googled the aptly named Cape Disappointment and got this photo of Mother Nature's macerator:

 

[DDW]

The news story says he was somewhere on the Columbia river bar. A nasty piece of water when the sea is running. Still, with a big sea anchor, it would probably have survived. If you've seen the footage of the Santa 22 going over in the South Bridge tower wave, you know that sailboats aren't immune.

 

[adso]

Bizarre post-script to this story: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coast-guard-man-arrested-left-dead-fish-at-goonies-house/

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

The news story says he was somewhere on the Columbia river bar. A nasty piece of water when the sea is running. Still, with a big sea anchor, it would probably have survived. If you've seen the footage of the Santa 22 going over in the South Bridge tower wave, you know that sailboats aren't immune.

I had to Google that - and now I do remember that (here: https://www.latitude38.com/LectronicLat/2005/0405/Apr04/Apr4.html)

Originally, when I saw this story and vid off the Columbia Bar yesterday, I didn’t realize it was so close to the river entrance and thought it was much farther offshore, so was shocked at how quickly/suddenly the wave reared up and broke. I’m lately in the middle of reading about drogues, wave science stuff, just purchased cones to make a drogue, etc etc - so that vid footage got
me wondering! But, in the end, it’s not an offshore wave story, but coastal wave story: absolutely avoid west coast bars (and others: I wonder where are there other dangerous river bars/shoals like that in the world?) in anything but good conditions!

Other potentially bad ones around here that I know of are Nawhitti Bar on the north end of Vancouver Island; and the entrance to Slingsby Channel on the mainland BC coast. Neither are river bars, but Nawhitti is where the open swells of the deep N. Pacific reach a rapidly shoaling bottom and get squeezed between between Vancouver Island and the smaller islands to the NE of it. The other one - Slingsby Channel - drains a huge and complex maze of inland saltwater inlets - that, ebbing against an onshore wind and flood, can apparently be bad, but it’s not a bar per se.

Where are there other notorious bars or places?

 

[toddster]

Just to be clear, I wan't suggesting using a sea anchor on the bar - more of a general case to the scenario suggested by Jud. Heck, if staying in place would have helped, a regular anchor could probably have been used there.

 

[Calling Elvis]

I had to Google that - and now I do remember that (here: https://www.latitude38.com/LectronicLat/2005/0405/Apr04/Apr4.html)

Originally, when I saw this story and vid off the Columbia Bar yesterday, I didn’t realize it was so close to the river entrance and thought it was much farther offshore, so was shocked at how quickly/suddenly the wave reared up and broke. I’m lately in the middle of reading about drogues, wave science stuff, just purchased cones to make a drogue, etc etc - so that vid footage got
me wondering! But, in the end, it’s not an offshore wave story, but coastal wave story: absolutely avoid west coast bars (and others: I wonder where are there other dangerous river bars/shoals like that in the world?) in anything but good conditions!

Other potentially bad ones around here that I know of are Nawhitti Bar on the north end of Vancouver Island; and the entrance to Slingsby Channel on the mainland BC coast. Neither are river bars, but Nawhitti is where the open swells of the deep N. Pacific reach a rapidly shoaling bottom and get squeezed between between Vancouver Island and the smaller islands to the NE of it. The other one - Slingsby Channel - drains a huge and complex maze of inland saltwater inlets - that, ebbing against an onshore wind and flood, can apparently be bad, but it’s not a bar per se.

Where are there other notorious bars or places?

View attachment 572491

There's a few other pretty wild bars in Oregon and Washington. Greys Harbor and Quillayute in WA, and Newport and Tillamook in OR are a few. Depoe Bay is pretty unique with how small it is with a tight bend right after entering.

 

[DDW]

I'm not going into Depoe Bay unless it is flat calm. There's a video somewhere of a couple of Coast Guard boats going through there at high speed, and just making the turn. Those are surf boats with big ponies.

 

[steele]

The local news states it was one of the rescue swimers first missions, quite an introduction to a career in the Coast Guard. While I understand why the CG has to be non-judgemental about who they rescue, the idea of the young officer risking his life to save a serial criminal who stole a boat and took it into those conditions is hard to stomach. I hope this sets the perpetrator's life on a better path.

 

[Blitz]

That swimmer looked like he had an outboard strapped to him after he hit the water. Pretty impressive with all the gear on.

 

[Oceanconcepts]

Many years ago we spent a memorable new year's week staying in (through a Washington State Parks program) the old lighthouse keeper's house at Cape Disappointment on the north side of the Columbia entrance.

Looking out at those waves breaking across the bar in a storm made me very grateful for the large quantity of solid rock under my feet.

 

[SloopJonB]

You'd have to be completely ignorant of the place to go out there in the winter.

There have been over 2000 shipwrecks there - that's ships, not counting small boats.

columbia bar storms - Google Search

 

[SloopJonB]

Many years ago we spent a memorable new year's week staying in (through a Washington State Parks program) the old lighthouse keeper's house at Cape Disappointment on the north side of the Columbia entrance.

One of my daughters friends took a boyfriend there for a weekend to tell him she was dumping him.

 

[toddster]

You'd have to be completely ignorant of the place to go out there in the winter.

There have been over 2000 shipwrecks there - that's ships, not counting small boats.

columbia bar storms - Google Search

There are good weather windows during the winter. Just not... whatever this yahoo thought he was doing.

I was thinking he must have had some idea, because the obvious thing for the clueless would be to head straight out from the marina - which would put you on to the Desdemona Sands. A big shoal about five miles wide. You have to make a left hand turn to follow the channel along the shoreline. But who knows - logic doesn't seem to apply here. I suppose a powerboat on plane might get lucky across the shoals at high water. Drove it like he stole it...

No luck out there today either, apparently. There's a Pan Pan out for a dismasted sailboat and possible PIW out there. Not apparently trying to cross the bar, but still within the chart in post #10

 

[Go Left]

I had to Google that - and now I do remember that (here: https://www.latitude38.com/LectronicLat/2005/0405/Apr04/Apr4.html)

Originally, when I saw this story and vid off the Columbia Bar yesterday, I didn’t realize it was so close to the river entrance and thought it was much farther offshore, so was shocked at how quickly/suddenly the wave reared up and broke. I’m lately in the middle of reading about drogues, wave science stuff, just purchased cones to make a drogue, etc etc - so that vid footage got
me wondering! But, in the end, it’s not an offshore wave story, but coastal wave story: absolutely avoid west coast bars (and others: I wonder where are there other dangerous river bars/shoals like that in the world?) in anything but good conditions!

Other potentially bad ones around here that I know of are Nawhitti Bar on the north end of Vancouver Island; and the entrance to Slingsby Channel on the mainland BC coast. Neither are river bars, but Nawhitti is where the open swells of the deep N. Pacific reach a rapidly shoaling bottom and get squeezed between between Vancouver Island and the smaller islands to the NE of it. The other one - Slingsby Channel - drains a huge and complex maze of inland saltwater inlets - that, ebbing against an onshore wind and flood, can apparently be bad, but it’s not a bar per se.

Where are there other notorious bars or places?

View attachment 572491

The lower red circle is the Nahwitti Bar at the end of the Goletas channel, NW corner of Vancouver Island. I've sailed through there 11 times on the Van Isle 360 race. The water depth goes from 600'+ in the Channel up to 30' and back down to 600'. 5 times there were gentle breezes and flat water, 4 times some chop and some ocean swell, 2 times it was the scariest place I've ever sailed through.

Coming up to it on a 4-5 knot ebb, you just see a cresting wall of water, then enter a field of 10'-15' standing, backless, breaking waves for about a mile.

Then you get to Cape Scott and you have a another version of the same, but less scary.

I have a chart from the 1860s updated to 1910 that gives a sense of the place. The larger scale chart I have has a note covering the area: "Dangers Reported Hereabouts". For Cape Scott it simply says "Dangerous for Boats".

 

[Calling Elvis]

I was at Cape Disappointment looking at the bar when I got news my grandfather had passed away. There’s no place you ever want to hear that news, but the grandeur and awesomeness of the water at that place can exemplify life.

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

The lower red circle is the Nahwitti Bar

(Yes - I know - I made the red circles.)

 

[Go Left]

(Yes - I know - I made the red circles.)

I suspected you knew where it was. I was writing more for the larger audience.