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Tugboats of the Columbia
by Stuart of GorgeConnection.com

Tugboats that tow barges are a vibrant part of the panorama along the Columbia River shores. They support the area economy as well as add color to the landscape.

A tugboat looks small from the shore. One might guess it is 200 feet long altogether when it is pushing or pulling four or more barges. In actuality, a tug with its tow is 84 feet wide and up to 650 feet long, which is longer than two football fields end to end. Eight miles an hour is the speed that tugs usually move.

A tugboat operates twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year. It is self-sufficient as the systems work together. 55 gallons of diesel and two quarts of lube oil are used every hour by each of the two 1500 horsepower engines. The boat’s “brain” is connected to seventy-five sensors to ensure all the systems are working properly. The sensors will also detect if any fluids are not at their proper levels and if there is smoke in any compartment. An alarm will signal if anything is wrong.

Electric winches are used by the tugs while hand-cranked type winches are on the barges. 1-1/8 inch cables are used to strap the barges together. Usually, to connect two barges requires six cables while eighteen to twenty cables are required for four barges.

It takes years to master navigating a tugboat. From the wheelhouse, the pilot operates the boat, 45 feet above the water. Thanks to modern technology, new tools have been introduced to help with the job. Some of these tools include global positioning systems (GPS), wind gauges, swing meters, and radar. Part of the company’s network includes an on-board computer and the main office can locate any boat in the fleet at any given time.

Tugs travel along the deep channel of the river. The pilot is aided by buoys, range markers, and GPS to keep the tow in this channel. Water on the Columbia River flows at 300,000 cubic feet per second during spring runoff or heavy rainfall and this rapid current is only one problem a pilot must be able to handle. Other problems include fog, wind, rain, ice, snow, bridges, and dams. Another potential hazard is people on the river. The pilot must always be watchful for activities on the water such as fishing, windsurfing, and pleasure boating which sometimes takes people into the deep channel.

It takes about 48 hours to make the complete trip from Lewiston, Idaho to Portland, Oregon. Eight dams must be passed through during the trip—four on the Columbia River and four on the Snake River. Locks on the dams are a maximum of 650 feet long and 86 feet wide presenting a tight squeeze for a large tow. Eight large floats which are set into the lock wall are roped to a tow when it enters the locks. This keeps the tow in position as it is raised or lowered. The John Day Dam has a lift of 100 feet which is the highest of all the dams.

The primary cargo driven downriver is wheat. Wheat from Lewiston and other upriver locations is brought down to Portland, Vancouver, Kelso, and Longview to be shipped to overseas locations. Barges on the Columbia River transport forty percent of all the wheat produced in the United States; another thirteen percent is transported by train. Four wheat barges will carry 14,000 tons of wheat making river barges the most efficient method of transporting wheat. 560 trucks or 140 railroad cars would be required to carry the same amount.

Wheat is not the only product that is towed on the Columbia River. Tugboat companies also transport scrap metal, wood chips, paper products, petroleum products, and garbage among other cargos. One million gallons of petroleum are also transported by 42 foot wide barges. 2.2 million gallons of petroleum can be carried by the jumbo barges which are 84 feet wide and 274 feet long. A jumbo barge carrying that much petroleum is thirteen and a half feet under water.

The tow barges on the Columbia River have crews which include a captain, a pilot, usually two deck mechanics, and a third man for the largest barges. Six hours on and six hours off is the standard shift around the clock.

Each crew works half of the month. Off-duty personnel call in the day prior to the crew change to learn what boat they are assigned to. They will also be told approximately where the boat will be at noon the next day. The location for boarding may be anywhere between Lewiston ID and Astoria OR since the boats operate around the clock. Arrangements are made by the crew members with each other for the storage and retrieval of their personal cars.