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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 3, 2015)
3C THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JULY 3, 2015 Oyster Po’ Boy What you’ll need: 4 Willapa Bay oysters dredged in rice flour 1 tablespoon oil 4 tablespoons of Mae Ploy Sweet Chili 4 tablespoons of mayonnaise Pinch of fresh garlic 2 cups of cab- bage slaw NATALIE ST. JOHN — EO Media Group The flavors of the American Southest and Southeast Asia come together in The Cove Restaurant’s Thai-themed Oyster Po’ Boy. The sandwich features crispy cornmeal-fried oysters, cabbage slaw in an Asian dressing, and a side of cajun-seasoned fries. Cooking WHAT’S GOURMET RECIPES FROM LOCAL CHEFS The Daily Astorian J ason Lancaster, the chef at The Cove Restaurant at the Peninsula Golf Course in Long Beach, Wash., likes an eclectic menu. Lancaster moved to the region, according to the restaurant, to take advantage of the fresh local ingredients, good winter waves and laid- back lifestyle. The chef has spent winters at the Snow- bird ski resort in 8tah and summers sur¿ng in Mexico and South America. He offers his twist on a Louisiana staple with our readers. Chef Jason Lancaster prepares the slightly spicy slaw that adds crunch to his Thai-style Oyster Po’ Boy at The Cove Restaurant in Long Beach, Wash. What you’ll do: 1. Dredging in rice flour does not add too much “bread- ing” to take away from the freshness or taste of our re- gion’s beautiful oysters. 2. In a large skillet add a tablespoon of oil. You want the pan hot but not smoking. 3. Add oysters until golden brown. 4. In a small bowl add 4 tablespoons of Mae Ploy Sweet Chili found in the Asian aisle of your local grocery store. 5. Add 4 table- spoons of mayo and a pinch of fresh garlic. 6. Add to 2 cups of cabbage slaw and mix. 7. Pile coleslaw on a toasted rustic hoagie roll. 8. Add sliced vine ripened tomatoes. 9. Top with the oysters and enjoy! NATALIE ST. JOHN — EO Media Group THE SHIP REPORT Shallow water on the Columbia By JOANNE RIDEOUT Special to The Daily Astorian T his year we’ve been blessed, so to speak, with a lovely spring and so far summer in the low- er Columbia River region. Our stretch of near perfect weather has gone on way lon- ger than we would normally expect. As I write this, on the last day of June, the total rain- fall for Astoria for the entire month of June was less than a quarter of an inch. In a part of the country known for rainy springs, we’ve had a very dry one. While this affects ev- erything from gardens to ¿re danger, it can also have con- sequences for vessels on the river. Our dry trend has been in force all winter long, which means winter snow pack and spring rainfall are way down. Both rain and snow pack feed the river, and much of that water has been absent this year. We’re used to the river Àowing endlessly by, but the truth is that in years like this one, when little water is being added to the huge volume that makes up the Columbia, riv- er levels can actually start to drop, which can be a bad thing for ships and boats. Even in an ample water year, the Columbia River chan- nel is not a free and easy place for ships. The cargo vessels that come into the Columbia are huge and draw lots of wa- ter. On many occasions there is little more than a couple of feet of river under the keels of ships transiting from Astoria to Portland and back again. Pilots know this well, and I’ve been told that sometimes they feel like they’re shoe- horning ships up the narrow and relatively shallow chan- nel, on a journey that has more than 100 course changes between Tongue Point and the Port of Vancouver. That’s in a good year. ‘A deadly thing for vessels’ So what can happen when there’s not enough water to go around? Overall, depths become shallower, and that can be a deadly thing for ves- sels, which can’t Àoat if there isn’t enough water. Pilots, of course, monitor these condi- tions closely as part of their work. If things become se- vere, ships can time their tran- sits with high tide to get more depth, or load less cargo, be- cause cargo makes them sink deeper in the water. Both these methods of adapting cost ships time and money, and so drought years can have an affect on the ship- ping industry. A few years ago when drought hit the Missis- sippi River region hard and water levels began to drop, even relatively shallow-water tug and barge traf¿c was re- stricted in some areas. There simply was not enough water in that river in some places to allow those vessels to Àoat. This is not just a problem for big ships. Recreational vessels can have a hard time in low water years. Nautical charts, even those loaded into up-to-date GPS units, use data that may be overly optimistic in terms of actual water depth. Mysterious quality When water levels are low, underwater obstructions are also closer to the surface, and more likely to be hit by vessels going by. Shallow ar- eas become even shallower, and the likelihood of running aground becomes more of an issue. Having a depth indica- tor on your boat is always a good idea, but it’s especial- ly vital when there is a pro- longed drought. Rivers and other bodies of water have a mysterious qual- ity about them that makes us forget a simple truth — they are like a huge bowls of wa- ter, with de¿ned edges and ¿nite bottoms. Because most of the time our boats are much smaller than the water we put them in, we tend to believe that the water is vast. That’s still true, but we must become more observant when there is less water to work with. Each day the tide goes in and out, and if you observe this, you can see the big dif- ference 8 feet makes in how things look and where the wa- ter goes, and does not go. ALEX PAJUNAS — The Daily Astorian KMUN General Manager Joanne Rideout is the voice of The Ship Report. Annual King Tide events, where tides are more dramatic and higher than usual, show us the upper extreme of tidal changes and how much water we might expect in our water- ways if sea level worldwide continues to rise. Likewise, low water years, like this one seems to be, show us the other end of things. Whether our summer drought ends up affecting shipping remains to be seen. Vessel traf¿c will go on none- theless, and people on land will probably be none the wis- er — everything will look the same to the untrained eye. But on board ships, profes- sional mariners will be watch- ing and taking up the slack, keeping the commercial traf- ¿c moving and safe. Those of us watching from the shore will, as ever, just see ships going by. Joanne Rideout is general manager of Coast Community Radio (KMUN-FM) in Asto- ria. She’s also the creator and producer of The Ship Report, a radio show and podcast about All Things Maritime. You can hear The Ship Report on Coast Community Radio at 8:48 a.m. weekdays at 91.9FM, streaming at www.coastradio.org. Podcast available on The Ship Report website at www.shipreport.net. W hile other n ew spa pers give you less, The D a ily Astoria n GIVES YOU M ORE O u r n ew C APITAL B UREAU covers the sta te for you From left: Peter W on g, H illa ry Borru d , M a teu sz Perk ow sk i