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
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From left: Peter W on g, H illa ry Borru d , M a teu sz Perk ow sk i