This sign is located at the Astoria Waterfront tower along the Astoria River Walk west of the Maritime Museum.
Marker Name: A Treacherous Barrier - an Open Gateway
Marker Text: Some of the world’s fiercest water and weather conditions occur here at the mouth of the Columbia River. Many changeable forces combine. Currents, tides, and weather can be extreme. Fog is common, so are severe winter storms.
These natural factors add to the hazards of navigating across the Columbia River Bar. The bar forms where river water rushes into the ocean, building up a series of shifting sandbars that often have rough waves breaking over them. In earlier times, it could be difficult to find the channel, as wind, waves, and currents changed it quickly. Today, the navigation channel is well maintained. Jetties stabilize the mouth of the river, and specially-licensed pilots assist vessels in crossing the bar and navigating the Columbia River.
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