The Mid-Columbia, explained by someone who drives boats on it for a living

Practical, sourced notes on the Columbia River around the Tri-Cities (Richland, Kennewick and Pasco) for visitors and recreational boaters. Written by Cap'n Guy Morgan, a U.S. Coast Guard-licensed 100-ton Master who captains on this river.

New

Locks, barges and the shipping channel

A recreational boater's playbook for McNary and Ice Harbor locks, sharing the channel with tows, the radio channels that matter, and the 2027 lock closures.

Coming

Washington boater card: what the test doesn't cover here

Current, wind, channel edges and commercial traffic on the Mid-Columbia.

Coming

Getting a captain's license

OUPV ("six-pack") vs. Master, in plain English, for people who want to run boats for hire.

How this site works

Every rule, schedule and closure date on this site links to the official source it came from (USACE, U.S. Coast Guard regulations, or state boating agencies), with the date it was last checked.
If something can't be verified from an official source, it isn't stated as fact. Seamanship advice is labelled as the captain's advice.
No ads and no affiliate links. The captain works for a local cruise operator; see the disclosure.

Questions or corrections: [email protected]