October 29, 2009
ASTORIA, Ore. — It's a mild October morning on the Oregon Coast.
Yet, even on a windless day with the ocean glassy smooth, it's a rough ride at the point where the Columbia River smashes into the Pacific Ocean. A 60-ton boat, designed to ferry elite pilots to ships waiting offshore, heaves atop 6-foot swells like a rubber duck in a bathtub.
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