CAPE D – The water was North Dakota flat when U.S. Coast Guard Surfman Tyler Bartel angled the 47-foot motor lifeboat out of the Cape Disappointment docks toward the treacherous areas of the Columbia River bar.

With little wind to create water texture, the balmy, gray-sky conditions were as good as they get. The Cummins diesel engines vibrated the boat slightly as it cut through the water.

Bartel took his hands off the steering as he pointed to the spots where he and his crew often responded to cases.

“Off to the left at Clatsop Spit is where we do a lot of training,” he said, narrowing in on an HH-60 Jayhawk from U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Astoria hovering over the water. “This is one of the best places to learn.”

Up to the right was the North Jetty and Peacock Spit, where breaking waves come from every direction because of the crazy criss-crossing of channels on the river floor.

Labor Day weekend of 2001, two people drowned after their boats capsized in the angry waters.

“They all can be bad, but this is by far the worst,” he said. “It’s notorious for being nasty.”

The tip of the A Jetty was the site of an accident last month where a boat flipped, trapping a man underneath. Bartel and his crew put a rescue swimmer in the water and were able to pull the man out and resuscitate him.

Bartel navigated the lifeboat toward the sunken jetty, where sea lions barked and sunned themselves. When he’s not concentrating on a current case, he sizes up other boats and imagines what it would be like to give them a tow. He swiveled his head at recreation boats with children on them, automatically checking for life jackets. Under Oregon and Washington laws, everyone 12-years-old and younger is required to wear a personal flotation device at all times.

As summer creeps forward the Coast Guard responds more often to these danger areas on the bar, their case load increasing exponentially with sunny days and fisheries openings.

In 2003, motor lifeboat station Cape Disappointment responded to 390 calls between the beginning of June and the end of August – two-thirds of their case load for the entire year.

Likewise, Station Grays Harbor responded to 190 cases over the summer months, 60 percent of their cases.

The Buoy 10, the recreational salmon fishery, which begins Aug. 1 this year, is always one of the most intense times for the Coast Guard.

“Because of general boating dangers, let alone boating on the Columbia, Buoy 10 offers a lot of opportunities for things to go wrong,” said Mark Dobney, a civilian group duty officer at Air Station Astoria.

During the Buoy 10 seasons, Bartel begins his day at 4:30 in the morning, checking the lighted aids and giving a report on sea conditions in the different areas of the bar. He relies heavily on NOAA, and checks the forecast and the buoys all the time.

If there is a lot of traffic on the bar, the Coast Guard will stay out and patrol the area, putting rescuers closer to boats that might need help. The fishing boats across the river can grow so thick it appears you could walk from one edge of the shore to the other by stepping bow to bow. With so many people out, there’s always one person who needs a tow.

Between 10 a.m. and noon, the marine layers of fog start obscuring the landscape.

“That’s how we get a lot of SAR (search and rescue) cases, people lost in the fog,” Bartel said.

With so many boaters to watch over, oftentimes his day doesn’t end until 11 at night.

As in other summers, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Coast Guard Auxiliary is warning boaters to take proper precautions when they go out on the river.

Across the nation boating fatalities are on the rise with 750 recreational boating fatalities recorded in 2002, a 10-percent increase over 2001.

“Our biggest problem is the fact that there is an enormous amount of fatalities because of drowning and not wearing life jackets,” said Dan Shipman, recreational boating safety specialist with the 13th district.

According to statistics from the U.S. Coast Guard 13th District, more than 590 of the 750 fatalities were not wearing a life jacket. This year alone 15 people have died in Wash., Ore., Idaho and Montana in recreational boating accidents, only one person out of the 15 was wearing a personal flotation device.

“People will often put their life jackets on a boat. They’ll say ‘If I get into trouble I’ll put it on,'” Shipman said. “There is no time in an emergency to put a life jacket on.”

The second-biggest problem is alcohol – more than a third of boating accidents are alcohol related. Intoxicated passengers are as likely to suffer injury or death as intoxicated boat operators because most boating fatalities occur from falls overboard, not collisions.

However while boating fatalities have increased overall, efforts by the Coast Guard Auxiliary have reduced fatalities during the Buoy 10 season. Seven people died in 2001, one person in 2002 and one person in 2003. The Coast Guard attributes this decrease to auxiliary-run boat ramp education programs, coupled with law enforcement efforts.

For the fourth year, auxiliary volunteers will distribute packages of information to boaters, many of whom are from out of town and don’t understand just how cold and unpredictable the waters here are. They will remind boaters about some of the hazards – currents, tides, large ship traffic – and provide courtesy marine examinations, which tell boaters if their equipment is in good repair or if they’re missing important safety gear.

“It’s personal education at no cost and no penalty,” said Dobney, who is also an auxiliary member and boating safety instructor.

This year auxiliary volunteers are coming from all over the Northwest to try and reach as many boaters as possible.

Because this particular stretch of water is so dangerous, Dobney recommends boaters carry safety equipment that isn’t required, like a VHF radio and an anchor.

“People who go boating don’t usually think of the worst-case scenario,” he said. “Having an anchor line on board can make the difference between breaking down and drifting into Clatsop Spit.”

Bartel echoed those sentiments, warning boaters that there is always the chance for equipment failure, so bringing backup items is a good idea.

“You can never be too safe,” he said.