Check for Boating Obstructions Before Hitting the River

OREGON – There’s more to boating than just floating. While inland waterways don’t generally bring the same risks as the ocean, the shallow depths and confined spaces present their own hazards. For those looking to travel Oregon’s rivers and lakes this season, the Oregon Marine Board (OMB) has tools for tracking potentially dangerous obstacles.

The OMB’s Boating Obstruction Report Tools (BORT) are a set of interactive maps that let anyone report and display potential waterway hazards. Users select from either a standard or whitewater reporting system, select a location, provide a description of the obstacle, the potential hazard it presents to watercraft, and instructions on how to avoid it. Information is then displayed live on an obstructions map similar to the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Trip Check system. For those looking to plan ahead or help keep the waterways clear, the BORT system can be found here. https://oregon-boating-obstructions-geo.hub.arcgis.com/ Use BORT to save your boat.