Last night, NNMREC invited folks down to the Toledo Boat Yard to see the Ocean Sentinel and Azura devices being prepared for deployment. Members of Fisherman Involved in Natural Energy, the Test Berth Committee, the OSU research team, and the Azura deployment team were all on hand for the event.

Commissioner Terry Thompson and Director of Planning and Development Onno Husing attended on behalf of Lincoln County, as well as Paul Klarin, Marine Program Coordinator at the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development. With such a good mix of people in attendance, it was a great opportunity to learn about the various aspects of the project and show off the devices before they go in the water.

Just seven miles inland, Toledo enjoys a sunny, warm micro-climate in the summer.  While we enjoyed near perfect conditions at the Port of Toledo,  conditions as the coast were much different, with heavy fog and strong winds.  County Commissioner Terry Thompson said it was foggy and blowing 30 knots at his house in Newport, and Port Manager Bud Shoemake remarked, “After a year or two on the coast people move back inland.”

Toledo has been a great place to assemble the devices, but deployment day is drawing near.  Despite the wind and fog over the last few days, the coastal forecast is promising, with subsiding seas and diminishing winds expected later this week through early next week. If the forecast holds true, we should have a good weather window for deployment.