You can check out this Lightship Columbia at the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, OR. It’s open daily from 11-3 pm. You need to have a pass to get on the boat. You look around the top of the boat and you can go in the ship and see how it was used. I wasn’t able to get down the stairs.
This National Historic Landmark once guide ships to safely at the mouth of the Columbia River. Columbia was the fourth and final lightship stationed at the river.
The Lightship Columbia was made in 1950 and used from 1951-1979 as a floating lighthouse to mark the mouth of the Columbia River. The boat was anchored 5 miles out to sea and all the supplies for the crew had to be on board. The boat had a crew of 17 men who worked 2-4 week rotation, with 10 men on duty at a time. Life on board consisted of long periods of monotony punctuated by fierce storms, particularly in the winter.
Lightship Columbia – Columbia River Maritime Museum (crmm.org)