U.S. Coast Guardsmen mill about on the deck of the Cutter Barracuda at the Coos Bay City Docks on Tuesday afternoon. The Coast Guard cutter made a one-day stop in Coos Bay for a rest and supplies, after patrolling in the region, said Senior Chief Petty Officer Trent Spiroff, below. World Photo by Alex Powers

It was a sleek barracuda among tiny sailboats.

The U.S. Coast Guard’s 87-foot patrol boat, the Cutter Barracuda, made a one-day stop in Coos Bay on Tuesday. Coast Guardsmen milled about at the City Docks, while in port to take on fuel, as well as give the vessel’s 12-man crew a day off.

According to the ship’s commanding officer, Senior Chief Petty Officer Trent Spiroff, the crew of the Barracuda is in the region on a routine patrol assignment. The cutter is stationed in Eureka, Calif., but runs law enforcement and search-and-rescue operations along the Oregon and California coasts, while out on two-week patrols.

The Barracuda crew boarded an unspecified number of commercial fishing vessels during its voyage up the Oregon Coast — standard procedure, Spiroff explained, that helps ensure fishing vessel safety and prevent overfishing.

“Generally, up here in this part of the country, our focus is the commercial fishing industry,” he said.

Spiroff noted that the Barracuda does not pick on commercial fishing vessels.

 “We don’t go out looking to hammer them,” he said.

While in the Coos Bay area, the Barracuda may assist local Coast Guard stations with law enforcement or search-and-rescue -related training exercises.

“It’s good training, and good experience,” Spiroff said. “It’s good for the men.”