From 1862 to 1956, yachts competing in the America’s Cup were required to sail to the races “on their own bottoms.” My, how things have changed. Today, the AC 45 foiling catamarans sailing in the current America’s Cup Races … Continue reading
Category Archives: Current
I am attending the Weymouth Leviathan, a maritime literary festival, in the lovely, historic port at the mouth of the River Wey in Dorset on the south-western coast of England. It is a fitting locale. Most of the writers attending … Continue reading
The headlines are great. “Iceberg that Sank the Titanic 100,000 years old” and “Titanic iceberg was a 100,000-year-old giant” and “Iceberg that sank the Titanic was 100,000-years-old and of monstrous size” and so and so on. Dozens of headlines and … Continue reading
A week ago, we posted about the corpse of a German sailor aboard the yacht SAYO, a Jeanneau Sun Magic 44, which was found adrift off the Philippines on around the end of February. The body was described as “mummified,” … Continue reading
We recently posted about Scott Kelly, the American astronaut who spent almost a year in space on the international Space Station. Scott Kelly is an alumnus of the State University of New York Maritime College at Fort Schuyler. Before graduating … Continue reading
Scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have spotted a translucent white octopod at a depth of 4,300 meters while collecting geological samples with a remote-operated vehicle on Necker Ridge in the Hawaiian Archipelago. Described as a “remarkable … Continue reading
For the last few years, we have followed the sad saga of the “rebuilding” of the schooner Bluenose II. The latest development involves the replacement of the existing steel rudder and steering system at an estimated additional cost of $1 … Continue reading
Originally posted on gCaptain by Rick Spilman, on March 3, 2016. Reposted with permission. Rogue waves are real sea monsters. Rising many times higher than surrounding waves, they have the power to sink ships and to cripple offshore platforms. Recently, … Continue reading
For several years now we have been posting about Scott and Mark Kelly, the identical twins who both graduated from merchant marine academies and served in the Navy. Each became astronauts and both have traveled in space. Recently, Scott Kelly … Continue reading
Two fisherman came across a macabre scene on a dismasted derelict sailboat, drifting 40 miles off the coast of Barobo in Surigao del Sur in the Philippines. A figure, the color of dry plaster, was slumped over the chart table … Continue reading
Last week, the 1895 lumber schooner C.A. Thayer, the last surviving West Coast lumber schooner, returned to her berth at San Francisco Maritime‘s Hyde Street Pier, after having three masts and a bowsprit installed by the Bay Ship and Yacht … Continue reading
Has Royal Caribbean Lines learned its lesson? Just days after a passenger filed a lawsuit against RCL for knowingly sending the cruise ship Anthem of the Seas into a winter storm off Hatteras in early February, the cruise line cut … Continue reading
$9.99 with Dave Evans is a weekly program which explores fun things to do and see in New York City for under ten bucks. Recently, he stopped by the ex-USCG Cutter Lilac at Pier 25 in Manhattan on the Hudson … Continue reading
What has been referred to as the Second Battle of the River Platte, may be coming to an end. In 2010, we posted about a legal battle over the salvaging of the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee which was scuttled … Continue reading
Those of us around New York harbor have been watching a dramatic rescue unfold this morning. Around 2 AM, the 76-foot scallop fishing vessel Carolina Queen III, with 7 aboard, ran aground off Rockaway beach near the East Rockaway Inlet, … Continue reading
Recent studies suggest that sea levels are now rising at the fastest rate in the last 28 centuries. According to two reports, increased flooding in coastal communities in America can be traced directly to increased the production of greenhouse gases … Continue reading
Only last June, the media were reporting the project to build a near-replica of RMS Titanic was dead. The Daily Echo was typical, writing: The highly ambitious plan to build a replica of the ill-fated Southampton liner, Titanic, has apparently sunk without … Continue reading
It takes a special breed of sailor to attempt to crest the monstrous waves of a harbor bar in a motor lifeboat. It also takes a very specially designed and built boat to make crossing the bar possible. We recently … Continue reading
In a post yesterday, we raised the general question of why Royal Caribbean Line (RCL) would run winter cruises which passed off Cape Hatteras, an area known for bad weather, particularly in the winter months? Today many are asking the … Continue reading
We posted this morning about the severe storm encountered by the Royal Caribbean cruise ship, Anthem of the Seas, off Cape Hatteras. As of this morning, the ship was bound for Port Canaveral but was being delayed by weather according … Continue reading