Lee shores were long the bane of sailing ships. They are no better for motor vessels who lose their engines or drag their anchors. Table Bay where the SELI 1 grounded is just such a lee shore and has been a … Continue reading
Category Archives: Lore of the Sea
“Super yachts” rarely impress me. Russian billionaire, Roman Abramovich’s megayacht, “Eclipse,” may be the largest private yacht now sailing but it is, to my eye at least, a bit boring. It may be over 550 feet long and cost a … Continue reading
After four voyages the solar panels on the upper of the NYK car carrier Auriga Leader have performed better than was expected but have also demonstrated how far there is to go in harnessing solar power. The ship has generated 32,300 … Continue reading
The Aubrey/Maturin series of novels by Patrick O’Brian introduced the world to, among other things, a range of obscure traditional British cuisine, which notably included suet puddings such as “Floating Island”, the unappetizing “Drowned Baby” and the perennial favorite “Spotted Dick”. This … Continue reading
From Marine Log: A fireboat launched September 11, 2009 at Eastern Shipbuilding, Panama City, Fla. is named the Three Forty Three in honor of the 343 New York City firefighters killed at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. … Continue reading
I’ve always been struck by the tragedy that those most in need of ferry service are often also most at risk. We have seen recent ferry accidents in the Philippines with the sinking of the Superferry 9 resulting in nine deaths, in … Continue reading
If you can’t get sailors to church, bring the church to the sailors. That was the strategy used in 1844 by the Protestant Church Missionary Society for Seamen, which was renamed the Seamen’s Church Institute. As they celebrate their 175th … Continue reading
Last week was a bad week for bulk carriers. The MV Black Rose, a bulk carrier with a crew of 27 which had loaded 23,847 tons of iron ore, sank near the port of Paradip on the east coast of … Continue reading
We have been following the progress of Beluga Shipping in their attempt to make a commercial transit of the “Northern Sea Route” which is also referred to as the “North East Passage.” See our “Beluga Group attempts the Northern Sea Route” … Continue reading
Today there are 1.6 million or so residents on the island of Manhattan. How things have changed. Four hundred years ago on September 12th, 1609, when Henry Hudson first stepped onto the island, there were roughly 600 Lenape Indians living … Continue reading
Last February, we posted about Dick Dowling and the battle of Sabine Pass. This weekend , September 12th and 13th, during “Dick Dowling Days” there will be re-enactments of the Civil War battle on the Sabine Pass State Historic Battleground … Continue reading
CNN reported that the US Coast Guard had fired shots at a passenger vessel on the Potomac River a short distance from where 9/11 memorial events were taking place at the Pentagon. Later reports say that the incident was in … Continue reading
Eight years ago today, on a beautiful Tuesday morning in September, hundreds of thousands of commuters were trapped in lower Manhattan. Manhattan is an island and all bridges, tunnels and subways had been shut down following the attacks on the World Trade Center. Shortly after … Continue reading
We recently posted about how Cathryn R. Newton, dean emerita from Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences, has developed a searchable database that details 2,038 shipwrecks dating from 1526. Thanks to Dick Kooyman for pointing out Australia’s National Shipwrecks database, … Continue reading
Charles Darwin’s great-great- granddaughter, Sarah Darwin, is sailing on the Stad Amsterdam with a group of historians and naturalists, as well as a film crew for Dutch VPRO Television and Hollywood actor John Malkovich. They will be retracing the voyage of … Continue reading
In the aftermath of the fire in 1934 on the passenger liner Morro Castle, in which 135 passengers and crew died, there was considerable blame to be shared. The ship’s safety equipment was poorly maintained, the crew poorly trained and the … Continue reading
Seventy five years ago today, the passenger liner Morro Castle was steaming off the Jersey shore, bound for New York from Havana, when she caught fire. Of the 549 passengers and crew aboard, 135 died either in the fire or by drowning. An … Continue reading
If Gloucester has a schooner race, then New York really should have a tugboat race. And it does. Here is a short video I shot of the 17th Annual North River Tugboat Challenge last Sunday. … Continue reading
Thanks to Dave Shirlaw on MARHST-L for pointing out a fascinating vessel for sale on E-Bay. The vessel is a steel tug, ST 893, built by JK Welding of Brooklyn, NY in 1945. The tug is said to have served in … Continue reading
An interesting article from JoongAng Ilbo about a large sailing yacht once owned by an unnamed American Mafia boss. The yacht was in Korea for modifications, when the Mafiosa was arrested and sent to prison. The boat was purchased by a Korean who … Continue reading