Fridtjof Nansen, Exploring the Arctic and Saving Refugees

Posted on by October 10, 2017

Today’s Google Doodle commemorates the 156th birthday of Fridtjof Nansen — arctic explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Nansen seems particularly relevant in these times as the polar ice cap continues to melt and as refugee crises grow across the globe. 

Nansen once wrote, “I demolish my bridges behind me – then there is no choice but forward.”  In 1893, Nansen set off in command of an expedition to attempt to drift in the ice across the North Pole. He sailed on a specially built ship with a round hull designed to resist being crushed by the ice. The ship was built by the famous Norwegian-Scottish shipbuilder Colin Archer and named appropriately, Fram, or in Norwegian, Forward.    

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Remembering George Cuthbertson — Designer, Boatbuilder, & Entrepreneur

Posted on by October 10, 2017

Yacht designer, boatbuilder, and entrepreneur George Cuthberston died on October 3, age 88. Cuthbertson was one of the founders of the Canadian yacht builder, C & C Yachts, which was a major player in the world of sailing in the 1970s and 80s. As a yacht designer, Cuthbertson was known for fast designs with long waterlines, low wetted surface, and light but rigid cored hulls.

George Cuthbertson, who trained as a mechanical engineer, opened a yacht design and brokerage firm not long after he graduated from the University of Toronto in 1950. His design of Inisfree, a 54-footer which was launched in 1958, was an early success.

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The Great Chesapeake Schooner Race 2017 — Racing to Save the Bay

Posted on by October 8, 2017

The festivities associated with the Great Chesapeake Schooner Race 2017 kick off tomorrow at 10 AM with a  “Salute to Schooners,” where schooners and other vessels will “fire” cannons, horns, etc. On land, students from Baltimore City schools will sing and play a musical tribute to the USA. From 1700-1900 hours, (5PM  – 7 PM) the schooners will be available for viewing dockside in Canton at the Baltimore Marine Center at Lighthouse Point. 

Wednesday will feature educational programs on certain schooners and dockside viewing from 10 AM to 2 PM. A Parade of sail will begin at 5 PM. The public is invited to view the schooners from the Canton, Fells Point, Harbor East and Inner Harbor shorelines. Click here for a more detailed schedule of events.

The race itself starts on Thursday featuring 30 schooners ranging from the Class AA Pride of Baltimore II to the Class C, Peanut.  Continue reading →

Grim Discovery in Kim Wall Murder

Posted on by October 7, 2017

Kim Wall

The Danish police made a grim discovery in the murder of Kim Wall. On Friday, divers discovered the severed head, legs and arms of the Swedish journalist, as well as some of her clothing and a knife. The body parts were found in bags which contained pieces of metal presumably to weigh them down. The bags were located in Koge Bay, less than a mile from where Ms. Wall’s torso was located on August 21. 

Kim Wall disappeared after going on a trip in Copenhagen harbor onboard Peter Madsen’s private submarine, UC3 Nautulis, as part of an interview. The submarine sank under mysterious circumstances and Ms. Wall disappeared. Mr. Madsen was rescued and subsequently charged with murder. Ms. Wall’s dismembered torso washed onto a nearby beach eleven days later.

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ROUGH SEAS! Bad Weather in Atlantic Ocean

Posted on by October 6, 2017

I love the videos shot and produced by maritime vlogger JeffHK. He describes himself as a sailor with a passion for photo/videography and drones who do vlogs while traveling the world on a mega container-ship.

This has been a rough week, so his video of rough weather in the Atlantic on an OOCL container ship seems especially appropriate. The storms at sea have both a fury and a beauty that seems somehow far preferable to what has been going on ashore. 

ROUGH SEAS! Bad Weather in Atlantic Ocean | Life at Sea

Volvo Ocean Race 20117-2018 Starting Soon, Future Races Uncertain

Posted on by October 5, 2017

Photo: Francisco Vignale/MAPFRE/Volvo Ocean Race

Seven boats will be setting off on the 2017-2018 Volvo Ocean Race in 16 days. The race will start in Alicante on October 22, 2017 and finish in The Hague in June 2018, visiting 12 stopover ports– Alicante, Lisbon, Cape Town, Melbourne, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Auckland, Itajaí, Newport, Cardiff, Gothenburg, The Hague — on a route extending for 45,000 nautical miles. The seven teams will each be racing Volvo Ocean 65s.

While the teams for the 20117-2018 races are making final preparations, the Volvo Ocean Race organization has announced a delay in the 2019-20120 race. The race organizers say that additional planning time is required before further announcements can take place. In addition, Mark Turner, the CEO of Volvo Ocean Race, has stepped down, and a replacement is being sought.

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More Disturbing Evidence in the Death of Kim Wall on the UC3 Nautilus

Posted on by October 4, 2017

More disturbing evidence has emerged in the death of Swedish journalist Kim Wall on the private submarine UC3 Nautilus last August. Peter Madsen, the owner of the submarine, has been charged with her murder. 

On August 10th, Danish inventor Peter Madsen took Swedish journalist Kim Wall on a trip aboard his private submarine in Copenhagen harbor as part of an interview. The submarine sank under mysterious circumstances. Madsen was rescued but Wall was never seen alive again. About two weeks later, Wall’s headless and limbless torso washed ashore.  

Recently, the Danish police have revealed that Wall’s body was stabbed 15 times around the time of her death. Traces of Madsen’s DNA have also been found on the body. A hard drive taken from Madsen’s lab was also found to contain video footage of women being tortured and decapitated. Madsen denies that the hard drive was his. He also continues to claim that Wall’s death was an accident.   Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to this post.

Beery McTallShipFace? Nah — Beer Naming Contest Supporting Sunderland Tall Ships Festival

Posted on by October 3, 2017

Next year, the UK port of Sunderland will be hosting 80 tall ships at the start of the Tall Ships Races 2018. To support the festivities, Maxim Brewery will be brewing a special nautical themed porter. But what to call it? That is the question at hand. In partnership with The Sunderland Echo and SunFM, the brewery is holding a competition to name the rum-porter. The winner will receive a tour of Maxim Brewery and may even get to help out in the brewing of the Tall Ships beer.  Here is how it will work:

  • October 2 to October 13 – Both the Sunderland Echo and Sun FM will hold a joint competition for a Tall Ships cask beer name.
  • October 16 – The best entries will be chosen and the top ten will go forward to a public vote.
  • October 18 to October 25 – Watch out for details on how you can pick your favorites, through a vote on the Sunderland Echo website.
  • November 6 – The name of the winning beer will be announced.

To enter send your suggested beer name by by midday on Friday, October 13 to chris.cordner@jpress.co.uk

Sunderland on River Wear has a long and rich history of shipping and shipbuilding.  The region was once called “the largest shipbuilding town in the world.”  Shipbuilding began on the River Wear in 1346. Throughout its history, Sunderland has had over 400 registered shipyards. The last remaining shipyard closed in 1988.

 

The Hidden Harbors of Staten Island — October 15th

Posted on by October 3, 2017

On Sunday, October 15, the Working Waterfront Committee is presenting “The Hidden Harbors of Staten Island,” a behind the scenes tour of a fascinating island led by Mitch Waxman of the Newtown Creek Alliance and Gordon Cooper, WHC Board Member and maritime consultant. From the WHC Hidden Harbor Tour press release:

Our route will carry us up the busy Kill Van Kull, with the oil terminals and factories of Bayonne on one side and the maritime industrial North Shore of Staten Island on the other. We will pass by floating dry docks, tugboat ports, and then under the Bayonne Bridge. The Shooters Island Bird Sanctuary, and the wooden ruins of a coaling station will be next. Our Captain will then guide us into the busy Arthur Kill waterway. We will pass Global Terminal (formerly NYCT) where the age of cargo box shipping began in 1956, and then we will see the newly rebuilt Goethals Bridge, a railroad lift bridge, and the Outerbridge Crossing.

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2011 Japanese Tsunami Sent Invasive Species to the US, But Not Radioactive Fish or Mutant Wasps

Posted on by September 30, 2017

Marine sea slugs from a derelict Japanese vessel that washed ashore in Oregon. (John W. Chapman)

Since the Japanese tsunami of 2011 and the meltdown of the reactors at Fukushima, the Internet has been full of scary accounts of the Pacific Ocean becoming radioactive as well as stories of radioactive salmon and other fish. One widely repeated story said that Fukushima scientists have warned that fish in the Pacific Ocean will never again be safe for human consumption due to radioactive contamination. Another account claimed that radiation from the Fukushima disaster had caused 100% infant mortality among orca whales. There was even a story about mutated giant hornets from Fukushima killing people in Nebraska! 

All of these accounts are urban legends, fake news — call them what you will — they are not true. Which is not to say that the US environment has not been impacted by the 2011 tsunami.  A recent story in the Washinton Post describes how the tsunami brought a plethora of invasive species to the US West Coast, riding on the 5 million tons of debris swept into the ocean by the tsunami. Scientists have identified more than 280 species of organisms on the flotsam drifting ashore on the US West Coast.   

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In Hurricane Ravaged Puerto Rico & the Virgin Islands, RCCL’s Adventure of the Seas to the Rescue

Posted on by September 29, 2017

Royal Caribbean Cruise Line canceled their weekly scheduled cruise on the  MV Adventure of the Seas and instead sent the 3,114 passenger ship on a relief mission to carry supplies to those in need and to evacuate people from islands devastated by Hurricane Maria.  The ship called in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Wednesday and picked up 1,700 evacuees. The Adventure of the Seas arrived in St.Croix today to drop off supplies and pick up additional residents. It is expected to call in St. Thomas on Saturday to drop off supplies and pick up more evacuees before returning to Fort Lauderdale, arriving on October 3rd.  

This is the second round of relief voyages for RCCL. The Adventure of the Seas and the Majesty of the Seas both evacuated residents from St. Maartin and St. Thomas in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, earlier in the month.

TBT Repost: Wanderer — the Slave Ship Flying a New York Yacht Club Burgee

Posted on by September 28, 2017

For Throw-Back Thursday (TBT) here is a repost of an unlikely bit of history which we posted three years ago.  

USS_Wanderer_(1857)The schooner yacht Wanderer was built in 1857 for Colonel John D. Johnson, a New Orleans sugar baron. At just over 100 feet long, she was luxurious, sleek and extremely fast, reportedly capable of sailing at 20 knots.  The Wanderer is not remembered, however, either for her beauty or her speed. She is remembered as the last slave ship to carry a human cargo to the shores of the United States.

In her only voyage as a slaver, she flew the New York Yacht Club burgee at her peak. That turned out to be a critical detail. The burgee and the complete implausibility of a luxury yacht whose owner wore the uniform of the New York Yacht Club, operating as a slave ship, allowed the ship to slip past the American and British anti-slavery patrol on the African coast.

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Is Puerto Rico Getting Enough Help? No Jones Act Waiver, Delays With Hospital Ship USNS Comfort

Posted on by September 28, 2017

USNS Comfort, still In Norfolk, VA

The island of Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria. The damage has been described as apocalyptic.  Most of the island is without power or water and tens of thousands are in shelters or are homeless. The healthcare system is overwhelmed by the destruction. Both fuel and food are in short supply. Help is on the way, but is it enough?

There is widespread criticism that not enough is being done. The 3.4 million American citizens in Puerto Rico are in great need of help and yet are getting less support than the victims of recent hurricanes in Texas and Florida. The Washington Post quotes Adm. Paul Zukunft, the Coast Guard commandant, that he understands why Puerto Rico’s residents feel forgotten. “They feel isolated, and they’re probably getting a sense of betrayal, of, well, ‘Where is the cavalry?’ ” Zukunft said.

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US Coast Guard Sets Record for Drug Seizures at Sea Again

Posted on by September 22, 2017

The United States Coast Guard has set a new record for cocaine seizures at sea for the second year in a row.  The Washington Post reports that the Coast Guard has seized more than 455,000 pounds of cocaine through Sept. 11 in the fiscal year that will end Oct. 1, breaking the record of 443,790 pounds set last year. About 85 percent of that comes from the eastern Pacific, service officials said. The Coast Guard also has detained at least 681 suspected smugglers in those operations, up from 585 last year and 503 in 2015.

While the Coast Guard has had record hauls of drugs seized on the high seas the past two years, that is not the case on land, according to data from Customs and Border Protection and Border Patrol reports the San Diego Union Tribune.  Annual reports from those agencies, which are the main law enforcement authorities on the border, show a steady decline over the past several years in the amounts of drugs seized.

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The Hinckley Dasher — the Tesla of Luxury Yachts

Posted on by September 25, 2017

Hinckley Yachts claims to build “luxury yachts with innovative technology.” Their new 28’6″ fully electric runabout Dasher lives up to the boast.  Fortune magazine referred to it as the “Tesla of luxury yachts.” 

The new design, which uses carbon fiber to keep the boat light, features twin 80-horsepower Deep Blue 80i 1800 motors from German company Torqeedo, best known for its electric outboard motors. Two 40-kilowatt-hour BMW i3 lithium-ion batteries provide power to the motors.  

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How Much Does a Cheap Lighthouse Really Cost?

Posted on by September 21, 2017

There are always iconic objects that are almost irresistible in contemplation. They represent ideas which are far too easy to fall in love with. I really wanted to own an old style Volkswagen “bug” and then I owned one and understood my mistake. The old bug had a nearly indestructible engine but the body of the car had almost entirely rusted away. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. Likewise, I had friends who were in love with the idea of converting an almost free surplus lifeboat into an oceangoing yacht. That didn’t work out too well either.

Another iconic structure, perhaps the most iconic, is a lighthouse. Every year the government puts decommissioned lighthouses up for sale, often for very little money. Some lighthouses have sold for as little as $10,000! A few have been given away for free! How cool is that? A lighthouse for less than the cost of a new car! If only that was all the lighthouses really cost.

The New York Times recently published an article, “True Cost of Buying a Cheap Lighthouse? That Should Be Visible a Mile Away” which looks at the real cost of owning a “cheap lighthouse.”

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Danish Lighthouse Tender Gerda III & the Rescue of Danish Jews

Posted on by September 23, 2017

Among the fleet of ships and boats that make up the fleet at the Mystic Seaport Museum, the Danish lighthouse tender Gerda III, built in 1926, is a ruggedly attractive double-ender. Nevertheless, she could easily be overlooked. That would be a mistake. Gerda III played an important role in an audacious and risky rescue mission to save Jewish refugees from Denmark in 1943.

When it became apparent that the invading Germans intended to round up Danish Jews and send them to concentration camps, the Danes began a desperate effort to rescue the Jews. A flotilla of fishing and cargo vessels assembled to smuggle the refugees to safety in neutral Sweden. Gerda III was based in the fishing village of Gilleleje, only about 11 miles from Sweden. About one-fifth of the Danish Jews escaped to Sweden via Gilleleje. 

In October of 1943, Hanny Sondig, the 19-year-old daughter of the boat’s manager, took command of Gerda III with a crew of four and nightly smuggled groups of 10 to 15 Jewish refugees in the tiny hold of the lighthouse tender. In the two-week evacuation, over 300 refugees were smuggled aboard Gerda III. Ultimately, more than 7,000 Jews were smuggled out of Demark. Only 481 were captured by the Germans and sent to camps. 

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US Navy Turns on AIS — Useful Tool, Band-aid, or Both?

Posted on by September 22, 2017

Following the recent collisions between US Navy destroyers and merchant ships, various internet sites posted the AIS tracks of the collisions. Well, they posted half the AIS tracks anyway.  The merchant ships used AIS while the Navy did not. While US Navy ships have AIS transponders onboard they do not transmit their positions nor apparently do Navy crews regularly consult the receivers showing the location and course of other ships. It was possible to track merchant ships’ courses but not the destroyers’. That now appears to be about to change. The Navy appears ready to finally switch their AIS transmitters on.

If the acronym AIS is not familiar, the Automatic Identification System (AIS) is an automatic tracking system which broadcasts a ship’s unique identification, position, course, and speed to other ships close by. AIS is required by the SOLAS (Safety of LIfe at Sea Convention) for almost all commercial ships. Use by military vessels is optional.

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Wreck of German WWI Submarine Found Off Belgium

Posted on by September 21, 2017

German type UBII Submarine

The almost intact wreck of a German submarine that sank during World War I has been located in the North Sea off Belgium, in 98 feet of water. The type UB-II submarine is said to be in good condition, with its hatches sealed, leading officials to believe that the bodies of the crew of up to 23 may still be inside the wreck. BBC quotes West Flanders Governor Carl Decaluwé saying, “The submarine is in such good condition that we reckon all the bodies are still on board.”

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