In July of last year we posted about the discovery of 30 bottles of champagne thought to pre-date the French Revolution in a wreck on the Baltic seabed. In November, wine experts tasted the “world’s oldest champagne” which was judged to be quite palatable. Recently it was announced that two bottles of 200-year old champagne will be auctioned off in June.
‘World’s oldest champagne’ to be sold at June auction
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Photo: Cape Cod Times/Steve Heaslip
I recall many years ago how excited the guide was on a whale watching trip out of Provincetown when we sighted a mother right whale and her calf not long after leaving the dock. I can only imagine how researchers are reacting to the arrival of an unprecidented number of right whales in Cape Cod Bay near Provincetown. During a seven-hour research flight, 100 right whales were observed today. Northern Right whales are highly endangered. Only an estimated 450 North Right whales are known to exist, and yet almost a quarter of them have shown up to the party off Cape Cod. Scientists say that the whales were probably attracted by an unusually large and long lasting plankton bloom in the bay. The whales feed on the surface and have been sighted from shore from beaches at Truro, Herring Cove and Race Point in Provincetown.
Record number of right whales in Cape waters
Endangered whales gather in unprecedented numbers
Jim Luce recently wrote an article in the Huffington Post titled, Khubilai Khan’s Lost Fleet Found in Japan. The title makes it sound like a new discovery. Not so much. The site of the “lost fleet” was discovered in the 1970s, while the wreckage of the lost fleet was located in 2000. Maritime archaeologist Jim Delgado wrote about the discovery in his book, Khubilai Khan’s Lost Fleet: In Search of a Legendary Armada, in 2008. The paperback edition was published last summer. It is a fascinating story.
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Thanks to Irwin Bryan and Alaric Bond for the passing article along.
Douglas Faulkner, who died recently, had a varied and highly accomplished career as a naval and marine architect. He was involved in the design and testing of the first British nuclear submarine, HMS Dreadnought. He was later an assistant professor at the Royal Naval College, a structural advisor at Bath, and appointed to the John Elder chair of naval architecture at Glasgow University. He will be probably best remembered, however, for his work in solving the mystery of the sinking of the MV Derbyshire, which disappeared with all hands in the Pacific September 9, 1980 during Typhoon Orchid.
There appears to be both good and bad news exactly one year after the explosion and fire that sank the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, killing eleven, and triggering the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. The good news, if it can be called that, is that the ecological doomsday initially feared by many has not come to pass. This is not to say that the environmental impact of the spill will not be significant and long lasting. We have posted previously about the unexplained deaths of significant numbers of dolphins and sea turtles in the Gulf. Nevertheless, the consensus seems to be, “It could have been worse.”
BP Oil Spill: How Bad Is Damage to Gulf One Year Later?
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The MV Asphalt Venture was hijacked by Somali pirates on September 28, 2010. After negotiating and being paid a multi-million dollar ransom, the pirates released the ship and part of the crew yesterday, but continued to hold seven Indian seafarers hostage, reportedly in retaliation for the arrest of Somali pirates by the Indian Navy in recent weeks. ‘It is a major shift in the pirate-hostage equation which will need to be considered and addressed by the international community,’ said general secretary Abdulgani Y. Serang of the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI).
Until fairly recently, every springtime, American shad made their annual runs up the Delaware, Hudson, Connecticut and other rivers of the East and Northeast to spawn. The shad fishery in the Hudson lasted until the 1970s when their numbers dropped precipitously. After dropping off in early 1900s, the shad have returned to the Delaware River. This Saturday, April 23rd, in the Fishtown neighborhood of Philadelphia, they are holding the 3rd Annual Fishtown Shad Fest at the beautiful Penn Treaty Park along the Delaware River. Sounds like a great time.
Photo: Dustin K. Ryan
Brad Van Liew sailing Le Pingouin is expected to cross the finish line in Charleston, SC, his adopted home town, some time today, continuing to dominate the Velux Five Oceans singlehanded around the world race. Thus far, he has won all four legs of the around the world race thus far. Following Van Liew are Derek Hatfield, sailing Active House, and Chris Stanmore-Major sailing Spartan. Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski sailing Operon Racing was forced to put into Forteleza after his boat’s forestay broke. ‘Gutek’ was also suffering from a broken rib.
Day 3 of the Extreme Sailing Series in Qingdao, China provided more than a few thrills and spills among the eleven “eXtreme 40” catamarans engaged in what has been described as “close combat racing.”
DAY 3: EXTREME! A major collision, 4 capsizes, 1 broken mast
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Photo: Will van Dorp
Not quite three weeks ago the 50′ steel pinky schooner Le Papillon came ashore on Fire Island, a barrier island off Long Island, northeast of the entrance to New York harbor. Will van Dorp at the Tugster blog has taken some amazing photographs of the schooner, first being battered by waves and now being swallowed up by the sand, like a scene from a slow motion horror movie. (Go to Will’s blog for more and larger photographs.) Le Papillon may yet be salvaged but it will be a race against time and the shifting sands of Fire Island.
As we posted earlier in the month, the 300 foot long tanker Gluckauf ran aground on Fire Island in 1893 about twenty miles up the beach from where Le Papillon now lies. The Gluckauf was never salvaged and was also swallowed by the shifting sand.
Great news. The Sloop Providence, replica of the American Revolutionary sloop of the same name is sailing again after being laid up for 3 1/2 years. She was purchased last year from the City of Providence by boat builder and captain Thorpe Leeson. The current Sloop Providence dates back to 1976 and has been used in two of the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movies. Over the weekends she was sailed from Providence to Newport, Rhode Island and was open for tours on Sunday at Bowen’s Wharf. The new owners plan to employ the sloop on charters and educational missions.
Oopps. In what is being described as a “school-boy error” the British Ministry of Defence posted a report on-line which revealed secret information about the UK’s nuclear powered submarines. The sensitive material was “redacted” by turning the background black, so that the text was not readable. The text was not removed, however, so that anyone who cut and pasted the text to another document could read, copy or distribute the “secret” information. The MOD was unaware of the breach until it was pointed out by a journalist.
Internet mistake reveals UK nuclear submarine secrets
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New York and Philadelphia are major ports and centers of art and culture. By all rights both should be home for major and successful seaport museums. Sadly that is not the case. Last month we posted about the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia putting the Cruiser Olympia up for sale. After years of neglect, museum mismanagement and corruption (a former museum president is now serving hard time in Federal prison for fraud and tax evasion), the museum lacks the money to repair the historic ship or even to scrap her. Now, the financially troubled South Street Seaport in New York is looking to get rid of its historic vessels on a temporary or permanent basis.
Sixty years ago today, the Royal Navy submarine HMS Affray sailed on a simulated war mission called “Exercise Spring Train” and never returned. Despite an extensive search by 24 ships from four nations, the sunken submarine was not found until June 14, 1951. The cause of the sinking has never been determined. Relatives of the 75 men lost on the submarine are planning to pay their respects on the 60th anniversary of the disaster.
HMS Affray submarine disaster to be marked off Alderney
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On a cold and rainy April day here on the banks of the Hudson River, it is nice to consider sunnier climes. An interview with the Maho Noborisaka, Second Mate on the Tall Ship Soren Larsen.
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Haynes Manuals are well known as practical guides aimed at automobile enthusiastic and mechanics. They have also branched out into manuals for domestic appliances, personal computers, digital photography, model railways, men, babies, sex, and women. Reportedly the last four categories are tongue in cheek but have been popular sellers, nevertheless. A new Haynes Manual has just been released for the RMS Titanic, being perhaps the first manual ever published for a sunken ship.
100 years too late: Somerset firm’s guide to the Titanic
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Ninety nine years ago today, the RMS Titanic sank after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic with the loss of 1,517 passengers and crew. The sinking of the Titanic had a major impact on ship operations. The first International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) was adopted in 1914 as a direct response to the sinking. The International Ice Patrol and AMVER also trace their beginnings to the Titanic disaster.
In the almost 100 years since the sinking, however, the Titanic has moved from being a maritime tragedy to becoming a cultural icon. The subject of hundreds of books and over twenty movies, the Titanic is also the basis of “Museum/Attractions” in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in the Great Smokey Mountains and in Branson, Missouri. In some respects, the actual sinking seems a backdrop to the movies and books. “Earlier this month a sketch of Kate Winslet, used in the Hollywood blockbuster Titanic, was auctioned off for more than $16,000 in the US.” In the next year’s run-up to the centennial of the sinking, the number of Titanic memorial events will only increase, including a memorial cruise on the MS Balmoral.
On April 14, 1945, the German submarine U-1206, on its first war patrol, had its mission go down the toilet. U-1206 “was one of the late war boats fitted with the new deepwater high-pressure toilets which allowed them to be used while running at depth. Flushing these toilets was extremely complicated and special technicians were trained to operate them.” When Captain Karl-Adolf Schlitt used the toilet, he had problems making it work. He called an engineer who turned the wrong valve, causing flooding which reached the battery compartment, releasing chlorine gas, forcing the sub to surface. Only ten miles off the coast of Scotland they were spotted by British planes, which killed crew on deck and damaged the submarine. Captain Schlitt set scuttling charges and sank the submarine.
April 14, 1945: Tweaky Toilet Costs Skipper His Sub
Thanks to Phil Leon for passing on this wonderful bit of history.
Rodents have always been a problem on ships, but things seem to be getting out of control. Last week we posted (somewhat facetiously) of a rodent problem on the Tall Ship Elissa after a rather large mouse named Minnie stopped by for a visit. Now we hear of rats aboard the USS Massachusetts in Battleship Cove. (The rats are far fluffier and cuter than the wharf rats in these parts.)
Next week, April 16-24, during spring break for many school kids, Battleship Cove is hosting “Hunt the Rats” on USS MASSACHUSETTS. From their website: Ten adorable fluffy rats, disguised as members of the ship’s crew, have snuck on board and hidden themselves around the ship so it’ll take all your rat-hunting skills to find them all. Discover where the mischievous rodents have escaped to and be entered into a prize drawing. Great fun for the entire family! A video of the press conference announcing the hunt:
Battleship Cove The Rats Have Escaped
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Peter Stanford, a founder of the Seaport Museum. (National Maritime Historical Society)
Peter Stanford and Robert Ferraro, two of the founders of the financially troubled South Street Seaport Museum in New York City, spoke to museum volunteers on Saturday. They presented their vision of how the museum could be saved and revived.
Seaport Museum Founders Offer New Plan to Keep Institution Afloat
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