We posted recently about the “race” to dive to the deepest spot in the ocean, the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, almost 36,000 feet below the surface. The first and last time that anyone ever ventured to the bottom of the … Continue reading
Rick Spilman
The USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia were not the first iron-clad war ships, but they were the first to face each other in battle. One hundred and fifty years ago today, the two ironclads met in Hampton Roads, VA and fought each … Continue reading
The Florida Legislature has designated the schooner Western Union as the state’s official flagship. The schooner was built in 1939 and served for 35 years as as a cable vessel for the Western Union Telegraph Company, repairing and maintaining undersea … Continue reading
Pascal Vaudé has won the Bouvet Guyane Solo Atlantic Rowing Race and has set a new record of 37 days, 10 minutes and 26 seconds. This morning Julien Besson crossed the finish line taking second place just in front of Henri-George Hidair, … Continue reading
No need to shorten sail but putting down the GPS and dusting off the sextant might be a good idea as the largest solar storm in five years strikes the earth today. A massive cloud of charged particles moving at 4 … Continue reading
I will admit to not knowing much about Oman. I know that it is a Sultanate. It exports oil. I can find it on the map on the south-east corner of the Arabian peninsula. One thing that I do know … Continue reading
On Monday we posted about Sarah Hebert’s bold attempt to cross the Atlantic by windsurfer. She has been battling 3-to-5 metre swells and constant 25-knot winds. Now, suffering from extreme dizziness, diagnosed to be caused by anemia, she has suspended her attempt but vows to return … Continue reading
From 1655 to 1970, the Royal Navy issued daily rations of rum to their sailors. In the US Navy, alcohol was prohibited in 1913. Now almost 100 years later, the US Navy is going one step farther. Ray Mabus, the Secretary of … Continue reading
We recently posted about Matt Rutherford needing to be resupplied to continue his attempt to sail single-handed entirely around the Americas in the St. Brendan, a 27′ Albin Vega. Last week, Matt rendezvoused with a small boat, two miles off the coast of … Continue reading
The headline writers have been having fun. The Daily Beast headline reads – Moon to Blame for Titanic Sinking? Reuters asks and answers its own question – “What sank the Titanic? Scientists point to the moon.” The Times of India gets alliterative … Continue reading
When the revolutionary ironclad warship USS Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras, NC during the Civil War, in December of 1862, 16 of her crew of 62 were lost. One hundred and forty years later, in August of 2002, when the turret of … Continue reading
Portside New York, based on the historic tanker Mary A. Whalen, has been putting on fantastic educational, cultural and and community programs and events on the Brooklyn waterfront front for the the last six years, without ever having a permanent berth. Now PortSide is … Continue reading
Personal items owned by Lord Nelson, valued at £37,800, were stolen from a display case at Norwich Castle in a daylight robbery. Plundered! £37,800 worth of Lord Nelson’s personal artefacts stolen from Norwich Castle The items stolen, which have been … Continue reading
The Staten Island ferry Herbert H. Lehman was decommissioned in 2007 and put up for sale last year on EBay for $500,000. The 297′ foot Kennedy class ferry boat apparently sprang a leak on Friday at her berth in Newburg, N.Y. … Continue reading
Sarah Hebert, a young French athlete with a heart condition, is now in her 12th day of attempting to sail across the Atlantic Ocean on a stock “off the beach” windsurfer. Fortunately, this is not quite as crazy as it sounds. … Continue reading
To accompany that first cup of coffee, a three and a half minute video to start off the week. Thanks to Sailing with Dreams for pointing it out on Facebook Another world by Rafa Herrero Massieu … Continue reading
For most, a river or an ocean is a boundary. For a sailor, each is a highway. But, when did the first sailor set out across the water? Recent research suggests that the early man may have gone to sea, and indeed, … Continue reading
In a hearing today in the Tuscan city of Grosseto, Italian Judge Valeria Montesarchio will ask court appointed experts to examine the “black box,” which contains digital recordings of the night of the grounding and sinking of the Costa Concordia off … Continue reading
This is not really a nautical story, which is why it is amusing. The Billings Gazette reports that “the Wyoming House of Representatives on Monday advanced legislation to launch a study into what Wyoming should do in the event of … Continue reading
This Sunday at noon, CBCs “Land and Sea” has another very interesting documentary scheduled – Pirates and Privateers. (We recently posted about “Rum Running,” a excellent documentary which is now available on-line.) The Pirates and Privateers trailer, below, looks interesting. I will be watching … Continue reading