Remembering Charley Morgan — Legendary Sailor, Sailmaker, Yacht Builder, and Designer

Charles Eugene Morgan Jr., 93, known to all as Charley, passed away last weekend, just a few hours after his wife Maurine died. It has been said that Charley Morgan is the only person to ever single-handedly design, build, and … Continue reading

Fifty Three Years Ago, the Exploding Whale or How Not To Remove a Whale Carcass

Fifty years ago this November,  the residents of Florence, Oregon learned how not to dispose of a dead whale We recently posted about the burial of a dead humpback whale on the beach in Atlantic City. This was the correct … Continue reading

After Grounding, Maryland Bans On-Duty Marine Pilots From Using Cell Phones

The Maryland Board of Pilots has decided to enact a rule change that forbids on-duty pilots from using their phones after the Coast Guard determined that a distracted pilot’s cell phone use contributed to a container ship grounding.  In March … Continue reading

Wanted: Two Innkeepers on San Francisco Bay’s East Brother Light Station

The East Bay Light Station Bed and Breakfast Inn, at the entrance to San Pablo Bay from San Francisco Bay, is looking to hire two innkeepers for a period of two years. The joint positions, which start in April of … Continue reading

Iran Converting Two Panamax Container Ships to “Drone Carriers”

In 1982 during the Falklands conflict, the Royal Navy commandeered two British container ships and converted them into impromptu carriers carrying Harrier jump jets and Harrier helicopters. Now over 40 years later, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard is reported to … Continue reading

After Fire, Union Calls For New Staten Island Ferries to be Docked Pending Investigation

On December 22, the new Ollis Class Staten Island ferry Sandy Ground suffered an engine room fire at the height of rush hour, requiring the evacuation of 866 passengers and 16 crew members aboard. The ferry was anchored as firefighters … Continue reading

Cruise Ship Viking Orion Denied Port Entries Due to “Biofouling” — What Happened?

Eight hundred passengers, reported to be mostly Americans, found themselves stranded on the cruise ship Viking Orion off South Australia for seven days after the ship was denied permission to dock in Adelaide, Christchurch, Dunedin, and Hobart, due to marine growth … Continue reading

New Year’s Repost: Watching the Ball Drop — the Nautical Origins of a New Year’s Tradition

Tonight, millions will watch in person, online, or on television, as a jeweled ball drops in Times Square in New York City at exactly midnight to mark the arrival of the New Year, 2023. In recent years, the crowd in … Continue reading

More Than 275 Artifacts Recovered from Franklin Expedition’s HMS Erebus

A team of researchers conducted 56 dives over 11 days in September on the wreck of the HMS Erebus from the 1845 Franklin Expedition near Gjoa Haven recovering more than 275 additional artifacts from the historic shipwreck. The newly retrieved artifacts … Continue reading

Greenland’s Glaciers Melting 100 Times Faster Than Estimated

A disturbing report from Phys.org. Greenland’s glaciers are melting 100 times faster than previously calculated, according to a new model that takes into account the unique interaction between ice and water at the island’s fjords.  Published in the journal Geophysical … Continue reading

Sting — Christmas At Sea (Live from Durham Cathedral)

We hope everyone is having a joyous holiday season.  Here is a repost of a beautiful version of Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem “Christmas at Sea,” performed by Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, better known as Sting. Sting – Christmas At Sea … Continue reading

Over the Holidays & in the New Year, May St. Nicholas Hold the Tiller

An updated holiday season repost. Saint Nicholas, long associated with Christmas and gift-giving, is also the patron saint of ships and sailors. The St. Nicholas Center notes: “Many ports, most notably in Greece, have icons of Nicholas, surrounded by ex-votos … Continue reading

Repost on the Winter Solstice — Shortest Day & Longest Shadows, or No Shadow At All

Happy Winter Solstice to all! In the northern hemisphere, today is the shortest day and the longest night of the year. The sun is at its southernmost point of travel, over the imaginary circle on the globe we refer to … Continue reading

Mystic Seaport Celebrates 50th Anniversary of the Opening of the Henry B. du Pont Preservation Shipyard

The year 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Henry B. du Pont Preservation Shipyard at the Mystic Seaport Museum, the first shipyard built specifically for preservation in the United States, and possibly the world, marking a … Continue reading

Emirates Team New Zealand Breaks Wind-Powered Land Speed Record

Emirates Team New Zealand, famous for winning the America’s Cup, has broken the wind-powered land speed record. Its land yacht Horonuku reached 138.2 miles per hour (222.4 km/h) in 25.3 mph winds on the dry basin of Lake Gairdner in … Continue reading