The cruise ship industry effectively shut down in the middle of last March due to outbreaks of the coronavirus on several ships. The Center for Disease Control (C.D.C.) has issued a series of “No-Sail Orders” which have kept the ships … Continue reading
Rick Spilman
In recent protests in Portland, the white nationalist group Proud Boys assembled on the edge of town in Delta Park, while, close by, Black Lives Matters counter-protestors gathered, on the other side of the highway, in a section of the … Continue reading
The second of two wonderful books recently released by Old Salt Press. Today we are spotlighting Angel’s Share: A Story from the World of The Astreya Trilogy by Seymour Hamilton. About the book: Angel, a very old man who once … Continue reading
There are two wonderful new books from Old Salt Press. Today we spotlight Lone Escort by Alaric Bond, the thirteenth book of his “Fighting Sail” series. About the book: The North Atlantic in spring is a perilous place and, with … Continue reading
Here are two short videos that provide a glimpse at the revolution in cargo shipping in the UK (and the world) over the last half-century. The first video, “Look at Life – Report on a River – The River Thames … Continue reading
The steam collier SS Ayrfield was 61 years old. Formally called the Corrimal, the 1,140-tonne ship, ran coal between Newcastle and Sydney before serving as a transport ship for Australia during World War II. After the war, she operated again … Continue reading
Genetic analysis of modern descendants shows that sailors from the Pacific Islands arrived in the Americas long before Europeans arrived. The question is how long? A recent study suggests Polynesians and Native Americans made contact some 800 years ago, well … Continue reading
Some sailors along Spain’s Galician coast must be saying “we’re gonna need a bigger boat.” There have been reports of up to 30 attacks by orcas directed at sailboats on the northwestern coast of Spain and Portugal. Now, the Spanish … Continue reading
The Danish Ministry of Defense has confirmed that the Russian Navy corvette, Kazanets, collided with the refrigerated cargo vessel, Ice Rose, in dense fog, near the Øresund Bridge, which spans the entrance to the Baltic. The Russian ship, a Parchim-class … Continue reading
Around 270 pilot whales have become stranded on a sandbar on the remote western coast of Tasmania. Rescuers in Australia say that at least a third of the whales have died and that more are dying. The BBC reports that … Continue reading
Here is the story of a very lucky kayaker saved by unexpected rescuers on Lake George. It seems a kayaker got into trouble and was rescued by a group of priests out for an afternoon excursion on a floating Tiki … Continue reading
This seems like a suitable post for a Sunday in 2020. On a morning in February 1948, a local beachcomber was walking the beautiful white sand beach in Clearwater, FL, and was shocked to find large three-toed footprints in the … Continue reading
Another 2020 story. Despite being dubbed killer whales, orcas in the wild have a long history of not attacking humans and rarely attacking boats. [Edited — see note at the end of the post.] (The situation with orcas in captivity … Continue reading
Congratulations to Lia Ditton, who has set a new women’s world record for rowing solo from San Francisco to Hawaii. The 40-year-old Briton made landfall on September 12, completing the passage in 86 days, 10 hours, 5 minutes, and 56 … Continue reading
Earlier this month, we posted about the virtual return of the San Francisco Maritime Association’s Hyde Street Pier Sea Chantey Sing series beginning this Saturday on September 19, 2020. Click here for details. For even more maritime music, on Sunday, … Continue reading
On September 16, 1620, four hundred years ago today, the merchant ship Mayflower set sail from Plymouth, England, bound for the New World with 102 passengers. The mix of religious separatists and entrepreneurs referred to today as Pilgrims would establish … Continue reading
Last February we posted “The Doomsday Glacier — the Thwaites Glacier Melting From Below,” about the flow of warmer water that is melting the massive West Antarctic glacier from below. Thwaites is referred to as the “Doomsday Glacier” because it’s … Continue reading
Over the weekend, the container ship, CMA CGM Brazil, docked at the marine terminal in Port Elizabeth, NJ, part of the Port of New York and New Jersey on Newark Bay. At 15,148 TEU, it is said to be the … Continue reading
In the summer of 2018, a female orca whale became of a symbol of the perilous state of the Southern Resident orca pods of the Pacific Northwest. The whale, designated J35 by researchers, had given birth to a calf that … Continue reading
A Swedish consortium that includes Wallenius Marine has designed Oceanbird, a five-masted sailing car carrier, that could have a huge impact on the development of modern commercial sail. The design is intended to be finished in 2021 with potential delivery … Continue reading