I just heard an interview on CNN with a US Coast Guard Vice Admiral (I believe it was Vice Adm. Robert Parker, but I didn’t quite catch the name.) He said that three crew members were swept off the deck … Continue reading
Category Archives: Current
Faulkner wrote, “The past isn’t dead. It isn’t even past.” I was reminded of this when I read a wonderful post on Joan Druett’s blog this morning, The Mutiny on the Bounty. She vividly recreates the scene of the mutiny from the deck … Continue reading
While those of us on the East Coast of the United States have been watching the approach of the “superstorm” Hurricane Sandy, residents of the Hawaiian islands were under a tsunami warning following a a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake that hit Canada’s Pacific coastal … Continue reading
Daina Shipping, owner of the container ship MV Rena, has been fined NZ $300,000 (US $246,000) for discharging harmful substances after the Liberian flagged ship, ran aground on the Astrolabe Reef off Tauranga, New Zealand in early October of last year. The ship subsequently broke up … Continue reading
As Hurricane Sandy works its way north, it is possible that it will join with a nor’easter to form what meteorologists are referring to as a “Frankenstorm,” a superstorm that could slam into the US Northeast causing damage projected to … Continue reading
On an overcast Thursday morning, the 122-foot top-sail schooner Lynx arrived at North Cove in lower Manhattan on the Hudson River. See our recent post. She will be open to the public for dockside tours and sails on Saturday and Sunday, … Continue reading
On Wednesday afternoon, the tug Benjamin Bailey rolled and suddenly capsized in the currents of the Piscataqua River. Fortunately the two crew men aboard managed to escape from the sudden capsize. The tug is owned by Ken Anderson of Riverside … Continue reading
The annual Sultana Projects Downrigging Weekend, now in its twelfth year, is one of the largest annual tall ship and wooden boat festivals on the East Coast. The Downrigging Weekend is described as “a celebration of maritime culture, wooden boats, and everything else that makes the Chesapeake … Continue reading
After almost 51 years in service, twice its expected lifespan, the nuclear powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise is winding up its 25th deployment and will be heading back to Norfolk to be deactivated on December 1 and decommissioned once all reusable items are removed. USS Enterprise was the … Continue reading
Beluga whale ‘makes human-like sounds’ Sailors once called beluga whales the “canaries of the sea.” Sailors could hear the “song” of the beluga, a range of chirps and whistles, through the wooden hulls of their ships. There is a fascinating story … Continue reading
This Sunday there will be a full day benefit for the historic Fireboat John J. Harvey on Pier 66 (26th and the Hudson River) in New York. It looks like lots of fun. The festivities are divided into two parts. From 1-5pm the … Continue reading
While pre-trial hearings are underway in an Italian court, an Italian-American engineering consortium has begun salvage operations to remove the cruise ship, partially capsized off the island of Giglio. It will be the first time a ship of this size has been salvalged … Continue reading
Today, on the 207th anniversary of Lord Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar, the Jubilee Sailing Trust‘s 55-meter three masted barque, Lord Nelson, sets sail from Southhampton, UK on a 23-month 50,000 mile journey around the world. The ship will visit more than 30 countries on all seven continents and cross … Continue reading
To commemorate the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812, the schooner Lynx, “America’s Privateer,” will be visiting New York harbor from October 25th through October 31st. The 122-foot top-sail schooner will sail into North Cove Marina on the Hudson … Continue reading
A relaxing video for a Saturday morning. HMS Bounty slides gracefully back into the water at Boothbay HArbor Shipyard last Thursday. Thanks to Tom Russell on the Linked-in Traditional Sail Professionals group for pointing it out. In other news, HMS Bounty will be returning … Continue reading
Today the Google Doodle honors Herman Melville‘s masterpiece, Moby Dick, on this the 161st anniversary of its publication. Ironically, the book that has garnered Melville immortality also effectively ruined his career. Known as a writer of semi-autobiographical stories, neither the critics … Continue reading
If you haven’t seen this yet, it is definitely worth watching. It is a visualization developed by NASA/JPL of ocean surface currents around the world between 2005 and 2007. Fascinating. NASA | Perpetual Ocean … Continue reading
On one schooner, the 2012 Great Chesapeake Schooner Race ended in tragedy. Shortly after the 43-foot Cuchulain crossed the finish line at Windmill Point, at just after 4 p.m. on Friday, Paul Stephen Case, 68, of Racine Wisconsin was knocked overboard and drowned, while … Continue reading
In the 22nd Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race, thirty nine schooner raced from 127 nautical miles down the Chesapeake Bay from Baltimore, Maryland to Portsmouth, Virginia. Summerwind, the 100′ 1929 John Alden designed schooner owned by the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, … Continue reading
This has not been a good few months for Aegis missile cruisers. In August, USS Porter collided with a VLCC (a large tanker) near the Strait of Hormuz. Yesterday at around 3:30 PM, during routine operations, the Aegis cruiser USS … Continue reading