On Saturday, May 4, the cruise ship MSC Meraviglia arrived at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal in New York Harbor dragging the carcass of a 44-foot-long endangered sei whale, caught on the ship’s bulbous bow. Sei whales are endangered and are … Continue reading
Category Archives: Lore of the Sea
Still catching-up on interesting nautical news that transpired while I away. We would be remiss to not offer our belated congratulations to Skipper Heather Thomas and the crew of the yacht Maiden, who beat 14 other teams to win the … Continue reading
Update: One of the world’s busiest shipping channels was closed to traffic in both directions after Alexis, an 81,623 dwt bulk carrier, ran aground on May 8, in the Bosporus Strait, connecting the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. Four tugs, … Continue reading
In the last week or so, over 1,000 sea lions have hauled out on San Francisco’s Pier 39, K-Dock, the largest assembly of the boisterous pinnipeds in roughly 15 years. As noted on the Pier 39 website: A few California … Continue reading
I have been away for the better part of a month on a transatlantic sail from Barbados to Malta on a five-masted square rigger. (Click here for a short video of the ship under sail.) I had limited internet access … Continue reading
A short video of the Iowa-class battleship USS New Jersey on the blocks in drydock at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. As noted by the New York Times, no other U.S. battleship served in more military campaigns. Christened on the first … Continue reading
Over Labor Day weekend in 2019, a fire broke out in the early morning hours on the Conception, a 75-foot wood and fiberglass dive vessel in Santa Barbara Harbor, CA. All 33 passengers sleeping below decks and one of the … Continue reading
Yesterday, the Glandore Harbour Yacht Club in West Cork posted sad news on its Facebook page: It is great sadness that we learnt this morning of the passing of our dear friend Don Street. Don will be forever remembered for … Continue reading
Another short video of the Royal Clipper from her recent eastbound transatlantic crossing, sea day 13, two days out of Lisbon, that raises the question, when the wind is fluky, why not sail on light? Royal Clipper Sailing on Light … Continue reading
I have been away for the better part of a month on a transatlantic voyage on the Royal Clipper, one of only two five-masted full-rigged sailing ships ever built. Inspired by the windjammer Pruessen of 1902, the Royal Clipper sets … Continue reading
An updated repost. Melville’s masterpiece, Moby-Dick, was inspired, at least in part, by the sinking of the whaleship Essex by a sperm whale in 1820. The fate of the Essex unquestionably supplied Melville with ending to his novel. Nevertheless, the core … Continue reading
My short story Bloody Rain — Murder, Madness and the Monsoon, set on a sailing ship in the 1880s, is free as an ebook on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. That’s right — free. Feel free to grab a copy. About … Continue reading
An updated repost. For thousands of years, sailors have told of nighttime seas that mysteriously glowed a milky white or luminescent blue, stretching out to the horizon. Referred to as a “milky sea,” the tales date back at least to … Continue reading
Something to take one’s mind off the unpleasantness of current events. A repost. Krill Joy From Slate:This video catches a rare glimpse of a gigantic, lunge-feeding blue whale deciding on what’s for lunch. A nonintrusive drone from Oregon State University … Continue reading
Remember King Harald “Blåtand” Gormsson? No? The king of Denmark and later Norway in the late 10th century. The name still doesn’t ring a bell? His rune mark is embedded in your phone and possibly your earbuds and speakers. His … Continue reading