Hurricane Earl vs Labor Day Weekend – Will the Schooners Sail?

Two major maritime festivals on the US East coast, scheduled for the Labor Day weekend, appear to be generally in the path of Hurricane Earl.    The organizers of the  Twenty-Sixth Annual Gloucester Schooner Festival and schooner race and the Camden Windjammer Festival, both … Continue reading

Mir-2 mini-sub Finds Czar’s Gold Treasure on Baikal Lake bed ?

Intriguing, if it turns out to be true. Czar’s gold treasure found on Baikal Lake bed The legendary gold treasure of Russia’s last Czar could have been found by Mir-2 mini submarine on the bed of the world’s deepest fresh … Continue reading

On this Day in History: John Glover’s Web-footed Marbleheaders Saved the Revolution

On August 29th, 1776, George Washington faced certain defeat.  Howe had been able to flank the Americans in Brooklyn, turning the Battle of Long Island into a rout. Washington was left with the remnants of his army on Brooklyn Heights, with the East River … Continue reading

“To Seek a Northwest Passage” – Clipper Adventurer Hits Uncharted Rock

Stan Roger‘s classic song begins, “Ah, for just one time I would take the Northwest Passage; to find the hand of Franklin reaching for the Beaufort Sea.”   Stan died in 1983, but his son, Nathan Rogers, also a singer, recently set … Continue reading

Brig Niagara Brings Unwelcome Stowaways to Isle Royale National Park

Another article about stowaways, though of a completely different sort – zebra mussels on the Brig Niagara.  Earlier this month, the Niagara, a historically accurate reconstruction of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry’s victorious 1813 flagship,  visited Isle Royale, an island National Park in northwestern Lake … Continue reading

Clipper Ship City of Adelaide to be Sent to Australia

Great news!  The oldest just barely surviving composite clipper ship in the world, the City of Adelaide appears  likely to be moved to Australia to its namesake city, Adelaide.  The ship, which is currently at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine, Scotland, has … Continue reading

Atlantic Container Line to Take Delivery of Prison Containers

One of the ways that stowaways can get aboard liner ships these days is to hide in cargo containers.  Atlantic Container Lines will be using containers for a related if rather different purpose.  The shipping line will soon take delivery … Continue reading

The ‘impossible’ voyage of a Tamil ghost ship

Despite all odds, earlier this month, 492 Tamil refugees arrived in Vancouver in an old and barely seaworthy ship, then named the Sun Sea.  The Tamil Ghost ship, as she has been dubbed,  had been intermittently tracked by the maritime authorities of various nations as she … Continue reading

“Sisters Under Sail” – Schooner Unicorn at Tall Ships Chicago

Earlier this week we posted about Tall Ships Chicago 2010.   Among the roughly 20 tall ships participating is the 118-foot topsail schooner Unicorn whose crew includes six Chicago-area girls from the “Sisters Under Sail” program. “Adventure of a Lifetime” is About … Continue reading

Scanning of the Titanic Underway

Expedition Titanic has begun to 3D scan and map the entire Titanic debris field using AUVs (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles)and to attempt to create an accurate virtual model of the entire ship.   We have learned from their Facebook page that the AUV ” Mary Ann … Continue reading

Camden’s Windjammer Festival Starts Friday

Camden, Maine’s Windjammer Festival starts  Friday, September 3rd, and runs through Sunday.   Camden’s harbor always seemed to me to be a windjammer festival on virtually any summer day so this gathering  of the Maine Windjammer fleet and the dockside Maritime Heritage Fair should be quite an … Continue reading

Captain John Moore – Submarine Commander and Editor of Jane’s Fighting Ships

Captain John Moore, submarine captain, developer of covert landings techniques of the Special Boat Service and editor of Janes Fighting Ships, died last month at age 88. Captain John Moore Jane’s Fighting Ships, an annual publication which became the leading authority on … Continue reading

HMS Cassandra, HMS Myrtle and HMS Gentian, Sunk in the Russia Revolution, Located

Ninety years on, locations of Royal Navy warships sunk in Russian Revolution are found The wrecks of three British warships sunk more than 90 years ago – seeking to prevent the Bolshevik Revolution from spreading West – have been located … Continue reading