Russia to Charge Greenpeace Activists with Piracy

For thirty years, Greenpeace has used “non-violent direct action” in their environmental protests.  In recent years, Greenpeace activists have boarded drilling platforms to disrupt operations. In most cases, the protesters involved were arrested, made to pay fines for trespass and were … Continue reading

Big Problems on the Royal Princess — New Ship Taken Out of Service After Power Outage

If you take a cruise on a ship owned by Carnival, you may want to bring along a flashlight. The newest Princess Cruises ship, the Royal Princess, suffered a power outage while sailing between Mykonos and Naples.  Power was reported to … Continue reading

UBC Wins First Prize in Safe Affordable Ferry Design Competition

In June, we posted about the Safe Affordable Ferry Design Competition, sponsored by the World Ferry Safety Association, in which student teams from six maritime universities competed to develop a ferry design for a 500 passenger ferry for Bangladesh. Recently the … Continue reading

Nautical Blog Hop & a Week of Windjammers: Day Two – Is History Just a Sea Story?

What is history? What is fiction?  These seem to be straightforward questions. The conventional answer would be that history is what happened and fiction are the stories that we make up.  In writing my recent novel I was faced with … Continue reading

An American Dunkirk – Looking Back on 9/11 Twelve Years Later

Of all the things worth remembering on 9/11, one incredible event is often overlooked.  After the attack, all the bridges, tunnels and rail lines in and out of New York City were shut down. Somewhere between 300,000 and one million people … Continue reading

Bicentennial of the Battle of Lake Erie at Put-in-Bay, Ohio & a 90 Second Animated Battle

Two hundred years ago today, in what would become known as the Battle of Lake Erie, a squadron of ships under the command of Oliver Hazard Perry defeated and captured a Royal Navy squadron at Put-in-Bay in Lake Erie off the … Continue reading

Update: Matt Rutherford and the Wolfhound – Swan 48 Still Adrift Despite Salvage Attempt

In April we posted about a drifting Nautor Swan 48 sailboat named Wolfhound which had been abandoned in a storm just north of Bermuda in February by her owner, Alan McGettigan, and a crew of three. Initially, the boat was … Continue reading

Composite Clipper Ship City of Adelaide Afloat At Last – First Leg of Her Way Home

After more than two decades, the City of Adelaide, the world’s oldest surviving clipper ship, is afloat again! The 1864 built clipper ship, supported by a 100 ton steel cradle, has been moved onto a pontoon barge and is being … Continue reading

Captain Wanted for 172 Year Old Whaling Ship, Charles W. Morgan – No Captain Ahabs Need Apply

Mystic Seaport is looking for a new captain for the newly rebuilt whaling ship, Charles W. Morgan. The whaler first sailed in 1841 and is scheduled to undertake a  three month voyage next summer.  The captain must have a 500-ton Near Coastal … Continue reading

Toshiba Tall Ships Festival at Dana Point

The Ocean Institute is celebrating its 29th year hosting the Toshiba Tall Ships Festival at Dana Point, CA.  The festival kicks off with a tall ships parade at sunset tomorrow, September 6th with festivities continuing through the weekend.  Participating ships include … Continue reading