Cabrillo’s San Salvador & the Pacific Heritage Tour 2016

Posted on by September 14, 2016
Photo: San Diego Maritime Museum

Photo: San Diego Maritime Museum

On September 28, 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo sailed into what is now called San Diego Bay on his flagship, San Salvador.  San Salvador was the first recorded European vessel to sail along California, and survey its coastline. Now, 472 years later, the replica San Salvador, built by the San Diego Maritime Museum, has set sail on the Pacific Heritage Tour 2016.

San Salvador will sail today into Channel Islands Harbor at Oxnard, CA and will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, September 15, through Sunday, September 18.  The ship will be calling on Monterrey on September 23 to the 25th and Morro Bay from September 30 to October 9th. The museum is also offering adventure sailing on the replica galleon. Click here to learn more.

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HMS Terror from Franklin’s Doomed Expedition Found

Posted on by September 22, 2016
HMS Terror trapped in the ice

HMS Terror trapped in the ice

In an interesting historical coincidence, just days after the luxury cruise ship, Crystal Serenity, completed a passage through the Canadian Arctic’s Northwest Passage,  HMS Terror has been found.  HMS Terror is the second of two ships from Sir John Franklin’s ill-fated expedition to traverse the Northwest Passage. The ship sank after being abandoned in the Arctic ice 168 years ago. The wreck of HMS Terror was found on September 3, appropriately enough, in Terror Bay, which is located on the southwest shore of King William Island, in Nunavut. The wreck lies lies 60 miles (96km) south of where experts have long believed the ship was crushed by ice.

The discovery was tied to to local knowledge. The Week reports: An Inuk crewman on the team’s research ship, Sammy Kogvik, 49, was talking with the Arctic Research Foundation’s operations director, Adrian Schimnowski, when he recalled a hunting trip in Terror Bay, where he posed for a picture with a large piece of wood sticking out of the sea ice, which resembled a mast. When Kogvik got home and discovered his camera gone, he decided not to speak of the experience, believing the missing camera was an omen of the bad spirits that wander the island. But by following Kogvik’s tip, the researchers focused on the north end of Victoria Strait, eventually making their fateful discovery.

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Hidden Harbor Tour, Brooklyn Waterfront –Past & Present

Posted on by September 12, 2016

brooklynwaterfronthhtourIf you are around New York harbor this Thursday, September 15th, the Working Harbor Committee is hosting their latest Hidden Harbor Tour : Brooklyn Waterfront –Past & Present. Captain Margaret Flannagan will be the guest speaker in a 2-hour, fully narrated boat tour of 8 miles of Brooklyn’s waterfront industry, past and present, from Newtown Creek to Sunset Park. This portion of the Brooklyn shore facing New York harbor’s Upper Bay was once filled with manufacturing, shipping, and commerce. Though apartment towers and landscaped parks now capture attention, Brooklyn still retains active trade and maritime business. Boarding begins at 5:30PM from Pier 11 Wall Street in Manhattan located on South St. between Wall St. & Gouveneur Lane. Snack bar on board. Tickets: $30; $25 seniors. Click here for tickets. For group sale rates, email workingharbor@aol.com

Vikings in the Big City — Draken Harald Hårfagre in New York City Sept. 17-26

Posted on by September 12, 2016

_pja8879_greenland-sailing_1220_900Draken Harald Hårfagre, the largest Viking longship built in modern times, will be visiting New York harbor from September 17 — 28.  On September 17th, the Viking longship will sail past the Statue of Liberty around 11AM and arrive at North Cove Marina in Lower Manhattan at 11.30 AM where it will be welcomed with speeches, interviews and Nordic entertainment.

The ship will be open for deck tours at North Cove Marina at Brookfield Place between 11AM and 6PM on Sunday, September 18th through Thursday, September 22th, as well a on Saturday, September 24th and Sunday, September 25th. There will also be an exhibition about the building of the ship and the history behind the expedition in the Winter Garden at Brookfield Place. Tickets for the tours $10 adults (age 18 and up) and $5 children (ages 6 to 17).

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Remembering the Great New York Boatlift on the 15th Anniversary of 9/11

Posted on by September 11, 2016

boatlift1There is a line from a Paul Simon song, “these are the days of miracle and wonder.” One might not think to apply that lyric to the events of 9/11, fifteen years ago today, and yet for at least part of that strange and horrible day, they fit. The great New York boatlift was part of the “miracle and wonder.” The wholly unplanned, boatlift was the spontaneous maritime evacution of over 300,000 people trapped in Lower Manhattan in less than 10 hours. Like many stories of 9/11, the boatlift has been under-reported by the media, which still seems more interested in the bodies falling than in the rescues, which is all the more reason to remember the mariners of New York who stepped up to perform what has been called the largest sea rescue in history.

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HMS Tarpon, WWII Sub Sunk by Q-Ship Found Off Denmark

Posted on by September 8, 2016
hmstarpon

British T Class Submarine

The wreck of HMS Tarpon, a British submarine sunk by a German Q-ship during World War II, was discovered last March in the North Sea, near Thyborøn, Denmark. The wreck was discovered in 40 meters of water by a Danish commercial diver and museum owner, Gert Normann Andersen, and Innes McCartney, a British marine archaeologist. Recently, DR3, a Danish television company broadcast a two hour long program featuring live images of the wreck.

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Liberty Ship S.S. John Brown Steaming to New York

Posted on by September 8, 2016


S.S. John Brown, one of only two operational Liberty ships, is steaming toward New York harbor and is expected to arrive the morning of Saturday, September 10th. The historic ship will be berthed at Pier 36, 299 South Street, on the East River in Manhattan and will open to the public from 10AM to 5PM, from Saturday the 10th to Saturday, September 17th. On Sunday, September 18th, they are offering a “Living History Cruise” on the ship from 8AM to 4PM.  There will also be another “Living History Cruise” in Baltimore on October 1st. Click here to learn more.

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Saying Goodbye to Peking — Windjammer Leaves South Street for the Last Time

Posted on by September 7, 2016

bow2thumbThis morning, the 1911 built, steel, four masted barque, Peking, left South Street Seaport, its home for more than 40 years, for the last time. For those of us who have known the ship for almost as long, it was both a sad and joyous day. The South Street Seaport Museum lacked the resources and even the berth space to support the Peking. The museum worked very hard to find a good home for the historic ship and they succeeded.  (See a video of the departure after the page break.)

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150 Years Ago Today — The Last Great Tea Race Ends in a Tie

Posted on by September 7, 2016
Taeping

Taeping

In 1866, five clipper ships set out together from Foochow, China bound for England in what would be the last  Great Tea Race. On September 6th, one hundred and fifty years ago today, after sailing more than 15,000 nautical miles, the clipper ships Taeping and Ariel arrived in London, literally minutes apart, in what was effectively a tie. The Ariel arrived first, but was delayed in docking due to the tide, which allowed Taeping to get to her dock, beating Ariel by 28 minutes. The third finisher, the clipper ship Serica, docked an hour and 15 minutes after Ariel. The three ships left China on the same tide, raced for 99 days, and arrived on the same tide in London, all less than two hours apart. The clipper Fiery Cross arrived 28 hours behind Serica. followed, the next day, by Taitsing.

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Book Review: American Dunkirk, The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11

Posted on by September 6, 2016

 On Thursday, September 8th at 6PM. James M. Kendra and Tricia Wachtendorf will discuss and sign copies of their new book, American Dunkirk: The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11 on the historic ex-Coast Guard Cutter Lilac at Pier 25 in Manhattan. Click here to learn more. In the meantime, here is my review, originally published in gCaptain. Reposted with permission.

The great New York boatlift of September 11th, 2001, is one of the less well known and least understood of the events of 9/11. In around 10 hours, the mariners of New York harbor evacuated an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 people trapped in Lower Manhattan by water. It has been called the largest rescue by sea in history and is often compared to Dunkirk, where a roughly comparable number of soldiers and civilians were rescued over a period of eight days. Now in their new book, American Dunkirk: The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11, Professors James M. Kendra and Tricia Wachtendorf examine how and why this nearly miraculous evacuation was accomplished and what lessons can be learned in the case of future disasters.

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Memories of Tug Races Past

Posted on by September 5, 2016

tugrace2009Tropical Storm Hermine, which looked very nasty there for a while, drifted enough to the east to miss New York harbor. There were local reports of flooding at high tide, but overall, it has been a beautiful Labor Day weekend on the banks of the Hudson River. Prudently, one Labor Day tradition was postponed. The 24th Annual Great North River Tugboat Race and Competition which was to be held on Labor Day has been postponed to Sunday, October 9th, 2016. Given the forecasts for Hermine in the days prior to Labor Day, it would have been crazy not to postpone the race.

For those who miss the look of tugs with a bone in their teeth and roar of diesel engines on the river, here is a video of the 17th Annual Great North River Tugboat Race from 2009.

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American Dunkirk — Discussion & Book Signing, Sept 8 on Historic Cutter Lilac

Posted on by September 4, 2016

adcover1A great event on the historic ex-Coast Guard Cutter Lilac at Pier 25 in Manhattan on Thursday, September 8th at 6PM. James M. Kendra and Tricia Wachtendorf will discuss and sign copies of their new book, American Dunkirk: The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11.  A panel discussion will follow.

From the Lilac Preservation Project press release: One of the great untold stories of 9/11 is the impromptu response by mariners that resulted in the biggest evacuation by water in history.

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24th Annual Great North River Tugboat Race and Competition Postponed Due to Hermine

Posted on by September 5, 2016

tugracepostponedThe 24th Annual Great North River Tugboat Race and Competition which was to be held on Labor Day on the Hudson River has been postponed by the expected arrival on Monday of high winds and rain associated with Tropical Depression Hermine. The race and competition has been rescheduled to Sunday, October 9th, 2016.  Click here to learn more.

Hermine came ashore as a Category 1 hurricane in the Big Bend region of the Florida Gulf coast. The first hurricane to hit Florida in eleven years has resulted in significant flooding and wind damage. One death has been reported and 253,000 are reported to have lost power.  Hermine is now a Tropical Storm and is lashing Georgia and the Carolinas. The storm is expected to track up the Atlantic coast, arriving as Tropical Depression off New York City by Monday.

Great White Shark Nursery Discovered Off Long Island

Posted on by September 1, 2016

gwshark1North Pacific humpback whales feed in Alaska but they winter in the Hawaiian Islands, where they mate, calve and nurse their young. The Pacific grey whales do something quite similar, spend their winters in the warm lagoons of Baja, Mexico, having sex and giving birth. Now, shark researchers have located what they believe is a great white shark nursery off the south shore of Long Island.

Very little has been known about shark breeding and birthing patterns. Unlike whales, where the young migrate with their pods, the young great white sharks are believed to be left by their mothers and spend their first twenty years in the area where they were born. The research group research group Ocearch, led by Chris Fischer, has conducted over two dozen expeditions looking for and tagging great white sharks. Recently, however, the team has found and tagged at least nine great white pups near Montauk, Long Island.

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Ferry Collides with a Group of Kayakers on Hudson River

Posted on by September 4, 2016

kayakferrycollisionYesterday, just before 6PM, a commuter ferry collided with a group of kayaks carrying ten kayakers, shortly after departing from the NY Waterway terminal at 39th Street on the Hudson River in Manhattan. The kayakers were part of a group organized by Manhattan Kayak Company and were traveling south when reportedly struck by the ferry shortly after backing out of Pier 79. At least two kayaks were reported to be struck by the ferry and most of the rest were said to have capsized.

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Update: Replica Continental Sloop Providence to be Repaired

Posted on by August 30, 2016

Great news. The replica Continental sloop Providence will be returning to the water. The sloop was seriously damaged when she was blown over in a blizzard in Newport in January 2015.  For some time the future of the vessel was unclear. Recently, the sloop had been listed for sale in her damaged condition on Yachtworld. Now the Associated Press is reporting that Providence is going to be repaired. The owner, Thorpe Leeson, hopes to have the 61′ sloop in the water in a year.

From our post of January 27, 2015: The sloop Providence, a 1976 built replica of the Continental Navy sloop of the same name, was blown off her jack stands while on shore at Newport Shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island on Tuesday in blizzard conditions.  The ship was dis-masted and suffered hull damage when she fell over in winds reported to be gusting up to 60 mph. Thorpe Leeson, the sloop’s owner, told the Associated Press that extra supports were added beneath the ship as a precaution for the storm, but they failed in the high winds. Continue reading →

Freedom Class LCS in Service — 100% Failure Rate in Last Year

Posted on by August 29, 2016

freedom2The LCS saga continues. The USS Freedom suffered another serious failure.  There are currently three Freedom Class Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) in service — USS Freedom, USS Fort Worth, and the USS Milwaukee.  In the past twelve months, all three of the ships in service have suffered major engine or propulsion gear failures, an unenviable record.

The Navy announced yesterday that the USS Freedom suffered damage to one of its two diesel engines, which will require either a major overhaul or replacement of the engine.  The Freedom Class LCS are powered by two Colt-Pielstick diesel engines and two Rolls-Royce MT30 36 MW gas turbines driving four waterjets.  The damage to the USS Freedom was reportedly caused by a leak in a pump seal which allowed seawater to leak into the lube oil system. How long the repairs will take and how long the ship will be out of service are unknown.

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Norsepower & Enercon Sailing on Rotors — Future of Commercial Sail?

Posted on by August 29, 2016
norpowerrotors

M/V Estraden

Last week, the Finnish marine engineering company, Norsepower Oy Ltd, was awarded €2.6M in funding to further its research and development of the Norsepower Rotor Sail Solution technology. The new models of the technology will include the world’s largest ever Flettner rotor. The funding provided jointly by the European Commission, and the Finnish Government’s funding agency for Innovation, Tekes, will be used to optimize the Norsepower Rotor Sail design.

A Flettner rotor is vertical spinning cylinder which acts as a motor powered sail. When wind blows across the rotating cylinder, lift is developed at 90 degrees to the wind flow by what is termed the Magnus effect. Installed on the deck of a ship, Flettner rotors develop thrust similar to conventional sails, except that they can achieve roughly ten times the thrust per surface area as compared to a traditional rig.  Anton Flettner, the inventor of the rotors, sailed across the Atlantic in a two rotor ship in 1926. Flettner’s ship relied entirely on the wind for propulsion.  Current designs are intended to be primarily motor ships with rotor sail auxiliary power to reduce fuel consumption, with targeted savings from 5 – 30%.

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