The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert Redick – A Review

Posted on by August 26, 2010

I recently had recommended to me Robert Redick’s The Red Wolf Conspiracy, a fantasy epic which is almost exclusively set aboard the Imperial Merchant Ship Chathard, a 600 year old sailing ship of immerse proportions and age that sets out on a mission of mystery and intrigue with a huge crew and equally large and varied cast of characters.

The Red Wolf Conspiracy is an engaging and simply fun fantasy romp set on another world with a complex history of imperial warfare and contentious religious disputes as well as mages, magic, tiny creatures and “woken” animals who can think and talk.  And at the heart of it all is the IMS Chathard, over six hundred years old and by far the largest ship in the empire of Arqual, and for that matter the world. The Red Wolf Conspiracy is far grittier and much more nautical than most fantasy tales I have read. I still wouldn’t quite call it nautical fiction, but it is close.
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At the Movies – First Pirates of the Caribbean and now Battleship!

Posted on by August 25, 2010

Brooklyn Decker

Once movies were based on great novels.  Of course, they usually ruined the story, but at least you could say, “I liked the book better.”   Then, seven years ago,  Jerry Bruckheimer produced a movie based on a Disney World amusement ride. The movie, Pirates of the Caribbean, with a production budget of $140 million, was a huge hit, grossing over $650 million worldwide,  spawning two sequels, with one more on the way.   Now a major studio is investing $200 million on a movie based on the Milton Bradley board game, Battleship.  It will feature Taylor Kitsch, pop star Rihanna and “supermodel” Brooklyn Decker. This will be Rihanna’s first movie and Decker’s second.

Brooklyn Decker’s Cannons To Star In ‘Battleship’
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Camden’s Windjammer Festival Starts Friday

Posted on by August 31, 2010

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 event.  Unfortunately the festivities begin with a mock pirate attack on Camden harbor, which seems to be the obligatory nod to the Disneyfication of pirates.    Neverthess, the rest of the activities look great.

Thanks to Alaric Bond for pointing out the festival.

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

Posted on by August 24, 2010

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 the world’s navies, had been founded by Fred T Jane in 1898. Moore was its editor from 1973 to 1987. Before the age of computers and electronic databases he organised this superlative, fact-packed encyclopedia from a garden shed on the Pevensey marshes.
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HMS Cassandra, HMS Myrtle and HMS Gentian, Sunk in the Russia Revolution, Located

Posted on by August 24, 2010

HMS Cassandra

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 in the Baltic Sea by the Estonian Navy.

HMS Cassandra, HMS Myrtle and HMS Gentian were lost as they fought to keep Estonia out of the hands of Vladimir Lenin after his seizure of power in Russia.

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Online Tour of NS Savanah – World’s first nuclear powered merchant ship

Posted on by August 21, 2010

In 1819, the SS Savannah was first steamship in the world to cross the Atlantic Ocean.   Despite this accomplishment, the Savannah was a commercial failure and was converted back to sail shortly after returning from Europe.   It is somehow fitting that one hundred and forty years later in 1959,  the first nuclear powered cargo ship would be named after the SS Savannah.   Like her namesake the NS Savannah was a commercial failure, operating at a loss between 1962 and 1971, before being decommissioned.  The NS Savannah is currently laid up in the Port of Baltimore, Maryland.

The Historic Naval Ships Association has put together a fascinating “virtual tour”of the NS Savannah, the “ship of the future” that time  left behind.

VIRTUAL TOUR OF NS SAVANNAH

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Laura Dekker Sets Sail from Somewhere

Posted on by August 23, 2010

Laura Dekker, the Dutch 14 year old, reportedly set sail on Saturday on her attempt to sail around the world alone, at least according to her manager.   Ms. Dekker was originally reported to have departed from Portugal but is now believed to have left via Gibraltar on her 38′ yacht, Guppy.  If she completes the voyage within two years she will be the youngest person to have completed a single-handed circumnavigation.   Australian teenager Jessica Watson is likely to retain the tile of the youngest to single-hand around the world non-stop as Ms. Dekker is reportedly planning at stopping in as many as 20 ports along the way.   Last April Ms Dekker won a court case against Dutch social services who sought to prevent her from making the circumnavigation attempt due to her age.

Teenager Dekker ‘sets sail’ on world record bid

Lost at Sea – The Ocean in the English Imagination, 1550-1750

Posted on by August 21, 2010

Astrolabe c.16th -17th century

The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC has been hosting an intriguing exhibit:  Lost at Sea – The Ocean in the English Imagination, 1550-1750.   Unfortunately the exhibit itself is almost over, running only through September 4th.  Nevertheless, for those of us who cannot make it to Washington, the exhibit website itself is fascinating.

The NY Times recently published a review of the exhibit:

The Sea and the English Who Tried to Master It.
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Right Whales Shouting to be Heard

Posted on by August 21, 2010

Recent studies by researchers at Penn State have suggested that Northern Right Whales increase the volumes of their calls to counteract increases in environmental noise, such as propeller noise from ships.  This is the first time that an ability to modulate call volume to adjust to environmental noise has been documented  in baleen whales.

Lone whales shout to overcome noise pollution

Just like people in a bar or other noisy location, North American right whales increase the volume of their calls as environmental noise increases; and just like humans, at a certain point, it may become too costly to continue to shout, according to marine and acoustic scientists.

First Large Tanker to Transit Russia’s Northeast Passage

Posted on by August 19, 2010

Interesting news from various sources on the first large tanker to transit Russia’s Northeast Passage through the Arctic.  The Barents Observer reports that the “100,000 tons tanker Baltica left Murmansk on Saturday loaded with gas condensate for China. This is the first time a high-tonnage tanker takes the Northern Sea Route from Europe to Asia.” The Barents Observer also reports, ” The tanker will be followed by the nuclear ice breakers “Rossiya”, “Taymyr” and “50 years of Victory”. The latter will have divers and specialists on oil spill clean-up as well as necessary equipment. “
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Trouble on the Delaware – Three Historic Ships at Risk

Posted on by August 19, 2010

Cruiser Olympia, the oldest steel warship afloat, but for how long?

The day after Philadelphia’s tall ship, the newly repaired, Gazela, arrived in New York harbor, an article in this morning’s New York Times focussed on the three historic ships in trouble on the Delaware River, in or near Philadelphia – the Olympia, the battleship New Jersey and the passenger liner SS United States.  Sadly, the arguably most historic of the three ships, the Olympia, is the ship at the greatest risk with no currently viable rescue plan.

Efforts in Philadelphia to Save Showpiece Ships
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Barquentine Gazela Arrives in New York Harbor

Posted on by August 19, 2010

Philadelphia’s tall ship, the barquentine Gazela Primeiro, arrived in New York harbor yesterday, on her way to PortSide New York.  (See our previous post – The Gazela at Portside with Vaudeville and Pirates – Oh My!)   The classic ship will available for daytime tours starting today through Monday the 23rd. By night,  the ship will host Philadelphia’s Cabaret Red Light’s “The Seven Deadly Seas”   tonight through Sunday.   Here are a few photographs of the Gazela taken by Captain Richard Dorfman from the schooner Pioneer.  Click on the thumbnails to view larger images.   

Two US Navy Commanding Officers Relieved of Command

Posted on by August 18, 2010

USS Peleliu

Two US Navy officers, in command of the USS Gunston Hall and USS Peleliu, were relieved of their commands within days of each other over charges related to  sexual harassment.

Cmdr. Fred R. Wilhelm, the Commanding Officer of the amphibious dock landing ship USS Gunston Hall after an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment, simple assault, and conduct unbecoming of an officer.  The ship’s former executive officer, Cmdr. Kevin S. Rafferty, and former command master chief, Wayne Owings, received non-judicial punishment for failing to take action after repeated observations of inappropriate conduct. Owings also faced sexual harassment and simple assault charges.
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SAIL Amsterdam 2010 Festival August 19th-23rd

Posted on by August 18, 2010

SAIL Amsterdam 2010, which starts tomorrow and runs through the weekend, will feature roughly 600 ships berthing in and around the harbor, ranging from traditional tall ships to historical replicas, to traditional coasting craft, as well as modern yachts and naval vessels.  Twenty Class A tall ships are expected to participate.  The festival is held every five years and is Europe’s largest nautical event.  The last festival in 2005 attracted an estimated 2 million visitors.  A great time to be in Amsterdam.

Sail Amsterdam ready to get underway

E Ship 1 – Has the Flettner Rotor Ship Finally Arrived?

Posted on by August 17, 2010

The E Ship 1 arrived in Dublin last week with a cargo of wind turbines manufactured by Enercon.    What was striking was the ship itself, with four tall pillars rising vertically from the ship, two forward and two aft.   The pillars are Flettner rotors, first  developed in the 1920s by German engineer Anton Flettner.  They are in essence, motor powered sails, 27 meters tall and 4 meters in diameter.  The spinning vertical rotors develop aerodynamic lift using the Magnus effect.   As the wind blows across the spinning rotors, they develop lift similar that of an airfoil shape of a conventional sail.  Unlike masts and sails, however, the vertical Flettner rotor does not interfere with cargo operations.  The Flettner rotors are expected to save  30-40% in fuel costs at 16 knots.
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The Gazela at Portside with Vaudeville and Pirates – Oh My!

Posted on by August 23, 2010

Earlier this month we posted about Philadelphia’s tall ship, the barquentine Gazela, returning to sea after suffering rudder damage several years ago.  After participating in a  Portuguese festival in New Bedford, MA the Gazela will be visiting PortSide  New York,starting this Thursday August 19th to Monday the 23rd.  She will be “bringing education by day and pirate cabaret at night.”  There will be daytime tours of the historic barquentine and at night Philadelphia’s  Cabaret Red Light’s troupe will be presenting nightly performances of Pirate Cabaret  – “The Seven Deadly Seas: Waylaid & Hornswoggled.”  The performaces promise “sword fights, dancing girls and plenty of vaudeville charm – definitely  not your Disney pirates.   Tickets may be purchased here. For photographs including dancing girls (oh my) check out Will’s post on the Tugster blog.

Gazela, the Country’s Oldest Wooden Square-Rigger, Comes to NYC

A review of Seven Deadly Seas