RIMPAC – Sinking Ships for Fun and Practice

Posted on by July 18, 2010

HMAS Warramunga (FFH-152) engages Ex-USS New Orleans (LPH-11) with her 5" gun during a surface engagement, part of Exercise RIMPAC 2010.

RIMPAC 2010, the Rim of the Pacific Exercise, is  one of the world’s largest maritime exercises, with participation by 14 nations, including including Australia, Canada, Japan, Singapore, France, Colombia, Chile, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Peru, South Korea and Thailand.   RIMPAC began on June 23rd and will continue through the end of July.  Ships from the various navies started arriving late last month.
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Baltic Bubbly – ‘World’s oldest champagne’

Posted on by July 18, 2010

Divers have found 30 bottles of champagne thought to pre-date the French Revolution on the Baltic seabed.  Reportedly, it was still highly drinkable.

All I can say is that the seabed must be one hell of a wine cellar.   Dark, cold, but at a constant temperature, and totally devoid of oxygen – it does meet the requirements for storing alcohol.  The fact that the champagne was something other than vinegar is proof enough.

‘World’s oldest champagne’ found on Baltic seabed
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The Trireme Olympias Coming to New York ?

Posted on by July 18, 2010

There are plans to bring the trimere Olympias to New York harbor in 2012 coincide with the Tall Ships “OpSail” and July 4th celebrations.

The Trireme Olympias Coming Soon to New York

The H.N. Olympias is a full-scale, working replica of the legendary 170-oared Athenian trireme of the 5th century B.C. The ship is the fastest human-powered vessel on the planet. New Yorkers will have a unique and exciting opportunity to watch as Olympias is rowed and sailed in our harbor. For people looking for a fitness challenge, we will be recruiting and training teams of 170 men and women to participate in sea-trials and other nautical events.
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The Olympias Trireme – 5th Century B.C Warship Reborn

Posted on by July 17, 2010

Many historians have long suspected that the performance of the Greek triremes as reported by Esculus and others, were overstated.  Some have referred to them as “mythological.”   The  Olympias trireme, built in 1987,  designed by the naval architect John Coates, who died last week,  has proven to be as fast and maneuverable as the triremes described in the ancient texts.

The performance of the Olympias has been impressive. In trails in 1987 the trireme achieved a cruising speed up to 6 knots when rowed continuously for 30 miles, with an average of 5 knots. It reached 9 knots in sprints, and sailed at 10.8 knots under sail with a following wind.

In the late 1987,  John Coates,  John Morrison and N. B. Rankov wrote The Athenian Trireme: The History and Reconstruction of an Ancient Greek Warship describing their research, the design construction and testing of the Olympias. The second addition of the book, published in 2000, reports on what was learned in fifteen years of testing and training with the ancient craft.
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John Coates: Latter-Day Trireme Designer

Posted on by July 17, 2010

John Coates, front, demonstrating the three-level system of the trireme with oarsmen from Cambridge University

John Coates

John Coates, who died on July 10 aged 88, had retired as chief naval architect at the Ministry of Defence when he took a central role in the building of a Greek trireme, the first, fastest and best known oared warship of the ancient world.

Triremes were 100ft three-tiered vessels powered by two square sails and a huge crew of oarsmen. They were used at the Battle of Salamis in 480BC when the Greeks defeated the Persians (who were led by the emperor Xerxes), and there are references to them in classical literature and depictions on pottery relics and coins.
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Skimmer “A Whale” Fails Second Round of Testing

Posted on by July 17, 2010

After a second round of testing, the converted O/B/O skimmer A Whale has been judged a failure in skimming oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Giant oil skimmer ‘A Whale’ deemed a bust for Gulf of Mexico spill

The massive “A Whale” oil skimmer has effectively been beached after it proved inefficient in sucking up oil from the Gulf of Mexico spill.

The oil is too dispersed to take advantage of the converted Taiwanese supertanker’s enormous capacity, said Bob Grantham, a spokesman for shipowner TMT.

He said BP’s use of chemical dispersants prevented A Whale, billed as the world’s largest skimmer, from collecting a “significant amount” of oil during a week of testing that ended Friday.

Tall Ships Tracking Map

Posted on by July 16, 2010

Tom Russell over at the Tall Ship & Traditional Sail Professionals Linked-In group pointed out the Tall Ships Tracking Map posted on-line by Sailwx.info.   Sailwx.info is a wonderful site for keeping track of of all sort of ships, including tall ships.  They also have a separate tracking page dedicated to the ASTA Great Lakes United Tall Ships Challenge® 2010 which includes nice thumbnail photos and ships’  information.

The site has pages for cruise ships, oceanographic research vessels,  yachts as well as weather, wind and tide information for ports around the world.  There is also a twitter feed from reporting ships and the ability to search for ships by name.  A really fun site, but be warned –  it is an easy site to spend a lot of time on.

Update on the Cutty Sark – Fiasco or just “Berthing” Pains?

Posted on by July 16, 2010

Last September we posted about an article in the Telegraph, Cutty Sark restoration turning into a fiasco.   Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing on an update recently published in the Private Eye.  The restoration of the Cutty Sark, after a major fire in 2007, was supposed to be completed by 2009.   Currently, it appears that the renovation will be completed no earlier than 2012. The project is also over-budget and there is a real concern that the “restoration” will do permanent and serious damage to the historic ship.

CUTTY SARK’S BERTH PAINS
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Captain Don McIntyre and the Talisker Bounty Boat Recreate Bligh’s Epic Voyage

Posted on by July 15, 2010

At the end of last April we posted about an expedition led by Australian Don McIntyre to recreate the epic 3,700 nautical mile voyage of Captain Bligh and his crew across the Pacific in an open boat in 1789 following the famous mutiny.   McIntyre and his crew of three set out to recreate the conditions Bligh faced.  The sailed in a 25 foot open boat, surviving on a “starvation diet” of two ship’s biscuits and a bit of tinned beef a day.  They relied on 18th century navigation  but, like Bligh, sailed without charts.   After a seven week voyage where they were almost capsized in gale force winds, narrowly avoided  running up on a reef, and spent hours daily bailing out the small boat, they arrived safely in East Timor yesterday.

‘Mutiny’ sailor on surviving seven weeks starving at sea

The Merchandising Begins – Teen Sailor Jessica Watson’s Book and Album

Posted on by July 15, 2010


Jessica Watson’s book True Spirit will be published in August in Australia and in October in the United States.  It was also recently announced that she will be releasing an album as well.  Fast work given that she only returned in the middle of May.

Teen sailor Jessica Watson to release an album

The young sailor claims that music helped her get through the months she was alone onboard Ella’s Pink Lady. It was also a source of comfort during the more challenging times.
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18th Century Ship Found Buried at New York’s World Trade Center Site

Posted on by July 15, 2010

Workers excavating at the new World Trade Center site in lower Manhattan have uncovered the remains of an 18th century wooden merchant ship. The ship was found 20 feet below street level,  is roughly 30 feet in length and was probably buried intentionally as land fill.  It was found in an area outside that which had been previously excavated for the original World Trade Center complex and appears to have remained undisturbed since it was buried in the mid to late 1700s.

18th-Century Ship Found at Trade Center Site
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Building a New Rainbow Warrior – Remembering the Bombing 25 Years Ago

Posted on by July 14, 2010

Rainbow Warrior III

Twenty five years ago this week, French government agents attached limpit mines to the hull of the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior, in Auckland harbor in New Zealand to stop the ship from protesting French nuclear testing in Moruroa. The exploding mines sank the Rainbow Warrior, killing Fernando Pereira, a photographer.  Two French agents were arrested by the New Zealand Police and were charged with arson and murder for which they would serve only two years.

Last week Greenpeace  commemorated the anniversary of the bombing by starting construction of a new, low-carbon, Rainbow Warrior III.

Greenpeace begins construction of new Rainbow Warrior, marking 25th anniversary of bombing
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George Steinbrenner, Ship Owner and Shipbuilder who also owned a Baseball Team

Posted on by January 11, 2020

George Steinbrenner, died today of a massive heart attack at the age of 80.  He was best known as the owner of the New York Yankees but belonged to a family of shipowners. Kinsman Marine Transit was once one of the largest bulk carrier operators in the Great Lakes.  In 1962 he became president of Kinsman.  Five years later Kinsman merged with American Ship Building Company and the Steinbrenner family took a controlling interest.  In 1973, George Steinbrenner bought the New York Yankees.
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Schooner, Building a Wooden Boat on Martha’s Vineyard – A Review

Posted on by July 14, 2010

In late May,  we posted about the publication of a beautiful new book by Alison Shaw and Tom Dunlop, Schooner – Building a Wooden Boat on Martha’s Vineyard.   We recently had the opportunity to read the book.  Our review:

Schooner – Building a Wooden Boat on Martha’s Vineyard details, in prose and photographs, the story of the design and construction of the schooner, Rebecca of Vineyard Haven, the largest wooden vessel to have been built on Martha’s Vineyard since the days of Abraham Lincoln.    Continue reading →

Paul, the Octopus Oracle, Retires On Top

Posted on by July 13, 2010

Paul, an octopus, was a recent sensation when he accurately predicated the outcome of eight World Cup games in a row; as many games as he has legs.  Now the World Cup is over and Paul, a resident of the Sea Life aquarium in Oberhausen, has retired from the oracle business and is returning to his previous job of entertaining aquarium guests.  Paul would predict the outcome of games when two clear plastic boxes were put in his tank, each with the flag of the competing team and a mollusk inside.  Paul would make his prediction by choosing which of the mollusks to eat first.
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Blue Whales in Monterey Bay

Posted on by July 12, 2010

Whale watchers were stunned last week to see 28 blue whales feeding on krill in Monterey Bay. Blue whales are the largest animal ever to live on earth and are also highly endangered with an estimated population of only 10,000 compared to over half a million a few decades ago.   A second season of plentiful krill seems to have lured the whales in the bay.    Whale watchers also saw a pod of 30-35 humpback whales feeding in the bay as well.

Plentiful krill lures dozens of blue whales to Monterey Bay

Summer Sunset Schooner Regatta in New York Harbor

Posted on by July 11, 2010

At the end of the recent holiday weekend I was amazed to see what at first looked like a schooner race in New York harbor.  Six large schooners were all short tacking down the channel against a gentle southerly breeze.   I soon realized that this was no organized race but was instead an informal gathering orchestrated by the setting sun.  Five large schooners and one frequent visitor all offer sunset cruises in New York Harbor. They all sail to roughly the same place, out past the Statue of Liberty, and all sail at close to sunset. In a single stroke the harbor suddenly is filled with sails. Here is a short video of a recent evening.

Six Schooners on Sunset Sail in New York Harbor, July 9th, 2010

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Oak Jam from HMS Victory?

Posted on by July 10, 2010

Oak flavored jam?

Wood from HMS Victory bottled as a jam in a jar

Admiral Lord Nelson led HMS Victory out of a few sticky situations, but now the ship finds itself in a bit of a jam.

Off-cuts of wood from the Portsmouth-based historic ship have been infused with fruit and brandy and processed to make a plum and oak flavoured jam.   Jars of the spread can be bought for £5 from a London art gallery – and without a splinter in sight.
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