Many of the classics of nautical literature are stories of young men who set off to sea, often compelled, in equal parts, by necessity and a longing for adventure. Joan Druett’s “A Love of Adventure” is just such a tale, with an important twist or two. Her young hero, Abigail Pandora Sherman, is a heroine and has no need to run off to sea, as she was born and largely raised aboard her father’s merchant brig, with which she shares her middle name. “A Love of Adventure” is a wonderfully written and highly entertaining novel, carrying the reader from New Zealand to New Bedford and back again, by way of Panama and the wilder coasts of South America. It is a rousing adventure and coming of age story that also includes elements of mystery and intrigue.
The statue of Admiral Nelson on the top of a Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square is now sporting a fancy new hat featuring a Union Jack and an Olympic torch. Nelson would have likely approved. He was known as a rather flashy dresser. Some have suggested that had he not worn his admiral’s jacket with decorations at the Battle of Trafalgar, his day might have ended somewhat better. Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing the story along.
The 22st Annual Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York will be held this weekend in Meadow Lake at Flushing Meadows, Corona Park. Fielding 170 dragon boat teams and over 2,000 participants, it is one of the largest boating festivals in New York City. In addition to two days of dragon boat racing, there will be also be traditional Chinese foods and performances including the Shaolin Temple Warrior Monks demonstrating Kung Fu, the Drum Spirit of China, as well as other performers who will perform traditional music and dance from China, Mexico and Peru.
One of the joys and pains of buying beer these days, is that there is are so many interesting craft beers to choose from. Some are marvelous, some are unremarkable, while a few are wildly over-hopped, which some American craft brewers think is cutting edge. (It isn’t. It is simply bitter.) Recently, there has been a interesting shift of focus away from hops alone toward malt. All of which is long-winded way of saying that I recently came across the Cisco Brewery of Nantucket’s Whale’s Tale Pale Ale. Delightful. A richly malted ale with a complex fruitiness balancing nicely with the East Golding hops. While it is described as a British Pale Ale, it is best served cold. A very pleasant summer beer. This evening, I will be toasting Melville’s birthday with a Whale’s Tale Pale Ale.
Review in BeerAdvocate. Review in the Village Voice.
Does anyone else have a favorite nautical themed beer?
Herman Melville
Today is the birthday of Herman Melville, one of the greatest American writers. He was born in 1819 on Pearl Street in downtown Manhattan, almost directly across the Hudson from where I am now writing this post. He will always be remembered for his masterpiece Moby Dick. Ironically, Moby Dick, published in 1851, was not a critical or commercial success and ruined Melville’s reputation, and indeed his career, as a writer. Melville’s books were out of print for decades before his death. He spent his last 19 years as a customs inspector in Manhattan.
Also, on August 1, 1833, Sailor’s Snug Harbor opened on Staten Island and the first 37 old and indigent mariners moved into the retirement community built for them with money left by Captain Robert Randall. Over 40,000 sailors would ultimately retire to Sailor’s Snug Harbor. Captain Thomas Melville, a retired sea captain and Herman Melville’s brother, would serve as governor of Snug Harbor from 1867 to 1884. See the video about Snug Harbor after the page break.
And finally on this day in 1798, Nelson ruined Napoleon’s plans in Egypt by destroying much of the French fleet in the Battle of the Nile, which was not actually fought in the Nile but in Aboukir Bay.
Congratulations to Joan Druett! Her recent book, Tupaia – The Remarkable Story of Captain Cook’s Polynesian Navigator, was general non-fiction winner in the 2012 New Zealand Post Book Awards.
See our review of Tupaia – The Remarkable Story of Captain Cook’s Polynesian Navigator from last year:
In 1730, the third year of the reign of King George II, two brothers, Ralph and Robert Clarke, bought shares in a 300-ton sailing vessel. Their enterprise would become Stephenson Clarke Shipping, which in recent years has specialized in the shipment of short sea bulk cargoes. Last week, Stephenson Clarke filed for liquidation. In 2008, the company operated a fleet of ten bulk carriers. By the end of 2011, the fleet had been reduced to two. On Thursday of last week, the last ship was sold. Stephenson Clarke, the oldest shipping company in Great Britain, becomes part of history.
Paul Allen’s yacht Octopus
Billionaire and philanthropist, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is loaning his 126 metre superyacht Octopus to the British Royal Navy to mount an expedition to locate and raise the bell from the battle cruiser HMS Hood (51) sunk by the German battleship Bismark in the Denmark Strait in 1941. Only three survived the sinking in which 1,415 died, the largest loss of life ever suffered by any single British warship.
If the recovery effort is successful, the bell will be given to the HMS Hood Association to be displayed at a new exhibition hall due to open at the Royal Navy Museum. The wreck of HMS Hood was discovered in 2001, in water 2,800 meters deep, and has been designated under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986. The bell is known to be lying on the seabed well away from the ship’s hull which will not be disturbed by the recovery operation. The government has licensed the recovery of the bell – as well as providing a memorial, the recovery will prevent it being taken by any illegal operation for personal gain, an MoD spokesman said. Thanks to Captain Michael J. Howorth for passing the news along.
As noted by Super Yacht News, none of the newspapers carrying the story of the loaning of Octopus to the Royal Navy explain why it is a superyacht carrying out the expedition and not a properly equipped salvage vessel.
Paul Allen to Loan Octopus to Royal Navy in Search for Bell from HMS Hood
Crew of U-550 abandoning ship 1944
Yesterday we posted about the possible discovery of a German WWII submarine sunk in the Churchill River in Labrador, Canada. Now we have learned that the German World War II submarine U-550 has been located in the Atlantic, 70 miles south of the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
One of the cuter varieties of lobster
As far as I am concerned, there are few things, that you can do with your clothes on, that are more enjoyable than sitting on the Maine coast and eating freshly steamed lobster. This Wednesday, August 1st, kicks off five days of feasting and fun on the fabulous Maine coast. The 65th Annual Maine Lobster Festival will be held in Rockland’s Harbor Park from August 1- 5. There will arts & crafts, music, kid’s activities, a lobster crate race, the Big Parade and the 2012 Sea Goddess Coronation. And there will be lobster. No shortage of lobster.
Searchers using side scanning sonar believe that they may have located a German U-boat from World War II on the bottom in the Churchill River not far from Muskrat Falls in Labrador, Canada, more than 100 kilometres from the ocean. German submarines operated in the region during World War II and a novel written in the early 1990s features the story of a U-boat beaching in the Churchill River. The novel may be more accurate than anyone realized.
Here is a wonderful short video capturing a day in the life of a deckhand on the schooner Mary Day, sailing the coast of Maine. (Looks someone should cut back on the caffeine.) See also our previous post – Happy 50th Birthday Schooner Mary Day !
Earlier this month, we posted how the North Carolina legislature is considering legislating limits to sea level projections, even though recent studies suggest that sea levels are rising faster on the US East Coast than they are in the rest of the world. That hasn’t stopped Virginia legislators from opposing the use of the phrases “climate change” and “sea level rise” in state documents. Instead, they refer to the issue of the rise in sea levels as “recurrent flooding.” One brain-dead legislator is quoted as saying that “sea level rise” is a “left-wing term.”
The constant ranting of the climate change deniers raises several questions. How long can we deny the obvious? What happens if we wait too long? Recently Roger Bradbury writing in the New York Times suggest that it is already too late for the world’s coral reefs. The frightening question is – what if he is right?
The 72 foot long catamarans that will be competing for the America’s Cup in San Francisco in 2013 are both breathtakingly beautiful and slightly terrifying. Powered by a towering wing sail and well capable of sailing at the twice the speed of the wind, these high-tech monsters suggest the still untapped potential of sail. A 3d animated fly-around of the AC72:
The 34th America’s Cup AC72 class rule 3D animation flyaround
Last April we posted about Australian mining billionaire Clive Palmer’s plans to build a 21st-century replica of the Titanic. I am not sure how I feel about naming new vessels after maritime tragedies. On the other hand, the Titanic may be as well known today as the setting for a movie, as it is as an ill-fated passenger liner.
I have to admit that I have the same mixed feelings when I heard recently that Florida entrepreneur, Charles Kropke, is endeavoring to revive Windjammer Barefoot Cruises and Chalk Ocean Airways. Both ventures had long and interesting histories which unfortunately ended badly. Mr, Kropke is also attempting to revive the Belleview-Biltmore Hotel in Belleair, Florida