The Temple (Third Book in the Sir Sidney Smith Series) by Tom Grundner

Posted on by September 18, 2011

There have been hundreds of novels written about dashing Royal Navy ships’ captains who bear a striking resemblance to Lord Cochrane. The resemblance and family history are most obvious in Jack Aubrey and Horatio Hornblower, but a dozen or so other worthy fictional officers share the same heritage. It is therefore pleasing to see that Tom Grundner has tapped another naval hero from history, the intriguing and multi-faceted Sir Sidney Smith, whose colorful and often controversial naval career would span from the American Revolution through the end of the Napoleonic wars.

His latest novel, The Temple, begins with Sir Sidney locked in the French prison by that name. It follows his daring escape and return to England only to be dispatched the Gibraltar under the command of an admiral who despises him, a diplomatic mission to the the Ottoman court, Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt and Nelson’s victory at the Nile. The novel is sweeping in scope, fast paced and a fun read.
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Rich Men’s Toys – Battleships, Helipads & Submarines

Posted on by February 15, 2013

eclipse

The mega-yachts of the Russian billionaires grow ever larger,  more elaborate, and, of course, ever more expensive. Roman Abramovich’s new yacht Eclipse will be the world’s largest yacht, at 557 feet (170 meters), eclipsing, so to speak, the 525-foot luxury yacht owned by Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
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Lars Henning Hansen – Master Rigger

Posted on by April 22, 2010
hansen

Lars Hansen atop the Peking at the South Street Seaport in 1991.

I just read that Lars Hansen died the day before yesterday in a nursing home in Florida.  He was 86.  For three decades he had been the master rigger of the  historic vessels of the South Street Seaport until he suffered a stroke a few years ago and had to retire.

When profiled in the New York Times two years ago, the author wrote that ”Mr. Hansen reigned for 30 years as king of the still-gritty side of the seaport. … In the collective imagination of the seaport’s salts, Mr. Hansen is a Paul Bunyan of the sea. They speak of his strength in terms like “gentle giant,” and of his kindness in phrases typically reserved for the canonization process.”

Captain of the Low Seas
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Update: Tall Ship Soren Larsen – Repairs after Surviving a Rogue Wave

Posted on by April 22, 2010

sorenrefitLast May, we posted about the Tall Ship Soren Larsen’s new season of voyages –  Tall ship Soren Larsen – Pearls of the Pacific, Voyages across the South Seas 2009.  Unfortunately, the ship was hit by a rogue wave on the 1st of June and suffered serious damage.

Fortunately, no one was seriously injured, beyond a few bruises, cuts and a few strained knees. The deck house and bulwarks suffered major damage, but the ship made it safely back to port.   The last few months have been spent making repairs.  From the Soren Larsen site:
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Setting Full Sail Toward the 20th Century

Posted on by September 5, 2013

cham_650

Thomas Chambers’s “Packet Ship Passing Castle Williams, New York Harbor”

The American Museum of Folk Art in New York has a new exhibit –  Thomas Chambers (1808-1869): American Marine and Landscape Painter.  His paintings have been described as having an “entrancing, slightly demonic style … neither strictly realist nor naïve, they packed a formal, even decorative punch.”

For years, his paintings were collected by private owners and museums, yet because all were unsigned the painter remained a mystery. Only in the late 1930s was first signed painting located – “The Capture of H.B.M. ‘Macedonian’ by the U.S. Frigate ‘United States,’ October 25, 1812, signed by T. Chambers.

From the New York Times:  Setting Full Sail Toward the 20th Century
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Update: The Fourth Plinth – Pirates, Painting & Pole Dancing

Posted on by April 22, 2010

pirateontheplinthIn July we posted about the exhibition of Yinka Shonibare’s Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square.  There was an interesting symmetry in the display of Nelson’s ship, Victory, in a bottle, on a plinth, in a square named for Nelson’s greatest and last victory onboard HMS Victory.

At the time I didn’t fully appreciate what an interesting performance space the Fourth Plinth has become.  Recently, among many other performers and performances,  there has been a man dressed as a 17th century pirate telling bad pirate puns ( in the video the pirate punster is preceded and followed by singers)  as well as a topless plinth pole dancer and a topless body painter.  Nothing terribly nautical about the last two, except that sailors have always been supporters of the arts, particularly when undressed women are involved.

Navy Chiefs Support Women Serving on Subs

Posted on by April 22, 2010

submarine2Let women work on subs, Navy secretary says

Women should be allowed to serve aboard submarines, and the Navy is “moving out aggressively” to make it happen, according to the service’s top civilian.

“I believe women should have every opportunity to serve at sea, and that includes aboard submarines,” Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said Thursday in a statement to Navy Times.
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The Mystery of the Mahogany Ship

Posted on by April 24, 2010

caravelThanks to Dick and Ben Kooyman for passing along this intriguing account of a new search for the legendary “Mahogany ship” which, if found, may rewrite Australian history.  The Mahogany ship is said to be buried beneath the sand in the Armstrong Bay area, approximately 3 to 6 kilometres west of Warrnambool in southwest Victoria, Australia.  The wreck was originally reported in the 1830s and has been suggested to be variously of Portuguese, Spanish, French or Chinese origin.  Many believe the ship to a Portuguese caravel dating from the early 16th century.

The story of the Mahogany ship has captured the imagination of Australians yet, so far  no one has been able to locate the wreck. A new search using the latest technology has now been proposed to finally solve the mystery.

Crusade to solve maritime mystery
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Fans of World’s Fastest Ocean Liner Put Out a Distress Call

Posted on by April 24, 2010

sunitedThe Wall Street Journal today has an article about the SS United States Conservancy, a group of individuals who fervently wish to save the SS United States.

I have the somewhat heretical view that the “Big U,” as she is called, is beyond saving.  In some respects, she was doomed from the start.   She went into service in 1952, the same year that Boeing began work on a plane that would be known as the 707, the plane that would make passenger liners obsolete. See our previous post – Twilight of the Ocean Liners – the SS United States.

The account in the Journal article doesn’t suggest much hope of saving the ship.  It tells of her supporters taking trips out into the Delaware River where the ship is moored “to touch the hull,” yet also says that the group does not know what it would cost to dock the ship, quoting Dan McSweeney, Executive Director of the Conservancy, as saying, “It behooves us to do some research on that.”

Fans of World’s Fastest Ocean Liner Put Out a Distress Call

Jessica Watson sets sail again – to cheers and jeers

Posted on by April 24, 2010

jessicapinkAfter sailing into a bulk carrier earlier this month on her first day at sea after apparently dozing off, sixteen year old Jessica Watson has set sail once again on her attempt to circumnavigate the globe singlehanded.   While she has received the support of leading Australian sailors and sports champions, she is also sailing into a storm of criticism.    A recent investigation by Maritime Safety Queensland of the collision earlier this month was highly critical of her lack of preparation, planning and sailing skills.

Jessica Watson’s safety checklist reveals she’s out of depth
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Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez – Bidding Summer Adieu

Posted on by April 24, 2010

22acaytropSaint-Tropez Races Bid Summer Adieu

According to legend, a bet in 1981 between two yachtsmen at a fashionable Saint-Tropez restaurant led to a race between Pride, an American-owned Swan 44 sailboat and Ikra, a French-owned International 12-meter rival.

On Sunday, about 300 modern and classic yachts and more than 3,500 crew members will gather in this small Mediterranean port for the start of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez, a weeklong sail fest that has grown from that first race 28 years ago.

See also: Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez – Racing for the Traditional Classes

Samoa police say 63 dead in tsunami, toll may rise

Posted on by April 24, 2010

Samoa police say 63 dead in tsunami, toll may rise

Samoan police commissioner Lilo Maiava told The Associated Press that police have confirmed 63 deaths, and officials are still searching the devastated areas, so the number of deaths might rise soon.

A powerful Pacific Ocean earthquake with a magnitude between 8.0 and 8.3 spawned towering tsunami waves that swept ashore early Tuesday on Samoa and American Samoa, flooding and flattening villages, killing dozens of people and leaving scores of others missing. At least 19 people also were killed in American Samoa.

The Leaving of Liverpool

Posted on by April 24, 2010

davidcrockett“The Leaving of Liverpool” is a wonderful sea song,  capturing both the promise of a new voyage and the sadness of leaving loved ones behind.   It was “collected” by William Main Doerflinger in 1951 from Dick Maitland, an old sailor at New York’s Snug Harbor, who while bosun on the General Knox around 1885, had learned it one night from a Liverpool man.

The song appears to date from around 1860 to 1874 based on the lyrics which mention Captain Burgess of the clipper ship David Crockett.   The David Crockett was a medium clipper ship built in Mystic, CT in 1853.  She was know for being fast, making the trip between New York and San Fransisco in an average of 101 days.   Two verses of “Leaving of Liverpool” mention the clipper ship and her captain:
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Aquacalypse Now – The End of Fish

Posted on by April 24, 2010

deadfishmagDaniel Pauly has an article in this month’s New Republic “Aquacalypse Now – The End of Fish“.   It addresses the very real and threatening problem of overfishing.  His is a great title for an article but his use of the metaphor of corporate fishing as a Ponzi scheme is interesting, but somewhat distracting. Well worth reading nevertheless.

There is room for optimism in a standing on the edge of a precipice sort of way. Three years ago a report was published in the journal Science predicting that “if fishing around the world continues at its present pace, more and more species will vanish, marine ecosystems will unravel and there will be “global collapse” of all species currently fished, possibly as soon as midcentury.”
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Record £240m cocaine bust as Royal Navy sinks smugglers

Posted on by April 24, 2010

The Royal Navy in joint operations with the US Coast Guard off South America has seized a £240 million cocaine shipment – the biggest haul in Royal Navy history.   HMS Iron Duke’s crew sank the 138ft drug boat with bursts of cannon fire after confiscating its cargo and arresting the smugglers.

Record £240m cocaine bust as Royal Navy sinks smugglers

Lobster Hot Line Hotter Than Expected

Posted on by April 24, 2010

To provide information about a new Canadian lobster industry financial stimulus program,  Canada’s department of fisheries set up a “hot line” which proved somewhat hotter than expected.  Instead of hearing information on lobstering, callers were greeted with a woman’s voice saying,  “Hey there, hot stuff, I’ve been waiting for your call.  Are you ready for some tantalizing fun?”   The agency apparently got the number right but the area code wrong, so the calls were directed to an phone sex service.  Oops.

Lobstermen Get Wrong Number for a Hot Line

Visualizing Sea-Lanes

Posted on by April 24, 2010

From New Scientist:  As new ways of analysing the world around us are developed, new ways to visualise that information are needed.  At the recent Eurographics Symposium, held in Berlin, traffic in shipping traffic near Rotterdam was mapped on both calm and rough weather days.

On a rough day it is clear that the shipping lanes have broken down, and that shipping density doesn’t get so high. The slow-moving vessels produce darker, more defined trails.  Click the images below for larger images:

Shipping Lanes - Calm seas Shipping Lanes - Rough Weather

The new visualisation method was developed by Niels Willems at Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands, with colleagues Huub van de Wetering, and Jack van Wijk.

Photo for a Monday Morning – the bow of the NIRINT PRIDE

Posted on by April 24, 2010
NIRINT-PRIDE

Photo : Fred Vloo

Some Monday mornings feel like I was in a head on collision with a containership.  Here is a photo of the bow of the  Nirit Pride which did indeed collide earlier this month with the MSC vessel Nikita in shipping lanes near Rotterdam.

Fortunately no one was seriously injured and both ships returned to port safely with the assistance of salvage tugs.  Quick action by the salvors, Dutch Coast Guard and the Port Authority of Rotterdam prevented what could have have been a disaster as both ships were heavily damaged.

Rapid response averts Dutch disaster

Whale Watching Roundup – Whales, Sharks and Ships

Posted on by April 24, 2010

humpbacktailIn honor of our unexpected whale watching in New York harbor, we are taking a brief look at whale watching around the country this summer.  It has been an interesting summer indeed.   After staying off shore for several years, fin and humpback whales returned to waters off Montauk, at the eastern end of Long Island, to the delight of whale watchers.  On the West Coast, large krill patches close to shore off Southern California have attracted blue whales, which has pleased whale watchers while raising concerns that the whales are at risk of being hit by ships in the Santa Barbara ship channel.    Whales were no the only large marine life traveling close to shore this season – great white sharks closed several beaches to swimmers on Cape Cod.

Humpback, fin whales return to waters off Montauk
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