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I thought all the vessels had left under cover of night. Unceremoniously. It turned out that the Japanese and Colombians had, but lots remained. So the best place to go was near the exit . . . everyone would depart through the Narrows. The forecast was 50 percent chance of rain all day, but I’d shoot from under an umbrella if necessary. At 10, tugs were ready for USS Gonzalez to cast off. Doubleclick enlarges fotos.
10:14 . . . she was under weigh.
10:23 . . . Responder returns for the next departee and Miller Girls (?) shuttles yokohamas back to Miller’s home base.
USS Mitscher at 10:33,
10:36, and
10:38, posing for Black Hawk photogs with a better perch than mine.
10:55 . . . Cuauhtemoc is next.
11:15 . . . USS Donald Cook moves away.
11:25 . . . San Jac next?
Nope. 11:34 . . . Argus heads for the Narrows
leaving Brooklyn’s “gold coast” (as on lots of these fotos) to port.
USS San Jac proceeds at 11:53 with escorts and fans aplenty.
11:56 . . . it’s “local-build” USCGC Seneca.
12:26 . . . Elcano departs under 11 sails . . . and screw turned by “ motor diesel sobrealimentado de 2.000 caballos de potencia.”
Scotty Sky passes. . . WW2 vet and still at work, as is
Julia Miller.
12:50 . . . and I’d thought all vessels had exited, but here comes USS . . .
Roosevelt,
followed by LHD-1 USS Wasp with all her
like this Sea Stallion.
It’s 13:38: Wasp has left the Narrows and Scotty Sky is topping off the tanks of Dewaruci.
Tankers wait in the anchorage, and
. . .oh wait . . . for today, the end of the parade is provided by Guayas.
Some of these vessels will reconvenrge in Norfolk. By 1400 yesterday, I know the French schooners, the Brazilians,
and the Indonesians were still in the sixth boro.
All fotos by Will Van Dorp, who is looking to score two XL OpSail shirts. Barters . .. anyone?
If you live near NYC , a great way to mark Memorial Day aka Decoration Day, visit any of the open piers. Check out the “early history” in this wikipedia link. I seized the morning out here, on DDG 57 USS Mitscher.
Here’s the view forward from the starboard bridge wing,
to port were CG-56 USS San Jacinto and DDG-56 USS Donald Cook.
and starboard aft toward DDG-66 USS Gonzalez. On the tour I saw a wide range of specialists.
I had been assigned to Dewaruci, and went incognito, wanting to check some rumors . . . like . . as the US Navy has SEALS, but the Indonesians have
walruses!! And it turns out they do! Although, seriously, masks of different sorts are worn in traditional dances–reorgs–and the walrus represents strength.
Although Dewaruci was built at Stulken Sohn in Hamburg, begun in 1932 (pre-WW2 and therefore commssioned by the Dutch??) , it was completed in 1953, year four of Indonesian independence from the Dutch. The design, then, dates from a time that commercial sail still existed. But the detail on this vessel, currently on its last voyage, is phenomenal. I haven’t seen so much wood carving on a vessel since I visited the schooner Anne.
Here’s the namesake hero aft
and forward. The rest of the weekend I will be figurehead comparing, but this is hard to top.
Three main islands of Indonesia west to east are Sumatra, Java, and Irian Jaya; so the three masts–fore to mizzen–of the vessel are decorated in those styles. Here’s Sumatran.
and Javanese
with Garuda and
Irian Jayan, actually the western end of the island of New Guinea.
Here’s the wheel and
and the engine order telegraph.
A poster onboard shows the itinerary for this last voyage. A replacement vessel is on order; I’m curious whether it will
carry the same figurehead and wood carving.
An intriguing poster on deck also shows all the commanding officers from 1953 to present, from Majoor A. F. H. Rosenow to Haris Bima B. Letkol Laut.
Meanwhile, I have confirmed that the Indonsian Navy has walruses, which I was unable to interview, and
flies the jolly roger.
Tomorrow I head over to Brooklyn.
All fotos and story by Will Van Dorp.
Chain link fence topped by accordion razor wire coils stand exposed only after a solid steel door is raised and an even heavier drawbridge lowered . . . what is this?
And what lurks toothily below in the moat that’s most certainly there?
Salish Sea water, of course. Many thanks to John Van Staalduinen who snapped these fotos at the port in Tacoma. Both vessels were launched in Bath, ME in 1976.
Unrelated . . . Grande Marocco left not quite a week ago for . . . Dakar. With all those cars up on the top splash deck (monkey deck??), I’m left wondering . . among other things . .
about a North American portion to a Dakar Rally. I know some people who would welcome the addition of a North American component to that race.
I’m wondering what Grimaldi ships to places like Cotonou and Banjul in West Africa.
Graphics on ships . . . if Charles Fazzino has been designated official artist of OpSail NY 2012, I wonder if we can expect designs like these on tall ships in less than a month . .. How did he get chosen? By whom? To what end? Who else was considered?
And one more from the north coast by Michigan Exposures . . . who might be planning a foray into the sixth boro . . . it’s Arthur M. Anderson. If Titanic had its Carpathia, then Edmund Fitzgerald had its Arthur . . . unfortunately too late. I love the mild-dazzle paint on these vessels. Arthur is a product of the American Ship Building Company yard in Lorain, OH . . . another manufacturing center transformed into . . housing. If you don’t know the Lightfoot Fitzgerald song, here’s the link. Otherwise, check out this supremely moody foto of a laker.
Thanks to John, John, and Ken for these fotos. There are even two here by me.
Like me, you probably feel you’re drowning in reminders these days of a certain large vessel that sank exactly a century ago at 41°27’34″N 50°8’22″W. Am I the only one who has never seen the 1997 James Cameron movie? Should I see it? Otherwise, I like Cameron’s work and exploits. The April 16, 2012 issue of The New Yorker has this especially good piece by Daniel Mendelsohn. Click on the foto below to sample the article.
The New Yorker magazine credits the foto below (and above) to “National Museums Northern Ireland/Ulster Folk & Transportation Museum,” but not to its photographer. Hmm.
Mendelsohn’s piece ends with a reference to Morgan Robertson’s 1898 novella . . . Futility, or the Wreck of the Titan. That’s uncanny stuff. 1898.
I’m hoping you’re intrigued by the title of this post. If you haven’t seen the video below (click on the image below to play it), you’ll learn how Titanic, Thresher, and Scorpion are connected through Robert Ballard. Sections of the first 10 minutes of the video are “gushy,” but you’ll be glad you stayed with it. An important strand in the second half of the video is Ballard v. RMS Titanic . . . a salvage company. William J. Broad, science writer, picks up on that dispute in a NYTimes article here, embedded online in this cover. Writer me in on the side of Robert Ballard and James P. Delgado.
In searching for ephemera you might not know about this story, I came across Knorr, the Woods Hole vessel Ballard used for his 1985 search for the three vessels in the title. Here’s another link for Knorr. A search turns her up less than a hundred miles SE of Montauk, obviously surveying, below.
An automobile in the ill-fated hold . . . might once have looked like this. A search on e-ships turned up no vessel called Titanic at work today, but then there is this . . . a yacht named Titanic! Click here for the wikipedia entry for the 1971 launched Titanic.
Yesterday’s NYTimes ran this Q & A on various historical connections between Titanic and New York. A future connection lies with a vessel called Balmoral, over the wreck tonight and due in the sixth boro later next week . .. maybe Thursday.
Two vessels forever connected to the tragedy are the one that responded poorly and the one that saved lives. Within a decade, both were also on the seabed, victims of U-boat attacks.
For a comparison of Titanic with her two sisters, check out the inimitable bowsprite’s post here . . . And for a sense of the “titanics in unlikely places,” check Rick’s Old Salt blog.
Postscript: Thresher, like Squalus, left from here.
When I saw this unit arrive, I thought maybe I’d see one of the larger tugs painted in Kirby colors, like
Davis Sea pushing the barge and unlike Solomon Sea that still
bears K-Sea colors.
The Patriot has become DBL 83, pushed by Weddell Sea.
But I was wrong: Tasman Sea looks as it has since it ceased being Ambassador.
Solomon Sea has worn this livery since
2007.
Unrelated and thanks to John Skelson . . . Blue Angels were over the boros yesterday
prepping for Fleet Week . . coming up soon.
Thanks, John.
Finally . . . I’ve failed to publicly praise tugboathunter for his site about Detroit River traffic. Check it out here.
There are ports and bottlenecks, and the sixth boro is surely a port, not that within it bottlenecks do not exist. Yesterday afternoon I caught Charles Island headed for sea, and ultimately Ecuador . . . so it’ll pass through that bottleneck called Panama, which has so frequently preoccupied me these days.
Zim Luanda also departed yesterday, bound for Savannah.
Meanwhile, an equal number of vessels enter port, the sixth boro, our enormous honey pot. Like this one, huge but fairly empty. This foto of CSAV Rio de Janiero –and the two after that–come compliments of John Watson. CSAV Rio de Janiero leaves here (probably tomorrow) for the Mediterranean.
Also, new in town and caught by John’s eye, it’s USNS Grasp T-ARS-51. Possibly in town for maintenance? And while I’m on the subject of sharp eyes and unusual craft, check out Mage’s report from San Diego, featuring USS Peleliu LHA-5, Navy dolphins, and an unusual vessel that defies my ability to identify it. Any help? Ooops . . . here’s Mage’s link.
And finally, arriving this morning, Polish-built Ice Pearl, vintage 1980.
To a casual observer of the harbor, a lot of vessels come in, park, and then leave. They all do, but some areas of the sixth boro ARE designated anchorages. This explains vessels like Pacific Quartz (recently arrived here from the Arabian Sea) and Avonden. Tug Mary Gellatly (1978, ex-Capt. Jentry, North Star, North Service) leaves her dock and heads north.
Thanks to John Watson for the three fotos in the middle; all others by Will Van Dorp, who’s happy to find others too could while the time away doing the Otis Redding thing on a bay, any bay any day. Just think, what if Otis had started waterfotoblogging!!!
First, you will notice a new icon “button” on the left. It’s a harborcam for Giglio port with live feed showing salvage efforts.
The last time subs appeared on this blog they were antiques, John P. Holland’s prototypes. The monochromatic tube below encircled by the unmistakeable yellow/orange Edison Chouest tugs 2, 3, and 4 is as far removed from Holland’s vessel as can be. The “tube” is SSBN 734 USS Tennessee, returning from sea. I can imagine the crew will be very happy to exit vessel and get reaquainted with the rythyms of day and night. By the way, the Edison Chouest tugs here technically double as pilot boats.
Surfaced SSBNs returning from or bound to sea all tend to look alike.
These fotos were taken in the vicinity of Kings Bay, GA along the St. Mary’s River. They come compliments of
Capt. John E. Dupee, a Kings Bay pilot, the tallest person on the “sail” below, and frequent commenter on this blog. Last summer in northern Florida I had the pleasure of meeting John aka JED, who used to work for K-Sea outa New York.
Many thanks, JED.
Click here to see fotos from the weekend in 2008 that the sixth boro had TWO subs visit.
Any guesses about the location on the far shore with the spiky masts?
The water is Hampton Roads, where ironclads first clashed. Monitor was built in Brooklyn, and I’ve never known where the Merrimack, sailing as CSS Virginia originated.
Here’s a closer-up view of the fleet in Norfolk, with Miss Katheryne (?) closer inshore.
Since I’m putting this post up quickly, I haven’t discovered much about the huge coal docks in Dunbar neighborhood (?) of Newport News.
From near to far: USNS T-AKR 310 Watson, T-AKR-304 Pililaau, T-AK 3006 Eugene Obregon, and T-AKR 311 Sisler. Sisler, as recorded here on this blog, arrived in the sixth boro a bit over a year ago for maintenance at GMD Bayonne.
Coming into the quite breezy Roads is MSC Florentino.
Here’s another shot of Florentina as she passes an unidentified dragger.
Another unidentified bulker in the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. Star Breeze?
Actually, I’m back in the sixth boro, as of an hour ago. . . but it’ll be a spell before my head is unpacked.
Quick question: I like the term “Hampton Roads” to described that water bordered by cities that include Norfolk, Hampton, Newport News, etc. It reminds me of the term I take credit for, “the sixth boro.” How did “Hampton Roads” originate? Why isn’t it “Norfolk Roads” or “X roads” with another locality lending its name? Why did “Staten Island Roads” or some such never take root here? Just wondering.
So many places and vessels, so little time. Wilmington, NC . . . you’ve taken a piece of me, and I’ll be back for it. Margaret McAllister sees Louise Knutsen toward the Cape Fear mouth. See Louise in the sixth boro here a year ago.
Capt . George here at the dredgers’ pier.
Two Southern Dredging vessels assist two barges to the work site as hunters return to the boat ramp.
Left to right: Cape Henry, Fort Macon, and Turecamo Boys.
Excursion yacht Mary Elizabeth seems to have a vintage that’s covered over for business. Anyone know when she was launched?
This plant, which I’ll call just Venus or Dionaea muscipula, is native to areas within a 60-mile radius of Wilmington!! Who knew! The city has devoted public art to this carivore.
And the final fotos here I dedicate to bowsprite, who bedazzles with her art. BB-55
is the epitome of bedazzling armor. But if
ever she needed to float out of her cove, she’d need all dredgers and then all tugs available along the Cape Fear and from all ports within a few hundred miles.
Cheers from the road. All fotos by Will Van Dorp.
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First, fotos I didn’t take include ones of a half dozen sailors riding the Staten Island ferry this past Sunday. These days that’s not a common sight. Should I have said . . . Can I take your picture? I usually don’t take close-ups of people, at least not strangers. Of course, if USS Iowa had been homeported here, seeing sailors on the ferry would have been routine. Bitterness persists in some circles about the Navy pulling out of Homeport Staten Island. Here’s what’s happening on that space . . . although as of Sunday, the federal buildings are still standing.
Now a foto I did take. Can you see the rest from this?
FFG-28 USS Boone was in town this past weekend after its last deployment before decommissioning, scheduled for February 2012. Anyone fill me in on what chain of events that sets into motion? Do all personnel get reassignment? Will it be mothballed? Is sale to another country a possibility?
Since this is a “thin-ice” post . . . I’m parading my unfamiliarity, here’s a vessel I saw over in Newark Bay Sunday. Pilot boat?
All fotos by Will Van Dorp.
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