No, the crewman is not holding a meteor hammer readying for battle.  It’s a monkey’s fist, evidence that centuries’ old tools retain their usefulness.

How? you ask.  Let’s back up four minutes.  BW Hudson was making its final approach with Joan Turecamo and Laura K Moran assisting.   Note the crewman outlined up on the bridge of the tanker.

You and I can afford the distraction way up by Manhattan:  it’s Duncan Island bound for sea and Europe.  It left Ecuador just over a week ago and spent only about eight hours in Red Hook.

Laura K was hitting the brakes hard as they approached the dock.

That was when the crewman readied the fist to

fling it up to the rail so that

the heavier line could thread the eye and

be secured to Joan so that she too could put the brakes on.

Then slowly and precisely, the tanker was

pinned to the dock.    A lot more goes on in a docking, like dock line handling . . .  but I’ve already covered that here.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp.   If I read it right, BW Hudson arrived here directly from the Gulf, aka the Persian Gulf.  If you’re wondering why an Ecuadorian reefer vessel would be called “duncan island,” here’s an explanation for a place that’s also called Pinzón Island.

Last time I recall doing a docking post was here . . . pinning Eleonora.  And last time a monkey’s fist appeared was here . . . in Panama.

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