An unlikely duo, and now separated . . .
Feng Huang Ao had no intention of being here . . . .
but it experienced an engine room fire over a month ago and was towed here for repairs. Don’t those look like scorch marks?
LSD-51 aka Oak Hill has since left for missions unadvertised.
Ypapanti is a fairly new crude tanker . . . .
Read this in case you wondered about the name . . . “presentation of Christ.” This angle here reminds me of the sentry boxes in San Juan.
Here’s a satellite grab of vessels waiting to be scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey. See the three self-unloaders?
Ocean Delta is soon to arrive in Aliaga with a soon-to-be scrapped laker . . .
in tow, Manitoba, launched in 1966 in Collingwood ON, seen here a year ago at the Molson plant in Montreal. We in the US associate Molson with beer, but John Molson was the Robert Fulton of Canada.
I wonder if Ocean Delta herself will return . . . from Turkey, given that she flies the Jamaican flag.
At this same moment, Stephen B. Roman is heading under her own power to the breaking yards,
in Spain. Later today she’ll be passing Gaspe. What must this last ride be like?
A year ago I got this photo of the 1965-launch entering Oswego NY to discharge cement.
I always loved that logo!! Here are previous Roman posts.
All photos by Will Van Dorp.
8 comments
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November 17, 2018 at 1:15 pm
Lee Rust
The Stephen B. Roman was one of the last traditional-style cargo ships to ply a regional route on Lake Ontario. For decades she was a regular visitor to the Port of Rochester NY and I watched her pass by many times. Sadly, it seems that the only transoceanic passage she will ever take is to be her final voyage to the Spanish breaking yard.
The Genesee River is silted up these days and no money is being allocated for dredging, so the Roman is too deep for reliable service. The incoming cement cargoes from Canada are now being delivered by a shallow-draft tug & barge combo instead.
November 17, 2018 at 2:42 pm
tugster
Lee– Which tug/barge deliver the cement these days?
November 18, 2018 at 11:56 am
tugboathunter
The Roman’s longtime fleetmate Metis has delivered to Rochester for years when it becomes too shallow, and continues to do so. However its replacement ship McKeil Spirit is also shallower draft and will go into Rochester when it can.
November 17, 2018 at 3:56 pm
George Schneider
The square drilling rig in your photo grab of Aliaga is one of three very unusual semisubmersibles built in France around 2000. All three (SEDCO ENERGY, SEDCO EXPRESS, and CAJUN EXPRESS) are due for premature scrapping due to the flood of new construction rigs on the market, and the downturn in deepwater oil drilling. They were the only modern rigs that had the derrick stretching along the stern of the rig instead of being in the center.
November 17, 2018 at 4:12 pm
ws
The Three Self Unloaders will no longer deliver Taconite,, Coal, and Lime
to the steel mill..
Alas, The Three Self Unloaders will be recycled into new steel..
November 17, 2018 at 9:19 pm
George and Kathy Smith
Hi Will,
I’m a new Seattle subscriber to your blog and wanted to express my appreciation for your work. I love your blog. I’m a tug fan as my Dad served on ATR 73 in WW11 in the Pacific. Here is a link to her specifics: http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/40/40073.htm
She was built just North of Seattle out of, now precious, old growth fir and had a steam engine. I could never figure out why she was powered with steam, but recently learned it was because it was faster to train crew on steam than diesel. The other oddity is the design doesn’t look local or even like U.S. ships that’s because the Navy obtained the design from the British. It was designed for the North Sea.
We have some interesting tug companies in Seattle. The oldest I believe is Foss which is now owned by Crowley. We also several small local outfits, one of which Western Tug, builds all their own boats.
Thanks again for your wonderful blog.
Best,
George Smith
November 18, 2018 at 12:49 am
tugster
George and Kathy– Welcome then and thx much for reading the blog. I spent some time in Seattle back in . . . 2010. Wow! Could it have been that long ago already. Check out my posts from then here: https://tugster.wordpress.com/?s=salish
Interesting info about the origin of the design of the ATRs . . . I looked at the navsource info on ATR 73…. it appears she didn’t stay around very long anywhere. She doesn’t show up at all in this listing of the Meseck boats: http://www.tugboatinformation.com/company.cfm?id=282 In the Witte yard, one of the more intact boats to this day. You may have seen it in one of these posts: https://tugster.wordpress.com/2011/08/18/ghost-puzzles-2/ Would you have photos of ATR 73 from your father you’d be willing to share on the blog?
November 18, 2018 at 1:21 pm
Lee Rust
The tug & barge that I observed offloading cement was Evans McKeil.