Part of today’s post follows on yesterday’s, the arrival of NYK Blue Jay. Although she is no larger than the other ULCVs now serving the sixth boro, the fog obscuring the Staten Island in the background creates an illusion of size. Miniature tugs follow this vessel appearing the largest thing ever to enter the harbor. If the 1920s launched an era of skyscrapers on boro of Manhattan, then the past year and a half that has ushered in the ULCVs is truly an era of coast scrapers, certainly hoping not bottom scrapers. Out at the entrance to the Ambrose, pilots climbing from the pilot boat must feel they’re beside a rolling, pitching, yawing skyscraper.
If painted orange, Robbins would look like a traffic cone.
Note the three tugs totaling combined 18000 hp lined up alongside, and
fog downsizes the heights of the skyscrapers.
Let’s switch gears and embrace the merger of tanker names and popular culture, specifically the villainous organization at the heart of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Since my son has caught me up on Hydra, this seems one of the strangest vessel names I’ve seen… If you know the reference, it rivals King Barley and Turmoil.
Siirt I’ve seen before.
Undine heads in with Brazilian oil, I believe. Un-dine . . . has intriguing semantic possibilities, or well, it’s just the name of a type of water fairy. Since I mentioned popular culture earlier here, Undine would fit right into the Australian show Tidelanders.
All photos by Will Van Dorp, who hopes you understand the educational and therapeutic benefits he gains from haunting the port.
6 comments
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January 7, 2019 at 12:06 pm
Anonymous
Hydra is just a nice Greek island …
January 7, 2019 at 12:12 pm
Christian Herrou
Hello – Hydra seems to be the strangest ship names for you ??? Hydra means water in Greek (ancien) and there is so many ships around the world with this name – just make a search on shipspotting with this name you will be surprised
January 7, 2019 at 2:12 pm
tugster
Hi Christian– Good example of how popular media can “spin” an otherwise logical name. Thx for the comment.
January 7, 2019 at 3:54 pm
ws
*NYK Blue Jay, 50.6 Meters wide, calling on GCT Bayonne..
After spending $1.7 to raise the Bayonne bridge, The big dogs are @ GCT, Bayonne….
Thanks a lot Shamu,, El Hefe!
January 7, 2019 at 4:42 pm
Robin Denny. Windsor, UK.
In 1952 the British tug “Turmoil” attempted to save SS Flying Enterprise, bound for the 6th.Boro’, after she was hit by a storm and cargo shift. Captain Henrik Carlsen refused to leave his ship after all the crew and passengers had been taken off despite a 60deg. list. Mate Ken Dancy of the Turmoil transferred somehow to the Flying Enterprise to help Carlsen but eventually the Enterprise foundered.
Both Carlsen and Dancy were recognised for their courage.
Later questions were raised about some of the ship’s cargo, declared as Pig Iron but rumoured to have been Iridium.
January 7, 2019 at 4:52 pm
Robin Denny. Windsor, UK.
P.S. In Greek mythology the Hydra was a nine-headed monster, killed by Hercules, son of the god Zeus, as one of his Twelve Labours. As he cut off each of the nine heads, two more grew in it’s place. Hercules used fire to prevent this re-growth.