Retro Sixth Boro 44 A

Ten years ago, the lower Manhattan skyline looked quite different.  A vessel bringing orange juice from the southern hemisphere was also a smaller one;  the 1985 Orange Blossom last sailed into Alang six and a half years ago, and if you don’t know what that means, click on the Alang link.  As it turns out, I may have caught photos of her last voyage inbound  Port Newark here.     Orange Blossom 2 completes her most recent voyage today, arriving in Santos BR–read this link for some superlatives–after departing the sixth boro on November 13. 

I’d thought 1976 Barents Sea was a goner, a reef candidate, when I caught this photo of her running after a long hiatus, but she was thoroughly rehabbed and lives on as Atlantic Enterprise.

The 1970 Evening Tide below was nearly 40 years into her career with Bouchard;  she’s now a Stasinos boat but her superstructure still painted in this brilliant red.

Laura K Moran–launched 2008– was among the top horsepower assist tugs in the harbor then.  She currently works in Savannah.

The 1981 McKinley Sea is currently laid up, carrying Kirby livery.

Ice Base and I had a misunderstanding;  upon first seeing her and lacking at that time a smart phone with AIS, I read her name as something different that I can no longer un-see. She’s currently in the port of Quintero CL, 50 miles north of Valparaiso, with the less ambiguous name of Cabo San Vicente.

Back in those days I often took advantage of the walkway along the west side of the Bayonne Bridge, something I’ve not done with the new walkway.  Note the absolutely ship-shape Gramma Lee T Moran as seen from above assisting 

NYK Romulus with Margaret Moran standing by.   Margaret is still in our fair boro, Gramma Lee is in Baltimore, and NYK Romulus is currently in Southampton UK.

The 1973 Amy Moran has been sold out of the fleet, and was last in the Jacksonville FL area wearing Stasinos tan and green as John Joseph.

And tomorrow I’ll post a part B of December 2011 retrospective, building on the odd orange vessel shown below.

All photos from December 2011, WVD, who’s astonished by the amount of change in a decade.