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If you’re unfamiliar with NYC, most of the photos in this series are from Roosevelt Island, likely off most visitors’ list of places to see. That’s too bad, since it offers a lot, including great views of Manhattan and the strait (East “river”) in between. If you’ve not seen the Nelly Bly memorial at the north end, you’re in for a treat.
Here are previous posts in this series. Let’s start with the NYS-built Ava Jude, a 600 hp boat not seen on this blog in a while.
It’s also been a while since Shannon Dann was last on the blog, but that’s because she has had her 2400 hp engines working elsewhere.
Ava Jude‘s 1200 hp fleet mate, William Brewster, has been working on the bulkhead project under the 79th Street bridge for some time.
This Brooklyn, a Vane boat now but formerly Labrador Sea , also brings 2400 hp to the task, and like Brewster, is Blount built.
I notice King’s Point‘s training vessel too late to get a side profile shot, but her “name” 142, is a number of great significance at the USMMA. If you click on no other link in this post, do click on that one.
Coastline’s Kodi is another New England (Gladding Hearn) built small tugboat, the perfect boat for certain jobs.
See more Gladding Hearn boats here, although that’s not a complete list, since I notice that Benjamin Elliot and others are missing in that link.
Michael L. Daigle has appeared on this blog only about once before. She’s a 4200 hp boat that once wore Kirby colors on the west coast as Mount Bona, named for a major North American peak in Alaska.
All photos and any errors, WVD.
April 1, 2011 … and this was not a joke. More on this distressed vessel at the end of this post.
McCormack Boys and
Turecamo Girls with Barney Turecamo. All three are still working in the same liveries, I believe.
Long Island-built Escort was phased out as a certain coal-fired power plant shut down. She’s taken on new life as Northstar Innovator, based on NJ’s
Maurice River, although I’ve yet to see her.
Stad Amsterdam is not currently in Amsterdam; she’s not far away though in Scheveningen. If you want to pronounce this shibboleth as a Dutch speaker would, have a listen.
Spring sunrises . . . Coming into port is the 2017-scrapped Atlantic Cartier
escorted by Ellen McAllister and
passing Bow Clipper and Maria J. That tug is now Nicholas Vinik. Bow Clipper is now in Santos Brasil.
The venerable Chemical Pioneer was ushered in by Ellen McAllister and McAllister Responder. I say “venerable” because she was built using the stern of Sea Witch, after a massive conflagration in the port, told here by the Fire Fighter site. .
Two small USMMA boats made their way through the fog. I’m not sure the name of the vessel to the left, but the one to the right was Growler and she’s back (though hidden away) in the sixth boro.
Of course, I post a photo of Kristin Poling, which had only a few months of service left at this point. She started service in 1934 as Poughkeepsie Socony.
Marion M . . . I’ve been told she was sold to parties in the Chesapeake who planned to restore her and put her up for sale in 2018. Does anyone have an update on that?
And finally, we return to Le Papillon . . . the 48′ steel schooner was dragged off the beach but I lost track of her after that. I believe she was cut up.
It all seems like stuff from long ago . . all photos, WVD.
Here we go again . . . the start of another month means we jump back to that month 10 years earlier. Crystal Cutler was quite new, here pushing Patricia E. Poling. Manhattan had a different skyline at that time.
I was heartbroken when I learned that USACE’s 1963 Hudson got reefed just over a year ago. With her lines, she’s now supposed to house marine life, 10 fathoms or more down, and not quite 3 miles off Fire Island. I doubt those fish and invertebrates appreciate those lines.
The 1980 OSG Independence has been a victim of 2020; the 131′ x 37′ 5600 hp tug was scrapped earlier this year.
A gallivant to Narragansett Bay revealed this vessel in the used vehicle trade, then running between Providence and Cape Verde, I believe. Danalith, a 1976 build, is said to be called Mouhssine, flying the flag of Tanzania.
Also in Narragansett Bay, over by the Jamestown bridge, was a Belford NJ boat, Coastline Kidd. I’ve not found any info about this boat.
Craig Eric Reinauer is now Albert, now squiring Margaret all over the Great Lakes.
Gramma Lee T Moran, whose namesake is the same as a Great Lakes ore boat, currently works in Baltimore harbor.
2010’s Yeoman Brook is today’s Caroline Oldendorff. These name changes confuse me. Caroline Oldendorff is currently in Amsterdam, having sailed in from Jintang, China.
This is not the best photo, but this was T/V Kings Pointer from 1992 until 2012. Here’s a link for more info on her life, but basically, from launch in 1983 until 1992, she was T-AGOS-2 aka USNS Contender. Currently she’s T/V General Rudder, named for General James E. Rudder. The USMMA has a new vessel designated as T/V Kings Pointer.
And finally, late December found me in the charming port of Charleston, where I caught pilot boat Fort Moultrie, waiting for a ship. Is Fort Moultrie still at work?
All photos, 10 years ago, WVD, who sometimes thinks it must be much longer ago than that.
[Specialized] vessels don’t push or tow or transport cargo per se. They are tools with a variety of applications, as diverse as the tools in a professional mechanic’s chest, in an entire full service garage, in fact.
Ocean Researcher has appeared here before, but not escorted by a tug, as James D. Moran is doing here. I’m not sure why it was escorted in the other day.
She came in after some time crisscrossing the all-but-trackless sea off Atlantic City.
Fugro Enterprise has appeared here before as well.
In this case, she was headed back out to sea,
Below is a sample of Fugro Enterprise’ track earlier this week.
And for comparison, Ocean Researcher left the indicated track SE of Atlantic city during the same time period.
Kings Pointer also has appeared here before . . . and she’s a tool with its own purpose . . training.
Before coming to the USMMA in 2014, this vessel was known as MV Liberty Star, and had a different use . .. locating and retrieving jettisoned Shuttle external fuel tanks.
Here–above and below– she transits Hell Gate, first westbound and then east.
All photos by Will Van Dorp, who never marked Highland Eagle–still in Lake Huron–as a specialized vessel. Another Great Lakes-dedicated research vessel, with a notable environmental name, was recently put up for sale, as here. I saw it in Sturgeon Bay over two years ago here.
Wednesday was such a spectacular day for parading into NYC’s Upper Bay that even the cormorant took notice.
USS New York had this Osprey on its deck, surrounded by a crew of sailors and marines.
Previous appearances of USS New York, in the harbor and on this blog, can be found here.
Also in the procession were USCGC Campbell,
ketch HMCS Oriole,
some YPs, and
numerous smaller craft like this one . . ..
All photos by Will Van Dorp, who encourages you to tour whichever boats capture your fancy.
Katherine Walker has appeared or been mentioned here before many times. And–last but certainly not least– my favorite photos of Kings Pointer can be found here . . . near the end of the post.
Who else greeted Wavertree on the rest of the way home? John J. Harvey is always in on celebrations.
Lettie G. Howard was there,
as was the helicopter. Feehan presented herself on the far side of Rae.
Pioneer accounted for
herself with crew in the crosstrees.
Pioneer and Lettie teamed up at times.
Wire showed up.
New York Harbor School had two boats there, including Privateer and their
newest vessel Virginia Maitland Sachs, about which I’ll post soon.
Melvillian throngs came down to the “extremest limit of land” on Pier 15 and 16, for one reason or another, but who were about to be treated to some excellent ship handling.
Rae took the lead, showing the need for tugboats of all sizes.
The larger tugs pushed and pulled as needed to ease into the slip
until all lines were fast and
and the shoreside work needed doing.
Bravo to all involved. If you want to take part in a toast to Wavertree, you can buy tickets here for the September 29 evening.
If you haven’t read the NYTimes article by James Barron yet, click here.
All photos by Will Van Dorp, who hopes I left no one out and who as before is grateful to the South Street Seaport Museum and the photographers’ boat provided by US Merchant Marine Academy and crewed by a set of dedicated cadets.
Often folks ask how one can learn about the harbor or is there a book about the sixth boro. Volunteering at South Street Seaport Museum is a great way available to all to get access to the water, to learn from like-minded folks, and to start on a journey of reading the harbor and its traffic for yourself. Each volunteer’s journey will be unique, and willing hands make institutions like this museum survive and thrive.
Almost exactly 16 months ago, Wavertree left Pier 16 for a lot of work at Caddell Dry Dock. Here was my set of photos from that day, and here, subsequent ones at several month intervals. Yesterday she made way, back to Pier 16.
Here’s looking back west. Compare the photo below with the third one here to see how much work has been accomplished on the Bayonne Bridge during the same 16 months.
Yesterday, Rae helped, as did
Dorothy J and Robert IV.
The combined age of Rae, Robert IV, and Dorothy J is 139 years, whereas the beautifully restored flagship they escorted in is 131 years old.
And as the tow approached the Statue, John J. Harvey joined in.
These photos all by Will Van Dorp, who is grateful to the South Street Seaport Museum and the photographers’ boat provided by US Merchant Marine Academy and crewed by a set of dedicated cadets.
For some interesting history on Wavertree and info on a fundraiser on board on September 29, 2016, click here. For the story of how Wavertree came from Argentina to New York, read Peter & Norma Stanford’s A Dream of Tall Ships, which I reviewed here some time ago.
More photos of the return tomorrow.
This 1962 WYTL has looked like this ever since I first saw her, which was likely 2005. She was built early in the string in WYTLs, earlier than the ones still used in the sixth boro and upriver by the USCG.
The photos above and below I took in 2010 in Mystic, and
this one below at the Great North River tugboat race, 2009. Move over, Growler, who’s reabsorbed into the James River fleet. And get ready to welcome . ..
. . . that same smile !@#!
Undaunted! Details later.
The last three photos come thanks to Jonathan Kabak of the USMMA Sailing Foundation.
Let’s go farther south–i.e., up the Elizabeth. Covered barge . . .
pushed by Gram-Me. Coal?
Capt. Woody and Alexis of w3marine have the best logo. See it better here. Fleetmate Ocean Endeavor was in yesterday’s post.
Lorette is one of two Norfolk tugs that used to be Moran boats.
As you can see by the livery, Ellie J is also a Norfolk tug, but although
similar, Stevens Towing’s Island Express is not.
Here’s a small portion of McAllister Virginia‘s fleet: Nancy and Eileen. The last time I saw Eileen she was returning a Staten Island ferry post rehab.
Vulcan construction has its logo on a number of tugs here, including Arapaho,
Aries,
Capt. Ron L, and
VMC Chattanooga.
Alexander Duff is a Vane tug.
Kodiak, here I think leaving the soybean depot– used to be Vane’s Capt. Russi.
Kodiak has been in the sixth boro on a few occasions. Here’s more of her current fleet: Maverick, ?Southern Star?, and Challenger.
Hoss, like the boats immediately above is also an Intracoastal Marine boat. Hoss is a close relative via Wiley Manufacturing of the sixth boro’s Patricia. Sun Merchant, which I saw here in Savannah, is a Vane boat.
Corman Marine’s Captain Mac is yet another tugboat in the Elizabeth owned by a construction company.
Camie and Cajun look alike but may be owned by Robbins Maritime and Bay Transportation, respectively.
Three Sisters seems to be owned by a family-oriented company called Smith Brothers.
Elizabeth Ann, operated by Atlantic Gulf Towing, used to be known as El Hippo Grande, a truly satisfactory name for a workboat.
And finally, we seem to have two Skanska-owned boats, Ranger and
Cap’n Ed.
All photos here by Will Van Dorp, who imagined there’d be only about 10 photos in this post about a short section of the waterway in the Norfolk/Portsmouth VA area. For the entirely delightful travel through the area, I am very grateful to the USMMA Sailing Foundation.
A request, though. Over by the Norfolk Dredging yard, I saw their small tug Palmyra through the trees and could not get a good shot. Has anyone taken one over the years? If so, could you share it on this blog? Send me an email, please.
Finally, some of you got an earlier version of this last night when I pushed the wrong button. Sorry about that. I could give other reasons for that error, but it was a slip and I had not intended you to think I had started using placeholder gibberish as captions.
Cheers.
This is day 8 of the GHP&W series, so let me break pattern a bit. If you missed the beginning, GHP&W is not a law firm; it’s abbrev for “gunk holes, harbors, ports, and wharves.” I haven’t dusted off any wharves yet, but two-thirds of the months still lie ahead.
The story here is that TS Kings Pointer was out serving as a training platform and not at Kings Point, although there was a potential meeting somewhere south along our track to Portsmouth, VA.
Mile 1, 0738 Wednesday, heading for the Throg’s Neck Bridge.
0756. Passing SUNY Maritime and TS Empire State. Click here for photos from her summer sea term 2015.
0804, Robert Burton, a Norfolk boat.
0907, Mary Gellatly with a sand scow at the southern tip of Governors Island.
1010, passing the northern tip of Sandy Hook but looking back at Naval Weapons Station Earle, with USNS Medgar Evers at the wharf.
1017, Romer Shoal Light and Coney Island.
1517, Capt. Willie Landers northbound off Beach Haven, I think.
1612, FV Jonathan Ryan and tug Pops in the distance.
1618, entering a grid marked “numerous scientific buoys.”
1657 off Atlantic City, with unidentified tug and barge
1740 and about to switch watch.
Thursday, 0852, looking north into the Chesapeake after going wide around Fisherman Island.
0910 . . . it’s the current TS Kings Pointer, ex-Liberty Star. . .
. . . heading along Virginia Beach
before turning northward toward Long Island Sound. Her former sister ship–Freedom Star–was in the area but we did not see her.
Meanwhile, we head north into the Thimble Shoal Channel Tunnel and into port, which you can follow tomorrow. And that tug and crane barge in the distance . . . survey work for new infrastructure or maintenance dredging?
All photos by Will Van Dorp, with thanks to the USMMA Sailing Foundation for inviting me to crew in winter relocation for Tortuga. It was a smooth trip.
tugster: a waterblog 
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