Bayonne Bridge Transformation 1

More of the Great Race soon . . . but a bit of back story.

When I moved to our fair metropolis in 2000 and started paying attention, I was taken by the Bayonne Bridge, so enamored in fact that I choose it as the header image for this blog in 2006, and now out of stubbornness– or something– have kept the old view.

I renewed my focus on the Bridge in 2011, “turning” became the key word in the titles.  Click here to see posts I did for its 80th, 84th, and 86th anniversary of initial construction, and here I marked the 80 mark again twice.   Over 10 years ago I alluded to the raising for the first time here.

Here’s a single post that looks at the change from 2011 until 2017.

For a baseline, let’s use sunrise April 24, 2008, looking from the west, those two boats are Justine McAllister and Huron Service, now Genesis Victory.

And from the east, December 2011, and that boat was Barents Sea, currently known as Atlantic Enterprise.   As to the bridge, note the box-grid work (not a technical term) on the Bayonne side of the arch.

From Richmond Terrace (Staten Island) perspective, here’s the bridge in February 2012.

By September 13, the box grid was covered, possibly to allow sand blasting.

By January 2014, the cover was off the box grid.  Yes, that’s Specialist.

By October 2015, the box grid was being extended upward, as

the vertical supports were being erected farther into Bayonne.

Here’s a December 15 view, showing the symmetry of the construction.

Here’s March 2016, and you can begin to see the location of the raised roadbed.

Here’s a view from May 2016 from the west side of the Bayonne shore.

By August 2016, the new span has been completely defined.

Here’s a closer up, showing the old level–still poet traffic–and the new level, along with the device used to place pre-cast portions of the new road bed.   The tug is Taft Beach.

Here, as seen from the west side, is most of the bridge in September 2016.  Note the gap still remaining on the Staten Island side.

By March 23,  2017, the upper deck was open to wheeled traffic, and the lower deck was ready to be dismantled.

Here’s a closer-up of that opening.

By April 2, a gap existed, and

by April 11, 2017, ships that might have scrapped  year before were shooting through the opening that grew wider by the week.

All photos by Will Van Dorp, who will continue this progression soon.

Circa 3650 Days Ago

I’m working on some tougher posts, but here’s an easy one.  Let’s flip the calendar back approximately 10 years, give or take a month.  Then it was Barents Sea, not Atlantic Enterprise.  Rowan M. McAllister is still around, although in Charleston SC.  And the container ship under the “un-raised” Bayonne Bridge is Zim Qingdao, currently eastbound across the Atlantic.  The other McAllister tug I don’t know.

Melvin E. Lemmerhirt, now Evelyn Cutler, eastbound toward the Brooklyn Bridge  . . . well, all’s quite changed about all this.

Maryland –I’ve yet to see her as  Liz Vinik–was bunkering the brand new Queen Victoria.

Peking was then–as now–out of the water, although currently her dry dock is in Germany.

Penn No. 4 still goes by the same name, but it’s now a Kirby boat.

George Burrows was never a regular here, and I’ve no idea of her current disposition.

All photos by Will Van Dorp, who hopes you enjoyed this backward glance.

 

Really Random Tugs 33 and More

I’m trying to catch up with the photos you all have been good enough to share on tugster.  The first five here come from some salts up on the Caloosahatchee Canal in Florida.  John Parrish was westbound here, but a week later it showed up in the sixth boro, and by publication of this post, it’s already back to Norfolk.   That’s some sea miles.  Here are some of my previous photos of John Parrish.

Also, westbound in that Canal, it’s Brittany Beyel.  She’s Beyel Brothers equipment, who have a dramatic photo on that link.

This one’s eastbound on the Canal with a crane.  I can’t quite make out the name, but the the steersman has great visibility.

Boomalong was getting hauled out.  Her fine lines made me think she has a storied past, and it turns out she does.  She began life in 1944 in Owen Sound, ON as HMCS Neville, HMCS being Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship.   She’s a Russel Brothers boat that has been around, currently quite far from

Sault Ste. Marie.

Thanks to Jed, who previously contributed many photos, here’s a photo and text:  “it’s Stephanie S (1986) returning to Port Canaveral after escorting the bulk carrier VENTURE out of the port.”

photo date 11 MARCH 2016

From Birk Thomas, it’s Barents Sea, now over in Port Newark, having moved for the first time in at least five years.  She looks rough, but I’m hoping there’s a make-over in the works for her.   If she moves again, I’d love to see some photos.

 

Here’s my photo of W. O. Decker, docked at Caddell Dry Dock, being worked on  . . . or waiting for Wavertree to make her promenade back to South Street.

From Jason LaDue, here’s a good view of the underbelly of Grouper, frequently referred to in this blog.  Such belly will be visible until the pool level of the Erie Canal is brought back up for the start of the season.  Jason’s also a frequent contributor.

Now here’s an oldie but goodie from the other JED.  It shows Labrador Sea and Taurus, significant because now that Taurus is being phased out, Labrador Sea–which had worked on the Mississippi and Gulf for the past few years, has moved back up here into Taurus‘ place, I’m told.   And they’re in K-Sea colors.

And I said “and more” in the title?  Here’s the more, a new dock book from Tony Acabono.  If it’s your business to know where berth 60 is in Port Elizabeth in relation to berth 61 in Port Newark, you might want to check it out.

Many thanks to the secrets salts and the not-so-secret ones for sending along these photos.

 

Seven Seas 5

Here was 4.  Of course, many more than seven Seas exist and work east, south, and west of the United States.

Let’s start with Irish Sea, which was called something before that . . . .

taken September 2009, with Iona McAllister in Brooklyn Navy Yard

 

taken February 2016

Siberian Sea, before it was called that.

taken in 2007

 

taken in 2009

 

taken in 2013

 

taken in 2015

Barents Sea . . . .  anyone have news on her?  She too had names before it became Barents, although I suspect Barents Sea will be her last name ever.

taken in 2015

Mediterranean Sea, which  originally painted green.

taken in 2015

McKinley Sea, and I hope you get the point that all these boats had previous names.

taken in February 2016

Ross Sea, which actually shows its Thoma-Sea heritage. If you don’t know what I mean, look at the string of vessels built by Thoma-Sea just after Ross Sea was launched in February 2003. Thoma-Sea here actually makes eight seas.

taken in 2015

 

All photos by Will Van Dorp.

Checking Back 2015 b

Picking up this retrospective post with the beginning of May 2015, it’s a nearly 40-year-old and tired Barents Sea, waiting then as now for what’ll likely be a “fish habitat” future.

The end of May saw Quantico Creek move Mary Whalen to its public space over in Atlantic Basin.  Was there a docking pilot calling it out from the drone?

Here’s first glimpse of an early June trip I’ve never reported on via this blog.  More on this vessel will appear soon–currently working in the Dominican Republic.  The red vessel in the distance is F. C. G. Smith, a Canadian Coast Guard survey boat.

Eastern Dawn pushes Port Chester toward the Kills.

July opens with the ghost of Lafayette arriving back in the harbor aboard L’Hermione. Click here for the set of posts I did about this person. 

I’m omitting a lot from my account here;

The end of July brought me back to the south bank of the KVK watching Joyce D. Brown go by.   July was a truly trying month . .  is all I’ll say for now.

In early August Wavertree awaited the next step into its rehab, and I

made a gallivanting stop in New Bedford, a place I’d not visited in too long.

 

All photos by will Van Dorp.

Waiting 2

Here was the first in the series.  That one ended on a “back-to-work” note.

This one . . . probably will not have a happy ending, unless of course you’re a fish looking for structure or a diver wanting to explore.  Here’s a view of the vessel pre-sixth boro days. And here’s the last time I saw her run.   Call Barents Sea high . . . and potentially wetter and wetter.

Have a look while you can.

When she gets reefed, I’d love photos.

Thanks to Birk, here’s her history.

Click here for a guide to fishing and diving on New Jersey reefs.

All photos by Will Van Dorp.

Back in the Sixth Boro 2

Here was the first post by this title.  I’ve been back for a few days, but it’s been hard to transition from my jaunt in Utah areas of wilderness back to the densely settled areas in and around the sixth boro of NYC.  I didn’t take the foto below of Binghamton, but her time is clearly running out.  If you notice human/mechanical demolition (as opposed to destruction by natural erosion . . . as in the desert) happening, please get in touch or  send me fotos? This was taken Friday during the rain by Allan and Sally, whose sweet vessel you’ll see later.   I did three posts early October 2011 about Binghamton, then ravaged by Hurricane Irene.

I caught this foto of Miller Boys yesterday when it seemed the winds were blowing more rain in.

Ellen McAllister was moving this “unmarked” McAllister tug (anyone recognize it?) around the yard. Info follows, thanks to Birk Thomas.  That’s Cashman’s Lynx in the background.

Also in Mariner’s Harbor, it’s Mark McAllister, not typically a sixth boro boat.

And slightly west, lined up from left to right are Barents Sea, Yankee, NaHoku, and Taurus.

Potomac stands off with Lower Manhattan in the background after an assist.

Over in North Cove, expedition yacht Copasetic costs more than twice any of the tugs appearing in this post; that bow is inspired by much larger ships.

And finally, my host vessel for a jaunt and great conversation . . .   the Lord Nelson Victory tug Sally W, operated by

Allan and Sally, who’ve kept this blog during their recent jaunt up to Ottawa.  By the way, has anyone seen Chase, the long distance padleboarder?

Binghamton fotos by Sally.  All others by Will Van Dorp.

In case you were not able (like me) to identify the tug alongside Ellen McAllister, it’s none other than Winslow C. Kelsey.

KVK Surprises

Although I noticed  no harbingers of snowy December when I stopped briefly at the KVK this morning, my eyes were drawn beyond the barge and tug in the foreground.  My attention went right past what I believe is Greenland Sea  to the vessel in midstream.  Could

it possibly be . . . Barents Sea?    It’s been ages since I saw it move, and judging by

the carbon coming from the stacks, it may very well have been ages since it last ran?  And what might be in the works?

As I followed Barents back toward Mariners Harbor, I noticed another surprise . . . movement up on my favorite bridge.

Routine inspection?  Preliminaries to modification?

Who knows answers to any of these . . . I don’t.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp.   Click here for a foto of Barents Sea and Atlantic Salvor in earlier lifetimes.  Atlantic Salvor appears to be keeping Ken Boothe company.