Any Number of Tugboats

All the photos in this post I took over a two-hour period Friday.  I post this in part in response to the question raised by a commenter recently, how many tugboats operate in the sixth boro, aka the waters around NYC.

They pass one at a time,

you see them in twos . . . . and that might be a third with the crane barge off the Battery in the distance,

a trio might be assisting a single ULCV,

foreshortening might collapse four into a single shot, and

if you look across the repair and docking yard, you might see five tugs plus one science boat.

And finally for now, move the huge box ship away, and six of more are revealed.

This is the sixth boro, folks, one of the busiest ports in the US.

All photos by Will Van Dorp.

 

 

Thanks to Donald Edwards 2

Here was the first of Don’s great photos, from about a year ago.  And technically, it follows from this set of pizza seawall delivery photos I caught almost a decade ago.

Your own galley turns out some delicious fare, but sometimes you feel a craving for take out, for pizza that comes in a box, which is not so easy when you’re away from shore, but then, delivery . . .

for all!  And even an average pizza is

delectable!  And the photos, they give an exquisite hint of sixth boro culture.   Sometimes bumboats –like this one once did on the Great Lakes–do this, and more regularly crew boats do. No matter how an unexpected pizza gets delivered, the very unexpectedness of it makes it even tastier.

 

Thanks much to Don for use of these photos, especially for you who didn’t see them on FB.

 

Random Tugs 181

A random gallivant around the sixth boro the other day showed these boats, starting with Iron Mike (1977) under the Williamsburg Bridge.

a trio of Navigator (1981), Susan Miller (1981) , and Quantico Creek (2010) over by Con Hook,

Robert IV (1975) a little farther north and east,

Scott Turecamo (1998) headed for the Kills,

HMS Liberty (1978) in the anchorage,

Amberjack (1981) facing Yonkers,

Barry Silverton (2015) swinging toward the Palisades, and

Rhea I. Bouchard (1982) making way for a point up north.

All photos by Will Van Dorp.

 

Random Tugs 161

I’ve done posts about the East River, like these, and I’ve done a post at least about canyons, but it’s never struck me as vividly as right now how much this part of the East River is like a canyon.  These too are images of the varied sixth boro.

HMS Liberty pushes east past the cliffs before entering the terrifyingly-named Hell Gate.  Click here for the youtube video that periodically surfaces about a barge grounding in Hell Gate and then skillfully extricated.  Here and here are some discussions of that name . . . originally “beautiful opening.”

Sea Lion pushes a recycling barge up toward the Bronx River, I think, with

Dorothy J alongside, until

she makes the turn in the direction of the Harlem River, where the E. 91st marine transfer station–I think–is being built.  It’s been a long time since I’ve walked around up there.

And finally . . . it’s Mister T pushing scows eastbound and under the 59th Street Bridge.  And the aerial tramway to  . . . the sixth boro’s ski slopes?   Here’s the website for the operator . . . Leitner-Poma.    But I digress.

At the right times of tide, the waterway between Roosevelt Island and Manhattan Island move a lot of cargo.

 

 

All photos this week by Will Van Dorp.

Thank to Kyle Stubbs a

Here’s a photo taken from Pegasus in July 2012, showing the entire Harley fleet in New York that night.  HMS Justice has been around since also, although I’ve not seen her in a while.

July 4, 2012, awaiting the fireworks

Kyle Stubbs recently sent along a set of Harley photos, which are divided into two groups here.  Take it away, Kyle.  All photos were taken in Seattle unless stated otherwise.

“EAGLE was built in 1979 by Modern Marine Power as DALLAS J ADAMS for Doucet & Adams on the Gulf Coast. In 2000 she was purchased by Harley and brought west.

Z-FIVE, pictured underway on LA Harbor, was built in 1999 by MARCO for Tugz International of Ft. Lauderdale, and eventually sold to Harley where she is used on the California coast along with her sisters Z-THREE and Z-FOUR.

The photo of BOB FRANCO and ROBERT FRANCO shows both soon after delivery in 2013, the former from Diversified Marine of Portland, OR and the latter from Nichols Brothers of Freeland, WA.

LISSY TOO, pictured passing Longview, WA on the Columbia, was built in 1974 by Sneed Shipbuilding of Orange, TX as MISS SAN. She later wore the names CREOLE SAN and RENE before being purchased by Harley.

LELA JOY was built in 1970 by Halter Marine Services as MODOC. She was acquired by Harley in 1972 and renamed WILLAMETTE CHAMPION before being sold and renamed JANET R. In 1993 she was reacquired by Harley and gained her current name.

GRIZZLY, pictured at the Port of Tacoma, was built in 1943 by Equitable Equipment as the US Army freighter F 18. She was later converted to a pusher tug by Smith Tug & Barge for use on the Columbia. After changing hands several times, she was purchased by Harley in 2007.

BRIAN S, built by Main Iron Works in 1963 is a long-time Northwest tug. After being operated on the Gulf coast from 63 to 74 by Gulf Mississippi Marina and then Guidry Brothers, she was brought to the west coast by Foss Maritime and renamed MARGARET FOSS. In 1989 she was purchased by Oregon-based Sause Brothers and renamed GO-GETTER. She spends most of her time now based in Port Angles.

HUNTER D was built in 1970 by Albina Engine & Machina Works of Portland, OR as MALANAE for Hawaiian Tug & Barge, and acquired by Harley in 2002.” In the background is ALYSSA ANN, which we get a better photo of soon.

Again, all photos here come compliments of Kyle Stubbs.  Part b  . .  soon.

For an index of all previous “thanks to” posts, click here.

 

Random Tugs 124

Huron Service (1981) sailed into the springy morning it was.

Chesapeake Coast (2012) lit up the dawn this morning.

McAllister Responder (1967) and Gage Paul Thornton  (1944)  met in the KVK last Saturday.    Click here for Gage Paul‘s long history, during one part of which she carried the name Elizabeth McAllister.

Joyce D. Brown (2002) passes Stolt Jade.

HMS Liberty (1978)  . . .was originally a freshwater tug, one of two operating in the sixth boro for Harley, a company mostly based on the west coast but expanding.

Houma (1970) like many of the vessels in this post, has operated under a long list of companies.

Gulf Coast (1982) enters the KVK from the east this morning before 9 a.m.

A parting shot of the vessel that started today’s post . . .  Huron Service, headed to refuel.

All photos taken the last few days by Will Van Dorp.

Sixth Boro Random Delights 8

It was a rainy day and I was giving some friends a tour of the city,  intending to leave the camera in the waterproof bag . . . but how could I pass up a foto like this . . . “spring-showers” washed-out colors notwithstanding.

Schooner Virginia was in town.  As of this writing, it’s anchored south of the George Washington Bridge.   Two very different places I’ve seen Virginia in the past year are here in tropical waters and here in her home waters.   I’d loved to have been on the tug HMS Liberty at this moment.

Here’s where I first caught sight of her . . . approaching tug Liberty Service lightering Amalthea.

Another delight in port was T/S State of Maine, by now headed south for the 2013 training cruise . . . with San Juan as its southernmost destination.

Also in port . .  Prisco Elizaveta and Atlantic Jupiter.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp, who in the course of the day, was so thoroughly and delightfully showered upon that the clothes are still wet

Sixth Boro Random Delights 3

All manner of small vessels traverse the waters of the sixth boro.  Twin Tube is truly one ageless fixture of the harbor.   If I did photoshopping, I’d have the boom dangle something tantalizing over the Statue’s upstretched hand.

Annie G II . . .  makes me wonder about Annie G I.  Here she

stands by as crew perform some truck task over on the west side of Governor’s Island.  I’ve enjoyed watching the derelict buildings on the Island disappear.   A largely unseen harbor project farther south (sorry no pics from UNDER the sixth boro) has been the tunneling of a new deeper “water main” (p. 7 ff) between Brooklyn and Staten Island.

A small USCG boat stops for maintenance on the red 32.  Unfortunately, I was on a vessel headed away from the buoy, and a few seconds after I took this, one crewman stepped aboard the buoy, on the other side.

A small USACE vessel speeds to the southeast past Robins Reef Light.

John P Brown pushes fewer than a dozen of the mere 1500 cars per year across the harbor, the miniscule fraction of merchandise that travels between NJ and parts of NYC on non-rubber wheels.

A small fishing boat crosses the bay under the cranes on hovering over Bayonne.

St Andrews runs light past some unidentified tugs obscured in the fog.  I spent July 4 docked near St Andrews.

New England style fishing boat heads out of the Bronx while Fox Boys (I think) pushes some scrap probably toward Jersey City.

In fading light, HMS Liberty heads for the Kills.   I’ve often wonder what the HMS stood for in this case. . . .   Is the H his, her, or something else . . . .

All fotos by Will Van Dorp, who wonders whether Sandy will be sandy or just windy, snowy, rainy,  . . . tricky . .  . .