Brinn Courtney and RS815

All day long, one ferry or another crosses the harbor, and one tug or another

travels light from point A to

point B and

makes up to another vessel

to move it to where it’s needed.

I was fortunate to see this vignette

of one part of someone’s day play out.

All photos, WVD.

Crushed stone is a commodity indispensable for construction.  Previous commodity posts can be seen here from 2010, here 2011, here 2013, here 2017, and many other instances not identified as such, like this one.

Newest Hull in the Sixth Boro 10 and 12 Redux

Less than a year ago, MHO came into town . .   MHO?  It appears to be the accepted abridged nomenclature for the ferry SSG Michael H. Ollis. I had wondered how that long name would evolve in common parlance.

MHO looks like this . . . key in on the rescue boats and the double doors midships.  But since I was riding MHO, I wondered what I’d missed in my time away, so somewhart belatedly, i snapped this photo.

Later I caught that “other” new ferry at St George . . . .  See the name?

There we have it . . . it’s taken about half a year for Sandy Ground [aka SG?]  to get from first arrival to being in service.

All photos yesterday, WVD.

Orange Government Boats

Look at the Staten Island ferries at St George.  “They all look the same,” I once asserted to bowsprite.  She set me straight.   Right now the second Ollis-class, soon to be newest hull in the boro, is making its way up the Jersey coastline at the end of a towline, its bow and windows boarded up for protection from waves.

So on this New Year’s Eve eve, let’s do an out-with-the-old . . . .  John F. Kennedy, currently the oldest–in service since 1965!!–will be the first out.  In fact, a fly on someone’s wall says

she’s already out of service. By the way, who were you in 1965, or what were you listening to?  Or, what were you driving or drooling over?  Watching?

Barberi [1981] will be next out, along

with Newhouse. 

 

And in the with new . . .  seen here next to the 1986 Alice Austen.

SSG Michael H. Ollis has been the training vessel for all three ferries of the newest class. She arrived in August here.  Whether at the dock being prepped or

running the harbor and practicing arrivals and departures, Ollis and her crew have been busy.

All photos, recently, WVD, who can’t wait to ride the new ferries and who hopes to get photos of the newest, newest hull in the boro tomorrow.

See my story on Ollis on page 18 here.

Government Boats 57

I have to go back over 14 years to find the previous appearance of Tybee on this blog.  Is she still based in Woods Hole?  Has she been here and I just missed it?  I can’t say.  I would say she rolls . . .

The groupbrain internet says she’s still based in Woods Hole, all except earlier this week. 

 

SSG Michael H. Ollis continues her training runs in the Upper Bay.  I’m eager to catch my first ride aboard her.

At least when her sisters show up, crews will be trained, having done their orientations aka Familiarization 101 aboard Ollis. Anyone know ETA of next of the class?

And finally, I was thrilled to catch Susan Miller and Gabby escorting retired FDNY Alfred E. Smith to another berth.  I forgot to follow up, so I don’t know where Smith is currently located.  Anyone help?

I was fortunate to catch her with backgrounds Pier A and

the Colgate Clock. 

All photos, WVD.

Unrelated:  I’m planning a post on the 1946 Matton-built tugboat that carried the following names:  Margaret Matton, Fort Lauderdale, Evening Light, Hudson, and Chyanne Rose.  As Hudson, she worked for Reinauer/BTT from 1978 until 2005.  She came up recently in a conversation about running oil up the Passaic as far as Wallington, and I’d love to collect stories.  Please help out with stories and photos if you can.

 

Random Sixth Boro 10

The sixth boro, i.e., the watery part that holds the other boros together, is the one that never sleeps, with current, tides, mechanical denizens and their operators, their flora and fauna,  . . .  I’ll leave the list there for now.

You can read the season changing in the fact that Eastern Welder has reappeared for sixth boro clams.

Morning Claire is a regular in the boro, but last time I saw her was several thousand miles to the south.

Stolt Larix is one of the world’s largest parcel tanker fleets, but

what really caught my attention was its PBA backboard, where crew might play watch against watch. I’m always checking for hoops on ships that pass.  I wonder how good the crew teams are.

Gregg is off to assist a tanker in.

Names intrigue me, and I find bulk carriers have the best of the best, like Mega Maggie here.

Century Royal headed into the North River, prompting me to double check her provenance, and her voyage from Progresso MX to Yonkers USA tells me she’s loaded deep with raw Mexican sugar, not road salt as I’d originally assumed.

Here’s an obvious clue to season.

And finally, I’ve not yet seen the newest ferry carry any passengers, but she is training for the shuttle.  For one of my most recent articles, click here for my review of SSG Michael H. Ollis.

All photos, WVD, who’s out to see what and who he might next see.

Government Boats 56

I believe this is the first time I post a photo of 1961 FDNY Alfred E. Smith.  She was sold to private owners in 2016. 

Nearer the mainland on Pier 25, Lilac has held this berth since 2011.

USACE Gelberman has been a regular here, as has 

Dobrin.

USACE Driftmaster has worked collecting debris since 1949!  I wonder how plans to replace her are coming along. 

I could not identify this heavily-laden sludge  . . . I mean GUP . . . carrier. 

NYPD’s Cardillo and 

Hansen are two boats of the Harbor Unit, itself a part of NYPD since 1858.  Hansen has been in service since 1994. 

Soderman is the current occupant at Bayonne Drydock & Repair.

Oops!  It’s Alice and Ollis.  Alice Austen usually runs in the wee hours, and Ollis arrived in the boro back in August and will enter service as soon as training is complete. 

x

All photos, WVD.

 

Newest Hull in the Sixth Boro 10

Here are previous iterations, newest hulls that have become less new hulls. 

Look closely just forward of the ferry and you’ll see a ready-made caption that this ferry is NEW.

I’m also pretty sure this is the first post featuring Dann Ocean’s Colonel.

The ferry departed the shipyard in panhandle Florida only eight days before.  For outatowners, the Staten Island ferry is free, over 200 years old, and was partly owned at one point by Cornelius Vanderbilt.  This new ferry cost just over $100 million;  two more of the class will follow.

Here are more facts about the SI Ferry.

The ferry’s namesake is a Staten Island native who died in Afghanistan almost exactly eight years ago;  for the story of SSG. Michael H. Ollis, click here.

 

The ferry was eased into the docks at Caddell Dry Dock yesterday by Colonel, James E. Brown, and Ruby M.  At Caddell’s, the plywood will be removed from lower windows and the SSG Michael H. Ollis will be prepared for service.

All photos, WVD, who hopes to hop a ride some day soon.