Taking the Falls of Clyde Home?

Those of you who are interested in large historic sailing ships have no doubt been following what has been going on at South Street Seaport Museum. Wavertree is back from dry dock and looking splendid. (Congratulations to all involved!) Peking is being prepared for her journey back to Germany and a brighter future.

It is quite a different situation here in Hawai‘i. Time is running out for the National Historic Landmark ship, Falls of Clyde.

Lately, I have been quiet regarding the Falls of Clyde. It is not because I do not care. I have been watching and waiting to see what became of the discussions between DOT Harbors and the Friends of Falls of Clyde (FFOC). Frankly, I didn’t have much hope for the future of the ship.

I have been spending my time trying not to be angry and depressed by the whole situation and mentally preparing myself to hear bad news.

Will she be:

• Towed out and scuttled in international waters?
• Sold and broken up for scrap?
• Sunk as an artificial reef or dive site?

Nothing but sad thoughts. Until today. Today brought a glimmer of hope.

Is it possible that there is enough interest in Scotland to bring the Falls back home to the Clyde, should the FFOC’s efforts fail?

A campaign has been started to explore the possibilities, while still supporting the mission of the FFOC. The following is a Facebook post from David O’Neill, who is spearheading the effort:

This is a Glasgow and Clyde Heritage related post, I am looking for volunteers who have an interest in the Clyde Shipbuilding History, who may have skills in P.R., Media and fund raising or crowdfunding. This is a campaign to bring back and restore a Port Glasgow built ship Falls of Clyde. Built at Russell shipyard, now Ferguson Marine.

The ship is currently in Hawaii and was a museum ship up until about 8 years ago, now under threat of being sunk as an artificial reef.

Hollywood actor and Scot, Mr Brian Cox of Bourne Identity, Troy and Planet of the Apes has agreed to be our patron so hopefully this will boost the campaign.

Glasgow Nautical College are also on board and can play a part in her restoration.

Clyde Maritime Trust are also offering help to save this 138 year old ship

We will shortly be launching a crowd funding campaign, so please consider playing a part in this effort, if we succeed the plan is to rebuild her and put her back to work, as a Fairtrade Transport Vessel, Sail powered, carbon free.

Another aim is to include Community Groups and Secondary Schools across Scotland, who can send kids aboard on trips for life changing journeys to fly the flag for Scotland and Glasgows Shipbuilding Heritage.

Please share to all groups and friends you know, this will be a tough challenge, but will be worth it.

I am happy to share David’s message. I spoke with him at length on the phone this afternoon. He is walking into this with eyes wide open. He knows it will be a hard road. I fully support his efforts. I like his energy, enthusiasm, and willingness to explore all channels necessary.

While I would be sad to see the Falls leave Hawai‘i, to have her return to Scotland would be pono, since the state does not seem to care about supporting her as an important part of local maritime history.

There is hope.

Morning at the Harbor and Kaiwo Maru

I went down to the harbor to watch the arrival of Kaiwo Maru.

Workers repairing Pier 8:

Naina headed out:

The observation area of Aloha Tower provides good views.

Matsonia and Mokihana:

American Challenger:

Kaiwo Maru approaching the harbor, with pilot boat Honolulu returning and tug Mamo waiting:

Kaiwo Maru with Mamo at the bow:

Approaching Pier 10/11:

Standing by forward:

ASD Neil Abercrombie (Tiger 1) at the stern:

Job done:

Traditional gear, Shonan Maru:

Out of the blue, I was offered the opportunity to go aboard Kaiwo Maru in the evening! Some photos follow.

Double wheel at the stern:

View forward from the bridge:

Looking aft along the port side:

The obligatory rigging shot:

Capstan detail:

Pin rail:

Classroom area:

Sails stowed down below:

Gangway:

Goodnight!

Big mahalo to Monique Acosta from Transmarine for the invite! I had a wonderful time on board the ship.

Moshulu (1904)!

One reason for visiting Philly was to have a look at another one of the five remaining Clydebuilt sailing ships, Moshulu (ex-Kurt).

For an account of her re-rigging, check out Jamie White’s site: TheSquareRigger.

It’s strange to see her repurposed as a restaurant, but it’s good to see her nonetheless.

As a designer and traditionalist, I’m not crazy about the font (University) they’ve chosen for her name:

What I found really odd was how the ship was painted. Her starboard side (facing the river) was painted in traditional style. Her port side (facing the pier) was painted blue. Very weird.

Windows cut in the hull:

What’s wrong with this picture?

Looks like frames marked for some sort of survey?

Freeing port:

Always looking for practical ideas when checking out historic ships.

Here, this spout keeps the water from a scupper from running down the side of the hull and leaving those ugly streaks:

It’s attached with c-clamps, I’m guessing for ease of maintenance/replacement.

Rudder:

Since it was dinner time and I wanted to have a look around, I decided to have a meal on board.

If you’re familiar with these types of ships, there are enough details that it is fairly easy to imagine what this tween deck area (facing aft) used to look like:

Don’t normally do food pics, but here’s my fancy dessert:

(Hey, I’m on vacation…I can splurge right?)

After I had finished eating, I asked the maitre d’ if it was all right to look around.

Emerging on deck, looking aft at a hatch:

Ladder up to the midships deck:

I went forward to the bow.

Up on the fo’c’sle head:

Note the deck crane, rather than the old catheads, to help raise and secure the anchor on deck. (Same thing on Peking.)

A peek into the fo’c’sle. The windlass looks nice.

Ship’s bell. And…oops. What’s wrong with this picture?

For the ship geeks who look for such things, here’s the manufacturer’s stamp (Lanarkshire Steel Co Lt Scotland) on a beam:

Hatch just aft of the fo’c’sle:

Looking aft along the deck:

Bulwark stays (different style from those on FOC) and rail:

Freeing port:

Mr. ‘I‘iwi perched on the rail:

Looking up at the rig from the foremast:

Back up on the midships deck:

Mainmast shrouds, detail (seizing, eye, thimble, bottlescrew):

Small bitts on top of bulwark:

Ship’s wheel (in need of some repair) just forward of the chart house:

I didn’t go aft to the poop deck because there were some people gathered around the area and I didn’t want to disturb them.

Going below again, I came across a small gallery of images. I didn’t expect the ship to be a museum, but it was nice to see a nod to the ship’s past.

Reproduction of a drawing showing the ship’s sail plan and rigging:

And, something rather unexpected, but pleasing to see:

It seems I just can’t get away, can I?

Note: For those of you interested in life at sea on board Moshulu, pick up a copy of Eric Newby’s The Last Grain Race (1956).

Peking

With Peking set to return to Hamburg later this year, I thought it would be a good time to see her while she was still in New York and open to the public.

I went on the South Street Seaport Museum’s guided tour of the ship.

While Peking is a much larger ship than Falls of Clyde and there are some obvious differences, I still felt quite at home.

I was interested to see a side port open and in use:

Spars (from one of the museum’s schooners), that were stored on board, were being removed through the side port:

Hatch aft of midships deck:

Part of the crew accommodations:

Main mast:

Beams and deckhead:

Some details were all too familiar:

View forward looking at fo’c’sle area:

Foremast and buildings beyond:

Plywood covering deck:

View forward from the poop deck:

Double wheel and “coffin” covering the steering gear:

Interesting to see this Port Glasgow manufacturer’s plate on a winch:

Seems out of place on a German-built ship, but dates from her days as the British training ship Arethusa.

At the bow:

Billethead:

Nippon Maru

I took the morning off from work to watch the arrival of Nippon Maru. I got to the harbor shortly after sunrise. I love the light at that time of day.

Paradise Ace:

Harbour Loyalty and Tacoma Trader:

Mokihana arriving:

Mamo at the bow:

Looking along the hull from Pi‘ilani:

Aloha Tower from alongside Pier 10:

Kawika passing by, waiting for the pilot:

Getting the line back:

I like how the shape of the building echoes the masts:

From Nippon Maru it was over to Paradise Ace:

Scuppers:

Another view of Nippon Maru dwarfed by the buildings of downtown Honolulu:

Mahalo to Rick Wilson and Michael MacDonald. Special thanks to Captain Kahoekapu.

Kaiwo Maru Departure

More photos of Kaiwo Maru!

Pi‘ilani arriving at the stern of the ship (check out the new paint job):

Pilot boat Honolulu next to Pi‘ilani, chatting while waiting:

Hello again Captain Kahoekapu!

Pulling the ship away from the pier:

Manning the yards:

Passing Ile de Sein:

Mikioi at the bow:

Setting up the pilot ladder:

View from Honolulu along Kaiwo Maru’s hull:

Another lovely day!

Mahalo to Captain Tom Collins and Captain Fikes Mauia! Special thanks to Paul.

On Board Pi‘ilani – Kaiwo Maru Job

This past week was a busy one, but much better than the last.

I had a lot of fun on Tuesday! The Japanese training ship Kaiwo Maru moved from the offshore anchorage to Pier 11. I had a good view of all the action from the Foss tug, Pi‘ilani.

Before leaving the pier, I asked if I could have a look at the engine room. Pretty cool!

One of the engines:

Another photo of Ile de Sein, as we headed out:

One couldn’t have asked for a nicer day!

Approaching the anchorage:

Pilot boat Honolulu, heading back to the harbor after taking the pilot, Captain Ed Enos, out to the ship:

What a lovely sight!

Raising the anchor:

Heading to the harbor:

Emory Carrick heaving a line up to the Kaiwo Maru crew:

Some of the Ile de Sein crew having a look at the ship:

Mikioi, the other tug assisting the ship:

I’ve always been interested in what people come up with in the way of chafing gear.

I was pleased to see a design similar to a couple I made for Falls of Clyde:

An old work in progress photo of one of my projects:

(I really miss doing this sort of stuff. 😦 )

Adjusting mooring lines and putting chafing gear in place:

Wrapping the line around the bitts:

Not the best photo, but it shows a mooring line stopper in use:

Finally, putting rat guards on the lines:

A big mahalo to Michael MacDonald, Rick Wilson, and Whit Olson of Foss Maritime/Young Brothers! Special thanks to Captain Kamaile Kahoekapu and Emory Carrick.

Busy Sunny Sunday

There was a lot of ship traffic in the harbor today. The weather was brilliant, so it was a great day to get some nice shots.

Just before sunrise:

Nippon Maru shifting to Pier 2:

A lovely sight! All of the yards perfectly square:

Pi‘ilani and Mamo assisting:

There’s just something about the morning light shining on a mast silhouetted against the sky…

Not as pretty as Nippon Maru, but with an appropriate name for her time of arrival, Sunlight Ace:

Nord Steady:

Working on pilot ladder:

B. Ace getting the engines going:

Some sort of drill with water hoses?

B. Sky shifting to Pier 1:

B. Ace:

MELL Springwood:

No doubt where a tug should push:

Nord Optimiser (previously anchored offshore):

Pi‘ilani pushing:

Loud rattling + splash = Maui testing to see if the port anchor and associated gear are functioning properly

Ha ha! Love the cloud of rust.

Brilliant Friday Morning

Beautiful weather and a sailing ship. What a splendid way to end the week!

I was given the okay to tag along on board Foss’ tug Mamo for the arrival of Nippon Maru. 😀

Mamo at the pier:

Mikiala II, the other tug scheduled to assist Nippon Maru:

Pilot boat Kawika heading back into the harbor:

Looking back at JRS Canis at Pier 1:

Nord Optimiser at anchor offshore:

Mamo approaching Nippon Maru:

Cadets at the rail:

Crew member by starboard light:

Bow wave:

Back in the harbor, a welcoming party on the pier:

Other harbor sights on the way to Kapalama Basin (to turn the ship).

Matson work boat in a hurry:

B. Sky with a few truckloads of supplies on the pier:

A new view of Mokihana:

Horizon Spirit:

Mahalo to Michael MacDonald and Rick Wilson of Foss Maritime/Young Brothers! A special mahalo to Captain Larry Lamarca and Chris Vincent.

Cuauhtémoc Arrival – Honolulu Harbor

Monday was grand!

I took the day off from work to catch the arrival of the Mexican navy’s sail training ship, Cuauhtémoc. I was very fortunate to be allowed to do this from Foss’ Mikioi, the tug scheduled to assist the ship.

Although it was still hot, humid, and hazy, it was lovely and calm out on the water.

Heading out, we were escorted by a pod of spinner dolphins:

I will never get tired of seeing a sailing ship at sea. They are things of beauty.

Some views of Cuauhtémoc offshore:

Passing the sea buoy, with Diamond Head in the distance:

As the ship neared the harbor, the crew went aloft to man the yards:

Entering the harbor:

Yards manned:

Captain Ed Enos was the pilot:

There was some confusion as to the time the ship was supposed to arrive at the pier, so we had to kill a bit of time in the harbor.

As a result, the crews of the Shin Oita Maru and Miyagi Maru at Pier 9 and the visitors on board the cruise ship Oosterdam, got a good look at the ship:

I got in some ship spotting.

Oosterdam at Pier 10:

High Endurance heading out:

Tug Pi‘ilani and pilot boat Kawika:

Crew members hauling the line from Mikioi aboard the ship:

Captain Kea Makekau carefully maneuvering Mikioi, per instructions from Captain Enos, to gently push the ship alongside Pier 8:

We returned to Pier 21. I was happy to get a peek at Mikioi‘s engine room before going ashore. 😀

After saying goodbye to new friends, I walked over to Aloha Tower.

Oosterdam‘s rat guards and bulbous bow:

Cuauhtémoc‘s crew attending to the figurehead (of Cuauhtémoc), part of preparing the ship to receive visitors:

One of Cuauhtémoc‘s rat guards:

Finally, I went over to Pier 7 to have a brief look at my ship. Poor girl. Forlorn…

Mahalo to Rick Wilson and Captain Whit Olson of Foss Maritime/Young Brothers. Also, thanks to Captain Ed Enos. Special thanks to Captain Kea Makekau, who made the photos possible!