Four New SuperYacht Marinas for Bermuda

  By | January 26, 2012 - 2:58 pm | Kennebec Captain Leave a comment

Front Street, Hamilton

Bermuda is just twenty-one square miles of land set some 700 miles off the East Coast of the USA. It has been a quick place for yachts to stop, take fuel, fill up with fresh provisions and the crew to enjoy the occasional Dark ‘n Stormy drink.

In the short time we have been here in Bermuda researching for an article for SuperYacht Business, we can see things are changing. We have uncovered information about several new marina developments, which could, in years to come, change the way sailors view these Sommers Isles.

No less than four new dockage schemes for Superyachts have been drawn to our attention.

The first, the subject of our previous blog, is a new enhancement to the existing facilities at St Georges run by Captain Mark Soares of Bermuda Yacht Services.

The second we heard about is an ambitious plan conceived by the Corporation of Hamilton. They have grand plans that involve reclamation of land and a new marina and superyacht dock in the heart of the capital.

The scheme could breath new life into the once vibrant city’s waterfront where cruise liners used to dock. The new generation of huge passenger ships calling at Bermuda need the deeper water found off the West End of the island.

Their departure has not only left the docks seldom unused but has contributed to the slow decline of the shops on Front Street. Gone is Trimminghams that quintessentially Bermudan department store; gone are the horse drawn carriages; and gone are the policeman dressed in Bermuda shorts on point duty.

The city streets are comparatively quiet now that the click of the tourist camera has been transferred elsewhere. News that super yachts could soon take to the now desolate docks is going to be welcome news.

Visiting the West End and the dockyard at Somerset we learned they are also enthusiastic about welcoming large yachts. They too have a planned development that will see Superyachts being offered berths. A soon to be constructed dock will potentially have 15 spaces for yachts up to 70 metres.

After our conversations with local marina representatives had been reported in the Bermuda daily newspapers another group contacted us. They are planning a fourth SuperYacht marina. We will write more about Morgan’s Point Marina when we have visited the proposed site and met with the developers.

Stay tuned.

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Deadliest Sea – A review

  By | January 26, 2012 - 10:55 am | inmarsat airtime 2 Comments

-Captain Lloyd liked to keep  the Coast Guard Cutter Munro upwind and at the ice edge during the fishing season in the Bering Sea.

-Peter Barry, who died when the fishing vessel Western Sea sank, was an Ivy League student.

- A pilot pushing a “Herc” to it’s limits is “flying the barber pole”.

- Running both the heater and the deicer on a Jayhawk helo requires two generators which reduces it’s range.

-The  F/V Big Valley went down after leaving  port early to avoid Charlie Madicott  and the Coast Guard’s Alternate Compliance Program.

These were the kind of details that made Deadliest Sea: The Untold Story Behind the Greatest Rescue in Coast Guard History  by Kalee Thompson a great read.

The book tells the story of the Coast Guard’s rescue of 42 crewmembers from the F/V Alaska Ranger. The book is mostly about the rescue itself,  the role played by the Cutter  Munro, the  helo crews, it also tells the  story of Ranger  crew members.

I very much enjoyed Deadliest Sea – highly recommended.

K.C.

Alaska Ranger- shitty job shitty boat

Inside the Coast Guard’s Most Extreme Rescue Popular Mechanic article by author Kalee Thompson

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Scanner Review

  By | January 26, 2012 - 5:08 am | inmarsat airtime Leave a comment
Brother MFC-7360N Multipurpose printer/scanner

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When I’m  running coast-wise, it’s important to be able to get my various clerical chores done quickly so I can focus on more critical tasks. A key point is that it is more efficient and much quicker handling computer documents then paper ones. That means having a good scanner is important.

 I’ve had several various  scanners in my office over time but none as good as the Brother MFC printer/scanner. It prints fast, scans fast and the document feeder works much better then other models I’ve used. It also has software that is easy to use.

 Imagine out the window I can see my green third mate is about to have a first encounter with the fishing fleet but I  have a handful of paper to deal with. With this scanner I can shove the papers into the feeder, type in a file name, click the mouse button and then start a sprint out my office door.  Before the ship closes a couple more ship lengths towards the nearest boat  I’ll be on the bridge in time to show the new mate fishing vessel avoidance techniques  and my documents will be safely on the hard drive.

K.C.

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Ship Generated Current – Ship’s Fast Water

  By | January 18, 2012 - 10:16 pm | inmarsat airtime Leave a comment

 I snagged the Dec/Jan 2011 issue of Professional Mariner out of the officer’s lounge the other day. There is an interesting article by St. Lawrence River pilot Capt. Hugues Cauvier; “Effects of the ship-generated sideways current”.

A ship moving sideways generates its own current. If the ship then moves ahead or astern, part of the ship remains in the current while part moves out of the current.

Jerry, a tug captain I sailed with sometime ago used to describe the currents and back eddies on the Inside Passage as “fast water” and “slow water”, the context being having the tug in slow water and the tow in fast water was a bad thing.

 A ship moving sideways generates its own “fast water” Moving then either  ahead or astern is going to poke the bow or the stern into “slow water” This would cause the ship’s heading to change. I have observed heading changes at slow speed which were not what I expected. This explanation seems reasonable. Next time I pull the ship out of its’ own fast water I’ll be watching.

K.C.

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Use of the GPS to regain the track-line to recover a MOB

  By | January 16, 2012 - 6:52 pm | inmarsat airtime Leave a comment

Typical Maine GPS

In the case of a crew (man) overboard many  GPS units have a MOB (man overboard) button which will give the bearing and range back to the position of the ship when the button was pushed. The problem is  the button may be overlooked  entirely or it may not pushed in a timely manner.  Even if it is pushed in a relatively timely manner it may be difficult to determine the distance between the MOB position on the GPS and the actual position of the crew in the water.

However,   the crew member in the water has to be somewhere along the previous track. This track  information is likely stored continuously and automatically on the GPS unit.

The GPS “PLOT”, which shows the previous track, can be an invaluable aid in locating the ship’s track while executing the man overboard turn.

It is important to know how to switch to the PLOT screen during the overboard emergency  and it is also important to check to insure that it is set up properly to continuously record the ship’s track before the emergency.

The ship’s track may also be stored in other electronic equipment. For example  “target trails” on the radar set at the appropriate time may also display the ship’s previous track.

K.C.

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Touring Bermuda

  By | January 16, 2012 - 2:18 pm | Kennebec Captain 1 Comment

St George’s

The roads in Bermuda are narrow, you cannot hire a motor car and the only alternative is to rent a motorscooter. Dicing with death by renting a strange machine and driving on unfamiliar busy roads seems daft to us. Madder still if you place a beloved one on the back.

Better by far to hire a taxi and since the authorities strictly govern advertised rates, you cannot get ripped off. Cruise ship passengers beware, this safeguard does not apply to you if you buy your taxi tour on board the ship.

It pays to do your research before you spend $40 an hour. If like us, you find a guide who not only enjoys his job, but is himself a local historian then you are in for a treat.

Don’t just take our advice. Duke our guide for the day, comes highly recommended by users of the Web site Cruise Critic folks who seldom mince their words!

Duke took us all around the island visiting all nine parishes. Without him we would never have found the tiny chapel dating from before 1620 that is tucked away inside a park guarded by a property trust. Nor would we have known where to see spotted eagle rays and turtles.

Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, a fort or two, the smallest drawbridge in the world and the picturesque village of Flats were all the subject of Duke’s informative tour. We drove through Tuckers Town and the pretty harbour of Castle Point and down into St George’s now a UNESCO World Heritage site.

It was here that we visited St Peters Church, an edifice that dates back to 1619. The oldest Anglican church outside the British Isles and the oldest Protestant church in continuous use in the new world.

St George’s is also a place to linger with museums, gift shops and historical artefacts on display throughout the town.

To get hold of Duke e mail him at bdashortz@hotmail.com or call his cell phone: +1-441-535-3465.

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OSG Vision – Another Rule Beater

  By | January 16, 2012 - 10:09 am | inmarsat airtime Leave a comment

OSG Vision Photo from Towmasters

Towmasters has a post up:  Extreme ATB’s: Towing Vessels Or Something Else?

I can answer this. It is not a tow vessel, it is the house and engine room of a ship. Basically  the designers and builder of this vessel have built a ship, broken it in half and then made arrangements to pin it back together. The reason they did this was to dodge regulations. The question is why does the Coast Guard approve it?

  Crowley’s AT/B – Rule Beater

K.C.

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  By | January 11, 2012 - 2:25 pm | Uncategorized Leave a comment

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Fourth Day of Antigua Charter Yacht Show

  By | January 10, 2012 - 3:34 pm | Kennebec Captain Leave a comment

From the Crow’s Nest aboard Marie

The day begins well with an invitation from Fraser Yachts for breakfast aboard the 75 metre Phocea, the long skinny sailing yacht with 4 masts.

It is only when you get on board do you realise quite how wrong you have been to classify this beautiful yacht in such a nonchalant way.

Her interior is so well done it is almost timeless in design and execution. Light and airy with limed oak bulkheads she is a delight with all accommodation on the main deck.

The Master cabin is enormous and forward of it a walk in wardrobe with enough shelves for shoes to satisfy Imelda Marcus.

On deck the crew were fighting a loosing battle with those trying to sit down to a sumptuous looking breakfast. It was a case of first there stayed there leaving others to walk away somewhat enviously.

Lunch for Frances was deliciously, served by the attentive crew aboard 66 metre Natita (ex Dilbar) where she was the guest of Burgess. The 72 metre Kogo another yacht managed by the same agent was the subject of an afternoon tour. The crew of this boat really know and understand the meaning of service. They have taken it to a whole new level.

On display with Peter Insull Yacht Marketing, the 58 metre Islander became famous as a motor sailer. She is likely to become an equally famous motor yacht now that she has had her mast removed. Her Captain and crew hosted a delightful cocktail party for guests in Falmouth Marina. After leaving her we walked down to English Harbour for that marina’s Yacht Hop.

Stars of the evening included the 55 metre Feadship Illusion from Edmiston and Solemates from the Luxury Yacht Group. The upper deck of this brand new 60 metre Lurssen superyacht converts from a gymnasium by day into a disco at night and it was put to very good use. Be sure to see our feature on the beautiful yacht in the next issue of SuperYacht World

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Forget the World, Find Hermitage Bay

  By | January 6, 2012 - 10:14 pm | Kennebec Captain Leave a comment


A view from our suite in the early morning

Avid environmentalist, Andy Thesen and his business partner, Jamaican born Andrew Michelin, set out to build the most beautiful of secluded hideaways in Antigua.  They embarked on a project, which has created a perfect all inclusive haven hotel.
As the name suggests, Hermitage Bay is truly a place of peace and tranquillity. Here man-made noises are minimized so that the natural noises prevail: the waves on the beach, the breeze in the trees, and the chatter of the birds. Add a location well off the beaten track on Antigua and you have the perfect antidote to modern, hectic life.
The hotel practises a “reduce, reuse and recycle” policy.  It also makes a conscientious effort to use natural detergents and beauty products, employ solar energy technologies, and source locally grown, organic fruits and vegetables.
SuperYacht Exuma at anchor off Hermitage Bay
Hermitage Bay ensures that the comforts of home are readily available, ultimately providing the best of both worlds. The hotel has just twenty-five suites. They truly feel enchanting and mix essential Antiguan style with understated elegance. Eight Beachfront Cottages are located on the edge of the white sand beach and in the gardens just beneath the hillside. 
The remaining seventeen cottages are Hillside Pool Suites where we stayed. Scaling four tiers of the hillside, each of these suites has truly awe-inspiring panoramas of the Caribbean Sea and lush landscapes that surrounds Hermitage Bay.
The dense foliage and flowering vines that entwine our suite’s dark lattice fencing shield the private sundeck, seating, double day bed and plunge pool from neighbouring suites and passers-by. But it is the view we love best.
The luxurious bedroom includes a huge bed covered with an enchanting mosquito net.  An essential additional if, like us, you leave the suite open onto the terrace, to enjoy the magical view from the bed, when you awake in the morning.
Add abundant cupboard space, fridge filled with a personalised selection of drinks, an iPod dock, ensuite bathroom with huge bath and outside shower and you have an ideal spot for lovers to enjoy

Leaving our suite is difficult, but the private beach and the warm Caribbean waters beckon. Add a very talent chef who mixes Caribbean cuisine in an inspired fusion, a barman who knows how to mix a mean cocktail and you have a hotel that is even more difficult to leave.

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