Unusual preparations

 Hurricane Philippe, downgraded to a post tropical cyclone, inexoribly making its way toward Nova Scotia, and weakening as it does so, has shipping making various preparations for diversions, reroutings, and in the case of ferries, outright cancellations of some crossings.

For the cruise ship industry ships generally prefer to sail as far away from disturbances as possible, and do not like to be in port during major storms. Late this afternoon (October 7) however there was an exception for the small (by cruising standards) Star Pride (ex Seabourn Pride) arriving in Halifax from Eastport, ME.

The ship was in Halifax September 30 and was covered in this blog. The difference this time is that the ship did not tie up at a pier, but instead headed directly for Bedford Basin and went to anchor. 

The unusual sight of a cruise ship in the Narrows and passing beneath the harbour bridges is only possible because the ship is small, and thus has a relatively low air draft.

Some passengers took in the unique experience by crowding onto the open observation bridge above the navigation bridge.

 While the ship was entering the Bedford Basin, the container ship ZIM Virginia was getting underway from PSA Fairview Cove, and held up long enough for the Star Pride to clear.

Hyundai Heavy Industries built the ZIM Virginia in the Ulsan shipyard in 2002. The 53,453 gt, 66,686 dwt ship has a capacity of 4839 TEU, and it flies the Israeli flag.The ship is bound for New York, so may be able to skirt the storm's path by sailing south and keeping to the east.

Bedford Basin is not exceptionallly good holding ground for ships with high windage to anchor, but is is a sufficiently large body of water (8 km x 5 km) that a little dragging in high winds can be tolerated. It does mean that a ship may have to steam ahead on its anchor during sustained winds. Constant monitoring is necessary while at anchor. Both the ship's bridge watch and Halifax VTS have auto alrms as well as human radar monitoring to detect dragging.

Likely due to the downgrade for Philippe another cruise ship, the Seabourn Quest elected to stay in port, tied up at Pier 23. The camber is relatively sheltered, but I would not be surprised to see some waves sloshing in if there is any storm surge. Again the ship will heve to remain vigilant during the night when the highest winds are expected.

The cargo ship Augusta Luna (centre in photo below) in port from Cuba for Nirint Shipping also opted to remain in port, tied up at Pier 27.

The Articulated Tug / Barge (ATB) Leo A. McArthur / John J.Carrick arriving from the Great Lakes with a cargo asphalt (leftmost in photo above) will remain at the McAsphalt jetty in Eastern Passage over night. It will likely have to suspend unloading operations when the wind picks up, because the mooring is partially secured to buoys.

Eastern Passage is relativeley well sheltered, so sea conditions will likely not be too severe, but there will still be high winds and strong gusts.

The heavy load ship GPO Emerald is due to move back out to anchor this evening. It has been berthed alongside the crane ship Orion (with the barge Atlantic Swordfish between them). 

It is due to move back alongside tomorrow to continue the transfer of six monopiles (in sections) and other gear for the Vineyard wind project offshore Massachusetts. Once loaded the Orion will return to the Vineyard project site and use its 5,000 tonne capacity crane to install the monopiles.

Two other ships that remained in port over night last night sailed today, having given the storm time to move away from their tracks. (Both ships were covered here yesterday)

Balmoral may be able to skirt the storm to the east and south on its way to Portland, ME but there may still be rough seas to contend with.

  CMA CGM Andromeda will likely be following a similar route, but heading farther south for New York.

The Volga Maersk, which arrived from Montreal this morning sailed early this evening for Bremerhaven, so will probably be ahead or well to the east of the storm.

Permanent residents of the port are accustomed to rough weahter by now, so are likely well buttoned down for the night, and will wait to see what the morning llight reveals.

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All the News

 There was so much action in Halifax harbour today (October 6) that no one title could summarize it adequately. This what I saw, in order of ship type.

I was particularly interested to see the first time caller SH Vega which is billed as a "five star, elegant, scandi-design boutique ship". With a promo like that it was bound to be underwhelming, but it was nevertheless an interesting "little" cruise ship.

Its small size was accentuated when it tied up at Pier 24 (able to accommodate only the smallest of ships) with the behemoth 4,266 passenger Norwegian Escape in the background.

The SH Vega was built in 2022 by Helsinki Shipyard, for Swan Hellenic Cruises and is a 10,617 gt, PC5 ice-strengthened ship that caters to 152 guests with 120 crew. It arrived from Nuuk and Sisimut, Greenland having previously called in Pond Inlet, NU September 10-11 after departing from Reykjavik, Iceland August 26.

The SH Vega is headed for Bridgetown, Barbados, but will be sailing into some inclement weather as the post tropical cyclone Philippe is bearing down on Bermuda. By the time it reaches Nova Scotia on Sunday it will be further downgraded to port tropical,  but will still bring high winds and heavy rain.

From new ship to veteran, the Fred.Olsen Cruise Lines Balmoral made an afternoon arrival. Built in 1988 by Meyerwerft, Papenburg as Crown Odyssey it was renamed Norwegian Crown in 1996, then reverted to Crown Odyssey in 2000 andNorwegian Crown again from 2003 to 2008. 

When Olsens acquired the ship in 2007 they sent it to Blohm and Voss in Hamburg where a new 30 meter section was inserted. The new portion, built by Schichau Seebeckwerft in Bremerhaven, was floated up the river Elbe to Hamburg. Consisting of 186 passenger cabins and 53 crew cabins, it increased the ship's gross tonnage from 34,242 to 43,357 and passenger capacity from 1230 to 1325. It was then renamed Balmoral after the Scottish residence of the British royal family.

 The "new" section, which matched the existing ship in terms of appearance, is still identifiable due to the awkward gap between lifeboat/tenders at midships. 

PSA Halifax Atlantic Hub was busy all day with three ships alongside for much of the time. In addition to the weekly St-Pierre et Miquelon and Argentia coastal container/RoRo  Nolhanava, there was Eimskip's Bakkafoss en route from Portland, ME to Argentia, NL.

The 1025 TEU (including 231 reefers) ship joined the Eimskip rota in June and is one of four ships that maintain the weekly Green Line service from/to Iceland. 

See details for Bakkafoss in the June 24, 2023 post. (N.B. it has also been lengthened - but by only 10.2 meters).

The Ultra sized ONE Owl took up the rest of the space at berths 41 and into 42 when it arrived yesterday afternoon and sailed late this afternoon. With two other ships at the pier using one crane each, it pointed out the need for more cranes - see yesterday's post.

Japan Marine United Shipyard in Kure built the ship in 2017 as NYK Owl. The 146,412 gt, 139,335 dwt vessel has a capacity of 14,026 TEU and is one of several sister ships on THE Alliance's EC5 service. The ship represents Ocean Network Express Holdings Ltd, the amalgam of the primary Japanese container lines: NYK, K-Line and MOL, formed in 2016. The ship was renamed ONE Owl in 2021 and adopted ONE's unique magenta colour scheme.

 As the ONE Owl makes its way outbound the tour boat Silva heads for the Northwest Arm on a regular tour. A tug is standing by off McNab's Cove for the next arrival.

Allowing the ONE Owl lots of room to get underway, and to use the main channel, the next Ultra size container ship CMA CGM Andromeda held off outside the pilot station for a time, before making its way inbound to the same berth.

With three tugs in attendance, the CMA CGM Andromeda slows before turing to back in alongside. Silva* has emerged from the Northwest Arm with sails set and is making its way back to its base.

Dating from 2009 when it was built by Hyundai Ulsan, the 131,332 gt, 131,263 dwt ship has a carrrying capacity of 11,200 TEU, and is a first time caller for the Ocean Alliance from Asia. Its last port was Colombo, Sri Lanka.

 * Caution Rant to follow:

 The three-masted schooner's official name is Silva of Halifax, in the Swedish manner, recognizing the country where it was built in 1939 as an auxiliary cargo vessel (motorized but still being rigged to use sail, and thus not totally reliant on an engine.) 

 It is now marketed in Halifax as the "Tall Ship Silva" which creates an unfortunate misaprehension. In my opinion it is far from being a tall ship. It is not fitted with topmasts, which might have given it a bit of a claim to the word. In my mind, a tall ship must have topmasts and some square sails. Why not call the Silva a schooner? - bald headed though it might be in sailor parlance, without topmasts - it really is a schooner. Aside from the fact that "tall ship" is a poetic term, not a nautical one, I think it should be reserved for somewhat more impressive vessels.

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Balmoral - gone viral

Cleaning crews await the cruise ship Balmoral when it arrives in Halifax Wednesday morning May 11 with ailing passengers. The ship has been struck with noro-virus, a gastric ailment that seems all too common in cruise ships or places where people are confined to tight quarters. The cleaners will swab down all the places that people touch, to sanitize the ship as much as possible.


Reports indicate that the worst is over and some 252 "stricken" [news media word] passengers have recovered but will remain infectious for two weeks. Seven have been confined to their cabins. There are 1423 people aboard (passengers plus crew) and are arriving from Saint John, NB.

Balmoral passing Black Rock Beach inbound in 2012. 

Since this photo the ship has acquired a gray hull.

The ship is better known in Halifax for its April 2012 "Titanic Cruise" when it visited the site of the 1912 sinking, laid a wreath and got my nomination for tackiest cruise theme. 

The Fred Olsen Cruise Lines ship was built in 1988 as Crown Odyssey and has been renamed in 1996: Norwegian Crown, 2000: Crown Odyssey, 2003: Norwegian Crown and Balmoral in 2008.
In 2004, as Norwegian Crown, it was the first cruise ship of the season in Halifax.

Crown Odyssey in 1988.

The ship called in Halifax in its first year of operation. It was built by Jos.Meyer in Papenburg, Germany and measured 34,242 grt. In 2008 it was lengthened 31.9m by Blohm+Voss in Hamburg and now measures 43,537 grt. Passenger capacity increased from 1230 to the current 1778.

 

 

Balmoral did a swing around George's Island this morning to berth startboard side to at Pier 22.

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Balmoral over-nighter

Few cruise ships stay in Halifax over night. The exception this year is Balmoral the veteran Fred Olsen ship. Built in 1988 as Crown Odyssey, it has been Norwegian Crown (1996-2000) and Crown Odyssey again (2000-2003) and back to Norwegian Crown (2003-2008).

The overnight stop allows for crew time off and interesting passenger experiences. In 2012 the ship was doing a Titanic  commemoration cruise when in arrived April 16.

As a footnote to yesterday's post: If cabotage laws are removed in Canada, then cruise ships will be able to board and disembark its passengers in Canadian ports, without having to go into international waters or foreign ports between. A Montreal-Halifax cruise (a virtual impossibility until now, except on small specialist ships) might actually be offered by some lines.

Postscript: Halifax newspaper reports that Balmoral cancelled a visit to Shelburne, NS because a pilot was not available. Shelburne is a non-compulsory pilotage port, so the use of a pilot is at the discretion of the master. The master determined that he required a pilot, but since local organizers/agents had not arranged for a pilot in advance, none was available on short notice.
Licensed pilots generally work full time for the Atlantic Pilotage Authority and must arrange for non-compulsory pilotages on their own time off or take vacation days.

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Balmoral and Juniper, Titanic visitors

1. Passengers crouwd the forward deck as Balmoral arrives, accompanied by the pilot boat APA No.18.

2. USCG Juniper squeezes into Sackville Landing.

Two more ships in volved in commemorative events at the site of the Titanic sinking put in to Halifax todfay. First to arrive was USCG Juniper. The ship had been tasked to attend the site on April 15 and drop rose petals overboard - one for each victim of the sinking. A USCG C-130 Hercules aircraft was sent to St.John's for a flyover to drop wreaths. However it was called out for a rescue mission to assist a distressed yacht and had to cancel.

Second to arrive was the Fred Olsen cruise ship Balmoral. It's arrival was slow and stately, mainly to avoid a lot of harbour traffic, but it tied up at pier 22 later than scheduled.

It exchanged a single whistle salute with the autocarrier Porgy as the two passed in the Middle Ground area.

Blamoral will stay overnight and all day tomorrow, allowing its passengers to see Halifax and many of the exhibits and places associated with the Titanic. Other events (mostly in good taste) took place in Halifax on Saturday night and Sunday as a tribute to the large loss of life in 1912.

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Rhea Leader and Porgy meet

The header might have read "12,000 cars cause traffic jam in Halifax Harbour." But here's what really happened:
1. Rhea Leader begins to pick up her tugs at Middle Ground.

2. As she rounds Ives Knoll, Porgy has cleared Eastern Passage.

3.By the time Rhea Leader reaches Indian Point Porgy has passed Ives Knoll and is outbound.

One autocarrier leaving and another arriving and passing each other in the harbour, with a cruise ship inbound (see following) and a big tanker plunk in the middle of anchorage number one created quite a potential traffic jam in the harbour this afternoon. All was handled adroitly and no incidents resulted, but it was a pleasant change to see so much activity at once.

First inbound was Rhea Leader picking up her pilot about 1700 hrs and making her way up to the Middle Ground where she was met by the tugs Atlantic Willow and Atlantic Larch.

Meanwhile the Porgy was getting away from Autoport with assistance from Atlantic Oak.

As Porgy cleared Indian Point Rhea Leader was making her turn around Ives Knoll. Due to the Jasmine Knutsen at anchor, Porgy headed north about the ship and headed outbound. with Atlantic Oak standing off her quarter to assist in the turn.

While all this was going on Balmoral, took her pilot at 1715 hrs and was inching her way inbound, meeting Porgy at Middle Ground.

Neatly done!

The punch line of course is the capacity of these two large autocarriers:

Rhea Leader 63,004 gross tons, built 2008, capacity: 6,324 cars.

Porgy 58,752 gross tons, built 2009, capacity: 6,284 cars.

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