Single, Double and Quad and one offshore

 Today, September 19, saw a single caller at Autoport, and was a double day for MSC ships and a four ship day for cruise ships - and there is a bonus.

 

Single 

Autoport's ship was a first time caller, the Cadwell a new ship, just entering service in July. The 69,250 gt, 19,160 dwt Pure Car and Truck Carrier, with a capacity of 7,000 CEU, was built by CIMC Yantai Raffles Offshore Ltd in Yantai, China. It features an advanced dual fuel system and is the ninth in a ten ship "state of the art" order by Zodiac Maritime Ltd. Unusually for newer PCTCs it also has a side ramp, positioned well aft of midships.

As with many of Zodiac's ships it is named after a British race source. In this case one that is used mostly for motorbike racing, Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire. It is on long term charter and is serving Wallenius Wilhelmsen's transatlantic service from North Europe ports of Bremerhaven, Zeebrugge and Goteborg.
 

Double 

MSC Salina III arrived this morning on the Canada Express service from North Europe and as it sailed from PSA Atlantic Hub this afternoon it met the inbound MSC England which was heading for PSA Fairview Cove.

The MSC Salina III is a recent addition to the MSC fleet taking its present name as of July 1, and still carrying the colour scheme of previous operators. Built in 2009 by Guangzhou Wenchong as Cape Mele it was renamed POS Sydney in 2010 then Cape Male again in 2011. It is a 35,878 gt, 41,411 dwt ship with a capacity of 2758 TEU. It also carries four cargo cranes - three forward of the house and one aft.

 I saw the ship on August 10, upbound on the St.Lawrcnce River off La Malbaie at a speed of about 19 knots. The ship is operating on the Canada Express service and is  now outbound from Montreal for Le Havre, and was stopping in Halifax to top off. 

The inbound MSC England serves the Med-Canadian route and was arriving from MSC's Sines, Portugal hub. It will offload sufficient cargo to reduce its draft to suit St.Lawrence River restrictions.
 

A 39,812 gt, 51,020 dwt ship, built on 2001 by Hyundai, Ulsan, has as its capacity 4132 TEU with 500 reefer points. It has been retrofitted with an exhaust gas scrubber system, and trails the distinctive plume of water vapour.

I also saw this ship on the St.Lawrence, August 14, downbound in the south channel off Kamouraska, also at good speed.

Quadruple 

Four cruise ships arrived today with ships berthing at Pier 20, 22 and 23 and the fourth ship landing passengers  in tenders from an anchorage in mid-harbour. 

The  anchored ship was Holland America's Volendam from Montreal, Quebec City, and Charlottetown, bound for Eastport, Maine.

 

The ship used at least three of its own tenders (numbers 9, 10 and 12 by my count), delivering passengers to the landing stage at Pier 24.

 

Meanwhile at the adjacent Pier 23 the Seabourn Sojourn was decanting refuse to a barge, handled by the tug Mighty Edge. The Radiance of the Seas was an early morning arrival at Pier 22 and the Norwegian Getaway was an early afternoon arrival at Pier 22.(no images of those on this call.) 

 There was one more ship of note, although so far it has not actually entered the port. The Croatian flag AP Revelin was noted off the coast several days ago giving an ETA for Halifax of September 17. The 25,494 gt, 38,785 dwt ship is a handysize bulker built in 2016 by Qinshan in Wuhan, China. The ship rendez-voused instead with the United States flag tug Ezra Sol and with the assistance of the Halifax-based tug Atlantic Maple took up anchorage in the outer anchorage, outside the harbour limits (and outside the pilotage zone) on September 18.

The AP Revelin hull down on the horizon viewed from Shore Road, Eastern Passage. The elevated wheelhouse of the tug Ezra Sol can just be seen between the two pairs of cranes. The ship's last port was Port Allen, LA (near Baton Rouge) and the tug came out of Norfolk. 

It seems likely that the ship was in need of repairs which would require disabling the main engine, thus having a tug alongside for security. In case repairs are not succesful, towing the ship might be required and the 6,000 bhp tug would be right there. [There is no Canadian tug with that power in this region, and the local 4,000 to 5,000 bhp tugs are fully committed to harbour work and would not be available for extended standby duties.]

The tug Ezra Sol was built in 2002 by Main Iron Works in Houma, LA, and is powered by three Cummins main engines driving three screws. Originally named O.J.Cenac it became the O.J. in 2008, Copper Mountain in 2013 and Ezra Sol in 2023  when acquired by Seaward Marine Corp of Norfolk.

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Tenders Ahoy

 There were three large cruise ships in Halifax again today, September 26. The Arcadia (84,342 gt, 285 meters) was assigned to Pier 20 and the Enchanted Princess (145,281 gt, 330 meters) to Pier 21- 22. That left no more room at the seawall so the smallest ship, the Volendam (60,906 gt, 237 meters), took up position in #1 anchorage in the lower harbour.

The Volendam's tenders worked to lighter passengers ashore to the landing stage at Pier 24.

 With the gigantic Enchanted Princess taking the entire south two thirds of the seawall, it used the 150 tonne capacity yellow bollard at the end of the Pier 22 (see yesterday's post). The floating landing stage at Pier 24 was busy with the Volendam's tenders shuttling back and forth to the ship.

Volendam tenders 9,10 and 11 (and perhaps others) were in use late in the afternoon, ferrying passengers (and crew) back to the ship.

 The boats have bow and side loading doors with tarps as rudimetary awnings to protect from rain (there were very light showers). Labels near the stern declare the boats suitable for 90 persons when used as tenders and 150 persons for lifeboat service. (Flying the Dutch flag is a reminder that the ship uses its own (foreign) crews on the boats in apparent contravention of Canadian cabotage laws and as line handlers, contrary to the longshore union's collective agreement.)

The Volendam has been a perennial caller during the cruise season, and like the other two ships in port today, it was built by Fincantieri, this one at the Breda yard in Monfalcone in 1999. It carries 1432 passengers and 647 crew.

 

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I repeat that the Arcadia is one of the best looking cruise ships despite the "super graphic" flag on the bow (not visible in thsi view).

It was also built by Fincantieri Breda in Monfalcone, but in 2005, and carries 1952 passengers (single) and 2,388 maximum, with a crew of 976.

As the afternoon wore on it became more and more gloomy and slightly drizzly so there is no current photo of the Enchanted Princess. Today's call was its last for this year, but I was able to get a photo on a previous visit (September 29, 2022).

 The ship came from Fincantieri's Italiani yard in Monfalcone in 2020 and has a capacity of 3660 passengers and 1346 crew.

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The Line Up

 Today, Monday ,June 24 saw several familiar faces as far as shipping goes, with some a new comer too. Since most are well known I will skip the details here, but the ship's names will form links to previous posts.

The first arrival was the bi-weekly caller Tropic Hope for Tropical Shipping at Pier 42. It was followed soon after by the auto carrier Lake Taupo at Autoport.

 As with previous calls the Lake Taupo is eastbound from Veracruz, Mexico to Emden, Germany for Volkswagen.

There were two cruise ships today, the regular Volendam  is en route from Boston and Bar Harbour to Sydney, NS and on to the St.Lawrence.

 The other cruiser was the Viking Mars on its first call. Built by Fincantieri, Ancona in 2022 the 47,842 gt ship has 464 cabins for up to 930 passengers with 456 crew. It boasts a child-free experience (no one under 18 is allowed) with no amusement park type features. It is en route from New York for l'Anse aux Meadows, Greenland and Iceland.

 

Outbound this evening the Viking Saturn meets the Kawartha Spirit returning from a tour of the Northwest Arm.

Like its sister ship Viking Star that was here June 22 it is a very fine looking ship (by current standards). 

Another container ship arrival today was the EM Kea eastbound on the CMA CGM / Maersk transatlantic service from Montreal to Bremerhaven.

 Built in 2007 by Stocznia Sczecinska Nowa, in Poland, it is a 35,874 gt, 41,850 dwt ship with a capacity of 3108 TEU. Built as Cap Norte it was renamed Cape Egmont in 2012 and became EM Kea in 2015, the same year it joined this rotation. 

Another arrival was the tanker Pyxis Theta from Antwerp for Imperial Oil. No photo was possible so I will try again tomorrow.

Odd man out of the mix was the non-commercial vessel HMCS Harry DeWolf AOPV 430 returning to port after some naval activity.

 Name ship of the Arctic Offshore Patrol Ship program it was built by Irving Shipbuilding Inc at Halifax Shipyard and commissioned June 26, 2011. Numerous arctic programs are planned for this year, and the ship is likely to be heading north fairly soon.

 

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Cruise, Cruise, Cruise and More

 Although it is still early in the season, there were three cruise ships in the Port of Halifax today, April 27: Viking Polaris, Volendam and Norwegian Pearl.

Viking Polaris was back for its second visit. After its first visit April 10 it has covered a lot of territory:  Trois-Rivières April 25, Montreal 16, Toronto 17-18, Montreal 20, Trois-Rivières 21, Quebec City 21, Port Alfred 22, Sept-Iles 23, and Charlottetown 25. It is now off to New York City and will not be back again until August 17.

The 30,114 gt ship, built in 2022 by Fincantieri carries 378 passengers and 256 crew. It sister ship Viking Octantis was here April 18 [qv] en route to a summer's cruising on the Great Lakes.

While in port, the ship discharged some refuse to a barge and exercised its Zodiacs. The workboat / landing craft Tidal Runner was doing tug duty with the barge.

 

Volendam

 A ship that will become a familiar sight in Halifax this year made its first ever call in Halifax today. Volendam, built in 1999 by Fincantieri, Marghera is a member of the Rotterdam class, measuring 60,906 gt with a capacity of 1432 passengers and 647 crew. It replaces sister ship Zaandam which had been calling in Halifax since 2019. The two ships have exchanged routes with Zaandam now doing Alaska tours.

Volendam will take up the east coast run out Boston to Portland, Halifax, Sydney, Charlottetown, Magdalen Islands, Quebec City, Montreal. The latter is a terminal port also. From there, with a new contingent of passengers the ship retraces its way back to Boston via the same ports including Halifax. In all it will make 20 calls in Halifax between now and October 15 when it will make a Mediterranean round trip from and to Fort Lauderdale, its winter base.

Norwegian Pearl was today's first arrival but I did not catch a glimpse of it until it was outbound and then as it was "going away."

 A 2006 product of Meyer Werft, Papenburg, it is a 93,350 gt ship carrying 2,394 passengers and 1,099 crew. (It was refurbed in 2017). Unusual for a cruise ship, it is eastbound transatlantic, sailing from New York April 25. After Halifax it is scheduled to stop in Reykjavik, Belfast, Cobh-Cork, Isle of Portland (Weymouth), Le Havre and finally Southampton May 9.

It was interesting to see how much smoke the two older ships made as they picked up speed outbound.  I don't know if either ship used shore power when they were in Halifax, but I hope they weren't making that much particulate when in port.

And More 

There was other activity in the port today too:

At Autoport the Wallenius Wilhelmsen Ocean auto carrier Tijuca arrived from Southampton and sailed for New York.

Dewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co Ltd built the ship in 2008 at Okpo. A 71,673 gt, 30,089 dwt ship, it can carry 7620 RT43 cars and is equipped with a 320 tonne capacity stern ramp and a small side ramp. It has the usual rounded superstructure forward, but its bridge structure is elevated three decks above the weather deck, which is at least one deck, if not two decks, higher than most autocarriers. While this must improve forward visibility, it is not a feature taken up on newer ships.

Both container terminals were working today. At the South End Container Terminal it was EM Kea on the Maersk / CMA CGM St.Lawrence route from Montreal for Bremerhaven.

 At Fairview Cove it was an 0900 hrs departure for the overnight caller Delphinus C, the former NYK Delphinus. A Dedalus class ship of 55,487 gt, 65,950 dwt, it has a capacity of 4922 TEU. 

One of several sister ships on THE Alliance's AL5 service it arrived yesterday afternoon from Saint John, NB after its usual string of calls from Port Everglades, Panama, Los Angeles, Oakland and back to Panama, Cartagena and Saint John.

 

The tug Atlantic Bear worked the ship all the way through the Narrows as stern tethered escort, ready to pull or brake if needed

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Last Call for the Zaandam

As the 2023 cruise season reaches its peak in September - October it is unusual to see a ship make its last call in Halifax as early as September 29. Holland-America's Zaandam is the exception as it arrived today. Not only is this the ship's last visit of this season, it is also likely its last visit of any season. 

I hear that the ship, the most frequent caller in 2023 now with 19 visits, will be replaced in 2024 by a sister ship the Volendam which will transfer from the west coast  and Alaska market. That ship, although one year older - it was built in 1999 - has virtually the same passenger capacity of 1432 and a crew size ranging from 615 to 647. Fincantieri, Margerha built the ships, and two more sisters, Amsterdam and Rotterdam - all of which have called here from time to time. Holland America has always prided itself in fine looking ships, and these are no exception. They have also remained popular without resorting to garish graphics and overwrought theme park and mid-way features.

Zaandam began calling in Halifax April 29, 2019 and has been a regular ever since.

 Holland-America Line celebrated its 150th anniversary this year. The Zaandam and fleet mate Zuiderdam hosted celebration events during their calls in Halifax.

Next year's caller, the Volendam, was the last of Holland America's ships to be refitted for shore power connection which it used in Vancouver for the first time on September 27. Many ports, including Halifax, have shore power available (and some make the connection mandatory). It means that ships do not have to use their engines to generate power for the large non-propulsion related "hotel load" while in port. 

Using shore power reduces air pollution in the immediate area of the ship, but in the case of Nova Scotia, which still generates the vast majority of its of power from burning coal and gas, it merely moves the problem elsewhere. The added load of a small town (or two or three) every day during cruise season to Nova Scotia's power generation load for the benefit of a few tourists seems perverse to me. I predict a day of reckoning for the cruise industry within a very few years.

So far however protests in Europe have not dampened the demand for cruises, and Halifax continues to have near record or record years for total visitors.

In 2019 the Zaandam replaced the Maasdam another good looking Italian built ship, coming from Fincantieri Monfalcone in 1993. It was a 55,451 gt vessel with a capacity of 1258 passengers and 580 crew.

 After it stopped calling in Halifax it was sold in 2020 to a company called Seajets and renamed Aegean Myth but was laid up and never sailed for them. In 2022 a new operator Compagnie Française de Croisières (CFT) purchased the ship. They sent it off to Damen's shipyard in Brest for a major makeover starting in October 2022. The ship emerged in June  of this year, with passenger capacity reduced to 1000 and a crew of 560. It was to spend this summer cruising between Le Havre and the British Isles and Belgium then moving to the Mediterranean for this coming winter. It is due to go to the Caribbean and South America next year. The ship will be catering to French travellers.

That Maasdam was the second HAL ship of the line to visit Halifax. In the days of transatlantic passenger travel a 1952 version brought many immigrants to Canada through Pier 21.

Built by Wilton-Fijenoord in the Netherlands in 1952, the ship is shown arriving in Halifax with the assistance of Foundation Maritime tugs in the late 1950s or early 1960s. (Not my photo)

From 1968 to 1988, renamed Stefan Batory,  it continued in service for Polish Ocean Lines, but that is another story.

The Stefan Batory ex Maasdam on the St.Lawrence River - familiar territory for HAL ships in the passenger liner and cruise eras.

When the Zaandam sails this afternoon (the pilot is ordered for 1530) there will likely be a prolonged whistle salute from the ship. A customary end of season thank you for the port's hospitality, the salute is one of the nicer seagoing traditions.

 

September 29, 2023.

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