AUGUST 2026
ENVIRONMENT
LAKE MEAD
“The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard.” (Sen. Gaylord Nelson)
NOAA recently stated that “Coral reefs are teetering on the edge of a global tipping point.” The agency noted that 30-50% of the world’s coral reefs have been lost for several reasons:
- Severe heat at historically unprecedented levels harmed 84.4% of all reefs.
- Functional extinction of Elkhorn and Staghorn corals.
- Oceanic acidification.
- Local threats such as overfishing, pollution, and destructive diving.
Europe is undergoing the warmest summer in recorded history. In May, England recorded a record high of 92 degrees. Germany, Poland, and Belarus all saw temperatures above 104 degrees for the first time. In July, Spain, Portugal, and France experienced record-breaking temperatures of 120 degrees, causing severe health problems, forest fires, and agricultural destruction. Most European countries have little or no air conditioning. Finland, with 1/3 of the country above the Arctic Circle, saw temperatures in the high 80s.
SMALL BOATS
The WOODENBOAT Show at Mystic Seaport remains a topic of conversation among small boat aficionados. One great story is when boatbuilder Rob Stevens decided to celebrate America’s 250th birthday by sharing his knowledge with youngsters from the local Bristol school. Carpenter’s Boat Shop provided workspace so he could teach 7th graders, as part of their Social Studies course, how to build a bateau like the one General Benedict Arnold used to attack Canada.
Arnold supposedly built 200 in 14 days; Stevens took a year. Our modern version took 23 students working at 90 minutes per visit before returning to school. The Junior High students’ boat was 20’ long with a 4.5’ beam and a depth of 21” amidship. Double-ended, planks were daubed with roofing tar instead of the original pitch
Grunden’s Sou’wester rain hat remains reminiscent of the 200-year-old hat worn by Northern Sea fishermen with little change in design. They were originally waterproof sealskins, but by the 1920’s, the Swedish company started using rubber material until 1950, when they switched to a PVC fabric that is still used today.
The brim is stiff and funnels water away from the face and down the sides to the back, much like a fireman’s helmet. It also has a flap to cover the ears and a 9” strap to keep the hat on during stiff winds.
As kids, we used to have these hats that came with our yellow plastic raincoats that I thought were silly-looking. Now, I wish I had one.
Photos from the Wooden Boat Show
HISTORY
In 1972, a Swiss freighter, CASSARATE, was bound from Thailand to Rotterdam laden with a mixed cargo of grain, coal, rubber, lumber, and tapioca. The 492-foot-long ship had five separate and layered holds, with the tapioca placed in the lower sections of the hull and the lumber at the top.
Like a story from Horatio Hornblower, the ship had a fire, and some of the lumber was burning. The crew pumped tons of water on the blaze and saved the ship. Water has this irritating propensity to run downhill, and in this case, it ran down to the bowels of CASSARATE where 1.5 tons of tapioca was soaking it in.
As Martha Stewart would have predicted, the tapioca started to swell. Incredibly fast and greatly. This pushed against the hull, straining the steel and scaring the wits out of the crew who feared the ship would simply split apart.
The good news is that the ship held up; officials decided it could continue to Rotterdam, and some poor idiots had to clean this gooey, gelatinous mess before the ship could sail again. SEA HISTORY, a magazine from the National Maritime Historical Society, ran the story recently, and it is too good not to share
The DELTA QUEEN, a 1926-built sternwheeler with a steel hull measuring 250’ by 58’ with a depth of 11.5’, was built to carry 200 guests in luxury along the Sacramento River. Her superstructure was oak, cedar, mahogany, and teak. This famous boat was powered by cross compounding engines with a 10’ stroke.
The vessel was owned by various companies and individuals until Green Line Steamers decided to run her on the Mississippi River, so they dismantled her as best they could, tore apart the sternwheel, crated up the boat to protect her from the seas, and had her towed through the Panama Canal to be rebuilt in New Orleans.
This beloved paddle wheeler ran excursions up and down the Mississippi, stopping at sundry tourist spots with loudspeakers telling the history of the boat and the passing areas. Tourists flocked to the banks just to watch her pass.
Unfortunately, age crept in, and the old boat could not maintain modern safety regulations; however, Congress passed a waiver of Coast Guard mandates so she could keep steaming. Despite relaxation of rules, DELTA QUEEN simply got too old. She has not sailed for 10 years, but, for a little TLC, she is ready for restoration in Houma, LA
ALLSIONS and COLLISIONS
RGOSY IV, a 408’ barge, was sunk off Orange Beach, Alabama, as an artificial reef. It sits in 122’ of water.
PILOT, an historic schooner, sank at her moorings on 1 July.
QN-90568 T-5, a Vietnamese fishing boat, sank but her crew was rescued.
GALAXY LEADER, a Panamanian-flagged vehicle carrier, was captured by Houthi Rebels in the Red Sea in 2023. The Israeli Air Force simply sank the ship this summer.
BLACK RHINO, a Cypriot ship rammed by SEA HONOR (Chinese), was driven ashore to prevent sinking.
LUNI, under the flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis, was a 322’ freighter that simply broke in half after a collision several days earlier.
VOLTARE, a very nice 49 ‘ cabin cruiser, sank off Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay after being struck by a rogue wave. A 79-year-old man, a woman, and a dog were killed; three are missing, and 16 survived. The boat was on a family outing when hit by the wave in 30 mph winds. Various sources stated that the boat may have been listing due to passengers overweighing one side.
CRUISE NEWS
AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE (American Cruise Lines), a small cruise liner with a capacity of 90, broke free from her moorings and drifted into another pier in Rockland, Maine. Four people fell into the water due to the storm.
A gastrointestinal outbreak occurred for the third time this year aboard the National Geographic’s SEA BIRD. The CDC stated that 29% of the passengers were stricken.
Margaritaville at Sea’s Beachcomber is scheduling the biggest production ever on a cruises ship with top name bands from rock and roll, country, and Latin music genres.
Beware of your activities while ashore during a cruise. A Louisiana woman went ashore from her Carnaval Cruise ship and decided to do a rope swing into some water. This was not part of the shore activities coupled with the ship. The rope wrapped around her leg causing injury. Upon returning to the ship the pain worsened and was tend to by the ship’s medical staff who eventually decided that she needed evacuation to a hospital in Mexico. The young woman is now stuck with over $50,000 in medical bills for which the cruise line is not responsible.
A German couple is suing AIDA River Cruises because they were disappointed in the nudist area aboard the ship. They had booked a 128-day around the world cruise a year ago because of the nudist areas on the vessel; unfortunately, the areas were greatly reduced when the ship went into re-design in dry dock. They could no longer appear nude at the main show lounge or in the dining areas. Worse, the “privacy” area was much smaller than the advertisement. They paid $78,000 dollars for this free of clothing option.
VIXON River Cruise’s ROMANTIC DANUBE was overbooked, so they offered people some interesting options if they took a different cruise. They received a 100% for their next cruise, a stateroom upgrade, free WIFI, free laundry, and free shoeshines. As the Norwegians would say, “Uff da”! No doubt the flip-flops would look good with a new shine.
GRAY FLEET
USNS CESAR CHAVEZ (T-AKE-14) has been very active in replenishment of carriers USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN-72) and USS GEORGE H. W. BUSH (CVN-75), who are in the Red Sea area operating with their task forces supporting OPERATION Epic Storm.
USNS KANAWHA (T-AO-196) earned the Presidential Unit Citation for its unexpected and unscheduled support of the USS GERALD FORD (CVN -78) during her action as part of OPERATION Epic Storm. That “Can Do” spirit of the crew was outstanding, and they deserved the PUC.
Ships under Central Command (CENTCOM) proffered deadly fire upon the MT BALMA, an oiler trying to escape through the Horn of Hormuz. CENTCOM maintained that the U.S. is refusing to allow any ships through the Straits as an element of OPERATION Epic Fury, and they further argued that the MT BALMA was flying the false flag of Curacao when it is supposedly flagged under the United Arab Emirates.
The Chinese and Philippines continue their harassment over ownership of islands in the South China Sea when a PI sailor was seriously injured by water cannon blasts by the Chinese. Earlier, a PI Navy SEAL lost a thumb when his small boat was rammed by a Chinese warship.
LLOYD’S LIST of London noted that the fighting between the U.S. and Iran has reached the most intense phase of the entanglement. Spokespersons for Lloyd’s also noted that 2,900 seafarers have come ashore since their ships are anchored in the Red Sea.
INLAND WATERWAYS
Mariners are angry with the President’s waiver from the Jones Act for more ships that mandates that intracoastal shipping be on American ships, built in the U.S., and manned by national crews. Our merchant sailors argue that this allows shippers to use foreign vessels that
charge less fees, are exempt from U.S. safety regulations, pay their crew less, and proffer no protection for the crew. Worse, they complain, is that most of the ships given waivers are owned by China.
J.F. Brennen company, headquartered in the beautiful and wonderful city of La Crosse, WI, have been granted a contract of $43.6 million for the re-development of Lock and Dam #25 near St. Louis in what is the beginning of the desperately needed expansion of the ancient and small locks on the Upper Mississippi.
The new lock will be 1200’ long, thus enabling a complete 15-barge tow to traverse at one time. This will cut down the time to go through the locks by at least 2 hours. Lock and Dam #1, in St. Paul, MN, is only 400 feet long, and it was built in 1911. One down and 24 more to go.
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