Atlantic Juniper - say it ain't so Joe

Word reached me via the comment section of the blog that Atlantic Juniper may be on the way to her demise. This would certainly be sad, but I guess inevitable. Such is the way with old tugs.
Her is a small retrospective as far as my photos go.

 1. Back in 1993, she was still the Irving Juniper and was wearing the J.D.Irving colours, of blue funnel cap and Irving logo - the same device used on Irving Oil trucks and gas stations. 

2. By 1997 she had become Atlantic Juniper and with the rest of the fleet had lost the logo and assumed a black funnel cap. She is seen here with fleet mates Atlantic Birch and Atlantic Maple - also now sadly laid up and likely to go the same way.

3. By 2004 she had been re-assigned away from Saint John, but was still looking good. 

4. She even had a new bulwark section at the stern. Never fitted with a winch however, she still had her original capstan for line retrieval.

The best photo I have of the Juniper was taken in 1997 when she was returning from berthing the QE2 in Saint John, and was taken by the late John Weeks:

 

Atlantic Juniper - a real veteran

Stopping over in Halifax for a few days is the veteran Atlantic Juniper. She is likely traveling from her summer base in Belledune, NB to Saint John or possibly Shelburne for winter maintenance.

Built in 1961 in Southampton England for Red Funnel tugs, she was originally the Thorness and fitted with two Crossley engines totaling 1340 bhp and driving twin screws.
J.D.Irving acquired the tug in 1983 with fleet mate Culver (a fire tug of similar design) and came to Saint John. They joined several other Red Funnel tugs, also owned by Irving, the former Atherfield which had become Irving Hemlock and is now Swellmaster and the former Dunnose which became Irving Willow.
Torness was renamed Irving Juniper in 1985 and Atlantic Juniper in 1996 and worked in Saint John as a harbour tug for many years. She was re-powered in 2000 with Cat engines, giving approximately 2,000 bhp.
The tug was imported after the implementation of new Canadian rules requiring all crew sleeping accommodation to be above the waterline. Since most of her quarters did not qualify she has operated as a day boat.

The tugs funnel, like many boats built by J.I.Thornycroft & Co Ltd of Woolston, UK, is slim and sleek- the height of fashion at the time.