Back to Base

It was "Back to Base" for Atlantic Larch and Atlantic Willow following departure of the drydock on August 2. The two tugs assisted Atlantic Oak with moving the dock out into the stream, working it down the harbour and holding it in position while Eileen McAllister hooked up the tow line.
Now it is also "Back to Base" for me for the next few weeks, while I spend time on the shores of the St.Lawrence River.
I will be out of contact with computers, the internet and e-mail for the duration.

USNS Grapple - successful mission

USNS Grapple returned to Halifax this morning after completing a successful recovery mission in Quebec. The mult-function salvage ship operated by the US Military Sealift Command (MSC) was sent to the Longue-Pointe-de-Mingan area of the Quebec lower north shore to recover the remains of five airmen lost in 1942 when their amphibious patrol aircraft, a PBY Catalina was lost on takeoff. As part of the US Prisoner of War / Missing in Action program it is the intention of authorities to recover as many of the missing as possible. In addition to remains, the ship recovered numerous artefacts tjnat had been preserved in the wreck due to cold waters with minimal light penetration.
The salvage ship Grapple was launched in 1984 and commissioned into the US Navy in 1986. In 2006 it was decommisioned and transferred to the MSC, where it now operates with a civilian crew. Its pennant number thus changed from ARS-53 to T-ARS-53. The ship can support salavage, towing and diving operations, and it fitted with a large suite of tools for those various jobs.
The ship also called in Halifax on July 6 on its way north.

1. USN Grapple arrives this morning.

2. The ship is fitted for towing, salvage and recovery work.

3. Two stern anchors can be used for ground tackle. (July 6 photo)

Eileen McAllister - big tow ahead

Eileen McAllister arrived this morning to prepare for a big tow. She will haul the retired floating drydock Scotia Dock II to ship breakers in Florida Texas.
Built in 1977 by Main Iron Works in Houma, LA, the tug is powered by two 16 cylinder GM EMDs giving 4300 bhp. It doesn't seem like a lot of power to tow the unwieldy drydock.
Further coverage of the drydock tow will be found on Shipfax.

1. Classic lines of the traditional style US tug.

2. The winch operator's house has been added since I last saw this tug in 1997.

3. The tug crew gets its first look at the drydock they will be  towing.

4. There is a massive double drum towing winch tucked into the deck house.

Foundation tugs of 1962

In the early 1960s the Foundation Company of Canada through its subsidiaries decided to build a series of tugs to the same design for interchangeable use all over Foundation’s “empire”. The tugs could and would be tasked with ship berthing and harbour work, barge handling and coastal towing. Foundation’s fleet of floating cranes and scows for marine construction needed to be towed to ports all over Eastern Canada, and there was a need for more and better tugs than the mixed bag left over from wartime construction.

The company had already built three larger tugs between 1956 and 1961, but they were dedicated to work in Baie-Comeau and Sept-Iles, QC.
And so it was that Davie Shipbuilding in Lauzon, QC received the order for six 1,000 bhp single screw tugs for delivery in 1962, followed by a twin screw, slightly larger variant in 1963.
When Foundation decided to get out of the tug operating business in 1970 the fleet was split up and the tugs went in different directions. All six initially to MILTug under a management agreement with Marine Industries Ltd of Sorel, QC. In 1973 they were all sold, with three continuing to work in Halifax for the newly formed Eastern Canada Towing Ltd (Ectug) as the backbone of the Halifax harbour tug fleet.

1. Point Viking (on the bow) and Point Vim and Point Vigour work the British passenger liner turned cruise ship, Oriana away from the dock in 1979.

ECTUG transferred Viking to Port Hawksbury and sold it, and when they acquired more powerful tugs in Halifax, Vim and Vigour became backups until sold in 2006.

2. Point Vim and Point Vigour live up to their names.

I don’t suppose anyone imagined that seven of those ten tugs built between 1956 and 1963 would still be operating in Canada in 2012.
Of the 1962 batch of six, three are very much in operation in Canada and are reported to be in excellent condition by their present owners, all still running on their original Fairbanks-Morse engines.
The first four tugs were completed and launched as a batch, with the last two following soon after.
Davie Hull numbers 631, 632, 633 and 634:

Hull 631: Foundation Viscount

                                   

3.  Foundation Viscount working in Halifax harbour in the 1960s.

In 1973 the tug was purchased MIL's Richelieu Dredging Ltd and renamed C.O.Paradis. However in 1976 in a deal that involved dredges and tugs, it was sold to John S. Latsis of Greece and renamed Ikositria
[meaning "23"] It has been laid up since about 2005, and may well have been scrapped by now.

Hull 632: Foundation Vim

4. Point Vim returns to the Ectug dock in Halifax.

In 1973 the tug was sold to the newly formed Eastern Canada Towing Ltd and renamed Point Vim. It was based in Halifax and Port Hawksbury for a time. It was also modified at Georgetown Shipyard with the addition of a fixed Kort nozzle, and its engine uprated.

5. It's February and Point Vim has a heavy coat of frozen spray while waiting for a ship at pier 36.

McKeil purchased the tug in 2006, but it was resold to Davis Shipping of Wesleyville, NF and  has been upgraded by the new owners. It is in the best condition of the remaining tugs and is used in general towing work in Newfoundland and Labrador and harbour berthing.

Hull No.633: Foundation Vigour

6. Point Vigour heads out for a job in Halifax.

Eastern Canada towing acquired the tug in 1973 and renamed it Point Vigour. It was based in Halifax until 2006. It received the same upgrades as its sister Vim - a Kort nozzle and uprated engine.

7. The tugs were built with a patent quick-release towing hook and a small capstan for recovering towing lines.

In 2006 McKeil bought the tug and renamed it Molly M 1. It has travelled far and wide under McKeil ownership, and is now operated by the associated company Nadro Marine.

Hull No.634: Foundation Viking 

8. Point Viking off pier 31 in Halifax.

Also acquired by Eastern Canada Towing Ltd in 1973, the tug was renamed Point Viking and based in Halifax.

9. At pier 25-26 in Halifax, Point Viking has just assisted in berthing the Klavenes bulker Balao.

It did not get the upgrading treatment that Vim and Vigour received. After time stationed in Port Hawksbury it was sold to interests in Stephenville, NF where it was used in harbour berthing work in the Stephenville and Corner Brook areas. In the mid 2000s Construction Polaris Inc of Quebec bought the tug. Although based in Quebec City it spends most of its time assisting construction work on the Lower North Shore.

Hull No. 635: Foundation Viceroy

10. Foundation Viceroy nudges up on the Helga Dan at pier 9C in Halifax.

In 1973 the tug was sold to the Minister of Public Work, Canada, and assigned to the St.Lawrence River dredging fleet. Renamed Feuille d'Erable, it worked with the dredge DPW No.130 and mud scows up and down the St.Lawrence River and into the Gulf, from its base in Rimouski.

11. Feuille d'Erable tending to a mud scow off Ile-aux-Coudres, QC.

When the DPW got out of harbour dredging in 1996 the tug was renamed T.4 and laid up in Quebec City for sale. McKeil bought the tug and renamed it Florence McKeil  in 2000. After working on the Great Lakes for a time it was then sold to Davis Shipping Ltd of Wesleyville, NF. They sold the tug in 2006 to new owners in the Ivory Coast, however the tug was delivered to Ghana. There it was renamed Manhye and placed under the Honduran flag. The tug is believed to still be working in Africa.

Hull No.636: Foundation Vanguard

12. Foundation Vanguard assisting the CCGS Labradror into the graving dock at Halifax Shiyard.

In 1973 MIL bought this tug outright and renamed it A.Moir it continued working for Richelieu Dredging until 1976 when it was also part of the deal with John S. Latis and went to Greece. It was renamed  Ikosido [meaning "22"]. After several ownership changes within the Latsis organisation it was sold in 1998 to Saudi Arabia where it took the name Sete 10. The tug was laid up during 2009, and has not been working since.

  13. Point Vim and Point Vigour were familiar sights on the Halifax waterfront, and their charming names won them many fans. It was a sad day when they sailed away in 2006, but fortunately that was not the end.

14. and 15. Molly M 1 (former Vigour) pictured on the Welland Canal July 24, 2012. Now fitted with a towing winch, she was about to leave towing a barge with crane components to Iqaluit. This the longest single tow ever for the tug, but she is up to the job even at age 50. [John Vanderdoe photos used with thanks and permission.]

Point Vim looks as good or better. For more on her see this blog from last October:
http://tugfaxblogspotcom.blogspot.ca/2011/10/new-life-in-old-vim.html

William J. Moore - end of the line?

The tug William J. Moore and tanker barge McCleary's Spirit have been laid up by their owners K-Sea Canada Corp, and the crew has been let go. First and foremost this is sad news for the crew, particularly when foreign flag tankers have been brought in on short term charters to work essentially the same trade.
Both tug and barge have interesting histories, well worth repeating.

1. As built, Warrawee in Australian waters.

The tug was built by Adelaide Ship Construction Pty Ltd in Port Dover, South Australia in 1970 as Warawee for Adelaide Streamship Co. In 1975 it was sold to Seaspan Overseas Ltd but sent to work in the North Sea for Union Towing & Transportation Ltd from 1976 to 1988. It was then renamed Raider and came to Canada to work for Newfoundland Marine Energy Ltd in Come-by-Chance, Newfoundland. It briefly adopted the name Raider IV but then became Alice A. before the end of 1988. McKeil bought the Newfoundland Marine Energy fleet of three tugs (Bonnie B. III  and Carroll C II being the others) in 1999 but it wasn't until 2002 that the tug took its present name William J. Moore when it was paired with the barge. Two GM EMD main engines and a total of 4078 bhp drive twin controllable pitch screws.

2. Tucked into the stern notch of the barge. The raised wheelhouse was added for this work.

3. Heading downstream for the Ultramar refinery to load. 

The barge was built in 1969 as a coal barge Nieuwpoort in Temse, Belgium. In 1978 it became Gato da Mar and in 1984 L'Isle Sous le Vent and converted to a floating fish farm. McKeil bought the barge from layup in Falmouth, UK in 1999 and renamed it Le Vent with the tug Ocean Wrestler towing it to Canada. It was rebuilt to carry jet aviation fuel, and renamed McCleary's Spirit. It now measures 67,888 gross tons, with a cargo capacity of 13,385 tons.
In 2005 ownership passed to K-Sea Canada Corp with McKeil continuing to manage the pair and working under a charter to Pétro-Nav.

4. Heading back upstream a couple of days later, there is visibility from the lower wheelhouse,

but it is not being used.

5. The tug's derrick was also removed and other modifications made to work with the barge.

What the future will bring for the pair is not known. Although neither is very new, they could be expected to last for some time in freshwater service. The combo has been listed for sale for some time, so perhaps a foreign buyer will be found.



Milk moustaches for pups

The navy's pup tugs Listerville and Merrickville put on their milk moustaches, or if you prefer, their bibs, yesterday to assist a special guest.
The white sheets were to prevent any unwelcome black scrub marks on the pristine hull of USCG Eagle.

1. Listerville plows up the harbour on her way to the Cable Wharf.

2. She nosed up to Eagle's hull, right at the red hull stripe, which is reflected on the bib.

3. Parksville with its bib on, stands by waiting for orders.

See Shipfax for a photo of Eagle after she cleared the dock.

Malabar - handsome French naval tug

The attractive French naval tug Malabar sailed form Halifax this morning after a courtesy visit over the weekend. Built in Hamburg by J. Oelkers and commissioned in 1973, it is one of three sisters to the same design, and classed as ATA , ocean tugs. With a bollard pulll of 60 tonnes and with 4,600 bhp, they would not be considered powerful by today's standards, but are certainly capable for naval towing. They are frequent visitors to St-Pierre et Miquelon where they carry out patrols. It can also carry out salavage and pollution control missions if needed.
All three tugs of the class, Malabar, Tenace and Centaure have called in Halifax over the years. Centuare was sold in 1999 to the Turkish navy and is now called Degirmendere.
As a new class of ocean tugs is expected soon for the French navy, so we we may be saying farewell with this visit.

1. Malabar clears the force proteciton booms and heads for sea. The flag flying from the stern will be struck as it is flown only while the tug is in port.