Naval and Cruise Ships

Cruise ships are regular visitors to Halifax during the summer months, but things ramp up in September and October, sometimes with three or more in port at a time - sometimes they can be seen arriving in a line in the harbour approaches. Friday only saw two arrivals, but at least they did line up for a photo.

Zuiderdam and Serenade of the Seas.

Zuiderdam.

Serenade of the Seas.

The Grey Funnel Line was also active this week. HMCS ST. JOHN'S was busy getting ready for a training cruise, which may be combined with a relief mission to hurricane stricken locations down south, Hurricane Irma having just devastated several islands and now heading for Florida.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S.

On Friday, HMCS MONTREAL arrived back in Halifax from a training cruise.

HMCS MONTREAL.

HMCS MONTREAL.

On the port side of her funnel, in a location where RHIBs are normally carried, there were two Meggitt Hammerhead target drones stacked.

The Meggitt Hammerhead drone can be see to the left beside the funnel, and there seems to be another under it.

Hammerheads are remote control drones that are used for training and target practice. They are built locally by A.F. Theriault & Son Ltd. for Meggitt Training Systems.

Recent Halifax Harbour Shipping

I'm short on time to provide detailed commentary, but here are some of the commercial ships that have visited Halifax over the past couple of months or so. I will start with the cargo carriers and freighters.

Budapest Bridge

OOCL Kuala Lumpur with tug Spitfire III.

OOCL Kuala Lumpur.

OOCL Kuala Lumpur with tug Spitfire III.

OOCL Kuala Lumpur.

Vega Omega (ex-Surinam River). 

YM Express.

NYK Terra.

Atlantic Cartier.

Atlantic Oak escorting Atlantic Cartier. No relation.

Atlantic Cartier is approaching the end of her life as ACL's new G4 ships come online, and it shows.

Atlantic Cartier.

Atlantic Cartier.

Irving's tanker Acadian. The Woodside ferry is sometimes better for getting close to anchored ships.

Car carrier Liberty.

Liberty. Once again, the Woodside ferry provided a better vantage point.

Desert Osprey and Algoma Dartmouth.

Car carrier Splendid Ace.

Polar Prince (aka Canada C3) is undertaking a Canada 150 cruise through Canada's arctic. This shot is actually a panorama taken through the chain link fence with my cell phone. One must be inventive at times to get the shot.

Polar Prince was berthed at Pier 24, which made camera angles rather...limited. The vignetting in this image is from the chain link fence I was forced to shoot through.

Polar Prince.

Spring brings the herring fishing fleet into Halifax.

Morning Star.

Morning Star (left, with stabilizers still deployed) and Tasha Marie (right).

It is also the time of year for cruise ship status to start in Halifax.

Crystal Symphony.

Maasdam at Pier 20. Another shot from the Woodside ferry.

Anthem of the Seas departing for sea.

Queen Mary 2 departing for sea.

Queen Mary 2 departing for sea.

Queen Mary 2 departing for sea. By the time she reached this far out, the heat haze was significantly deteriorating the quality of my photos.

Lured to Point Pleasant Park to catch the departure of USS DWIGHT D EISENHOWER, I managed to catch the arrival of Grandeur of the Seas.

Grandeur of the Seas.

Grandeur of the Seas. The back-lighting of these images makes processing a challenge.

Grandeur of the Seas.

I will finish off with this photo of Fundy Pilot, a new face in Halifax.

Fundy Pilot and Vega Omega.

There appear to be two new pilot boats at the Dominion Diving wharf over in Dartmouth near King's Wharf, but I have yet to get a photo.

Photos this week: October 8-14

There was a fair amount of Navy traffic this week, including an ever elusive submarine. Unusually, I will start with a photo taken in Lunenburg, where the French Navy's Saint Pierre et Miquelon patrol vessel FULMAR was tied up at the Lunenburg Foundry wharf.

FNS FULMAR (P740).

On Tuesday, HMCS ST. JOHN'S timed her departure perfectly to coincide with my ferry trip to work, and I got some nice shots of her as we ducked around her stern.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S.

As ST. JOHN'S was departing the harbour, Halifax's largest cruise ship visitor to date Anthem of the Seas was arriving for another visit. I will display some more images of the latter ship later, but when looking at this shot of the two ships together I can't help but be reminded of the scene in the James Bond movie "The Spy Who Loved Me" where the nuclear submarine is swallowed up by the much larger oil tanker. 

ST. JOHN'S and Anthem of the Seas.

HMCS WINDSOR (SSK 877) was busy this week, and departed and returned to Halifax multiple times, even taking out some Members of Parliament during one of her trips. I'm obviously in the wrong career!

HMCS WINDSOR passing the lighthouse on Georges Island.

I was excited upon first siting WINDSOR on Wednesday, as she was running her diesels, and had the tell-tale condensing exhaust plumes streaming out behind her. Diesel-electric submarines like WINDSOR use their diesels to recharge their batteries, which in turn power the electric motors that move the submarine and power other equipment. After passing the lighthouse on McNab's Island, however, the diesels must have been shut down. Just imagine how much better the shot above would have been if she hadn't? Actually you don't have to, because on Friday I caught her again in roughly the same location.

HMCS WINDSOR running her diesels.

Unfortunately, Friday was overcast, and didn't have the nice dawn sky for a background. Maybe next week?

HMCS WINDSOR.

While on the subject of WINDSOR running her diesels, I might as well dig up these 10 year old shots of WINDSOR transiting the narrows on her way to Bedford Basin.

WINDSOR in May 2006.

WINDSOR in May 2006.

WINDSOR in May 2006.

Finally, some news on fleet disposals. HMCS PRESERVER moved south in the Dockyard this week. She will be paid off for the last time on Friday October 21. While still in commission, she has been stranded alongside for around 2 years, pretty much relegated to serving as a fuel barge.

HMCS PRESERVER on week prior to being paid off.

The former HMCS IROQUOIS will also soon be moving, when she leaves Halifax for the last time. It was announced this week that Iroquois will be heading for Liverpool to be broken up alongside ex-HMC Ships ALGONQUIN and PROTECTEUR, the former a sistership.

HMCS IROQUOIS in 2007.

Commercial traffic was also busy this week, and October is usually one of the busiest months for cruise ships. Wednesday saw at least 5 cruise ships, although two were rather small, and one had overnighted from Tuesday.

From left to right, Victory I, Pearl Mist, Crystal Serenity, and Zuiderdam.

Victory I, Pearl Mist, and Crystal Serenity in the background with Chebucto Pilot to the far right.

Victory I and Zuiderdam.

Speaking of Chebucto Pilot, I captured a nice image of her passing Georges Island, with sunlight reflected from a Halifax building illuminating her port side.

Chebucto Pilot.

Even without being part of a dastardly plot to capture HMCS ST. JOHN'S, Anthem of the Seas is an impressive sight. She is apparently the fourth largest cruise ship in the world (for now, anyway).

Anthem of the Seas.

Anthem of the Seas.

Serenade of the Seas seems small by comparison.

Serenade of the Seas.

Serenade of the Seas.

On Tuesday, Common Venture was at anchor after receiving fuel from Algoma Dartmouth.

Common Leader.

Veteran Atlantic Conveyor was threading her way out through the narrows, on what is probably one of her last trips before heading to the breakers. 

Atlantic Conveyor.

Nolhanava.

Coriolis II is the former CCGS John Jacobson. She was tied up at the former Dartmouth CCG base, which is now slated to become an ocean research facility. 

Finally, in case you missed it, I will mention my previous post with photos of the Picton Castle up on the Lunenburg Marine Railway.