We arrived at the anchorage just after dark. It's strange to have the ship so still after all this time. What was most apparent were the smells of soil and vegetation. As we approached the anchorage there was a breeze blowing from the shore to the sea and it carried all these smells to us. After so many days at sea with salt water and diesel exhaust the only smells it was comforting to once again experience land-based smells. You don't realize how much you have missed these.
There seems to be some confusion as to the ship's name etc. It is called the Manitoulin, and its IMO # is 8810918. It was formerly the tanker Lalandia Swan. The entire cargo section was removed and a new-built cargo section, complete with self-unloading gear, was added at the shipyard in China. For some reason all the AIS sites still list the ship as a tanker, and some still retain the old name.
Our trip from Davao, Philippines to Balboa, Panama covered 9,432 nautical miles over a period of 30 days 8 hours and 28 minutes. Nothing in comparison to those brave souls who set out to explore the world all those centuries ago; how they endured is a mystery to me. And, there are still thousands of mariners who travel these distances and times on a regular basis to deliver almost all the stuff you buy. Next time you buy something made overseas, thank a Mariner.
The next few days on board will be quite busy as we prepare for the final leg of our journey. Stay tuned!
Paul
On Board M/V Manitoulin
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Still showing up as Lalandia Swan and coloured red on map indicating a tanker. Though shows on map as Manitoulin.
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Greetings from Central America!
After 30 days on a base course of 089 degrees we have at last had a course alteration and are now steering 045 degrees.
Since we left the Philippines many things have happened at home, Canada's federal election changed the political landscape, the BlueJays lost to the Royals, and the Royals won the World Series, they had snow in the Barrie Ontario area, and many other things too numerous to mention. Oh yes, and the Leafs are still terrible.
At 0700 today we are at 07.1 North and 079.9 West. Abeam of Peninsula de Azuero, Panama. That puts us a few hours from Balboa anchorage.
Before sunrise we were welcomed by a vigourous electrical storm with lots of lightening and rain. And, we stopped rolling. The former was astounding, the latter is a wondrous event.
For the first time in 30 days we see land!
The lineup in the anchorage is huge, ships everywhere. Plus we met a few ships bound for the Pacific. One of the outbounders was the CSL Tacoma, built in Jiangzin in 2013. It's a self-unloader made for CSL International and is too large to fit in the Seaway. With the Traffic Separation Scheme here we could see these ships but they were about 4 miles away, too far for photos.
We should be visible on your favouite AIS site sometime this afternoon.
We'll spend a few days anchored, then make the Canal transit and head northish to Canada.
Paul
After 30 days on a base course of 089 degrees we have at last had a course alteration and are now steering 045 degrees.
Since we left the Philippines many things have happened at home, Canada's federal election changed the political landscape, the BlueJays lost to the Royals, and the Royals won the World Series, they had snow in the Barrie Ontario area, and many other things too numerous to mention. Oh yes, and the Leafs are still terrible.
At 0700 today we are at 07.1 North and 079.9 West. Abeam of Peninsula de Azuero, Panama. That puts us a few hours from Balboa anchorage.
Before sunrise we were welcomed by a vigourous electrical storm with lots of lightening and rain. And, we stopped rolling. The former was astounding, the latter is a wondrous event.
For the first time in 30 days we see land!
The lineup in the anchorage is huge, ships everywhere. Plus we met a few ships bound for the Pacific. One of the outbounders was the CSL Tacoma, built in Jiangzin in 2013. It's a self-unloader made for CSL International and is too large to fit in the Seaway. With the Traffic Separation Scheme here we could see these ships but they were about 4 miles away, too far for photos.
We should be visible on your favouite AIS site sometime this afternoon.
We'll spend a few days anchored, then make the Canal transit and head northish to Canada.
Paul
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Go to Transport Canada's Vessel Registration Query SystemCurious to know what the actual size of the Manitoulin is as far as the length in both feet and meters along with the width and also the depth? Cannot find any information whatsoever on it however, I presume the width of course is 78 feet. Also, what is the cargo capacity as far as gross tons is concerned and at Seaway Draft? Don't know what Seaway draft is maybe 26 feet? Thanks for any information and sorry for too many questions. Don't know where I can find any of this as there is no publications that I am aware of?
http://wwwapps.tc.gc.ca/Saf-Sec-Sur/4/v ... istrations
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Manitoulin
Wed Nov 4 1200 Central time 6.8n 098.9w
ETA Balboa Nov 8.
Last night we had some visitors. 9 white wading birds (we are 600 miles from the closest land), 1 seabird sitting on the foremast light and 1 Eagle. Big one too. By morning there were only 2 wading birds left but many seabirds joined us and they regularly dive into the ocean for food. The waders must have been blown off course or were migrating and needed a rest.
Just after 4 AM we ran into a squall. The wind hit 30 knots for a few minutes and the rain was pelting across the ocean surface and the steel of the ship. This was the strongest wind we have experienced so far. These squalls have been forecast by the weather routing service we are using. By taking the equatorial route we avoid the more active weather that is typically found farther north on a Great Circle route.
Also yesterday the rolling increased enough to disturb my sleep. It's only 10 degrees, which is not excessive at all, but it does cause you to slide around your bunk when trying to sleep. One cadet sleeps through anything no matter how the ship throws him around, but I am a bit more sensitive. For me it became a '3 cushion' night. 2 wedged under the outer edge of the mattress to form a hollow and a 3rd up against the inboard bulkhead to pin me in place. It worked.
I am looking forward to experiencing everything a Panama Canal transit has to offer, even just to sail through the recently implemented Traffic Separation Scheme on the Pacific side of the canal. Oh yes, and to see what sort of ships are around and, if they are close enough, to photograph a few.
A la prochain fois.
Paul
Wed Nov 4 1200 Central time 6.8n 098.9w
ETA Balboa Nov 8.
Last night we had some visitors. 9 white wading birds (we are 600 miles from the closest land), 1 seabird sitting on the foremast light and 1 Eagle. Big one too. By morning there were only 2 wading birds left but many seabirds joined us and they regularly dive into the ocean for food. The waders must have been blown off course or were migrating and needed a rest.
Just after 4 AM we ran into a squall. The wind hit 30 knots for a few minutes and the rain was pelting across the ocean surface and the steel of the ship. This was the strongest wind we have experienced so far. These squalls have been forecast by the weather routing service we are using. By taking the equatorial route we avoid the more active weather that is typically found farther north on a Great Circle route.
Also yesterday the rolling increased enough to disturb my sleep. It's only 10 degrees, which is not excessive at all, but it does cause you to slide around your bunk when trying to sleep. One cadet sleeps through anything no matter how the ship throws him around, but I am a bit more sensitive. For me it became a '3 cushion' night. 2 wedged under the outer edge of the mattress to form a hollow and a 3rd up against the inboard bulkhead to pin me in place. It worked.
I am looking forward to experiencing everything a Panama Canal transit has to offer, even just to sail through the recently implemented Traffic Separation Scheme on the Pacific side of the canal. Oh yes, and to see what sort of ships are around and, if they are close enough, to photograph a few.
A la prochain fois.
Paul
-
Denny
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Curious to know what the actual size of the Manitoulin is as far as the length in both feet and meters along with the width and also the depth? Cannot find any information whatsoever on it however, I presume the width of course is 78 feet. Also, what is the cargo capacity as far as gross tons is concerned and at Seaway Draft? Don't know what Seaway draft is maybe 26 feet? Thanks for any information and sorry for too many questions. Don't know where I can find any of this as there is no publications that I am aware of?
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
What an adventure. I hope you will share pictures later.
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
1200 Sunday Nov 1. 6.6n 114.2w
2171 NM to Panama. Eta at the anchorage the 8th.
The Pacific Ocean is like the Energizer Bunny - just keeps going and going.
Each morning before sunrise we get to see Venus and Jupiter rising in the east. Glorious. I believe Mars is also part of that package.
Then the sun comes up, very quickly. In the evenings we have these spectacular sunsets, although we have not yet seen the green flash as the upper limb of the sun drops below the horizon - usually because there are clouds along the horizon. The last week or so also had the full moon rise just after sunset, this time right ahead of us. It was huge and extremely bright.
Tonight we turn the clocks ahead another hour to keep our local time in tune with the Longtitude. We do this every 15 degrees of longtitude or so. By tomorrow morning we will be on Mountain time, Edmonton / Phoenix time. Almost back in eastern time.
The watchkeepers on board, who make up more than 50 % of the crew get a small break each time the clocks go ahead. We each have 20 minutes less of time to spend at our respective positions. We change the time at 2 AM. But we did have to live through the same day twice when we crossed the Dateline all those days ago.
As we progress we change charts to keep track of our position. Holy smokes, there is land on the charts now. That is exciting after all this water. First we had British Admiralty chart 4618 and it shows the Galapagos (Archipielago de Colon) in the eastern section. We also refer to BA chart 4051, much smaller scale (larger area) and it shows a good chunk of North America, all of Central America and part of South America. So we are getting closer.
Did I mention it's lovely and warm? Every day. 24 hours per. I did not bring enough pairs of shorts, but will suffer this for the team.
Until next time...
Paul
2171 NM to Panama. Eta at the anchorage the 8th.
The Pacific Ocean is like the Energizer Bunny - just keeps going and going.
Each morning before sunrise we get to see Venus and Jupiter rising in the east. Glorious. I believe Mars is also part of that package.
Then the sun comes up, very quickly. In the evenings we have these spectacular sunsets, although we have not yet seen the green flash as the upper limb of the sun drops below the horizon - usually because there are clouds along the horizon. The last week or so also had the full moon rise just after sunset, this time right ahead of us. It was huge and extremely bright.
Tonight we turn the clocks ahead another hour to keep our local time in tune with the Longtitude. We do this every 15 degrees of longtitude or so. By tomorrow morning we will be on Mountain time, Edmonton / Phoenix time. Almost back in eastern time.
The watchkeepers on board, who make up more than 50 % of the crew get a small break each time the clocks go ahead. We each have 20 minutes less of time to spend at our respective positions. We change the time at 2 AM. But we did have to live through the same day twice when we crossed the Dateline all those days ago.
As we progress we change charts to keep track of our position. Holy smokes, there is land on the charts now. That is exciting after all this water. First we had British Admiralty chart 4618 and it shows the Galapagos (Archipielago de Colon) in the eastern section. We also refer to BA chart 4051, much smaller scale (larger area) and it shows a good chunk of North America, all of Central America and part of South America. So we are getting closer.
Did I mention it's lovely and warm? Every day. 24 hours per. I did not bring enough pairs of shorts, but will suffer this for the team.
Until next time...
Paul
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Dear Boatnerds:
The Manitoulin's cruise across the Pacific continues. This is day
19 on basically the same course. This is the mother of all oceans.
Our position at noon the 28th was 6.3N 135.1W.
The weather continues to be lovely. There have been several storms but none of them have ventured our way. The worst was called Patricia and at its worst it had winds gusting over 220 Knots. The equatorial zone has protected us.
We have also been routed to take advantage of the eastward-flowing current. This has given us anywhere from 1 to 3 knots of extra speed.
Our ETA at the anchorage on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal is Nov 8. In all liklihood our transit through the Canal will be at night, date to be determined, but you may get to see us on the Canal CCTV website.
Wish you were here.
Love
Paul
The Manitoulin's cruise across the Pacific continues. This is day
19 on basically the same course. This is the mother of all oceans.
Our position at noon the 28th was 6.3N 135.1W.
The weather continues to be lovely. There have been several storms but none of them have ventured our way. The worst was called Patricia and at its worst it had winds gusting over 220 Knots. The equatorial zone has protected us.
We have also been routed to take advantage of the eastward-flowing current. This has given us anywhere from 1 to 3 knots of extra speed.
Our ETA at the anchorage on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal is Nov 8. In all liklihood our transit through the Canal will be at night, date to be determined, but you may get to see us on the Canal CCTV website.
Wish you were here.
Love
Paul
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Looks like there is a back up at the both ends of the Panama Canal with several ships awaiting passage according to the GCaptain website. Hopefully clears up before the Manitoulin arrives.
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Paul reports he has been having trouble connecting to the Internet but sent this quick update:
Manitoulin crossed the International dateline on October 20 at 3:09 AM local time. We then turned the calendar back one day as we were now in the Western Hemisphere.
The trip has been pleasant, very hot and humid outside. Gorgeous sunrises and sunsets every day.
Noon position October 22
6 degrees north
167.3 degrees west
ETA Panama about November 9.
--------------------
Paul
Manitoulin crossed the International dateline on October 20 at 3:09 AM local time. We then turned the calendar back one day as we were now in the Western Hemisphere.
The trip has been pleasant, very hot and humid outside. Gorgeous sunrises and sunsets every day.
Noon position October 22
6 degrees north
167.3 degrees west
ETA Panama about November 9.
--------------------
Paul
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Don_Detloff
- Posts: 136
- Joined: December 6, 2014, 5:37 pm
- Location: Fair Haven, MI
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Paul -Guest wrote:Greetings to the Chief Engineer!
We arrived in Davao about mid-day, after carrying out some test manoeuvres in the bay outside the city earlier in the day. ...
...It has been a long, hot day for all on board. My watch is over until 4AM so I am off to bed.
Paul
Welcome to the P.I. Sounds like things haven't changed much from my Navy days a long time ago.
I'm enjoying your updates. Keep them coming and have a safe trip across the Pacific.
- Don
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Jonah
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Good day to the Manitoulin and crew!
Hope your cadet got a good deal on pearls.
Here is how to tell the authenticity of pearls...
http://www.wikihow.com/Tell-if-a-Pearl-Is-Real
If link does not work for you, then just rub the pearls on clean teeth. Pearls should feel gritty. If smooth, not genuine pearls.
Also, anyone with experience handling pearls of various quality may soon realize genuine pearls feel like no other just by the weight in ones hand.
Enjoy!
Hope your cadet got a good deal on pearls.
Here is how to tell the authenticity of pearls...
http://www.wikihow.com/Tell-if-a-Pearl-Is-Real
If link does not work for you, then just rub the pearls on clean teeth. Pearls should feel gritty. If smooth, not genuine pearls.
Also, anyone with experience handling pearls of various quality may soon realize genuine pearls feel like no other just by the weight in ones hand.
Enjoy!
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Greetings to the Chief Engineer!
We arrived in Davao about mid-day, after carrying out some test manoeuvres in the bay outside the city earlier in the day.
Temperature: Stifling. Followed by Torrential rain 6 hours later.
It took us several hours to tie the ship up as the big lines I mentioned yesterday must all be man-handled and we are somewhat short of bodies. Then, our fancy, new accommodation ladder, all two tonnes of it, proved to be a work of torture to rig outboard. I have no doubt it will be modified once the ship arrives in Canada; along with several other fancy things that may not work quite as well as planned.
The pilot boat brought the pilot and the health official to us. The latter stamped a few sheets of paper, then waited for his little bribe, um gift.
Once alongside about 10 people came on board, supposedly from Customs, and they also stamped a few sheets of paper and went home with heavier bags than when they arrived.
The ship's agent and the chandler came on board. At least the chandler provided a worthwhile service and we now have some lovely fruit to enjoy over the next little while.
Port State Control showed up and made some disparaging remarks about the ship and its condition. State of their bags were unchecked.
We started loading fuel and water. During this the sky darkened, lightening lit up the clouds, then the sky opened. At least it was a warm rain.
We have finished fuelling but are still in the process of taking fresh water, 17 tonnes at a time. Total of ten trucks, of which only 8 have made an appearance.
Several of the crew went to the gate to make a quick run into the city only to be told that they weren't allowed through the dock area with flip-flops on despite the fact that most of the locals were working on the dock in bare feet! And besides, Immigration never came on board so no one was allowed ashore. Perhaps Immigration heard we were out of cigarettes and fire-water.
If we finish our watering tonight we will leave right away. If not, it will be a morning departure.
Security is posted as another ship recently had some people sneak on board, probably up the mooring lines, and they stole several of the ships survival suits.
On the way in we were approached by little boats offering pearl necklaces for ridiculously low sums or for trade. One cadet managed to bargain away something of no value to him for some pearls. Weather the pearls are real or not remains to be determined.
It has been a long, hot day for all on board. My watch is over until 4AM so I am off to bed.
Paul
We arrived in Davao about mid-day, after carrying out some test manoeuvres in the bay outside the city earlier in the day.
Temperature: Stifling. Followed by Torrential rain 6 hours later.
It took us several hours to tie the ship up as the big lines I mentioned yesterday must all be man-handled and we are somewhat short of bodies. Then, our fancy, new accommodation ladder, all two tonnes of it, proved to be a work of torture to rig outboard. I have no doubt it will be modified once the ship arrives in Canada; along with several other fancy things that may not work quite as well as planned.
The pilot boat brought the pilot and the health official to us. The latter stamped a few sheets of paper, then waited for his little bribe, um gift.
Once alongside about 10 people came on board, supposedly from Customs, and they also stamped a few sheets of paper and went home with heavier bags than when they arrived.
The ship's agent and the chandler came on board. At least the chandler provided a worthwhile service and we now have some lovely fruit to enjoy over the next little while.
Port State Control showed up and made some disparaging remarks about the ship and its condition. State of their bags were unchecked.
We started loading fuel and water. During this the sky darkened, lightening lit up the clouds, then the sky opened. At least it was a warm rain.
We have finished fuelling but are still in the process of taking fresh water, 17 tonnes at a time. Total of ten trucks, of which only 8 have made an appearance.
Several of the crew went to the gate to make a quick run into the city only to be told that they weren't allowed through the dock area with flip-flops on despite the fact that most of the locals were working on the dock in bare feet! And besides, Immigration never came on board so no one was allowed ashore. Perhaps Immigration heard we were out of cigarettes and fire-water.
If we finish our watering tonight we will leave right away. If not, it will be a morning departure.
Security is posted as another ship recently had some people sneak on board, probably up the mooring lines, and they stole several of the ships survival suits.
On the way in we were approached by little boats offering pearl necklaces for ridiculously low sums or for trade. One cadet managed to bargain away something of no value to him for some pearls. Weather the pearls are real or not remains to be determined.
It has been a long, hot day for all on board. My watch is over until 4AM so I am off to bed.
Paul
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
To echo everyone else thank you for your posts. It's fascinating to hear about the daily life aboard ship on a long voyage like this.
Is Scott Bravner along on the voyage?
Is Scott Bravner along on the voyage?
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George
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
Thanks so much for the pictures and your updates about location and the work going on each day.
-
Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
8 PM Philippines time, 8 AM Eastern
Position: 06.4N 126.4E
Course 221, speed 13.
Temp 29C. Wind about 20 knots from the SW.
Lightening persistent to the west yet the Milky Way visible above.
At 20 miles we can see the flash of Cape St Agustin lighthouse. Once abeam we will alter about 150 degrees to starboard to enter the bay leading to Davao.
We are scheduled to be at the Davao Pilot Station at 9 AM tomorrow. We will secure in the port and take on fuel and water and discharge garbage. Total time alongside is unknown. Fuel will only take 2 hours but water may be slow as it arrives in a truck that can carry 30 tons, and we don't know how far it has to go for each load.
We saw our first land in 5 days today. Mindinao has some high peaks.
As we get closer traffic has increased somewhat. We were recently overtaken by a bulk carrier heading to Australia. The ship was 300 metres long, 60 metres wide and had a deadweight of 250,000 tons. It was cruising along at 18 knots! (That's a footer in length and about 200 feet wide)
We took out our various lines for tomorrow's tie-up. These are about 4" diameter, 8-strand nylon, and they seem to soak up water. We had them stored inside the focsle to prevent them washing away, so had to drag them out again. The focsle is very hot and humid as it has a fair amount of electronics inside and we cannot risk opening it to salt water/air. Plus we had to take out both pilot ladders and rig them ready to use, not yet knowing which side the pilot will come up. Hot, heavy work.
Tomorrow morning we will free up the anchors, the hawse pipes have been filled with burlap and concrete to prevent water ingress. Then we will be ready to secure.
More on our adventures tomorrow. I hope to be able to go for a walk and see a bit of the city and its million and a half population.
I'm still finding it hard to comprehend that I am so far from home and so near the equator, but it's pleasant to be warm in October for sure!
Paul
Position: 06.4N 126.4E
Course 221, speed 13.
Temp 29C. Wind about 20 knots from the SW.
Lightening persistent to the west yet the Milky Way visible above.
At 20 miles we can see the flash of Cape St Agustin lighthouse. Once abeam we will alter about 150 degrees to starboard to enter the bay leading to Davao.
We are scheduled to be at the Davao Pilot Station at 9 AM tomorrow. We will secure in the port and take on fuel and water and discharge garbage. Total time alongside is unknown. Fuel will only take 2 hours but water may be slow as it arrives in a truck that can carry 30 tons, and we don't know how far it has to go for each load.
We saw our first land in 5 days today. Mindinao has some high peaks.
As we get closer traffic has increased somewhat. We were recently overtaken by a bulk carrier heading to Australia. The ship was 300 metres long, 60 metres wide and had a deadweight of 250,000 tons. It was cruising along at 18 knots! (That's a footer in length and about 200 feet wide)
We took out our various lines for tomorrow's tie-up. These are about 4" diameter, 8-strand nylon, and they seem to soak up water. We had them stored inside the focsle to prevent them washing away, so had to drag them out again. The focsle is very hot and humid as it has a fair amount of electronics inside and we cannot risk opening it to salt water/air. Plus we had to take out both pilot ladders and rig them ready to use, not yet knowing which side the pilot will come up. Hot, heavy work.
Tomorrow morning we will free up the anchors, the hawse pipes have been filled with burlap and concrete to prevent water ingress. Then we will be ready to secure.
More on our adventures tomorrow. I hope to be able to go for a walk and see a bit of the city and its million and a half population.
I'm still finding it hard to comprehend that I am so far from home and so near the equator, but it's pleasant to be warm in October for sure!
Paul
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
October 10, 8 PM China Time.
Position: 11.7 degrees North, 127.7 degrees east.
East of Leyte Gulf.
Course 175, speed 13.2
Wind N'ly 10 knots
Temperature 29C, Mostly Clear.
On our way to Davao, Mindanao Island, Philippines, for fuel, water and garbage disposal.
We should be there in about 30 hours.
We have been told there is a midnight curfew in Davao. It must be hard to enforce as there are 1.3 million people there.
We shall see.
Work on board is progressing nicely, many of our supplies have been stored and secured and anything that might rust has been well greased, at least on the forebody. There are always jobs to be done on board a ship; even the paint brushes will be out soon.
Below is a photo of the crew just before we left our final anchorage to head south. One of the Engineers did not make curtain call.
Attached are other photos of the Manitoulin before christening/renaming and of the official party during the ceremony. Also two photos of the ship: one taken from the unloading boom and the other of the ship at speed.
Until tomorrow.
Position: 11.7 degrees North, 127.7 degrees east.
East of Leyte Gulf.
Course 175, speed 13.2
Wind N'ly 10 knots
Temperature 29C, Mostly Clear.
On our way to Davao, Mindanao Island, Philippines, for fuel, water and garbage disposal.
We should be there in about 30 hours.
We have been told there is a midnight curfew in Davao. It must be hard to enforce as there are 1.3 million people there.
We shall see.
Work on board is progressing nicely, many of our supplies have been stored and secured and anything that might rust has been well greased, at least on the forebody. There are always jobs to be done on board a ship; even the paint brushes will be out soon.
Below is a photo of the crew just before we left our final anchorage to head south. One of the Engineers did not make curtain call.
Attached are other photos of the Manitoulin before christening/renaming and of the official party during the ceremony. Also two photos of the ship: one taken from the unloading boom and the other of the ship at speed.
Until tomorrow.
- Attachments
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-
-
-
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Guest
Re: On Board M/V Manitoulin
The Lalandia Swan was a deep sea vessel to begin with, so I'm sure that she has a fairly large fuel capacity.