The Merchant Marine Express

Vol.1,No12

We had left port on Friday morning and headed to our ‘load out’ destination.

We were never certain on the date that our ship would leave for a cargo assignment. But, in the end, the Captain pushed to get us a “job”. Our date was set for awhile, though,the crew was poised and ready for this moment. We were in Port for too long- alongside a pier is fine, but being underway is the best!
Our morning of departure looked to be a calm with good weather. The previous mornings were clear with only high cirrus clouds. One would only imagine this day would turn out to be the same, except it wasn’t. The fog had set in, and half of our transit out the bay was under restricted visability. I was assigned on the Stern during “undocking” and it was a challenge for me to handle mooring lines,since this was not the most common thing I was used to doing, especially not on a large ship. For some reason, in the past, on the WATKINS- its sister-ship, I was always on the Bridge assiting with Navigation. This time, however, the undocking went smoothly, and each mooring line was slowly “slacked” out and removed from its respective Bollard on the pier before heaving in and restowing for sea. Each line is attached to a huge Capstan, which is essentially a large Winch that has enough power to “reel” a mooring line, onboard. It takes awhile after this coordinated task to bring everything on deck and secure for sea. But it’s nice to have that final “Wave off” from the Pier help sending the ship on its way!
Our transit was smooth, and it would only take less than a day, before we were Pierside at our destination. My Watch, which was from Noon till Four(1200-1600) in the afternoon, and Midnight until four in the morning(2400-0400) went as planned. However, we would be busy throughout my ‘Mid” Watch since the Harbor Pilot would be boarding the ship in the wee hours of the morning. My task, during the Watch was to coordinate with Delaware “Pilots” and the Vessel Traffic System in the bay and inform them on position and Estimated Time of Arrivals (ETA),etc. Sometimes, there is hardly a thing to do, on a Watch. But during this particular morning, a lot of Communications and arrangements had to be made, during an Arrival.
The Captain was called up, by my Able Seamen, after midnight, and he showed up on the Bridge after a long day of work and pre-planning for the anticipated Arrival. He took the “Conn” soon after, and I was incharge of plotting our position on the Charts as well as making and answering phone calls and logging each task in the Deck Log as it transpired. An Arrival into any port is a very busy time, onboard, for all.
We had a call out on our VHF radio from a US Coast Guard patrol vessel that they would be “Escorting” us and staying off the ends of our ship, or as we say..our “Quarter”. I believe we had two escort ships, at all times throughout our transit, into Port. Their duty was to ensure that no other vessels would impede our transit and any uncertainties be looked after by qualified “armed” personnel!
The journey entering the Delaware River from Sea would take us nearly Eight hours at a clip of about 15 knots. We met the Harbor Pilot, who was awaiting aboard a Pilot boat at a pre-determined “Pilot Station” location at a Bouy. This is coordinated by time, based on our speed. We checked in, with the boat, prior to, “…picking up the Pilot” and miraculously, the boat was waiting for us. Keep in mind, this was all transpiring while in the dark,during the middle of the night!
After a brief meeting with the Captain, the Pilot took the “Conn” from the Master and he would order Helm commands to the Helmsman from now on. The Captain would oversee the voyage, but not entirely relinquishing his command, for he (the Captain) was still overall responsible for the safe navigation of the ship.
After my Watch was through, I was assigned to the Bow, where I would be tending to the Anchor that was set to be “let go” in the event we needed an emergency stop in the narrow channel as well as an extra pair of eyes to look for small vessels or anything else, for that matter. I was relieving the Chief mate who was standing by all this time, and it was then my turn, to just “hang out” and enjoy the quiet morning.
But just as day break came, the clear skies were replaced with dense fog. The deep, blaring sound of a Horn Blast was enough to rattle your bones, especially when it was poised only twenty feet above your head. Every two minutes, the “Fog signal” was sounded by a mechanical timer that was switched on, by someone on the Bridge.
But my duty as a Bow-lookout played a vital role in the safe navigation since I had the best view of the water that lies ahead. Every now and again, the Bridge would call me via my hand-held radio to ask if I had seen a channel bouy and where it was, in relation to the bow. The Bridge, would inturn, see it on its Radar, and make the comparison, visually. My day was just beginning, and it was only Seven O’Clock in the morning (0700)- I had been up since midnight.
Our arrival into Philly was tedious and nerve wracking. I was assigned the Stern for tying up and the level of knowledge and coordination is raised to a higher bar since there are other factors such as the huge Stern Ramp that needs to be lowered to the Pier. In the end,after sending Seven mooring lines to the Pier and an hour and a half later, we were “fast to the pier” awaiting the loading of some precious cargo.
We were situated just below a common Bridge, near the center of town. It was nice to be near a populous, yet the enticement to local establishments did not get the best of me. I did have a job to do, and sightseeing was not in my immediate plans! Cargo loading is very stressfull and a lot of supervising is required.
We started our first load of cargo after lunch, and the shrink-wrapped Helicopters were slowly moved, onboard, and into their respective spots. Each helo was form fitted by a white, plastic wrapping that covered every square inch of the body. Afterwards, the mummified cargo was lashed, in place, and the “lashing crew” moved from one helo to another, making sure everything was secured for sea.
This day started at midnight, and ended at four in the afternoon. What a day- but what an experience!
Have a great one!

Tags: USNS Charlton