ships

Like many cities, New London has plans to revitalize its downtown. One project local leaders hope will bring in  tourist dollars is the construction of a National Coast Guard Museum on the city’s waterfront.

Mystic Seaport hosts its annual Sea Chanty Blast and Pub Sing this Saturday. The event brings together some of the best chanty singers and groups from the northeast.

With Tom Hanks getting good reviews for his portrayal of a ship captain taken over by Somali pirates, it might be a good time to note that there could be a future Hollywood script being written right now in the Russian port city of Murmansk. 

Connecticut is celebrating its maritime heritage this weekend with the Schooner Festival in New London. The brand-new event hopes to attract thousands of people from around the region, and provide a showcase for local companies.

The Fishers Island Ferry prepares to sail from its terminal in New London. She'll have some company today, as 20 schooners, sturdy, sleek and fast sailing vessels with a long history in Connecticut, arrive in the Thames River.

The executive director of Amistad America Inc., a New Haven-based non-profit, asserts that all money it has received from the state has been used appropriately. Amistad America owns and operates the Freedom Schooner Amistad, and recently lost its non-profit status after falling behind in filing federal tax returns.

Yesterday, Mystic Seaport celebrated another major milestone in its effort to restore the only wooden whaling ship left in the world. 

On Sunday, the crowd overflowed from Mystic Seaport's shipyard, to boats spread across the river, and any piece of shoreline with a view. 

White- "Ladies and gentlemen," 

That's Seaport President Steve White.

White- "Welcome to the launching of the Charles W. Morgan on her 172nd anniversary. Welcome!"

A significant milestone was reached in the restoration of the Charles W. Morgan- Mystic Seaport's 172 year old wooden whaling ship. 

Mystic Seaport president Steve White addressed over 200 people gathered beside the giant wooden hull of the Charles W. Morgan.

White- "...the last surviving whaling ship on the face of the of the earth, and the oldest commercial ship afloat in the western hemisphere..."

Dr. Robert Ballard is probably the world’s most famous explorer - in part because of his Titanic discovery - in part because of his tireless mission to uncover secrets of the deep.

Before we get started on ferries, let me make a few things clear.

Connecticut’s marine industry is one of many facing tax increases in governor Malloy’s proposed budget. But those in the industry say the changes could have unintended consequences. 

Early April is a quiet time for boating here in Connecticut. Most pleasure boats are still tucked under winter covers, but for Connecticut boatyards this is just as important a time of year as any other.

At pilot’s point marina in Westbrook, Rives Potts is inspecting a 46 foot sailboat that his yard has been rebuilding in one of their sheds.

The state Department of Environmental Protection is training volunteers to educate boaters about invasive species on Candlewood Lake. Last fall the invasive zebra mussel was found in Lakes Zoar and Lillinonah. The mussel can be carried in boats from one lake to another. Eleanor Mariani of the D.E.P. says the volunteers will ask boaters to make sure they’ve cleaned their vessels if they’ve been in a lake that contains the mussel.