River Thames Cargo Ship Movements October

 Cargo Explorer - Diary October 10th 2020

There is a true feeling of " Once you open a door ." feeling for me at the moment, the more I look , the more I realise just how little I know. I mean I have said it before , but personal experience and contemplation is really driving it home to me.

Having spent the last few days in Gravesend to observe the to'ings and fro'ings of container ships on the river Thames near Tilbury port , I am fascinated and intriqued even more by just how our transport system is the lifeblood of everything we encounter daily.

There is nothing quite like sitting at the riverside watching the giant container carrying vessels, the tug driven river barges , the refuelling tanker boats, the patrols, the river captains the whole entire support system that drives the infrastructure first hand. 

Everytime I see something new I wonder how it fits into the logistics puzzle. I wonder who fits where, what boat supports which ship, why are they here and not there, what port can facilitate which size ship. I am more and more puzzled but slowly some answers are arriving. 

Whilst researching today I came across the whole scenario of seafarers not being able to change crews due to covid 19. I mean that had not ever even occured to me. These deep seafarers are usually 6-8 months at sea , then they get 4-5 months time off depending on their shipping companies policies. But due to these unforeseen health and safety regulations in the wake of further covid measurements, many of the crews on these vessels are having to extend their time onboard even longer. New crews cannot arrive because country borders are closed. Old crew cannot  leave, because new ones cant arrive or old crews find themselves stranded at ports. And yet so little seems known about these people who put themselves out there to supply 90% of the UK cargo. 

Whilst there is nothing I can directly do to change that, I can at least educate myself, find out more, ask more, perhaps share more of what I find so others may learn too.

... all for today here at 

CargoExplorer

VESSELS SPOTTED TODAY - nr Tilbury Dock, River Thames , London

 VESSELS SPOTTED TODAY - nr Tilbury Dock, River Thames , London
September 2020

PURFLEET

Ship Spotter

 RT EVOLUTION 

ship spotted in Purfleet

• Tug, built in 2014 
• IMO: 9691357
• call sign : 9HA3623
• currently sailing under the flag of Malta 
  

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:3261/mmsi:229802000/imo:9691357/vessel:RT_EVOLUTION

LIV KNUTSEN

ship vessel spotted in Purfleet

• Oil/Chemical Tanker,  built in 2009
• IMO: 9409273 
• call sign : 9HA5042
  
• currently sailing under the flag of Malta

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:195093/mmsi:215289000/imo:9409273/vessel:LIV_KNUTSEN

PLUTO

• Oil/Chemical Tanker, built in 2008
• IMO: 9353137 
• call sign : V7A2240
  
• currently sailing under the flag of Marshall Is
  

 https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:192884/mmsi:538008326/imo:9353137/vessel:PLUTO

TILBURY DOCKS

Ship Spotter

SWITZER BRUNEL

boat spotted in Tilbury Docks

• Tug , built in 2003
• IMO: 9273753  
• call sign : MBTT2
  
• currently sailing under the flag of United Kingdom.

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:189070/mmsi:235012605/imo:9273753/vessel:SVITZER_BRUNEL

 

 

GPS NAPIA

boat spotted in river thames waters in Greenhithe

• Tug , built in 1965
• IMO: 8730625 
• Call Sign: ZQWF9
• currently sailing under the flag of United Kingdom.

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:191950/mmsi:235053693/imo:8730625/vessel:GPS_NAPIA

 

 

NORSKY

RoRo cargo ship spotted unloading at Tilbury Docks

• Ro-Ro Cargo , built in 1999
• IMO: 9186182 
• call sign : OJRB
  
• currently sailing under the flag of Finland

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:228156/mmsi:230652000/imo:9186182/vessel:NORSKY

   

GRAVESEND

Ship Spotter

COLUMBUS

cruise ship spotted in Gravesend

• Passenger Cruise Ship , built in 1989
  
• IMO: 8611398
• call sign : C6CP4
• currently sailing under the flag of Bahamas
  

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:186368/mmsi:311000535/imo:8611398/vessel:COLUMBUS

 

GPS NAPIA

boat spotted in river thames waters in Gravesend

• Tug , built in 1965
• IMO: 8730625 
• Call Sign: ZQWF9
• currently sailing under the flag of United Kingdom.

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:191950/mmsi:235053693/imo:8730625/vessel:GPS_NAPIA

 

 

GPS INDIA

ship spotted in Gravesend

• TUG, built in
  
• MMSI: 23509806 
  
• call sign : 2GKA2
• currently sailing under the flag of United Kingdom.

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:200377/mmsi:235098066/imo:0/vessel:GPS_INDIA

CATHERINE

empty cargo ship spotted heading out of Gravesend destination rotterdam

 

• Ro-Ro Cargo, built in 2002
• IMO: 9209453 
• call sign : 9HA4113
• currently sailing under the flag of MALTA
  

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:117897/mmsi:249107000/imo:9209453/vessel:CATHERINE

THAME

• Thames Research Vessels
  

TILBURY DOCK RIVER THAMES nr London Viewing Points

 TILBURY DOCK RIVER THAMES nr London Viewing Points



Recommendations from personal visits and other peoples comments for viewing spots that look across
from the south of the river thames to the north where Tilbury docks are situated. Direct access to the port on the north side of the river thames is prohibitied to the public as far as I know


TILBURY DOCK - situated north of the river .. no known viewing points accessible to the public

TILBURY DOCK views from across south of the river.
recommendations:

NORTHFLEET

- Walk down fountain walk, opposite the north fleet bus garage. A residents private car park is situated on the left hand side. It can be accessed by a set of steps and from there views over the docks and the end of the tilbury dock can be had

 - Further on from here into the direction of Gravesend is Birch Road. At he river side of Birch road is a viewing spot for traffic coming in and out of the docks and other shipping movements on the stretch of the river.

- the PLA ( http://www.pla.co.uk/) London Port authority publishes shipping movements and vessel tracking as well as local tide times.

- there is a tilbury container website as well with information on current container ship vessel traffic.

GRAVESEND

- Traffic coming to and fro the container port can be seen here in Gravesend near the historic quarter. There are some terraces and viewing benches, but a fairly high concrete wall in places.

Good spots near the ferry terminal on the right hand side past the big red boat ( LV 21 historic Light Vessel 21) for the clearest unobstructed view of shipping movements. Fairly short window for seeing the boat come by but good for setting up a photography shot. Close to town and a pub with old port photographs of the maritime heritage area.

- There is also a cruise terminal nearby on the north side which can be viewed from the Gravesend ferry terminal.

A Close up at Cargo Container Lock Lift Mechanism

 Sept 21 -  CARGO EXPLORER - Illustrated Research Study Journal  

A Close up at Cargo Container Lock Lift Mechanism


Today the webcam took a position lower down on the cargo ship and I got a close up view of the actual metal containers . I feel like a mechanic or engineer looking at these contraptions . They have fascinated me for a while now as they are in integral part to actually allowing the container to be lifted .. still don’t know what they are called but I am quite happy for now to just observe and absorb

Making sketch notes for later illustrations. When one is totally unfamiliar with a subject it’s easy to get technical details completely wrong in an illustration .. It’s not easy to find out what these particular fixture holes are called — anyone ??? But I enjoy the process and am hoping to take it slow enough to figure out some basics

TO DO LIST : 

- Find diagrams of parts of a  shipping container
- research tech terminology pertaining the lifting mechanism


All for today ...
onward

feel free to follow along on instagram
#cargoexplorer

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***

Cranes and Water

CARGO EXPLORER - Illustrated Research Study Journal  

CRANES AND WATER 

Yesterday I mainly looked at different types of cranes , thise that operate on some kind of rail system, those that seem to be stationary with rotating arms, and others that ar attached to moving vehicles...
beginning to get a feel for the different situations that make different cargo cranes neccessary.

 

 

This little container boat turned up right alongside the cargo boat I was watching, parked next to it and containers were transferred from one boat to the next . This is the first time I have observed side by side cargo transport transfers. I am still marvelling at the logistics of it all

On the Illustration side I have been experimenting with making different types of water textures that might come in useful for depicting river, sea or ocean waves. I found this piece of flat driftwood that had kind of organic indentations, and when rubbed with a dry pencil crayon produced lovely wave like marks.


 

I will make myself a few sheets trying out wax crayons rubbings, pencils and anything else i can think off to get some variety to experiment with


All for today ...
onward

feel free to follow along on instagram
#cargoexplorer
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Container Ships Loading and Unloading

Cargo Shipping Study - Container Ships Loading and Unloading - Research Log- September 2020



A week into my research study on how cargo is shipped around the world, and I am finding it interesting just how hidden this industry is. Many of the loading and unloading goes on in specialised container ports that are inaccessible to the public.

Having looked at some kids literature that is available out there, hardly any at all feature cargo ships or container handling vehicles. Plenty of building and construction site stuff, ferries and cruise ship .. but how are these kids learning about the cargo industry ? Hmm , I guess that might also explain why so many adults dont really know how their stuff actually gets to them.

I have been really enjoying following along the journey of the MCS Feniks this week. This boat seems to manly navigate the canals and rivers around Amsterdam and Rotterdam and there are lots of opportunities to see neighbouring ships, different stations of unloading and loading. I am beginning to get a feel for the daily route of such a boat  or are these called barges? So much to learn, but I feel I have many a good start. Here some pictures of this weeks learning log journal. 

Sketching a bit of loading and unloading action at Waalhaven where MCS Feniks is travelling today ..
never bored looking at all the different cranes

Really interesting study time today watching a second boat pull up alongside and the large crane loading containers from one to another .. I can only imagine what the logistic handling organisation must be like .. fascinating

TO DO LIST: 

• Figure out names of different types of cranes for lodging and unloading
• What is t called when a boat pulls up along side you?
• When is a boat called a barge? When is a boat called a ship?
  

All for today ...
onward

feel free to follow along on instagram
#cargoexplorer
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TOUR of a really big CONTAINER SHIP

TOUR of a really big  CONTAINER SHIP

So for the past few days I have been following a small container ship, that is crusing about the dutch canal ways. It had me wondering just how the different tasks and equipment would translate on a much larger vessel.

As of yet I have not found a live webcam on a larger container ship... but this young ship mate offeres a video tour of a large bulk carrier with some good insights of the layout.

It is very interesting to see that it takes 4-5 minutes walking speed to reach the front of the boat when you have started at the back .

So for some Mariner Vocabulary learned today

Back of the Ship - Aft
Front of the Ship - Forward

I will start a listing of all the new words learned, perhaps with little illustrations that help explain it to younger people too.


All for today ...
onward

feel free to follow along my Cargo Transport Research Illustrated Journal on instagram
#cargoexplorer

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Woke wondering where my ship was

 SEPTEMBER 14 - Illustrated Learning Journal #cargoexplorer

..........

Found myself waking up this morning wondering where "my" ship had moored



or whether it travelled all night. Barely awake I sprinted to the computer to find it being loaded in a port called Waalhaven, nr Rotterdam. How exciting. 

Having watched it cruise in the pitch dark, navigating locks and barely lit waterways I was feeling happy to see it in daylight again.

It is so interesting to me, that when I dont know something, everything appears fresh and exciting , a new discovery everytime I ask a question.

As promised I looked up the ships name. It is MCS Feniks, and started its journey yesterday in a port near Amsterdam. Here a link to the webcam if you'd like to take a peek

https://webcam-binnenvaart.nl/pages/cam-feniks.php

I pressed a few dutch buttons and ended up on the right place which told me all the journey information, mooring times and ports of destination.

Further information , with kind thanks to " vesselfinder" can be found on their ship tracking website
https://www.vesselfinder.com/vessels/FENIKS-IMO-0-MMSI-244139567

I am not quite sure what all the numbers mean yet, but I will learn in time.

At the time of writing this the position of the MCS Feniks is here.....

and my screen is almost pitched dark as it is now night time, but the boat is still travelling , having had lots of container loading and unloading stops in Rotterdam. I'll post some more pics later.
Now I am wondering how it navigates, radio? echo? Ah here comes thing to find out...

image: screenshot, webcam copyright webcam-binnenvaart.nl
Container Ship MCS Feniks, Transport Travel by Night

This is all the captain sees ... as the container ship is moving to its new destination. i am in awe of technology and skill levels right now ..


other images: screenshot, with thanks to webcam copyright vesselfinder.com

Cargo ship web cam journey

 September 14 - Research Log

Today  I spent some happy hours being entirely mesmerised by a Dutch webcam affixed to a container ship with absolute close up views of loading the cargo .. at some point the metal box hung on the crane swung so close to the camera That I inadvertently ducked !! What a fab view though .. then the ship took off but alas I don’t read Dutch so currently it’s destination is unknown ... I left the camera on and hopefully will see in the morning where it landed.  It is a smaller boat and just passed a lock which was fascinating to watch .. I’ll look up the name of the webcam tomorrow and post a link on the bloghere

........
Cargo Explorer Transport- Illustrated Learning Journal

What determines air travel versus ship transport ?

 September 13, 2020 

A day of more questions than answers. I received a package from Japan today , a small protective envelope with some Japanese ink drawing nibs. It occurred to me that , again , I had no idea just what a journey this parcel would have taken to get to me . 

Are post parcels considered cargo? What determines if it travels by air or sea? Size ? Point of origin? Destination logistics? 

I am beginning to realise that this line of questioning is quite difficult to organise into coherent thoughts and avenues of enquiry. Where to start ? What lead to follow ? How not to get lost or distracted in the rabbit whole of information ?

Language and terminology are also proving to be an obstacle. I think a kind of ‘transport terms’ dictionary might be worth creating so I’d be able to actually understand the information presented. At times if feels like a foreign language, but I guess that is the same with any specialist field subject.

All for today ...
onward

feel free to follow along my Cargo Transport Research Illustrated Journal on instagram
#cargoexplorer

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SOUTHAMPTON PORT - Best Viewing Places for Spotting Cargo Container Ships

 SOUTHAMPTON PORT - Best Viewing Places for Spotting Cargo Container Ships

---------------------------------------------------

SOUTH of ENGLAND

- collecting some suggestions for good container ship viewing points around Southampton Harbour, Hampshire, UK

•  Mayflower Gardens
  - closed for around 3 weeks in September for Boat Show

•  Calshot Castle
  - container ships ( and general) in and out of Southampton Harbour
  
  
• Cowes
  - container ships ( and general) in and out of Southampton Harbour
  

• Town Quay 
  - container ships entering and leaving Southampton port.

•  Itchen Bridge
  - for smaller boats and vessels entering/ leaving the River Itchen
  
  
• Hamble
  - foreshore view to oil tanker port terminal at Fawley
  

• 
  
  
  All for today ...
  onward
  
  feel free to follow along my Cargo Transport Research Illustrated Journal on instagram
  #cargoexplorer
  
  Cargoexplorer Instagram