Ships

View from Ravenglass Viaduct at high tide. Sat15Oct11

No, not THAT beach, but nice enough. Not too far from the Thai Naval Base at Sattahip, and the whole area is under the jurisdiction of the Thai Navy. Fri24Nov06

I think this is part of the Coast to Coast route. But for now the boat seems to be the better option, at least till the tide goes down. Saltcoats. Fri28Oct11

A gathering of narrow boats on the Lower Peak Forest Canal, near to Portland Basin, Ashton-under-Lyne. Sat15Jul00. Scanned

The 16 locks at Marple raise the Peak Forest Canal 209ft in about a mile. Opened in 1804, before which time a temporary tramway connected the two sections, traces of which still remain. Here we see a narrow boat travelling downhill from Marple Junction and exiting Lock 10. Tue9Apr91. Scanned

The SS 'Orcades'. Built 1947 by Vickers Armstrong in Barrow-in-Furness for the Orient Steam Navigation Co., initially for the UK - Australia/New Zealand route. Orient Line became P&O in 1966. Here she is seen in No 6 dry dock at Southampton on Sat16Jun71. She didn't have long to live; laid up at Southampton in October 1972 she sailed on her last voyage in January 1973 to a ship breaker in Taiwan. Scanned

One of the vessels owned by Union Castle Line. Built by Swan Hunter in Wallsend in 1965 and scrapped in 1984. Seen here in Southampton Western Docks. Sun13Jun71. Scanned

The SS 'Himalaya'. The first post war vessel to be ordered by P&O. Built by Vickers Armstrong in Barrow-in-Furness, her maiden voyage was made in October 1949 to Sydney. Here we see her arriving at Southampton in April 1972. Retired in 1974 she ended up in the ships graveyard in Taiwan. Scanned

A product of Harland and Wolff in Belfast, built 1943 for the Union Castle Line. Retired after 38 years of service. Here she gets a helping hand out of Southampton Eastern Docks on Sun13Jun71 on what could be her last voyage, to the ship scrapyard in Taiwan. There seems to be a distinct lack of windows on her bridge Scanned

Dockside view of the QE2. Southampton Eastern Docks. June 1972. Scanned

Early morning at Southampton Western Docks on Wed19Apr72, with the Union Castle liner 'Pendennis Castle' in the foreground. In the background can be seen the P&O liner 'Iberia' arriving on her final voyage. Two months later she set sail for a date with the scrapman in Taiwan. Scanned

The 'Queen Elizabeth 2', flagship of the Cunard Line for almost 40 years. Seen here at Southampton Eastern Docks. The vessel in the foreground, the 'Fairsky', had a varied career, starting life in 1941 in San Francisco as a cargo ship, but was built as an escort carrier and loaned to the Royal Navy as HMS Attacker. Converted into a passenger liner after the war, she is probably best known for the migrant passenger service between the UK and Australia, from 1958 to the early 1970s, after which she became an Australian based cruise ship. Her demise came in 1979 during refurbishment into a floating hotel/casino in Manila, when she was gutted by a fire. The wreck was eventually towed to Hong Kong for scrap. June 1972. Scanned

Its fishing days are long gone, but this abandoned boat is nicely placed to provide a foreground for photos of Eskmeals Viaduct. A Class 156 crosses the River Esk with a southbound service. Wed14Apr10

Fishing boat Shogun awaiting the next high tide at Ravenglass. Fri30Sep11

A trio of swans glide past 'Eagle' at Whitehaven Harbour. Tue1Mar05

Situated on a small rocky island connected to the mainland by a 1 mile long causeway, is the Temple of Wat Ko Loi, at Si Racha, Thailand. Within the Wat can be seen images of the Chinese Goddess of Mercy and the Buddha's Footprint, in addition to a wax statue of a local monk known for his healing powers. A resident for many years, he mysteriously disappeared in 1959, along with all the donations.... Thu29Oct09

Built in Gdansk in 1952 as a fishing vessel, the Zawisza Czarny was rebuilt with 3 masts and fitted with an ex U-Boat engine. It is now owned by the Polish Scouting and Guiding Association. Seen here at Barrow during a Tall Ships weekend. Sun13Jun04. Scanned

A windfarm support vessel. Whitehaven Harbour. Sun9Aug09