Any ship coming into Dublin Port in today’s gales after crossing the Irish Sea will have felt mighty glad to get into the shelter of the port. But for P & O’s European Endeavour late this morning, there was the additional tricky matter of getting turned in the river without taking out the Poolbeg Y & BC marina, and then going astern into her berth in the Alexandra Basin writes W M Nixon.
Fortunately the renowned Dublin Port push-me-pull-you tug Shackleton (one of the pair with her sister-ship Beaufort) was on hand to show what she can do when a real heave in any direction is needed, and though it took time, the Endeavour was lined up and slid neatly into place.
Shackleton sets to her work. The wind freshened markedly as the manoeuvre was under way. Photo: W M Nixon
Many Afloat.ie visitors will be familiar with the “Ballet of the Tugs” performed by Shackleton and Beaufort during the Dublin Riverfests. But as this morning’s task showed, while the tugs may well be game to perform as an all-singing all-dancing act, when there’s work to be done they’re more than able for it, as this sequence shows. The photos as usual fail to capture a sense of the real strength of the breeze – Dublin Airport was recording 40 knots with 50 knot gusts, and it got fresher after that, a real winter gale. But when summer comes, doubtless we’ll see the ballet again, and we sign off with a pic of that.
Summertime in Dublin. The hard-working Shackleton takes time out for a spot of Strictly with her sister-ship Beaufort. Photo: W M Nixon