Displaying items by tag: Port of Hull

26th September 2018

Cowes Cargoship Caller Docked in Major UK Port of Hull to Open Rare Public Tours In October

#Ports&Shiping - Cowes Week synominous for the World famous regatta held in the UK off the Isle of Wight town is also home to Carisbrooke Shipping which today has one of their cargoships docked in the Port of Hull which on 21st October is to host public tours, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Tickets to visit the English port on the North Sea coast however have apparently been snapped up. To those who have secured tickets already from Associated British Ports (ABP) through Eventbrite, this will enable a rare behind-the-scenes opportunity to experience the huge scale of operations at the UK east coast port.

The four 90-minute tours held throughout the day will begin at ABP Port House in Hull (HU9 5NS), followed by an exciting coach tour of King George V Dock (pictured above) where the Carisbrooke cargoship, Kimberly C constructed in China in 2011 is at time of writing berthed in the dock's basin. The 6,800dwt gearless mini-bulker is one of 31 in the fleet of dry-cargo and multi-purpose ships that ranges from 5,000dwt to more than 13,000dwt.

Afloat has researched that the ship is due to depart the dock and head for Tilbury (London) on the Thames Estuary before a longer passage bound for Dublin Port next week.

King George V Dock is one of several docks that comprise the port complex includes the neighbouring Hull Container Terminal where Irish built ship-to-shore cranes were installed earlier this year. This involved a seaborne delivery of a pair of Liebherr (Killarney plant built cranes) conveyed on a heavy lift-ship HHL Lagos on a voyage from Rushbrooke, Cork Harbour to the UK port.

Returning to the port tours in Hull next month, they are to include stop-off points to fully gain a sense of the vast operations which according to ABP play such an important role in the UK and local economies.

The Port of Hull which is located on the Humber estuary is one of four ports operated by ABP, the others are located opposite on the south shore in Goole, Grimsby and Immingham. The latter port hosted a successful open day which saw over 500 people attend from across the UK.

Published in Ports & Shipping

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Deep Blue-Hulled Cruisecaller to Irish Ports Among those Increasingly Using Hull

SMS Towage's new 72 bollard pull ton tug Superman and CMV's Marco Polo in the King George V Dock lock entrance at ABP's Port of Hull where the North Sea port has become an increasingly popular cruise calling destination. In addition to cruises departing Hull including Marco Polo visiting Irish Sea ports.

#CruiseLiners - The deep blue-hulled Marco Polo, Cruise & Maritime Voyages veteran vessel as Afloat previously featured calling to Irish ports is among seven cruiseships that will use the UK Port of Hull this season, writes Jehan Ashmore.

The North Sea port located on the Humber estuary is operated by Associated British Ports (ABP) and has become an increasingly popular cruise calling destination and for those directly departing from the port in East Yorkshire. In order to further attract cruise-goers, ABP has invested in creating additional car parking for holidaymakers to ensure a stress-free trip embarking.

Marco Polo has called to the Port of Hull throughout the summer and Afloat will have more to report on a mini-cruise between Hull and Harwich in Essex.

In addition to CMV's Marco Polo, the first caller this season to Port of Hull was Silversea Cruises six-star expedition ship, Silver Cloud. The 250 passengers enjoyed a day trip to Hull, last year's UK City of Culture and to nearby historically-steeped York.

According to ABP, port apprentices and staff lined up to welcome the Silver Cloud passengers to Hull as they enjoyed canapés and jazz music prior to boarding. Also taking place was a traditional plaque exchange held on board between ABP, Silver Cloud’s Captain and Hull City Council’s Lord Mayor and Admiral of the Humber.

The 12 day Silversea Cruise toured the UK which concluded in the Pool of London where the 157m entered through the iconic Tower Bridge. Also this season, passengers boarded Silver Cloud from this central location on a cruise to include Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way.

Hull is centrally located port on the Humber and is already home to daily P&O Ferries operated routes to Zeebrugge and Rotterdam. Together these overnight services annually handle just under one million passengers travelling to Belgium and The Netherlands.

Published in Cruise Liners

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Ireland & La Solitaire du Figaro

The Solitaire du Figaro, was originally called the course de l’Aurore until 1980, was created in 1970 by Jean-Louis Guillemard and Jean-Michel Barrault.

Half a decade later, the race has created some of France's top offshore sailors, and it celebrated its 50th anniversary with a new boat equipped with foils and almost 50 skippers Including novices, aficionados and six former winners.

The solo multi-stage offshore sailing race is one of the most cherished races in French sailing and one that has had Irish interest stretching back over 20 years due to the number of Irish stopovers, usually the only foreign leg of the French race.

What Irish ports have hosted The Solitaire du Figaro?

The race has previously called to Ireland to the following ports; Dingle, Kinsale, Crosshaven, Howth and Dun Laoghaire.

What Irish sailors have raced The Solitaire du Figaro?

So far there have been seven Irish skippers to participate in La Solitaire du Figaro.

In 1997, County Kerry's Damian Foxall first tackled the Figaro from Ireland. His win in the Rookie division in DHL gave him the budget to compete again the following year with Barlo Plastics where he won the final leg of the race from Gijon to Concarneau. That same year a second Irish sailor Marcus Hutchinson sailing Bergamotte completed the course in 26th place and third Rookie.

In 2000, Hutchinson of Howth Yacht Club completed the course again with IMPACT, again finishing in the twenties.

In 2006, Paul O’Riain became the third Irish skipper to complete the course.

In 2013, Royal Cork's David Kenefick raised the bar by becoming a top rookie sailor in the race.

In 2018, for the first time, Ireland had two Irish boats in the offshore race thanks to Tom Dolan and Joan Mulloy who joined the rookie ranks and kept the Irish tricolour flying high in France. Mulloy became the first Irish female to take on the race.

Tom Dolan in Smurfit Kappa competed for his third year in 2020 after a 25th place finish in 2019. Dolan sailed a remarkably consistent series in 2020 and took fifth overall, the best finish by a non-French skipper since 1997 when Switzerland’s Dominique Wavre finished runner up. Dolan wins the VIVI Trophy.

Dolan finished 10th on the first stage, 11th on the second and seventh into Saint Nazaire at the end of the third stage. Stage four was abandoned due to lack of wind.

Also in 2020, Dun Laoghaire’s Kenneth Rumball became the eleventh Irish sailor to sail the Figaro.

At A Glance – Figaro Race

It starts in June or July from a French port.
The race is split into four stages varying from year to year, from the length of the French coast and making up a total of around 1,500 to 2,000 nautical miles (1,700 to 2,300 mi; 2,800 to 3,700 km) on average.
Over the years the race has lasted between 10 and 13 days at sea.
The competitor is alone in the boat, participation is mixed.
Since 1990, all boats are of one design.