Apologies for the late posting, but the satelite guru’s in Miami have had us switch to different satelite reception and our big funnel was in the way for most of the day while sailing close to the coast of Cuba . Changing course was not possible as we are not allowed to go to Cuba yet.
It was extremely breezy when I came on the bridge at 04.30 so much that I decided to call out a tugboat, as a safety precaution, especially as we had to back up the Intracoastal, past the Celebrity Eclipse and past a bunker barge. Bumping into another ship is never a good idea but bumping into a fuel barge is an even worse idea, thus a tugboat for peace of mind. All the ships were nicely on time and so the whole parade could enter as planned by the harbor master. Then 30 minutes before the pilot station, the wind suddenly moved to a North Westerly direction and as it was now blowing overland it lost most of its ferocity. Which meant it could have easily done it without a tugboat. But we cannot predict what the weather is doing and thus we get it wrong sometimes. (If I could predict the weather correctly, then I would be working for CNN and make real good money)
By 07.00 hrs we were happily settled in at Pier 29, to hear the good news that by the time we make our next call, all cruise terminals will be up and running again and we would be able to dock were the captain liked it the best. Pier 29 is a small terminal, but we are only a small ship and it all worked out.
Docked on the Intra Coastal Sea way with the bunker abrge coming alongside.
We were bunkering 1,000 tons of fuel today and this time it came by barge. Fort Lauderdale has a shore side pipe line system but that is also under refurbishment and thus the port is cluttered with bunker barges, supplying the cruise ships. Currently the HFO price is between 600 to 800 dollars a ton, depending on the grading of the fuel and today we got it for $689 so my fuel bill was $ 689,000— It is a pity that you do not get Air miles or other points with it, like I get when I fill up my car at home.
The Hotel Director was a happy man as well, as he received new chairs for the Crow nest. We had nice brown ones but they were impossible to re-upholster on board and they had reclining seats which guests could hardly get out off. Now they are more straight upright, a little bit higher and upholstered in such a way that we can redo them on board when the time comes. They should go down well with the guests.
By 10 am the wind shifted again and once more it blew from the North East with ever increasing velocity. Peaks of around 24 knots were seen and that meant issues for departure. The bunker barge would be there again and it would be uncertain if the Celebrity Eclipse was going to sail on time. I had some decisions to make when it would come to 60 minutes before departure.
In the meantime guests were leaving the ship. Now Pier 29 has been refurbished, they have implemented the system here that you pick up your luggage FIRST and then go to the immigration desk. CPB is of course now both immigration and customs, and thus try to combine the two duties into one officer doing it. The verdict is (at least for me) still out, whether it is an improvement but it certainly saves manpower on the CBP side, and with the shortage of money in the government certainly an understandable step.
By 15.30 I had all my officers on the bridge for our pre departure meeting and the wind played a very important role in it. It was blustery, so action number one was to arrange for a tugboat. Plan A was to wait for the C. Eclipse to sail, so we would have more room; plan B was to go around her if, if there was a delay in sailing, while taking into consideration the wind of course.
In the end I decided to wait, as 26 knots of wind was shown on the wind meter. The Eclipse was delayed due to a Medivac and late luggage but then life is never perfect. As Murphy’s Law dictates, the moment we sailed it blew even harder so we needed the tugboat to keep us in the middle of the fairway.
By 18.00 hrs we were safely sailing out of the port, not forgetting to honk the horn for the apartment buildings near to the entrance, and a new cruise had started. It will remain windy during the night and for tomorrow as the Cold front is only supposed to abate by Tuesday. Cold wind means clear skies and thus sunny weather. We should be able to see Cuba quite well tomorrow morning.
November 11, 2012 at 2:17 pm
Watched you sail away on the webcam. Love the honks! 🙂
November 11, 2012 at 4:38 pm
As one of the apartment dwellers on the Port Everglades Inlet we are delighted to hear the horn!
November 11, 2012 at 6:40 pm
We enjoyed your sailaway too, via the webcam and the horn was a pleasure to hear. Since it was dark, the lights all over the ship were just beautiful and it was especially exciting for us since we’ll join you aboard soon.
November 11, 2012 at 7:12 pm
Love the horn, Thank You!!