By 7 pm. last night we were back in the North Atlantic Ocean. We first sailed straight north to get away from the Amazon Bar and then by midnight we left the last traces of the Amazon behind as the blue Ocean waters surrounded us again. Out next port of call is Bridgetown in Barbados and that is about 1100 miles away and thus we will spend 2 days at sea. It will give the guests time to relax after our Amazon expedition and enjoy the cooler sea air. Everybody can now take a deep breath before we visit the beautiful Caribbean ports of Bridgetown Barbados and Oranjestad Aruba. From there it will be homeward bound to Fort Lauderdale were we will end the cruise on 22 December 2010. Then we will start a 14 day Christmas cruise to the South East Caribbean. At the moment Florida is suffering from a period of cold weather and if that lasts until the 22nd it will be a cold home coming after the tropical temperatures of the rain forest. However that is still a week away and with the instable weather everywhere, things might change quickly. Continue reading

With 2 to 3 knots of Amazon current in the stern we were flushed down the river to approach Macapá pilot station to disembark our pilots. As the Brazilian authorities had already left us in the previous port, we only had to slow down briefly to match the pilot boat speed and we were on our way again. I had aimed to be passing Macapá at 0900, which was high tide there. That means that we would have 3 to 4 knots of ebbing current with us, until well clear of the river, followed by going against the flood current for the next period of time. By that time we would be out of the “narrow” part of the river (e.g. less then 5 miles wide) and into the wide part (e.g. about 50 miles) and thus would have less flood against us than Ebb with us. Also it would mean that we would arrive at the bar at high tide and thus would have maximum clearance under the keel. Mother Nature was obliging and high tide came in as predicted. We had 4 knots of current with us and we arrived 20 minutes after high water at the bar. I always like it when my planning works out. Continue reading

This is a totally different port than the rest of the Amazon ports, including those that we visited. It is not a port at all, it is a beach resort and we land our guests right onto the beach. The resort, which is only small, is located about 25 miles up the Rio Tapajos past Santarem and tucked away in a crescent bay with a very long sandy beach. It has proven very popular with the guests in the past and we now have it once a year in the schedule. For us it is one of the ports where we have to send an “advance party” ashore as we do not know what to expect. With a high river level, the tenders can sail into a sort of Marina and dock at a little pier. When the water level is low the beach can stretch for half a mile and the tenders have to dock at a sort of contraption that the locals call a floating pier provided it is there. Hence reason to be there early and sort things out before the guests are ready to go ashore. Continue reading

Moving down the river always has the feeling that things go a lot faster. This is certainly the case in the rainy season when the Amazon current can reach a velocity of up to four knot, but even now a current of around 2 knots it gives a nice push in the back. Although the average speed might remain the same, it gives the same feeling as when walking with or against the wind. Also it saves an engine to make the speed required and that helps greatly with the fuel consumption. 100 miles south of Manaus is the Itacotiara pilot station where we switched pilots again. The two “Manaus” pilots left and the two “river pilots” joined. They will stay with us until Macapá where the Amazon starts & ends for compulsory Pilotage and which is 170 miles upstream from the Amazon Bar, there where the Amazon waters meet the North Atlantic Ocean. Continue reading

We all enjoyed a good night’s sleep after all these standbys while going up the river. Although the rainy season is supposed to have started we id not see much of it yet, as yesterday was a clear sky day and today it was the same again. Only just before departure we saw the first thunder storm gathering momentum above the city of Manaus. We were the only cruise ship in port and there aren’t many expected in the coming weeks, until the season gears up in late January. Ahead of us is another floating pier, called the Torres pier and alongside was a cargo ship, loading and unloading containers, which listened to the beautiful name of log-in. We were all wondering if her sisters would be called pass-word, username or something similar, derived from the computer world. It turned out that the name of the owner company was LOG, hence the ships names that started with the brand name. Somehow in the past, they were a bit more creative and respectful with naming ships. Continue reading

Not the whole waterway that we generally call the Amazon River is really covered by it. Just before Manaus, the river Solimoes and the river Rio Negro meet and form the Amazon. Also Pilotage for the river is split up in two groups. Thus we had a pilot change at the town of Itacotiaria about 120 miles South of Manaus. All was set for 00.15 and in front of the town we passed the Regatta from Oceana Cruises and their pilots came over to us. They had left Manaus at 16.00 hrs. yesterday and now they will be back at 10 am. today. Travelling in 5 star luxury and getting paid for it as well. For an Amazon pilot getting a cruise ship job is very desirable as mostly they are stuck on austere equipped tankers and container ships. Thus we get most of the time the very senior pilots who firmly stand on their stripes to enjoy room service while piloting. They know that the HAL ships are very hospitable as me and all my colleagues follow the policy that a pilot full of food does not complain and thus we ensure that all is arranged according to this philosophy. Continue reading

From Santarem to Boca is not that far only about 220 miles up river. Not much speed required, although the river has a few shallow spots in them where we slow down to about 10 knots to avoid squat. For the rest it is easy going and I had a quiet seven hours standby (six hours normal, plus and one hour back with time difference) on the bridge from midnight to arrival. I kept the average speed higher than needed for the official schedule as I wanted to arrive at sunrise. The sun was rising at 05.32 and I dropped the hook at 06.00 hrs. Boca de Valeria (see also the archives from autumn 2007 and March 2010) does not have a dock or a port; you just deal with it according to the height of the water. That means that an “advance landing party” is needed. Spearheaded by the chief officer in charge of an extensive maintenance team. The locals always put out a sort of platform for the tenders if the waters are low but the result is seldom five star or HAL guest acceptable. Thus carpenters with wood, upholsters with carpet and sailors with rope went ashore to do what was needed. Even the locksmith came along……just in case of….. Continue reading

The river was good to us during the night. The current was not too strong and with the timely departure from Macapá we managed to nicely stay on schedule. For the first time in three years I arrived on time in Santarem. What was even better, I was early. So I did not have to rush in but could gently float to the dock, helped by the wind that was lightly pushing on the starboard side. Due to the low level of the Amazon, the pier level was quite high compared to the ship and we had to rig up the gangway on the highest break door. And then we happily sat there for the remainder of the day. Also here Mother Nature was kind to us, it did not rain until 1830 when most of the guests were back already. Then the rain really pored down, the level in the swimming pool and the Jacuzzi’s rose more than 3 inches during the one hour’s downpour. Luckily it had diminished to a light drizzle by the time that we were departing and I got through the maneuver with one umbrella. Not always are open bridge wings conducive to enjoy work at all times. Continue reading

Last night the chief officer and I started our 6 on 6 off standbys on the bridge; to have an extra pair of eyes present when sailing in these confined waters. Until the pilot boards, the navigators are conning the ship up the river but for the whole cruise up to Manaus and back again, the chief or I will be present. A lot of extra work, but I like to be the captain of the ship Prinsendam and not of the Hotel Prinsendam. The river can be full of trees and unlit boats, the mud banks are always close, thus each extra pair of eyes is an asset. It is 170 miles from the bar to the pilot station at Macapá and that meant that once over the Bar, we could go a bit slower, all depending on how much the adverse current was going to be. That was the unknown factor as the local information that comes to us before we go upriver only indicates high and low water and not the strength of the Amazon flow. So I made sure that I had a bit of power up my sleeve in case the Amazon was going to spring a surprise on me. It did but the other way around than expected. There was much less river current than I would ever have betted on. Basically the current was so weak that the North Atlantic tidal movement overpowered it all. Good for us. That meant the Prinsendam would be on time at the pilot station without any worries at all. Continue reading