Inbound into San Juan Puerto Rico

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your willingness to let us share in your professionalism and your own continued development of that professionalism is incredibly generous, informative, and just plain useful.

After seeing you tow the barge out and flipping it around to tow on the wire, I was wondering about the reverse, so I have got to see this! Wow, that was very smooth indeed. I might be simple, but I have always loved Tugboats. They are the hardest working boat in the harbor.

My father's last ocean going job as a merchant seaman was as the captain of an ocean going tug towing a barge made from a converted LST to San Juan from Jacksonville Florida. A week down with new cars and appliances and a week back almost exclusively rum. I remember getting to Jacksonville early enough to see him dock the barge. He was a wizard witha helm and throttles. It wasn't his first towboat rodeo.

I’m an aviation nut, but you have caught my attention! Keep it up. God’s blessings.

I passed by that bay entrance last Tuesday. Went a mile or so out past the El Morro castle. Great fishing day! Caught around 7 yellow fin tuna,3 saw fish (sierra) 2 snappers 2 albacore tuna.it amazed me how that channel entrance goes from 60ft to 200ft and half a mile further out you in 2,000 plus ft deep. The trick to catch big fish here is not in the water,but up in the sky!!!can anyone guess!?!?!

Nice seeing the old pro learning his new gig. Thanks for bringing us along.

"Never approach the dock faster than you want to hit it." Drilled into my head on the little fishing boats and pontoons I grew up on and just as relevant for barges, tankers, cruise ships, and the like.

Love the way you talk us through your maneuvering! Great stuff!

Learning curves are good; they keep the mind sharp, and, as we get older, I'm 71, it's good to still be able to experience the enormous satisfaction of taking up a challenge and mastering something that, at first, was a little intimidating. Good job, Cap'n!

Great intro to your new offshore workplace. The speeded up sections togeather with your commentary, actually give very clear indication of how the you and the assist tug worked togeather. Some clips showing the towing offshore in heavy conditions and how you deal with this would be interesting. Keep up the good work.

18:56 The Tortoise Mindset: How Slow & Steady Wins ~ Aesop I enjoy the slow parts and you are a great narrator.

Greetings. I am here, accepting your invitation to check back now and then. I enjoyed your tug work today and seeing who you had to coordinate with. Of course I was on that Navy fleet tug so it's interesting to see some details of your harbor work. Well back to the West Coast for me! It was nice to see ya! Michael Dougfir

Really awesome video. So cool you are letting us follow along to your new digs. No worries about learning the new job and it possibly interfering with the channel. It just shows your true professionalism and love for the job you do. Thank you for sharing and taking us along, you and the new crew stay safe out there. CUOTO

Approaching slow is always better than fast. Especially with that weight. Stay safe and good luck on the new boat.

I will never forget entering San Juan harbour in late 1985 on a 9,000 ton Greek cruise ship. There had just been a hurricane in the Bahamas so the winds were still strong. As we rounded the point in front of the old fort, the wind caught us and she heeled over at least 30 degrees. I was in the dining room and everything on the table just starting coming at me. It all went on the floor. That was the second time that she had heeled over like that. It also happened as we slept much earlier that morning. Dishes in the galley on our level took an awful beating that night. That ship got t-boned in an Italian harbor a few years later and unfortunately a young British tourist died but as far as I was concerned, that's where that ship belonged on the floor of that harbour.

Another great video. You're one of the Captains that doesn't have to tell people you're good.

Good job. Don't slip on the ice. 😆 🤣

There is sometimes a wicked cross current just off the harbor entrance to San Juan that makes the ship feel like its being lifted out of the water. The first time it feels like the deck is pushing you into the sky. - Lots of fun.

The last time that I entered San Juan aboard ship was in 1970 on the Coast Guard Sagebrush 399. I was nineteen at the time. The Coast Guard Base was on the left going into the bay. There was a prison behind the Coast Guard Base, when prisoners escaped I got to do roving patrols with a loaded 1911 45 pistol. Alas, we never got to shoot a bad guy, while strutting around in our dress white sailor uniforms with white leggings.

Time is your best friend. We do a lot of towage and running alongside smaller vessels that have issues/ropes in props etc, going in to weird places, and since we're fast rescue vessels there van be a temptation to overcook things. But slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. Especially with an unfamiliar load on the side you can so easily get yourself out of shape by putting too much energy into the equation too quickly. Sure... you look like a superhero when you come in with a handbrake turn and get her checked up just perfectly... but feeling like a suoerhero for 5 minutes by no means compensates for how you feel if you get it wrong and end up crushing the living daylights out of your surroundings.