Empty Vessel

It was nice while it lasted. 

One of my favourite parking up spots for the purposes of paperwork, lunching and perhaps a power nap or two is on the Foreshore just in the shadow of what was, when it was first built, the longest single span suspension bridge in the world. 

It is now just about hanging in there in the top twenty of such structures. 

For me it is in equal proportions a productive and relaxing spot, the former when getting to grips with some report writing and the latter when I feel that I can idle away a few moments in a busy schedule. 

However, just today my hard earned respite on the river front was rudely interrupted by my own curiosity. 

The tide on the mighty estuary/river, which incidentally drains one fifth of the country, was rising fast giving an opportunity for smaller coastal ships to make a dash upstream to reach inland ports and quays or start the long haul out into the North Sea. 

In the far left extremity of my vision, as I sat slumped in the drivers seat in a half doze, a ship had appeared making good progress in smooth water to make a pass under the bridge. 

On a whim I found my binoculars through which I could make out the name on the bright red bow, ATLAS and also a fluttering National flag of Norway. I should have been happy at that discovery but no, I idly entered the name and nationality into my smartphone. 

First up was the website entitled Vessel Finder and there was a photograph of Atlas and a whole lot of facts and stats about it. Built 1993, General Cargo Ship, 88 metres long and 12m wide beam, Gross Tonnage 2561 tons. 

Interesting indeed and usually enough to satisfy my thirst for new knowledge but then…….the web page had a short, almost throwaway entry under “Current position”. 

This took me to a map of my immediate location together with blue depicted river, yellow shoreline and the distinctive line running north/south of the bridge. 

Sure enough there was a tiny ship-outline on my screen and amazingly it was doing exactly what Atlas was doing in front of my very eyes. There was even perceptible tracking motion up river. 

I was by now overwhelmed with the versatility and adaptability of technology and over the next twenty minutes I carefully followed the virtual representation and also the physical stern of Atlas as it swept around the curve of the river and out of sight. 

In the course of a few more minutes two other ship icons had come on line adopting the same deep water channel in what is otherwise a treacherously navigable river of sandbanks and strong currents but not yet in view. 

H&S Prudence , a Dutch Registered cargo carrier was a bit shorter and lighter than Atlas but some 10 years younger. 

She was followed by a Polish ship, Bienville another 1993 vintage and 78m long. 

At that point I had to leave my vantage point to go back to work and it may have just been a case of ships passing in the dusk (night) but such is Vessel Finder that in the comfort of my own home later on I could see that the small flotilla had safely reached their destinations with two berthed alongside each other in a dock on the River Ouse some 20 miles farther west and the third at a quay on the tidal River Trent, one of the main feeder rivers from the English Midlands.

I will never be able to just lounge about on the Foreshore any more, unless I make sure that I get there at the lowest tide when the river is just not passable by interesting ships. 

I had not really thought about how busy that maritime corridor was but then again those supermarket shelves, builders merchants aisles, cereal mill hoppers and brewery maltings have to be restocked somehow other than by magic.