Category: History

Fishing boats of Goa, photographed by Ranjan Mitra

Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa

Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa

Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa

Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa

Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa Fishing boats of Goa

Ranjan Mitra took these photos of fishing boats on the coast of Goa, a small and relatively affluent Indian state with an Arabian Sea coastline.

Ranjan is a colleague of my brother Matt Atkin and seems to have been inspired by Matt’s habit on business trips of slipping down to the nearest beach or harbour to take shots for intheboatshed.net.  Thanks Ranjan! (Matt’s photos can be found by following this link.)

The motorised fishing boats take the classic form of a high bow for dealing with rough water and low sides aft to allow the fishermen access to work with nets and gear, while the outrigger dugouts seem to be a fascinating link to prehistoric times.

Goa bears many signs of its domination by Portugal from the 16th century, including a city named after the Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama.  The state was annexed by India in 1961.

There are a couple of interesting articles online including this paper, which describes the local craft, and another describing a visitor’s experiences in the mid-1990s, including ancient types such as dugouts and sewn plank boats caulked with tar.

Shackleton polar expedition photos by Frank Hursley

Frank Hurley photos from Shackleton expedition Frank Hurley photos from Shackleton expedition

Sir Ernest Shackleton’s 1914-17 expedition was an attempt to cross Antarctica from one side to the other via the South Pole, but in January 1915 the expedition ship, the Endurance, became locked in the ice of the Weddell Sea, which slowly crushed and finally sank the vessel over the following months, while Shackleton and his men camped on the ice.

The photos above by expedition photographer Frank Hursley are from this period – a much bigger selection can be seen at howtobearetronaut.com.

Eventually they were able to travel with their boats to Elephant Island, from which a small group led by Shackleton sailed one of the Endurance’s ship’s boats, the Sir James Caird, over a distance of 800 miles to the the inhabited island of South Georgia to get help.

For more posts about Shackleton’s Endurance expedition and about the celebrated Sir James Caird voyage to South Georgia click here; for photos of South Georgia itself, click here.

The mysteries of flag etiquette explained

Do you ever feel second-bested because you don’t understand the rules about flags where they apply to boats and yachts? Do you perhaps feel that its just another way that the world has found of finding fault, and judging you to be wrong in yet another way? Do you think that it’s an area that exists purely for the entertainment of certain fastidious personality types that can safely be ignored? Is it just quaint and fun? Or is it important – so important that others who get it wrong MUST BE TOLD FIRMLY and should SEE DEMONSTRATIONS IMMEDIATELY?

I guess all four points of view may apply at times, though for me the first three come more naturally to an egalitarian, liberal kind of mind, and the last can be either fun or just tiresome, depending.

For the benefit of those who don’t really ‘get’ flags but like to fly the Red Ensign every now and again, here is an explanation of what you’re supposed to know so that you need never again feel at a loss. And it comes complete with a nice story or two…