If you're like me, you're in the market to buy yourself an island-sized boat, but you're not satisfied with the world's current inventory of formulaic, fuel-guzzling, cruise-ship-like mega-yachts. You might want to consider picking up a WHY 58x38, which offers 36,000 square feet of living space, a 120-foot "beach," three decks, and an 80-foot interior pool, topped by a vast solar panel array. It won't break your budget -- at a mere $151 million, it doesn't even crack the top four most expensive yachts in the world! [more inside]
posted by brain_drain on Nov 13, 2009 - 68 comments

MarineTraffic is a live map recording ship traffic based on AIS data. The site mainly covers European and North American coasts and includes info on vessels and ports, plus a gallery with some cool ship photos. Similar: see ShipAIS for live vessel movements from around the UK.
posted by madamjujujive on Nov 9, 2009 - 8 comments

Roman Abramovich, the Russian billionaire owner of Chelsea Football Club, has launched his 557-foot yacht, Eclipse.
posted by Joe Beese on Jun 16, 2009 - 75 comments

The Ripples From Little Lake Nellie — "Four months after Cleveland Indian pitchers Tim Crews and Steve Olin died in a boating accident, their families and friends are coming to grips with the grief that still washes over them" [more inside]
posted by IvoShandor on Mar 4, 2009 - 24 comments

This is a city of ShipBreakers.
posted by allkindsoftime on Dec 25, 2008 - 28 comments

Project Genesis - "It's destined to be the world's largest cruise ship—when launched next year, Royal Caribbean's US$1.24 billion Project Genesis will be 1,180 feet long, and carry 5400 passengers (6,400 at a pinch). It's the most expensive ship in history, and it's longer, wider and taller than the largest ocean liner ever built, (Cunard's QE II), 43 per cent larger in size than the world's largest cruise ship, (Freedom of the Seas [previously]) and remarkably, bigger than any military ship ever built, aircraft carriers included. In a world where choice of amenities count, Project Genesis has yet another trump card—in the the center of the ship is a lush, tropical park which opens to the sky." cf. The Lilypad
posted by kliuless on Jun 24, 2008 - 81 comments

The 257-foot Delphine was a 1921 steam-powered yacht designed by and for the Dodge brothers (of Dodge Motors). Today, "of all the large American-built steam yachts built between 1893 and 1930, the Delphine is the only one left in her original condition with her original steam engines still in service." Forbes has a fascinating history and cool pictures of the fully restored 1921 lush decor. But probably forget about chartering it (unless you have 40-60k euros a day).
posted by stbalbach on Apr 16, 2008 - 7 comments

Maritime New York
posted by Miko on Dec 6, 2007 - 5 comments

Hannu's Boatyard is a site by a Finnish guy who offers free plans for two dozen simple plywood boats you can build, along with photos illustrating the build process of each. He also describes basic woodbending technique and some of the design process, in a pleasing writing style that makes me want to get off the internet and make things. My favorites: Portuguese style dinghy; tiny stubby halfpea; round, Welsh-style coracle -- if you click on no other link today, click on the coracle link and scroll down at least to the black and white photo.
posted by LobsterMitten on Oct 12, 2007 - 31 comments

It's spring; build a boat, therefore.
posted by OmieWise on Apr 2, 2007 - 25 comments

Supertankers are so cool. Click previous sentence for more information.
posted by thirteenkiller on Apr 29, 2006 - 43 comments

The Public Archives of Nova Scotia has some cool online exhibits. The original list of dead bodies recovered from the Titanic sinking caught my eye, they also have original log book pages from privateers, lighthouses, slavery and abolition, boats, boats, and more boats. [via]
posted by marxchivist on Apr 20, 2006 - 11 comments

Staten Island Ship Graveyard. A fascinating gallery of photographs of abandoned and decaying ships.
posted by dersins on Oct 10, 2005 - 20 comments

On the revival of a forgotten piece of infrastructure: Britain's massive canal system was constructed in the late 18th century to move goods throughout the country and provided an extensive logistical network for the industrial revolution. Since the rise of rail and truck transport, the canals were left to decay for generations. Today many are being restored, providing revenue for local communities and acting as a catalyst [PDF] for urban renewal.

One group of fun-lovin' Brits has been touring these man-made waterways since the 1970's and documenting their journeys in copious detail. The canals traverse every conceivable type of landscape, and evince some pretty amazing engineering.
posted by pieisexactlythree on Apr 22, 2005 - 14 comments

Ever dreamed of building a boat and sailing away? Two clearly mad Canadians decide to built a yacht. Clearly mad because they actually do it! It's a bit of a saga but well worth the read for the vicarious pleasure. I'm green with envy! N.B. the site navigation can be a bit dicky so you may have to change the url to get to the next day sometimes. It goes up to day 222.
posted by milkwood on Jan 6, 2005 - 14 comments

Make your own classic pleasure boat.
posted by magullo on Jun 22, 2004 - 13 comments

The internet guide to freighter travel. "Traveling on a containership is not better than sex, though it does last longer."
posted by bingo on May 18, 2004 - 29 comments

Frozen seas. A brief but kind of amazing collection of photos of the deck of a fishing trauler in fridgid conditions, where every exposed surface has layers of frozen saltwater accumulated. This condition can cause the boat to become topheavy and capsize, as well as just plain making life more miserable for those that work on the deck.
posted by jonson on May 3, 2004 - 12 comments

Coast Guard pulls over floating, propeller equipped '59 Buick driving to Miami - manned by Cuban refugees. "For four of the 11 people on board, it was not the first thwarted attempt to leave the communist island in a bizarrely converted vintage vehicle." (from ABC news) Last year, they tried to do the same thing in a converted '51 Chevy Truck: "The crew members of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter could not believe their eyes...Chugging along at a steady 13 kilometres per hour in the Straits of Florida was a bright-green 1951 Chevrolet truck...." (link to story, as reprinted in Free Republic, alas ) Sadly, the Coast Guard sunk the Buick - which looked a bit like a WW2 amphibious landing craft. Here's a picture, on the blog of a Christian Evangelical (scroll down for story) who argues that the refugees are worthy of a special exception to US immigration laws, for their pluck and innovative brilliance.
posted by troutfishing on Feb 7, 2004 - 25 comments

Old River Bill really knows inland workboats. Besides exercising his novel system of punctuation, Bill makes model tugboats and is a part of an avid community of workboat modelers. You can find out everything you ever wanted to know about how real work is done on rivers on how the hell we move 100's of thousands of tons of crap around the country every day.
posted by badstone on Jan 6, 2004 - 5 comments

131 years ago today, the Mary Celeste, an American ship bound for Genoa, was found adrift in the Atlantic. Thus began of one of the most well known and loved of maritime mysteries, with numerous possible solutions offered.
posted by moonbird on Dec 4, 2003 - 23 comments

I am a BoatNerd.
posted by norm111 on Dec 3, 2003 - 6 comments

ShipBreaking The photographer Edward Burtynsky captures some dramatic images of ShipBreaking. The Perils of this industry were first highlighted in a Pulitzer prize winning series of articles by the the Baltimore Sun. Today, these ship graveyards still pose serious environmental issues as highlighted by this shipbreaking weblog maintained by Greenpeace.
posted by vacapinta on Nov 28, 2003 - 10 comments

Transportation around the world is a huge database of photos focusing on two topics: transportation mode and geography. From bullet trains to dogsleds and camel caravans to tramways, - browse by location or by topic. Also related: One of the best transportation museums in the world is the Verkehrshaus der Schweiz in Lucern, Switzerland. (via booknotes)
posted by madamjujujive on Aug 10, 2003 - 3 comments

Everything you ever wanted to know about sunken ships. Passenger liners from the Titanic to the Andrea Doria. Military vessels from aircraft carriers like the USS Forrestall to submarines like the Kursk. I found this site by accident and got lost in it, some of the sections are just gorgeous, even though all the stories are tragic.
posted by biscotti on Oct 16, 2002 - 11 comments

How to build a bomb isn't all there is to the Internet as press would have you think. Anyway it's harder than just getting some plans, as this guy found out. So why not build a bomb shelter instead? Or build your own train, hovercraft, speedboat, car or plane - can't fly - don't worry build a flight simulator! Toast your success with DIY firewater cooked with your solar furnace. Enjoy your CB radio, listen to MP3s or toy with your sextant. And with all the kinky clothes and loads of pervy toys to make who has time to build bombs? I can see the bumper stickers now "Make leg spreaders, not war!"
posted by DrDoberman on Oct 14, 2002 - 13 comments

Looks like Boeing finally decided to exploit the wing-in-ground effect. Did they get inspired by the most famous ekranoplan ever, the Caspian Sea Monster?
posted by titboy on Sep 16, 2002 - 22 comments

This baby, a Norwegian coastal defense high-tech catamaran can travel at 60mph, fool radar and ride 5 feet above the water was in Washington, D.C. recently cruising the Chesapeake Bay to possibly be bought by the US Navy.
posted by stbalbach on Aug 12, 2002 - 12 comments

WIG (Wing In Ground) boats are something like a cross between a hovercraft and an airplane. Taking advantage of a phenomenon that creates a cushion of air between a wing and the ground, they fly a few feet above the surface of the water, able to reach higher speeds with greater efficiency than traditional boats. The best known WIG boats are the Russian ekranoplans, and the largest and most famous of these was the KM, better known in the west as the "Caspian Sea Monster".
posted by Aaaugh! on Jul 24, 2002 - 4 comments

The Spiegel Grove was supposed to be sunk upright, creating the largest and most accessible artificial reef ever. Cool!

Unfortunately, the ship had other ideas and now appears to be impersonating a giant turtle. One of the nation's top marine salvage outfits has been called to the rescue. Looks like a potential Discovery Channel show in the making. (Check out the pictures on the Spiegel Grove site, they're pretty cool.)
posted by groundhog on May 27, 2002 - 4 comments

The World is a giant cruise liner on which ultra-rich loonballs can buy (smallish) apartments, compare fortunes with their ilk, and never again have to mingle with the plebs. Judging by the assorted wacky residents (a knitwear magnate???) interviewed on Britain's Channel 4 news last night it promises to be a fascinating social experiment. How long before they are ripping out each others throats in psychotic orgies, like some crazy JG Ballard novel? I sense an excellent docusoap opportunity...
posted by rikabel on Apr 9, 2002 - 33 comments

Kalakala.org: World-famous art-deco Seattle ferry (most recently an abandoned Alaskan shrimp factory) rescued from rusty oblivion. Gutenberg's earlier post about "ghost pictures" on the old ferry Kalakala sent me looking for more info on the vessel, which I now know was once the second most photographed object in the world, next to the Eiffel tower. Volunteers are now slowly restoring it near Gas Works Park. Cool.
posted by Tubes on Apr 4, 2002 - 12 comments

Reclaim your favorite sailing spot. A Red Green solution for the frustrated catamaran sailors out there. A bit of a bagatelle, but at least you can get a t-shirt.
posted by joaquim on Mar 27, 2002 - 4 comments

The Volvo Ocean Race, formerly known as Whitbread Round the World, starts today. After years of preparation for the crews, boat builders and designers, 1500 BST this afternoon will see the eight participating boats cross the Cowes start line on the first leg to Cape Town. The website is more advanced than ever, with virtual racing available, as well as WAP/SMS services and brand new virtual spectator software. Will you be following the teams as they sail round the world, or is sailing simply no spectator sport?
posted by dagny on Sep 23, 2001 - 3 comments

The J.W. Westcott II delivers toilet paper, the occasional pizza, and, most importantly, mail to freighters making their way through the Great Lakes. And now it's the only boat in the U.S. to be assigned it's own zip code.
posted by Oriole Adams on Jun 30, 2001 - 6 comments

It is the middle of November, better get your boat off the Great Lakes. Nautical fans might wish to purchase this excellent model of the Edmund Fitzgerald, sunk 25 years + 2 days ago today.
posted by thirteen on Nov 13, 2000 - 1 comment