Look at Ships
I love ships. I think you should, too. There are many kinds. Some carry thousands of tons worth of cargo containers or bulk product. Others, meanwhile, might ferry a couple hundred people across a wide river such as the Columbia. Very many are owned by fishermen and commercial fishing operations. Some are tankers that carry large volumes of liquids, like fuel oil, liquefied hydrogen, and even wine.
Some are private vessels owned by a class of extravagantly wealthy and incredibly paranoid individuals who constantly search the entire web for mentions of their name in association with their own vessel. Sometimes they even commission these vessels, too, and they're terrified of the possibility of being identified, so they obscure ownership through shell companies owned by shell companies and register their vessels under flags of convenience. Sometimes they intimidate their own crew into signing agreements that aren't legal, employ the use of expensive gadgets, and hire private investigators to find anyone who reveals what they consider to be sensitive information.
This site isn't for outing such individuals, to be clear. But it's an important example of the idea that not all ships are created equally, and getting too close to certain kinds will attract unwanted attention. It's also just interesting to know, I think, that there is a whole security industry built around these people.
My very favorite kind of vessels are tugboats. There are a few kinds with different roles, and just as varied are the barges, scows, and cranes used for construction, ship tows, waste removal, and other applications. I've loved perhaps every single tugboat I've ever seen and I think they're really interesting and beautiful.
All watercraft have some kind of purpose, even if the purpose is just for recreation – there aren't very many "general use" vessels because if you need to move something across water, you usually want to design something that's optimized for that task. I find a real beauty in that.
Ships I've Seen
💜 Here's a collection of vessels I've seen that I'd like to share with you. 💜
Tug Denali - October 2025. (IMO: 9592185)
Well look at that! This is an articulated pusher tug. Look at that lovely upper wheelhouse. What you're seeing here, if you're not familiar, are two separate vessels. In front, you have a barge carrying equipment. This has a notch at the stern, where the tug Denali is inserted. This kind of articulated pushing method is an alternative to towing behind other kinds of tugs, however it necessitates a high upper wheelhouse in order for the captain to see, since the barge in front will be at various heights depending on how much weight it's carrying.
Passenger Ferry Bay State - September 2025. (MMSI: 367383190)
If you've been to Long Wharf in Boston, you've likely seen this beautiful ferry. This is not, on its own, a particularly remarkable vessel, but I just love to look at it. It's owned and operated by City Cruises, but curiously, it's not listed under their fleet for Boston on their website.
Tug Vincent D. Tibbetts, Jr. - August 2025. (IMO: 7217133)
I couldn't make out the name at first and it took a few minutes to pick this one out of a lineup on the fleet page for Boston Towing & Transportation. This is a 3000hp large twin-screw harbor tug.
Tanker Conga - August 2025. (IMO: 9412000)
Interesting note: I saw this ship on August 2nd sailing under the flag of the Marshall Islands. As of sometime in the same month, the ship is now registered (at the time of writing this) under the flag of Malta. This may be one of the last pictures taken of this ship under the Marshallese flag.
NSF RV Marcus G. Langseth - August 2020. (IMO: 9010137)
I saw this beautiful research vessel years ago on a foggy morning in Newport, Oregon.