Today’s Images • Anchors Aweigh

Departing the BVI for open waters.

“Anchors aweigh” is a nautical phrase meaning a ship’s anchor is clear of the seabed and therefore the ship is no longer tethered to land and is ready to depart for the open sea.

I first went to sea in 1965 and still, even today as we cruise, I feel that promise of adventure as the ship departs port…

The Norwegian Sun departs from Key West before sunset.

Going cruising? Here’s a quick lesson in speaking sailor – nautical terms 101

Aft: Toward the stern of the boat.

Ahead: The world in a forward direction.

Astern: The opposite of ahead, in the back of the boat.

Bow: The forward part of a boat. Usually the pointy end of a boat.

Bridge: A space for controlling the boat that usually houses steering, engine command, and communications.

Bulkhead: The nautical term for a wall.

Deck: The nautical term for a floor.

Galley: The ships kitchen.

Head: A bathroom on a working boat.

Helm: The wheel or tiller controlling the rudder which steers the boat. Oddly modern ships may not have a ships wheel.

Hull: The main body of a vessel designed to allow it to float.

Keel: the main element under the bottom of a boat that forms the foundation upon which the rest of the boat is built.

Leeward: The direction away from the wind. The opposite of windward..

Lines: The nautical term for rope.

Nautical Mile: One minute of latitude; approximately 6076 feet, about 1/8 longer than the statute mile of 5280 feet.

Port: The left side of a boat looking forward. Historically the side of the ship tied to a pier (port) Remember that port and left both have four letters.

Rudder: A vertical plate or board for steering a boat.

Square Knot: A knot used to join two lines of similar size. Also called a reef knot.

Starboard: The right side of a boat when looking forward. The names comes from historically the side of a ship where the stearing board was located.

Stern: The after part of the boat in nautical terms. The stern of a boat is the rounded or flat end of the vessel.

Windward: The side of the boat closest to the wind. When heeling over, this will always be the high side.

Nautically Terminology

“making way” means a vessel is actively moving through the water.

At a loose end: Nautically, loose ends are unattached things that are not doing their job. “Tying up loose ends” is used to mean finalizing details of a matter as a sailor makes fast the loose ends to ensure the boat is shipshape.

Batten down the hatches: Battening down the hatches was secure for bad weather.

Get underway: The “under” is likely to have meant “on the” and the “way” is the forward progress of the ship through the water, so it means going to sea.

Give a wide berth: Originally, a berth was a place where there was room to moor a boat. The meaning of “berth” was probably “bearing off”. Sailors were warned to keep a wide distance between moving boats. It could also refer to anchoring a boat far enough away from another to ensure they wouldn’t hit each other when swinging around the anchor from the wind or the tide.

Dead in the water: A negative term suggesting a ship wasn’t moving ahead like it should. Come from no wind in the sails or no working engine..