Calypso Restoration

[willmarsh3]

I thought this was really neat. It's in French but the scenes of actual work being done are quite compelling.

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnv-ZmArDxA&NR=1

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT1Lml855vA&feature=channel

We'll have to wait for subsequent parts. I'm really glad to see her finally get the attention she deserves.

[bamamick]

Fascinating.

Thank you.

Mickey Lake

[BETTY-B]

Cool!

My mother worked for him. When I was a kid the house was full of everything Calypso. Tablets, pens, buttons, name tags and on and on.

[The549]

Wonder if there'll be a subtitled one for us out there, that would be great...thanks for the link.

http://www.cousteau.org/about-us/calypso-restoration

Under Mrs. Cousteau´s direction, the mythical ship of Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau has arrived at the Piriou Shipyard in Concarneau (Brittany, France), where she will be completely refurbished. Calypso will sail again as an ambassador for the seas and oceans, carrying the legacy of Captain Cousteau and the Cousteau flag all around the world.

The sturdy wooden minesweeper has seen many reincarnations - as a ferry, an oceanic research vessel, a television icon and a sad victim of a 1996 collision in Singapore. For the past eleven years, Mrs. Cousteau has fought to resurrect her as an inspiration for future generations and a platform for education and science.

[The549]

Oh....nevermind, there are subtitles! Hit the button in the bottom right and then hit cc. Very nice.

[Lucky Luke]

How great it is to watch this. Thanks for the link!

They quite well know how to work on a wooden (US built) ship these froggies, don't they (a bit of national pride, if you don't mind, dear fellow forumnites!)

On the first part, I don't know if any of you noticed: when she arrives and is surrounded by the kids in their optimists, one of the old men there wipes a tear of his face, and his fellow tells him "you're not the only one!". Gosh, that must have been moving, sure!!!

[andrewe]

Part of the delay over starting this has been the endless legal wrangles in the family over the "ownership" of the boat. It was actually owned by a Brit. who leased it to Cousteau for something like a pound a year. She served as a RN mine sweeper in WW11 , but I didn't realise she was US built. Luke is better informed.
As a child, the programs about Cousteau were inspirational (along with those of Hans & Lotti Hass) . Looks like it will get to inspire a new generation.
A

[willmarsh3]

Thanks The549 for the cc tip.

I really enjoyed Cousteau growing up so I'm really glad to see this happening.

Near the end of the second video where they are putting the new stem on I noticed a branch of some sort of plant attached. Is this part of shipbuilding tradition?

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

I didn't realize she was wood!!! What a great thread!!!

[Bruce Keefauver]

Built in Ballard WA, or so I've been told.

[Concordia...41]

I watched both videos. Time well spent.

That's an amazing amount of work. Gotta love those overhead cranes :D

They mention Oregon pine several times. And they're quite amazed at how strong it is.

[Hwyl]

I didn't realize she was wood!!! What a great thread!!!

Non magnetic, old chap.

[ron ll]

I know I've told this story here before, but its worth repeating for this thread.

In the Fall of 1969 I was crew aboard the three-masted barque Monte Cristo. We were in Lake Union drydock for a new engine and Calypso was in the adjacent drydock for some work. Most of the crew were aboard (except Cousteau Sr.) and most were young Frenchmen of a partying age and mood. Our crew was invited to a party one night. We got a full tour of the ship including the bow underwater observation tube. One had to climb down a ladder in a tube in the bow and then back into a face-down prone position over the glass viewing port. Very claustrophobic.

That night there was also a somewhat well-known woman aboard who was seriously in her cups and hanging all over the young Frenchmen. At the time she was kind of an actress "of former glory" shall we say. Altho she later had somewhat of a comeback and was a regular panelist on the original Gong Show. I won't mention her name now but it shouldn't be hard to figure out. (And I'll neither confirm nor deny guesses in this thread :D ).

Anyway, glad to see her being restored (the ship, not the actress). Brings back some fond memories.

[ron ll]

Amazing. Just watched the second video which among other things shows the observation tube being removed from the bow, the stem replaced, and the start of rebuilding the observation tube. Great videos, thanks for posting.

[Jay Greer]

Some may say that it is a magnificent obsession while others may argue it is pure insanity to restore a wooden ship that is so far gone! Regardless, of what we think, it is a prime example of the fact that the French take more national pride in their historic vessels than we choose to; a prime example being the "Wawona"!
Jay

[TR]

Awesome work!

I think gross characterizations like "the French", or "the English", or "the Americans", are silly. The Calypso is being restored because some folks care enough to make it happen! They didn't give up, I recall seeing pictures of her mostly under water a few years back. Seeing that I was sure she was gone.....wrong....

Calypso is known to millions of viewers of Cousteau's films, readers of National Geographic, members of the Cousteau Society, etc. A larger-than-life star in hundreds of adventures. Wawona just suffers from lack of proper PR....

It's stunning the life and meaning a mere "thing", an old boat, can take on. They keep coming back to affect more people in different ways...ways we can't imagine.