It was just past noon on Thursday, July 30 when Patrick Sikes, a charter captain at the helm of his 23-foot Sea Hunt, hailed Capt. Renoble piloting a 200 meter bulk carrier on an easterly course at six knots just a few miles southwest of the Block Island Wind Farm.
Patrick is a photographer and FAA licensed drone pilot, who was preparing to execute a carefully assembled plan to capture this ship by drone when it passed the island. The cargo ship departed Patillos, Chile on July 14, bound for port in New Haven, Conn. She was hauling 51,000 metric tons of salt destined for icy Connecticut roads next winter. On this warm humid day offshore, it was hard to imagine the cold and snow as this huge cargo ship approached the island. This unlikely rendezvous at sea resulted from the initiative of a person who recognized that the ship, the Block Island, might never pass near her namesake again as she voyages around the world.
The inspiration for a photo shoot of the Block Island navigating around Block Island came to former Harbors Department staffer and Block Island summer resident Peter Cassidy. Pete is a dry
