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In 1800, The Northern Lighthouse Board began operating and servicing the lighthouses along the rugged coast of England and Scotland. The first flagship of the service fleet was named "Pharos" after the ancient lighthouse at Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Since that time each new flagship designed and built for the Northern Lighthouse Board has been named "Pharos".
The seventh Pharos came off the ways of the Caledon Shipbuilding and Engineering Company in Dundee, Scotland as Hull # 507. Pharos (7) was launched
and commissioned in 1955. She was constructed not only as a working ship, but with facilities, fixtures and appointments designed to serve as a back-up for the British Royal Yacht, Britannia.
During the next thirty years she performed her tender duties with honor, and on a number of occasions she hosted the Queen and
other members of the Royal Family.
In 1988 she was acquired by Windjammer Barefoot Cruises and re-registered as "Amazing Grace". Today she carries
passengers and cargo on a four week, Thirty-three hundred nautical mile trip from Freeport, Grand Bahama to Port of Spain, Trinidad and return.
Along the way, she stops at many ports of call while replenishing the supplies of the other ships in the Windjammer fleet.
Amazing Grace has a register tonnage of 1750 gross, accommodates 94 passengers and 44 crew. She is 257 feet long, has a draft of 17 feet
and a beam of 38 feet.
Amazing Grace is driven by twin four-bladed, 8 feet diameter bronze alloy propellers.
The 90 feet long propeller shafts are coupled directly to the British Polar diesel engines.
The two seven-cylinder direct injection two-stroke main engines are each rated at
985 brake horsepower at a 220 rpm normal cruising speed. Each engine's cylinders are 13 inches in diameter and have a stroke of 22 inches.
With both engines at normal cruising speed, fuel consumption is 83 gallons per hour.
Fuel storage capacity in the double bottom tanks is 240 tons (74,000 U.S. gallons), or enough for 7,000 miles at cruise speed.
In her one-month round trip Amazing Grace uses about 95 tons of fuel and she off-loads approximately 100 tons to the other Windjammer ships.
Two large electrically driven air compressors supply the 350 psi pressure required to start the main engines.
All shipboard electrical power requirements are satisfied by three large heavy duty power units rated at 400, 475 and 500 KW respectively.
One runs constantly while the other two remain on standby. Each of them are
six-cylinder, turbo-charged, Lister-Blackstone generator units which supply raw alternating current at 220 volts. Step-down transformers are used to supply 110 volts for passenger and utility needs.
The reverse osmosis water makers in the Engine Room can produce up to 5,000 gallons of fresh water per day.
The water storage tanks have a capacity of 150 tons (53,000 U.S. gallons).
The Engine Room also houses a number of service and utility pumps which include the fire and bilge pumps, general utility pumps, sanitary
water pumps and the main engine oil pumps.
The Engine Room and all mechanical systems are the responsibility of the Chief Engineer and his staff of three officers and eight crew. There
is an officer and a qualified Watch Keeper on duty in the engine room at all times.
An Amazing Grace - Caribbean Trip Report
The Amazing Grace - Tahiti to Trinidad Trip Report
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© 2000~2007 FortOgden Design, Huntington Beach, CA
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M/V AMAZING GRACE
