What IS a Pilot?
What exactly IS a ship channel pilot? Retired Houston Ship Channel Pilot, Lou Vest explains who the ship channel pilots are, what they do, and why we need them!
Lou Vest
Lou Vest is a retired Houston Ship Channel Pilot who shares a story from the ship channel and a close call with another vessel. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more stories from Lou!
This ain’t your grandfather’s barge
This ain’t your grandfather’s barge…. with modern ships measuring up to 1,200 feet long and 175 feet wide, a ship channel built in the 1800s is struggling to keep up. How do the pilots handle it? Lou Vest sheds some light!
HM’s Set Sail Mural
For those who have visited Houston Maritime’s interim site at the corner of Navigation and Canal, you may have noticed the stunning artwork decorating the wall along the entry way to the museum gallery. This mural was designed and painted by local Houston graffiti artist Anthony Rose. Flanked by anchors, the mural creates an imposing…
Board President – Tom Johnson
In 1965 Tom joined with a few San Antonio high school graduate’s intent on attending Texas A&M University. As one of the first few classes to graduate the Texas Maritime Academy as part of Texas A&M, Tom obtained a BS in Marine Engineering and has spent the entirety of his almost 50 year maritime career serving…
The Texas Chicken
530 feet – (175 feet + 175 feet) = Not a lot of room for error! Lou Vest explains the “Texas Chicken” and how ships fight massive hydrodynamic forces to pass each other on the ship channel.
Turning It Around
How do you turn a 1,200-foot ship in a 530-foot channel? Retired Houston Ship Channel Pilot, Lou Vest, explains the procedure! Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel!
Houston, we have a ship channel!
Houston, we have a ship channel! In the first of our series about the Houston Ship Channel, Lou Vest helps us find some viewing points to enjoy the never-ending flow of ship traffic through the Houston Ship Channel. Subscribe to our YouTube channel!
The Maritime Studio
We are thrilled to announce the grand opening of our Maritime Studio space. Located in the same building as our museum and administrative offices, this new space allows Houston Maritime to create new educational video content, host virtual and in-person lectures, serve as a virtual studio space for industry members, and expand our capabilities to…
Maritime Math with Milt Rose
Maritime Math revolves mostly around geometry and understanding the angles and distances between known points. Many instruments have been used over the years to estimate these distances and angles, gaining more and more accuracy over the years, now being replaced by computers and satelites. Despite the giant leaps in technology, the math remains very much…