Bookshelf: Crossing the Bar

I’m a valet parker for ships. — Captain Paul Lobo

Maritime pilots are professional mariners with years of seagoing experience. They use their extensive knowledge of local waters to guide visiting vessels of all sizes and types, into and out of port.

Crossing the Bar: The Adventures of a San Francisco Bay Bar Pilot is Captain Paul Lobo’s story, from his years as a young man attending college in New York to his 31-year career as a San Francisco Bar Pilot. His straightforward accounts of his adventures at sea and his experiences involving his fellow pilots make for interesting reading.

There are some Hawai‘i connections in the book. Captain Lobo mentions Matson and Horizon Lines ships and captains. He also includes a section on Captain Dave Lyman, who was a long-time friend of his and a Hawai‘i pilot.

While familiarity with the waters of the San Francisco Bay area is not necessary in order to enjoy the book, it does add to the understanding of the particular conditions (fog, currents, etc.) the pilots and their boat crews have to contend with as described by Captain Lobo.

Maritime Hawai‘i recommends Crossing the Bar to anyone who would like to learn more about the lives of pilots. It successfully highlights the challenges and dangers these men and women face every time they board a vessel as well as the rewards and satisfaction of a job well done.

Pilot boat Golden Gate, San Francisco. 20 April 2017.

Crossing the Bar: The Adventures of a San Francisco Bay Bar Pilot
Captain Paul E. Lobo
New York: Seahorse Publishing, 2016
272 pp.