Lone Ranger ties up beside this fueling station before heading out to sea. She was last fueled in December 2010 at Gibraltar before the journey across the Atlantic Ocean. This global ship travel 48,000 kilometers (30,000 miles) between fuelings.

A Bahamian pilot boat attempts to come alongside Lone Ranger to offload the pilot that is required to guide large ships into local harbors. Pilots help the ship’s captain navigate through channels and are highly trained in the local water conditions and hazards of the area.

Just outside the harbor, small patches of Sargassum seaweed drifted past the ship. The brown algae contrasted sharply with the vivid blue waters of the ocean in this region.

Second officer Thiago Da Silva and Deckhand Michael Utley stow the thick lines that were used to tie-up the ship to the dock. These lines will be brought out again when the ship arrives at port in Bermuda.

The sun sets behind Lone Ranger as the ship travels east toward the first science station.