From Riverboats to Ferries: My Journey to Becoming a Captain

The following story comes to us from Captain Paul Costello, who earned his 100-Ton Master Captain’s License thanks to Mariners Learning System.

The Story of Captain Paul Costello

It was my good fortune to grow up in the beautiful lower Connecticut River Valley. For eight years, during my teens and early twenties, I worked as a crew member on riverboats that ran with the Essex Steam Train.

At the time, the Essex Steam Train was a separate navigation company that operated tourist boats of various sizes and tonnage. It was a great seasonal job, and I learned a lot from new and experienced captains alike, but it was just that: a seasonal job.

When I completed college, I got a "real" job as a graphic designer that led me to a successful career as an art director in New York City. But by the late 2000s - my mid-30s - I had lost my passion for that career and wanted a change.

While visiting a friend in the U.S. Virgin Islands, I talked to several charter boat captains and found my new passion. I returned to NYC, spent my evenings working toward a SCUBA certification, gave my notice a few months later, and began the process of getting my captain’s license.

Since all my sea time was over 10 years old, I needed to get my 90 days of recent time. So, I returned to the now one riverboat the Essex Steam Train owned and worked there for a few weeks. Then, I worked on an American Cruise Lines boat that ran up the Intracoastal Waterway out of Jacksonville, FL, for several months.

With my sea time taken care of, I turned my attention to the exams.

Having heard about Mariners Learning System from a colleague, I thought I would try it. Online, self-paced learning didn’t excite me, but the program was very straightforward. After several weeks of cramming, I completed the courses, took the proctored tests, and passed. I was now a captain with a 100-Ton Master License + Towing Endorsement!

But it was 2009, and there was a recession, so captain’s jobs - especially for new captains - were hard to come by. I worked on the riverboat at the Essex Steam Train while I sent out applications.

After a month, the railroad president took me out to lunch and offered me the job of lead riverboat captain. The company had acquired the boat from the previous organization, but they were all railroad guys and didn’t know the nuances and requirements of boat operations.

Since I was intimately familiar with boat and train operations, I made the riverboat work seamlessly as part of the combined organization. It was a jack-of-all-trades job: the position entailed hiring and training captains and crew, developing and maintaining a security plan and safety program, maintaining and upgrading the vessel and facility, and acting as a liaison with the U.S. Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security, and Federal Transportation Administration, which included familiarizing myself with all the state and federal laws and regulations relevant to our operations.

As part of our security plan, I planned and implemented training workshops, emergency drills, and exercises involving local, state, and federal agencies. These served as a benchmark for other regional vessel operators.

After eight years in that position, I consulted for other operations and spoke at regional Passenger Vessel Association (PVA) meetings. I found PVA membership an invaluable source of information and help, and I highly recommend it.

Through this experience, I got to know many commercial boat operators in the region, particularly those on the Connecticut River, including the captains of the state’s two river ferries. When a position opened on one of those boats in 2018, one of the lead captains recommended me for the job, and I was hired.

Since then, I’ve captained both the Chester-Hadlyme ferry (a conventional double-ended ferry) and the Rocky Hill-Glastonbury ferry (a tug and barge that started in 1655, making it the oldest continuously operated ferry in the U.S.).

Because of the post-COVID labor shortage, several other commercial boat operations on the river found themselves short of captains, so I also operated all but one of the commercial boats within the state on the Connecticut River in 2022.

Additionally, I was referred to an owner looking for a captain to bring a 50' Azimuth up from North Carolina. I also met with the owner of a 45’ Meridian looking to operate his boat for small charters — neither of which panned out because of my lack of available time.

It’s reassuring to know that my name, experience, and reputation are known in the area and generating ample work. If only there were more days in the week and the operating season was longer….

Despite not being a dive boat captain in the Caribbean, I’m still enjoying the new career I wanted. I thank Mariners Learning System for allowing me to earn my initial license and setting me on this path!