WELCOME TO THE MANY NEW READERS.
IN RESPONSE TO MY LAST POST MANY READERS HAVE ASKED ME TO DESCRIBE A BIT ABOUT MYSELF AND MY SEA EXPERIENCE. I SHOULD POINT OUT THAT TO FULLY WRITE ABOUT MY YEARS IN THE MARINE INDUSTRY WOULD INDEED FILL A VERY LARGE VOLUMIOUS MANUSCRIPT FAR TO MUCH TO CRAM INTO A POST. TO OFFSET THIS WITHOUT THE FEAR OF APPEARING VAIN OR OSTENTATIOUS I HAVE ASSEMBLED A FEW BRIEF SNIPPETS TO GIVE READERS A SMALL INSIGHT INTO WHAT WAS A VERY REWARDING AND HAPPY CAREER.
Home at last.
At a very early age I ran away to sea just below the required age of sixteen for joining a ship that was required by the employment laws. Coming from a seafaring family it was inevitable that I should follow in the family members footsteps, my early childhood was filled with stories of distant lands and colourful ports described in detail by them, which gave me a yearning to travel and see the world for myself. My first experiences at sea were aboard the small cargo auxiliary ketches that plied the waters between Melbourne Tasmania and the many islands of the Bass Strait that separated them, and is one of the most treacherous stretches of water in the world having claimed many lives and ships.
Argonaut II typical of the ketches I sailed on.
In 1958 I was still on the waters of Bass Strait looking to extend my experience on larger ships when a tragedy over came another ketch with the loss of all hands. It saddened the local nautical fraternity at the time with the tragic loss, it has always remained indelible in my mind and in a way it encouraged me even further to join larger ships.
The ketch Wil Watch lost with all hands in 1958.
Eventually I made it on to steamships and later on aboard more modern motor ships, the only position I could find at that time was that of a galley boy not what I wanted but at least it was a start. If I thought that the rough life on a ketches was really bad living in primitive conditions and nearly always wet, it was nothing compared to the life and conditions I was about to endure on the dirty coal burning tramp ships that I signed on to. Working as a galley boy cleaning pots and pans as well as peeling vegetables resulting in long hours working until late at night, with my last job before retiring for the day involved cleaning down the galley floor tiles of grease and other matter with boiling hot water and caustic crystals, when finally falling into my bunk at the end of the day I was totally worn out. In those days of the steamships I joined there was no such a thing as we know it today of O.H.A.S (occupational health and safety), given a job you carried it out without question not knowing it could have been injurious to your health in the long run. The crew apart from the officers, all lived together in the forecastle which included, seamen, stokers and trimmers. There were often squabbles ending in fights in these confined quarters amongst them over trivial matters, each man treated his bunk as his own private domain and was very possessive over this space allotted to him, for other men to leave things on his bunk sparked many an argument. In a way it was a good learning curve in studying men of all nations at close quarters being of various characters along with their traits which put me in good stead in later years when selecting and signing on crew that could do the job required of them. My first real break at becoming a sailor came when the serving deck boy on my ship took up with a lady ashore and jumped ship. The bosun whom I had become friendly with in my spare time and by my showing an avid interest in all deck matters spoke to the mate and I was duly appointed the position of deck boy as soon as a replacement for my job with the ships cook was found. It was from here in on that my career moved forward by working my way through the many hard situations I encountered, until finally reaching the rank of master.
Working on deck painting the scuppers with red lead paint.
During the many years I had developed a few hobbies and interests such as studying oceanography, marine archaeology purely as an amateur , hydrography, ship restoration, and also qualifying as an open water scuba diver. This latter interest saw me become a part time partner in a dive boat business when ever I had long leaves in between ships, we operated in Queensland on the Great Barrier Reef. I managed to dive on quite a few wrecks but none so famous as the Australian passenger ship the ss Yongala that perished in a ferocious cyclone off the Queensland coast in 1911 with the loss of all passengers and crew. When visiting Ascension island in the mid South Atlantic Ocean, I dived on the now famous China wreck, a steamship lost in the 1920's in a storm carrying what appeared to be Chinese porcelain. Both these wrecks I believe are now visited by many recreational divers.
ss Yongala the passenger ship lost in a cyclone in 1911, now a popular diving attraction but is beginning to deteriorate rapidly after each cyclone that affects the sea bed and the coral reef.
H.M.A.S. Gladstone.
The last of the Australian corvettes in Melbourne.
From the left Whyalla, Castlemaine, Akuna ex Gladstone with the buff coloured hull.
Having a drink with students on the Akuna after completing a 10 week course in navigation
After three months we were ready to raise steam because the ship was oil fired and not coal we were looking at the enormous cost of running her with diesel oil which was not an option . Our engineers advised us we could burn treated sump oil instead. A one man company who had a small tanker that picked up waste oil from factories and garages and sold it to be refined was contacted and a price was agreed to purchase his waste oil above what he was being paid by the refiners of such oil. We now had a tanker arrive weekly and our fuel situation was now no longer a financial problem . During this period of renovation the ship was painted in white to look like a Mediterranean yacht with blue decks.
ss Akuna with her new yacht look including a blue and white funnel.
Getting ready to sail after restoration, checking the after lines with shore party.
Due the operation of the ship she was to be manned by volunteers and to avoid certain maritime regulations and interference from the seaman's union the ship was registered under the Australian flag as a private yacht. There are many fun memories for me running the ship and the voyages on her, she was eventually sold in 1978 to a charity group that was to operate out of Singapore assisting Vietnamese boat people in the South China Sea fleeing Vietnam. I was in Bundaberg Queensland at the time when I received a call to take her to Singapore to be docked and refitted for her future role. This voyage in itself would fill a small book but it all went well and I was sad to see her for the last time after leaving her in Singapore.
Akuna safely anchored amongst hundreds of ships at Singapore. A truly worthwhile restoration of a ship.
In 1958 I was still on the waters of Bass Strait looking to extend my experience on larger ships when a tragedy over came another ketch with the loss of all hands. It saddened the local nautical fraternity at the time with the tragic loss, it has always remained indelible in my mind and in a way it encouraged me even further to join larger ships.
The ketch Wil Watch lost with all hands in 1958.
Eventually I made it on to steamships and later on aboard more modern motor ships, the only position I could find at that time was that of a galley boy not what I wanted but at least it was a start. If I thought that the rough life on a ketches was really bad living in primitive conditions and nearly always wet, it was nothing compared to the life and conditions I was about to endure on the dirty coal burning tramp ships that I signed on to. Working as a galley boy cleaning pots and pans as well as peeling vegetables resulting in long hours working until late at night, with my last job before retiring for the day involved cleaning down the galley floor tiles of grease and other matter with boiling hot water and caustic crystals, when finally falling into my bunk at the end of the day I was totally worn out. In those days of the steamships I joined there was no such a thing as we know it today of O.H.A.S (occupational health and safety), given a job you carried it out without question not knowing it could have been injurious to your health in the long run. The crew apart from the officers, all lived together in the forecastle which included, seamen, stokers and trimmers. There were often squabbles ending in fights in these confined quarters amongst them over trivial matters, each man treated his bunk as his own private domain and was very possessive over this space allotted to him, for other men to leave things on his bunk sparked many an argument. In a way it was a good learning curve in studying men of all nations at close quarters being of various characters along with their traits which put me in good stead in later years when selecting and signing on crew that could do the job required of them. My first real break at becoming a sailor came when the serving deck boy on my ship took up with a lady ashore and jumped ship. The bosun whom I had become friendly with in my spare time and by my showing an avid interest in all deck matters spoke to the mate and I was duly appointed the position of deck boy as soon as a replacement for my job with the ships cook was found. It was from here in on that my career moved forward by working my way through the many hard situations I encountered, until finally reaching the rank of master.
During the many years I had developed a few hobbies and interests such as studying oceanography, marine archaeology purely as an amateur , hydrography, ship restoration, and also qualifying as an open water scuba diver. This latter interest saw me become a part time partner in a dive boat business when ever I had long leaves in between ships, we operated in Queensland on the Great Barrier Reef. I managed to dive on quite a few wrecks but none so famous as the Australian passenger ship the ss Yongala that perished in a ferocious cyclone off the Queensland coast in 1911 with the loss of all passengers and crew. When visiting Ascension island in the mid South Atlantic Ocean, I dived on the now famous China wreck, a steamship lost in the 1920's in a storm carrying what appeared to be Chinese porcelain. Both these wrecks I believe are now visited by many recreational divers.
ss Yongala the passenger ship lost in a cyclone in 1911, now a popular diving attraction but is beginning to deteriorate rapidly after each cyclone that affects the sea bed and the coral reef.
Being a scuba diver came in handy especially if I had my gear on board, I was able to dive under the ship and carry out an underwater survey of the hull much to the delight of the owners saving them an extension of time on dry docking.
Spending a number of years on the east coast of South Africa and Mozambique I had learnt to appreciate the south westerly flowing Agulhas current that at times could reach speeds up to as much as six knots. On occasions in suitable weather conditions I was able to utilize this current as a travelator to speed up my southerly voyages. When the winds from the south west blew against the current, the seas created some of the most dangerous conditions I have ever encountered causing many anxious moments and lack of sleep. On a number of occasions I was forced to run for shelter but on one particular voyage in the violent conditions encountered, I had no option but to hove to and ride it out to prevent further damage to deck fittings that had already suffered as a result of shipping green water, (heavy massive waves) (as point of interest, green water is also the term used by Naval Architects when designing the weight of water that deck plates can withstand before collapsing under pressure). I had at some stages through the years lectured at various institutes in Australia and overseas including South Africa and Mozambique both in navigation and seamanship. It while I was lecturing in Durban that I was seconded to the port of Beira in Mozambique on contract as a team leader to prepare student cadets to obtain their certificates as tug masters to operate the government tugs. This was a program funded by the Danish Government finance department who had donated two tugs and a pilot boat as part of the foreign aid donations being undertaken by other countries to rebuild the port of Beira after it was totally destroyed in the civil war by the Rhodesian forces supporting the rebels Remano fighting the then Marxist leader President Samora Machel and his Government troops the Frelimo, over 100,000 lives or more is estimated to have been lost in this bloody conflict. I saw this war at first hand when carrying cargo into the war torn ports giving me some heart stopping moments and actual fear of losing my life at times. Some of the things I saw and encountered still remain vividly with me sadly I can't shake those visions of war. I will probably put up an anecdote at some stage on the dangers of operating a ship in the war zone. At a Lions function I was invited as a guest speaker and spoke of the the Mozambique war, I could see by the faces of the audience they were truly shocked by what I had to say. Here I am digressing a bit so back to the training of the cadets.
The initial contract was for one year with a house and car supplied, I was appointed a chief engineer from South Africa to train and prepare the engineer cadets in the group for their engineers examination. All cadets both deck and engineering had at some time served on foreign going ships for sea time and experience so this gave us a good starting point towards their training. I was further appointed a Mozambique merchant navy deck officer to act as a liaison officer between myself and the cadets. The contract to be serviced was for twelve months but we completed in ten months with the most rigorous training they had ever undergone. This resulted in a personal commendation from the Danish finance minister who at one time attended on board a tug with us along with the port Captain of Beira when carrying out night training exercises in very rough weather outside Beira.
Buzi one of a pair of tugs on which training of cadets took place on at the port of Beira.
On board the pilot vessel carrying out an assessment on each individual cadet in the task of bringing the pilot boat alongside ships in all seas and weathers to embark and disembark pilots taking ships in and out of the port of Beira.
Discussing with the chief engineer if we had enough diesel fuel for the next day of training on the tugs. Fuel was rationed and scarce and only a small amount was allotted to us which restricted our training program, however after making noises about the situation to the contractor who negotiated our contract, fuel all of a sudden came flowing into our almost dry tanks.
After more than forty one years at sea, I was forced to retire due to ill health and was disappointed to leave operational duties at sea of which I loved dearly and was so passionate about. The time had come to look at other options once ashore in order to stay connected within the marine industry. At times I acted as a marine surveyor and consultant, my last position was that with a major ferry company as their pier master a most enjoyable position. I previously mentioned that ship restoration was one of my many interests. In Melbourne in 1973 a wealthy business man purchased a de-commissioned pilot ship with the view to scrapping her. The ship the ss Akuna was formerly an ex corvette minesweeper the H.M.A.S Gladstone which was one of 64 built in Australia during the second world war. After her naval service she was acquired by the company of the Port Phillip Pilots to be on station outside the Port Phillip heads with pilots living aboard to bring ships in and out of Melbourne and the port of Geelong. They made a few alterations in the way of extra cabins beautifully fitted out in Queensland maple timber. Being a steamship and because of her age along the cost of her upkeep in maintenance, Akuna was sold off after being replaced by a more modern diesel electric ship the Wyuna. The new owner was convinced not to scrap this historic piece of Australian maritime heritage. The problem was the engine room had been dismantled and some parts had gone missing. I became involved with the owner in finding ways to get her back into service along with overcoming financial problems which ship restoration can produce in the way of berthing fees, electricity supplies to the ship, cost of materials and the labour required to restore her. To overcome these problems we came up with a few solutions. Firstly with the engine room we contacted the engineering instructor from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology who trained students in marine engineering. He thought this was a good idea and his students soon set about putting the engine room back together. With the work to be carried out on the deck side painting rust removal and so on, university students were given free accommodation in some of the after cabins in return for their labour in their spare time. To meet the harbor dues the ship was turned into a floating restaurant at night and a conference center by day. I began teaching evening classes in coastal navigation one night a week on aboard, this proved to be so popular that it extended to five nights a week.The initial contract was for one year with a house and car supplied, I was appointed a chief engineer from South Africa to train and prepare the engineer cadets in the group for their engineers examination. All cadets both deck and engineering had at some time served on foreign going ships for sea time and experience so this gave us a good starting point towards their training. I was further appointed a Mozambique merchant navy deck officer to act as a liaison officer between myself and the cadets. The contract to be serviced was for twelve months but we completed in ten months with the most rigorous training they had ever undergone. This resulted in a personal commendation from the Danish finance minister who at one time attended on board a tug with us along with the port Captain of Beira when carrying out night training exercises in very rough weather outside Beira.
Buzi one of a pair of tugs on which training of cadets took place on at the port of Beira.
Discussing with the chief engineer if we had enough diesel fuel for the next day of training on the tugs. Fuel was rationed and scarce and only a small amount was allotted to us which restricted our training program, however after making noises about the situation to the contractor who negotiated our contract, fuel all of a sudden came flowing into our almost dry tanks.
H.M.A.S. Gladstone.
From the left Whyalla, Castlemaine, Akuna ex Gladstone with the buff coloured hull.
Having a drink with students on the Akuna after completing a 10 week course in navigation
After three months we were ready to raise steam because the ship was oil fired and not coal we were looking at the enormous cost of running her with diesel oil which was not an option . Our engineers advised us we could burn treated sump oil instead. A one man company who had a small tanker that picked up waste oil from factories and garages and sold it to be refined was contacted and a price was agreed to purchase his waste oil above what he was being paid by the refiners of such oil. We now had a tanker arrive weekly and our fuel situation was now no longer a financial problem . During this period of renovation the ship was painted in white to look like a Mediterranean yacht with blue decks.
ss Akuna with her new yacht look including a blue and white funnel.
Due the operation of the ship she was to be manned by volunteers and to avoid certain maritime regulations and interference from the seaman's union the ship was registered under the Australian flag as a private yacht. There are many fun memories for me running the ship and the voyages on her, she was eventually sold in 1978 to a charity group that was to operate out of Singapore assisting Vietnamese boat people in the South China Sea fleeing Vietnam. I was in Bundaberg Queensland at the time when I received a call to take her to Singapore to be docked and refitted for her future role. This voyage in itself would fill a small book but it all went well and I was sad to see her for the last time after leaving her in Singapore.
