My starting to be a sailor

[Guest]

In Huron, the tug captain always came aboard our boat to discuss the manner of tug assistance when departing the ore dock back in the sixties. Three fingers of Canadian Club in a tumbler ensured a smooth departure.

Hummmm My father was a tug captain in Huron, Ohio in the 60s and that sure sounds like him. lol

Mcearney - please contact me at BDFD36@yahoo,com

I tried to email you but your server wouldn't except it. My email is [email protected].

[Guest II]

In Huron, the tug captain always came aboard our boat to discuss the manner of tug assistance when departing the ore dock back in the sixties. Three fingers of Canadian Club in a tumbler ensured a smooth departure.

Hummmm My father was a tug captain in Huron, Ohio in the 60s and that sure sounds like him. lol

Mcearney - please contact me at BDFD36@yahoo,com

[mcnearney]

In Huron, the tug captain always came aboard our boat to discuss the manner of tug assistance when departing the ore dock back in the sixties. Three fingers of Canadian Club in a tumbler ensured a smooth departure.

Hummmm My father was a tug captain in Huron, Ohio in the 60s and that sure sounds like him. lol

[Guest]

I remember Duluth and Toledo the customs guy would come aboard and the Captain would have a bottle of usually Crown Royal and a glass on his desk and while the paper work was being attended to the customs guys would help themselves to a drink or too and everything would run a bit smoother.

[Guest II]

In Huron, the tug captain always came aboard our boat to discuss the manner of tug assistance when departing the ore dock back in the sixties. Three fingers of Canadian Club in a tumbler ensured a smooth departure.

[Guest]

I cant remember how much was usually put in the glove? was told by the ore dock guys it was for there christmas party, they must of had a hell of a party.

[hugh3]

The commpany policy was there should be no "gifts" per se but I could hide and allocate it to other expenses. I was against this inane policy having been sailing to these places before coming to the "Lakes" and should these little "gifts" not be handed out our life could be made unpleasant and delays would happen.

On the Lakes the practice was not so obvious nor of great expense but shore people liked the boats for: at the "Soo" coffee and at the ore docks there was always the lowering of the "glove" from the top of the dock.

[Lakercapt]

With the help of the sparkie al the passports, crew lists and customs declarations etc. were presented and several cartons of Marlboro and bottles of scotch later all was found satisfactory. No word as to when we would dock but what else was new. (I should mention this is in 1989 and “perestroika” was only beginning.

As the captain did you have some sort of flexible expense account to allow you to purchase what you needed to bribe the various officials as is needed in some ports?

The commpany policy was there should be no "gifts" per se but I could hide and allocate it to other expenses. I was against this inane policy having been sailing to these places before coming to the "Lakes" and should these little "gifts" not be handed out our life could be made unpleasant and delays would happen.

[Lakercapt]

I think you would know more than me but they started getting away from there core business which was seaway transportation and investing in other businesses which were not there strengths.

Exactly right as the brothers had some hair-brained schemes and as they were in control no one could tell them it was wrong. One such outside business was a beef farm. The beef was of good quality and we got in the ships but it did not generate a large cash flow.

[Guest]

With the help of the sparkie al the passports, crew lists and customs declarations etc. were presented and several cartons of Marlboro and bottles of scotch later all was found satisfactory. No word as to when we would dock but what else was new. (I should mention this is in 1989 and “perestroika” was only beginning.

As the captain did you have some sort of flexible expense account to allow you to purchase what you needed to bribe the various officials as is needed in some ports?

[Guest]

I think you would know more than me but they started getting away from there core business which was seaway transportation and investing in other businesses which were not there strengths.

[Lakercapt]

As expected the crossing, as are most in the winter time a series of depressions one after another and they typified my mood as the motion set the PRC off again with many seasick. I was beginning to wonder if this was a ploy absenting them from work. By now anyone I knew who sailed eventually got over it and could function normally. As it was difficult to get them to understand I was at a lost how to approach the problem. I considered telling them no work no pay but had to grin and bear it. On approaching the English Channel a new piece of equipment came of great help. It was the Decca navigator which replace the Loran “C’ which was no of any use in this part of the worked. I had requested this navigational aide for ages as having used it for years found it invaluable. The system I had used before was outdated and where previously the unit had to be leased, now it could be purchased outright and was very reasonably priced. It was a much more refined system and could do many things the old unit could not. Accurate positioning was obtained many miles from shore and making an accurate landfall did not depend on celestial navigation.
With us now in more or less sheltered waters the crew made their appearance and the bosun who was incensed by their behavior calmed down. The Dover Straits is always a very busy shipping channel and with the ARPA radar having the capability of allowing traffic separation boundaries I had programmed this into it. It took a considerable amount of time and trial and error to get the lanes correctly aligned and to my horror when it was time to use it the programme had mystically vanished. I was rather annoyed to say the least but no one would admit to having fingers on the delete button. I spent plenty of time in the pilot house but not taking over, only observing. I had reiterated to the mates that my presence in the wheelhouse did not mean I was taking over unless I specifically said “I will assume control” I was only observing but if they wished help to ask. Up through the North Sea with the many oil and gas rigs required careful look outs and our seamen? Were not used to this and were only taking up space! I had kept all parties well informed of our progress and I was assured by the crewing agency the winter clothing for the crew would be there at the pilot station in the Copenhagen Sound. This was the stuff the agents in N.O. had forgotten about. The pilot was boarded and if I told you the clothing was not there would it come as a surprise. As had been the norm mates and I had to steer during this pilotage. The Baltic Sea (which is fresh water) was kind to us and unseasonably mild weather meant there was little ice coverage. Good sailing to the Gulf of Finland and on to Leningrad.
Having been there before the official rigmarole started with the pilots not knowing whither we were to proceed to the berth or not and eventually we anchored. I was unpleasantly surprised when the entire multitude boarded unannounced. With the help of the sparkie al the passports, crew lists and customs declarations etc. were presented and several cartons of Marlboro and bottles of scotch later all was found satisfactory. No word as to when we would dock but what else was new. (I should mention this is in 1989 and “perestroika” was only beginning.

[Lakercapt]

Capt did you ever when all this lets call it transitioning was going on ever think maybe I should just go back to being a regular Laker Skipper and not have to deal with all this stuff?

Yes I did and did make some enquires but by now I had vested interests namely the pension plan. I am sure the company wouuld have liked for me to leave as I brought up many factors they did not anticipate about flagging out. This experiment was a last ditch effort to safe the company which alas did not return the cash hoped for and the end was only delayed.

[Guest]

Capt did you ever when all this lets call it transitioning was going on ever think maybe I should just go back to being a regular Laker Skipper and not have to deal with all this stuff?

[Lakercapt]

It was really Punic War as I had proved my point but rather than rubbing their noses in it we played about with the ballast and got the loading started. It was very dusty and covered the boat. We had a couple of crew changes, the chief steward and one from the engine room who was really not capable of doing the job. I thought the sailor who I was treating would go to the doctor but he insisted he stay. We said a sad farewell to D. the second engineer as his help during the transition was invaluable. Alas it was to be the last time we were to see him as later he underwent surgery for a heart condition but did not survive. The mate I insisted remains as his involvement in training the mates and deck crew was to continue for some time.
I had some time to go shopping and as well as personal stuff bought trade goods for our Russian stay. The big demand was for jeans and cassette tape but just about anything was OK. At this time all the things we were taking for granted could not be had there.
Eventually we completed loading but as it was required in the charter party our holds had to be sealed by the Nation Cargo Bureau I delayed sailing. The agent compounding their lack of service had forgotten to order them. There was another ship due to load so I reluctantly departed and the man joined us from a launch and wired up and put his lead seals on the hatches and access hatches. I believe this was done so there could be no interference with the cargo.
The trip down the river was one which I and he mates did the steering. The sailors we had hoped to do this did not pass the proficiency the test. I was glad to see the end of this stay as it was nothing but a pain in the butt for the time we arrived. Now the chore of cleaning up began and it turned out to be a mammoth task. When the dust got wet it stuck on like glue. Only way to remove it was scrubbing which took for ages.
I think I mentioned about getting cold weather gear for the crew from the management company, Denholm’s. I had enquired about this several times and had not response. We received a telex stating it had been sent to New Orleans. Telex to the agents and was told it was there but they forgot to bring it on board!!. Would wait for ongoing instructions from Denholm’s!!. Could not organise a party in a brewery. I hoped we would get it before arrival in Leningrad and the options for this were very limited. I suggested the pilots going through the Copenhagen Sound. One thing I was glad about was I did not have anything to do with the wages for the crew. This was done by the sparkie as part of his duties. He Canadians I was still required to do and he information sent to the office on 21st of each month as was the system before. Another information telex message had now been added to the many we were required to send on a daily basis, was to a company which was to weather route us across the Atlantic. Their advice on the courses to steer to avoid the worst of the weather. My previous experience of this service was not positive as this big stretch of water in the winter is of fast changing depressions and very little could be done to avoid them. However the charters were insisting we use it and followed the programme. It did not help as still on the passage had miserable weather and there were still crew members seasick. I knew that feeling as no matter how many years I sailed the oceans of the world, I occasionally suffered from mal de mer.

[Jerry at Duluth]

Captain, I was interested in your comments about the NCB surveyor. You are correct in that meals and pellets do not require a stability calculation. This was because of the high angle of repose of these products. We did have a surveyor at Duluth who wanted them back in the early 1970s by the name of Leo Doyle. He went to New Orleans when he left Duluth and I wonder if that was him. He did not insist upon the calculation at Duluth but wanted to see some indication of the vessels stability when loading grain byproducts at Duluth.
Jerry

[Lakercapt]

As we approached the US coast the weather improve to be very pleasant after all the rough seas and rolling about. This like all warm weather brought out the seasick fraternity and at last the whole crew were working. The steering lessons continued and we had more or less thought the three best would be the ones to steer in and out of port. They had yet to do it but we considered it the best option. The mate G. had been instructing the mates on the mooring winch controls. These were all new innovations to them as usually the mates directed the deck hands on warping lines and back springs etc.Doing it all from a position on the main deck was all new and still to be tried out. The first mooring would be their baptism by fire. I was not convinced it would all work out but we had to play the hand that was dealt to us so to speak. The engine room crew were working out with help from D. the Canadian 2nd engineer and G. the chief engineer. I was still very apprehensive about the whole thing so to make sure, if anything untoward happened, I made copies of all the messages sent by me regarding to competence, or lack of the crew. This I intended to mail to my wife and evidence of my misgivings would be on record.
The trip round the Florida coast was it inside route close to the shore. This to avoid the strong Gulf Stream current. It was the first a first for the crew as now we were able to receive TV and to say their reactions were awe is to put it lightly. Never having witnessed the variety of programmes and of course the commercials had them agog. Alas this was to be the nearest they would get to experiencing North American culture which I will get to shortly. The pilot in to the Mississippi was not ordered for our arrival which meant going to anchor till it could be arranged. Next morning he boarded and we proceeded to the Nine Mile anchorage to complete formalities and wait for the loading berth to be free. On approaching the anchorage I sent the third mate who was on watch to check the anchors were free as the sparkie had been checking out the bridge anchor release. He was quite perplexed as he was used to this being the first mates job on all the other ships he had sailed on. I told him that was not how we worked and it was good practice. It was just as well Tom was still there to stop him as he started to release the windlass brake and release the anchor. Would have been spectacular results. We were steaming full ahead and the anchor and cable flying out.
I expected problems and it was not long before they occurred. First to the fore was Immigration. I had the crew lists ready and they were not Visaed which was impossible to obtain as I did not know where we were going when e sailed from Amsterdam. Nobody was to be allowed ashore at first and I informed him the Canadian crew were not required to have a visa. This was news to him and he had to check with his superior to be told I was correct. A couple of the Indian crew had obtained a visa from other visits so USA, they were allowed as was Tom the sparkie. None of the Chinese were granted pemission and a guard had to be posted at the gangway when berthed. The customs did not like the crew declarations but it was the best under the circumstances and eventually they accepted it. Not finished yet. The US department of agriculture on inspection of the hold found a few grains of wheat which had been overlooked when the holds were cleaned. The mate G. Who went round with them was so incensed he picked them up and ate them much to the horror of the inspector. Number four cargo hold was filled with water ballast and would not be inspected until empty. I explained it was necessary to keep this filled as the boat would be too high out of the water to manoeuvre properly. If they insisted i informed them it would make the boat too high out of the water for the loading rig to reach the holds but I lost this battle knowing I would win the war later. I had experienced this problem before and had informed our company about it that they would inform all parties about it. When we were on the lakes it had been normal practice to pump this hold out and clean it after berthing Never been a problem but as I was finding out lots had changed and not for the better. Not finished yet as the Cargo Bureau insisted they be presented with a grain cargo stability calculation. I questioned this as I was not aware they required this for soya bean meal which is not classed as a grain cargo to my knowledge. Their insistence was by this time making me extremely pi**ed of so G. whisked down to the loading computer and got one that satisfied these officious jerks. The agent during this period was as much assistance as to have been ashore. Eventually all departed and fairly satisfied we would not pollute the USA mainland and their way of life.
Next problem was I was happy to pass this to G the chief engineer. We had ordered bunkers and stipulated the maximum S.G. of fuel (this was a requirement after this initial problems with the engine liner and piston wear) to be supplied. The bunker barge came alongside when we were at anchor and connected up. Before they started to pump, the C/E asked for the specs of the fuel. Not acceptable as the S.G. exceeded the maximum ordered. Guess down “South” which we are always told, had very friendly people was a figment of our imagination as up till now it was not apparent. Many words were exchanged and they disconnected and off to the next happy customer!! Many phone calls later another barge appeared and the correct fuel was transferred on board. An amusing incident occurred during this as one of the PRC crew saw a few drops of oil when the hose was disconnected. Wondered what it was and the bosun managed to convey its purpose. How was it a so called AB had never seen this stuff? My first visit to New Orleans was many years ago when I was an apprentice but the sights still fascinated me. The large tugboats pushing a huge raft of barges with such skill got high marks. The smell of the river too is a one and only.
A couple of days at anchor allowed us to get some repairs to our radars and the new module for the radio station. It was a surprise when the technician working on the radio told us we were to get a pilot in a couple hours to berth and he hoped to have completed by then. No word for the agents about this! We were ready when he came and chatting with him when he found out we were a Great Lakes boat. I understood the radio traffic as it was the same as we used on the “Lakes”. Approaching the berth in a place called Reserve miles up river from New Orleans He said the ship would be too high for the loading rig to reach. Very welcome words to my ears and I was now going to win the war having lost the previous battle!

[Lakercapt]

With the assistance of the man from Denholm’s got the crew signed on and collected all the discharge books and passports in preparation of making a crew list up. One thing I noticed from the PRC crew the discharge books were all in sequence and signed by the same person even though there were all from different ships. This could not be possible. According to these books all had been sailing the required amount of time to be, by our standards A.B.’s for the deck crew and proficient mechanics for the engine room crew. How false this was showed up quickly. The CEO (sparkie) who had sailed for Denholm’s for some time was surprised at the poor quality of the men. It was a mad panic completing all the formalities and preparing to sail on the 27th. I was informed the vessel was now o charter to the Soviets, so now there were four groups of people I was required to report to. The CPO (bosun) appeared to be a good person and he too had been with Denholm’s for a while and was perplexed with has gang who could not understand what was being asked of them.
Goodness how we managed but we sailed eventually and going down the canal the first problem arose. The AB at the wheel could not steer nor follow steering instructions. The third mate eventually took over until we cleared the pilot. We had no destination and were to head out to the Bishops Rock and await instructions from the charterer “Socofract”. The English Channel was busy as expected and everyone was obeying the traffic separation routing. The crew were still wondering about trying to familiarize themselves with the new surroundings. I was inundated with paper work and managed with the help of the sparkie. He was from Ireland and proved to be a great asset in the coming months. The mates were trying hard to grasp the concept of a “lake” boat and with the help of G. the Canadian mate finding it tough but getting there. We had been in more or less sheltered waters but getting clear of the coast the effects of an Atlantic depression were starting to be felt. Later on we were instructed by the charters to proceed to SW passage of the Mississippi. Now the rolling and pitching was having its effect and most of the PRC crew were lying in the hallways and common rooms violently seasick. I was dispensing Gravol like smarties and the rest of the crew, were through necessity having to fill in for the sick members. The meals you would understand were when it was possible to get the catering staff operational.
The Telex traffic increased and everyone required to be answered immediately. I was pleased the sparkie, Tom, was doing all this as the morse messages were nil. The first lifeboat and fire drill, (it should have been done before we sailed but all the shore parties wished us gone ASAP) was an out and out disaster and left me feeling really upset at my predicament. How could I cope if an emergency happened with the ship and this crew to cope with it? Every day training the PRC crew to steer and do simple tasks was taking priority. The Chief Steward who was supposed to help was getting off at the first port so did little to contribute. One of the deck rating reported to me that his leg was sore. I looked at it and wondered how he had passed a medical. It was badly ulcerated and suppurating. I sent him down to the hospital and after consulting the”Shipmasters Medical Guide” started to treat him. During the trip I was informed we were to load soya bean meal for Leningrad. The crew had no cold weather gear and I informed the management company of this. It will be supplied in the loading port I was told. As the weather was moderating more of the crew showed their faces and another boat and fire drill was held. The mate had been instructing the crew for days and although it was an improvement a lot was left to be desired. This is not made up as I have it all written in my diary. The next challenge I faced was making up the crew list for US Immigration. This was not a new thing for me as I had to do it when we were Canadian. The challenge this time was all the non Caucasian names and this list is to be in alphabetical order. With Canadian vessels it is not necessary to have list visaed. With the help of Tom (what a great asset it was having this fellow) we spent ages compiling it. Chinese and Asian names plus they few others made our heads spin. As I had no indication of where we were headed when departing I could not have this list visaed and I knew it would be a problem when we got to the USA and I was correct. The AB with the bad leg was improving with the treatment and was officious with his thanks. The other PRC crew were duly impressed too.
We celebrated Chinese New Year on 6th February which also happened to be my birthday so a double celebration. The crew enjoyed the spread the cooks managed to prepare considering there were only the stores meant for the Canadian crew. It was a big surprise to them there was no rationing of food and if they wanted more was available. One member I observed was packing his rice bowl and I gave him another and the look on his face was priceless. A big change for him and there was to be many more in the coming months they were on board. We had a supply of movies on board for the Canadian crew and one of the video cassettes was a movie called the “Last Emperor” .I put it on for the crew through the ships system and this caused a great stir. If you have seen this movie you will know it told the story of Puyi. It was filmed partly in China and had Mandarin dialog. The comments I was able to get from the crew were an indication they had been well and truly brought up with the Communist indoctrination. It was a western propaganda film and not true. As they had never seen anything outside of China many were the surprises in store for them. Please understand this was in 1989 and the culture revolution not long passed and the China we know today is a long way from what they were living with.

[Lakercapt]

Can you please elaborate that the crew from India were not as skilled.My personal experience on sailing with that crew was very positive.

As with all nationalities there are good and otherwise and in your experiance it was good. I had good officers and also some that were great at book work but on a practical level were worse than useless. In stories I will relate about this later you will understand what I mean. When in heavy traffic areas round Europe I had to take over the con on occasion as the officer of the watch had got us in a very dangerious position. The radio officer called me as he observed this and was concerned. This happened more than once so in the end I was more or less in the pilothouse all the time just in case. I did not trust them to follow the trafffic separations or use good seamanship. I sometime wondered if they had in fact obtained their qualifications fraudulently.
Some might question this statement but I have friends who have had applicants from the place we are talking about, who prouduced documentation to show that they were qualified but they could not do the job when tested.

[Lakercapt]

Can you please elaborate that the crew from India were not as skilled.My personal experience on sailing with that crew was very positive.

As with all nationalities there are good and otherwise and in your experiance it was good. I had good officers and also some that were great at book work but on a practical level were worse than useless. In stories I will relate about this later you will understand what I mean. When in heavy traffic areas round Europe I had to take over the con on occasion as the officer of the watch had got us in a very dangerious position. The radio officer called me as he observed this and was concerned. This happened more than once so in the end I was more or less in the pilothouse all the time just in case. I did not trust them to follow the trafffic separations or use good seamanship. I sometime wondered if they had in fact obtained their qualifications fraudulently.
Some might question this statement but I have friends who have had applicants from the place we are talking about, who prouduced documentation to show that they were qualified but they could not do the job when tested.