British Merlin - My first trip

[cappy]

ypu pulled that one out the hat bonny lad and thanks to you.....it a great song and the words are stirring....the site is a font of knowledge .....but then that does not surprise me as were we not regardless of rank world travellers when the world was younger.....like the bit about canny shields a fine seaport ...best wishes cappy

[Keith Tindell]

The poem is Cargoes, by masefield, and is on you tube KT

[cappy]

thanks for the info keith thers not much we don't know on this site .....rob must still be in his pit this morning....no answer .....usually hes as quick as a sailor in a honky tonk or down the gangway on pay off day......I await his response regards cappy

[Don Rafferty]

Cargoes - John Masefield: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSbQ0qwQwuk

[cappy]

another good one don ...but not much coal on the coally tyne now it all comes in from Poland and the river has little day to day shipping ......a ferry runs to Amsterdam each day and I hear people say oh look at the ship ...and I want to shout that's not a bloody ship .....see it 50 years ago stuffed with every nations shipping ....the old colliers and tramps tankers all blowing and the navy vessels with there sirens the tugs charging about like sheepdogs and the fishing boats on the north side and me and me mates bunking off school hiring a roboat and rowing round the river giving pilots heart attacks as we shot from north to south .....rowing under the fish quay and getting the fishthat hadfallen out the crans ....and selling them to the dockies as the shipyards closed ......so sad looking back and very emotional.....and the best of all the envy of my palsmy granda taking meon the collier the flamma down to London and me learning to steer her.....I would have been hapy to have been on the wheel for the whole run...but do remember it was cold and the bare metal bulkheads dripping with condensation ....I wouldn't have swopped it for a million quid now that was winning the lottery regards cappy

[j.sabourn]

About 20 degrees and blowing a gale. Think the first line if remember of Masefields poem was dirty British coaster on reflection and not trampship. Cheers John Sabourn

[cappy]

trouble with the wind then john

[Louis the Amigo]

Hi shipmates, Hi Peter,Did we go to Sweden? did we follow an icebreaker to go to a port ? it was a bit cold my oil skins were like cardboard, I was on the sharp end of the ship, with a heaving line, got hit with some spray that froze on me, cant remember the port did not go ashore, was it snowing a blizzard "HAPPY days. Much better on ESSO just around the coast in winter, on a small one , no frozen sea and lots of lovely gales I got all the nice jobs???? No nasty hot countries with cheap drinks and lovely ladys for me!!!