Foggy Days and Nights at Sea..........

[Trevor Bodiam]

Growing up in Dover i remember the "pea-supers" very well. Our street was 2 below the western heights and not that far from the channel. On a really bad night the foghorns sounded so loud and close you would think ships were going up our back alley.

[happy daze john in oz]

Hi Happy Daze, my grandmother lived in Biggin Hill during the war and we walked or cycled passed the aerodrome when going to see her. Have had more than a few beers at the Crown on Leaves Green road. Caused chaos there one night when I accompanied him to pick up one of Crouches coaches which he drove of a weekend. Pulled up at the crown on our way home to Coney Hall on a friday night, they thought it was a coach full of unexpected customers. Good Fun. Drank regularly at the Fox at Keston.

Yes mate, you bring back some very good memories of that time.
Leaves Green Road, had forgotten all about that one, and the Fox, was good then.

[Colin Wood]

Hi Happy Daze, my grandmother lived in 'Old Tye Avenue' off of Jail Lane.

[Bill Morrison]

The entrance to Aberdeen Harbour is rather narrow and in the past many have come to grief in all weather conditions, before radar fog was a nightmare and even with it it still is.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotla...tland-57679093

[vic mcclymont]

Never sailed in fog, arrived Soton with a cargo fruit anchored until fog cleared.

Saile through sand storms off the hook of Africa, weird weather warm, being blasted by grit.
Vic

[Graham Shaw]

The entrance to Aberdeen Harbour is rather narrow and in the past many have come to grief in all weather conditions, before radar fog was a nightmare and even with it it still is.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotla...tland-57679093

Thanks for that Bill.Here's the MAIB Accident Report HERE..(It will open as a pdf-to read or save on PC)

[j.sabourn]

#25.. wouldn’t have a clue what Aberdeen port regulations are today but at the times I worked out of there the same as most others on site pilotage was compulsory leaving and sailing , and yet most knew it like the back of their hand. But once inside the port in the offshore industry a large amount of the time was spent shifting the ship around the harbour a much more harder job , and for this a pilot was not required as long as port control were informed . That extra hand on the bridge when backing in alongside tight fitting berths especially between ships could be nerve racking , an engineer or whoever was available usually assisted shouting out the approx. distances etc. cheers JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Not just foggy days and nights.

There was many a foggy morning particularly in Cape Town if you had been on the Cape smoke the night before.
Smoke gets in your eyes, and your guts and at times encourages prolonged discussions with Huey on the big white telephone.

[j.sabourn]

A ginger square would have cured that John . JS

[Bill Morrison]

#25.. wouldn’t have a clue what Aberdeen port regulations are today but at the times I worked out of there the same as most others on site pilotage was compulsory leaving and sailing , and yet most knew it like the back of their hand. But once inside the port in the offshore industry a large amount of the time was spent shifting the ship around the harbour a much more harder job , and for this a pilot was not required as long as port control were informed . That extra hand on the bridge when backing in alongside tight fitting berths especially between ships could be nerve racking , an engineer or whoever was available usually assisted shouting out the approx. distances etc. cheers JS

Hi John. Aberdeen Harbour pilotage still compulsory but now with various exceptions. They installed a computer controlled pilotage simulator for training purposes. I had a trial with it and ended up in same place as that vessel, fog came down in the blink of your eye. There is a Pilot Exemption Certificate issued to those who have passed the examination.
PEC@aberdeen_harbour.co.uk

Bill