Rolly Poly

[Captain Kong]

Almost every ship[ I sailed on, coasters, Tramps, FORTS, SAMs ,cargo liners and passenger liners including as a passenger, I had Thwart ship bunks.,
far more than fore and aft bunks. more than a hundred ships.

[robpage]

with 1 exception , always fore and aft bunks , later ships had wider bunks too

[cappy]

with 1 exception , always fore and aft bunks , later ships had wider bunks too

##always athwartships apart from shell tanker .....for and aft above the steering flat and shuddered as the wheelman put some wheel on .....but after a week or so never noticed the noise

[cappy]

Vernon I fell out of bed the other night and the house wasn't moving. Bunks or beds on a ship for crews use depended on available space and didn't particularly matter whether fore and aft or athwartships, as long as they were of the basic minimum dimensions. the art was being able to wedge yourself in which many time didn't always work especially on smaller vessel rolling to 45 degree angles and pitching with the bow pointing to almost the zenith. Ive seen some come from deep sea into the north sea for one trip and give it away. sea sickness there was no sympathy for if a bucket tied round the neck did not suffice. cheers jws

the north sea in colliers or small coastal tankers would be a no no for anyone prone to seasickness ...pretty frightening from time time......but if you were running from your home port and courting strong it was a good scene...cappy

[Jim Brady]

Remember putting the life jacket under the mattress on one side to keep you jammed against the bulkhead so to stop you rolling around.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[Lewis McColl]

Have done that as well, life jacket under the mattress , also have pulled the mattress down onto the deck.
Best coaster I was on was a Chemical carrier, Alcoha Chemist the bump was like climbing into a coffin. Once in you never moved, but it was a B's tard to get out off.

[Keith Tindell]

I wonder how many of us could climb in and out of some of those bunks in early 4-6 berth cabins, especially the top ones. i can remember as peggy, and my job to call some of the watches, hoping you had it right, and not put the wrong bloke on a shake, kt

[Jim Brady]

Talking of putting people on a shake Keith did you ever call somebody and they took a swing at you.I think it was my first trip to sea on the Emp.Of France I had to call the purser,I think I shook him by the shoulder I just managed to get out of the way from a right cross.He came to the pursers office and apologised to me and told me in future to shake him by the feet.Another time on a coastal tanker the 2nd mate just missed me with a cracker,I didn't shake him I just called him and was putting a cup of tea down for him.From then on just put the light on and shouted in.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[Keith Tindell]

Probably a lot of the guys from the war years Jim, i remember a lot of them were Alki,s , and just after we left port , took a while for them to settle down. I think i posted before, sailing with a Scouser, Tommy O,driscoll, total Alki in port, but once away from port a superb seaman, usually shipped out as Bosun. My 21 st birthday in the middle of the Pacific, we had saved our tins, and as i recall the Chief steward had been good to us, but Tommy got totally wasted, and on Monkey Island lookout, sat on a small mushroom vent, fell asleep, fell off and on to the whistle lanyard, this on the midnight to 4 watch. Panic stations, skipper in his pyjamas on the bridge wonder ing what the hell was going on. Poor old Tom logged at sea, kt

[robpage]

Ship keeping in Portsmouth on New Year's Eve as it approached midnight we were getting the whoop whoop squeaky little whistles of the Royal Navy we had a proper air driven typhoon whistle and with the only merchant ship in the ferry terminal but had any sound of life we went for the midnight New Year's Eve whistle blast so I thought it would be fun to hang my 8 year old daughter onto the lanyard in the bridge so it the second mate who was the senior deck officer on board counting down the time I held her up and she grabbed the lanyard at midnight I let go her wait for the lanyard down and she wouldn't let go and jump off it . We certainly rounded off that new year with a blast