Mooring

[Hague]

The 'China' boats certainly left nothing to chance when it came to mooring with their 'eye and bight' on the well deck 'springs' and 'bights' on breast lines. Eighteen parts of 'wire' no less!
Around 65 I was 'around the land' on the 'Diomed' and due to the renovation of Vittoria Dock we were berthed at the Bidston Dock at the end berth on the West side ( East being where the Iron Ore Carriers discharged). This berth was exposed to say the least. There was was only the Leasowe / Wallasey Golf Links between ship and Irish Sea with the fair Isle of Anglesey just visible to port (comfort for the most of 'the Crowd').
On completion of mooring in a fashion described above the Shore Skipper (Baldwin) suggested that bad weather was expected and we should secure a wire strop to the port anchor to enable that anchor to be lifted ashore and placed ahead of the ship to await an excavator to bury the anchor later in the day. Big Sid Bainbridge (Shore Bosun) arrived and much discussion took place with 'the crowd' watching the clock hoping to make the 'Pool Inn' very close to the Penny Bridge. Big Sid, released 'the crowd' and had Vic Blowers shore gang secure the strop. Can't say for sure whether the Port Anchor was ever buried and Baldwin couldn't remember when I asked him some twenty odd years ago when we both attended the NW Master Mariners together. Probably Big Sid talked him out of it.

[Eggo]

Remember the eye & bights well. We used to break the cable in Hong Kong & shackle it to a buoy. Think we used to hang the anchor off in the hawse pipe and bring the cable over the top .Never done it since.Les

[Hague]

Remember the eye & bights well. We used to break the cable in Hong Kong & shackle it to a buoy. Think we used to hang the anchor off in the hawse pipe and bring the cable over the top .Never done it since.Les

Thats right Les, and also used the Insurance Wire which we would have to flake up and down the Port for'd welldeck some hours before arrival as there was no way you could lead it directly off the reel and through the paint store and then foc'sle. That mooring was quite dangerous when you think about it.
Brgds

[Peter Martin]

Remember the eye & bights well. We used to break the cable in Hong Kong & shackle it to a buoy. Think we used to hang the anchor off in the hawse pipe and bring the cable over the top .Never done it since.Les

Memories of this activity awakened! Something we learned in seamanship school at Odyssey Works. Ships model bows there for the purpose. As you say only ever did it in Hong Kong.
In practice it was interesting. Anchor hung off with wires at bow compressor. Brake released slowly for weight to be taken on the wires. Cablebroken at the 'Kentaur' joining shackle and then fed through the Panama Fairleads to the water's edge.
Couple of brave 'buoy jumpers' in a sampan would connect the cable to the ring on the top and then it was a question of slack away the windlass until the required length of cable was out.
I seem to remember leaving the mooring was a reverse of this.
Better pipe down before I try and remember how we sent down a telescopic top-mast!