2015 has been some year. It has had its highs and lows its alphas and omegas.
Last night I got news that my first cutter commander, Ron Bayly MBE had slipped his moorings on Boxing Day. He was 92 and an absolute gentleman. I sailed with quite a few other commanders after that inauguaral trial period in 1977 but it was Ron who gave the most confidence. I shared his watch when we commissioned HMCC Searcher and took her from Lowestoft to Lowestoft via a 3962 nautical mile circumnavigation of Great Britain between September and December 1979. Such was his ability and confidence that he rarely questioned my chart planning on the days that we were watch on deck. I can recall him looking over my shoulder at the carefully planned courses I had set to take us from the Clyde to Oban in quite horrid conditions. He checked obviously but was confident and that confidence rubbed off. Several weeks later we decided to run from Stornaway to Stromness. We had sheltered in Oban whilst our stabilizer control boards were re-built and during that time the West coast of Scotland had been battered by storm 10 winds. When we broke free from Lewis I was duty chef and I think they were the biggest seas I have ever encountered. Ron reckoned we had a lee off the land but in this case it was Iceland! He was never reckless and I always felt safe under his command.
Other moorings slipped this year in reverse order were my sister’s Great Dane on the Tuesday before Christmas, one of Mrs O’s best friends from school in October and her mother in July. All in all a year of departures.
Ron posed for me to take this picture in the Pool of London in early December 1977. The parrot used to be strapped to the gimbals in the wheelhouse and legend had it that if the parrot ended up upside down then we ought not to be out there. The Tower Hotel and obviously Tower Bridge are relatively similar in appearance today but my, how the South bank has changed. I got a tad scared at noting that this picture was taken 38 years ago on a Zenit B using FP4. That camera packed up eventually but I still shoot FP4+ these days.