Seafaring life. more from this section

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1 This document is a snapshot of content from a discontinued BBC website, originally published between It has been made available for archival & research purposes only. Please see the foot of this document for Archive Terms of Use. 28 February 2012 Accessibility help Text only BBC Homepage Home BBC Local North West Things to do People & Places Nature & Outdoors History Religion & Ethics Arts & Culture Music TV & Radio Local BBC Sites News Sport Weather Travel Neighbouring Sites Mid North East Related BBC Sites Cymru Gogledd Orllewin Sandy Balfour from Holyhead followed the traditions of his home town and took to the sea. He tells us about his voyages around the world and presents some pictures from his albums. "I was brought up in the seafaring town of Holyhead and trained at HMS Conway before going to sea. This old wooden sailing battleship was built in 1826 as HMS Nile before changing her name. She became a cadet ship in 1859 and operated as such until 1953 when she went aground and broke her back in the Menai Straits while being towed to Liverpool to undergo a refit. After this the cadets were accommodated ashore in the grounds at Plas Newydd, home of the Marquis of Anglesey. I was lucky enough to go to sea in the 1950s, when the post-war shipbuilding programme was in full swing and there was plenty of work for freelance seafarers. It was always my ambition to become a marine pilot, and in the course of achieving this I endeavoured to get broad experience in different types of vessels throughout the world. I served my apprenticeship with the Port Line of London on the Australia-New Zealand run, and decided to return to the South Pacific to work for a couple of years after completing my apprenticeship. While delivering a new ship from Britain to New Zealand at the commencement of this period we got caught up with Bastille celebrations in Tahiti and spent longer in port than originally intended! I spent a year aboard a coaster - Vigilante - sailing out of New York to the West Indies, Brazil and the River Amazon. The round trip from New York usually took around eight weeks. We carried general cargo outward from New York, and returned from South America to the States via Trinidad with timber from the Amazon rain forest, cocoa beans and bales of carnauba wax. One of the most dangerous episodes of my career occurred when I was on the wine run from London to Portugal. Returning from Oporto with a full cargo we encountered thick fog in the English Channel and were in collision with a German cargo ship going the opposite way. The other vessel was carrying pig iron and sank with the loss of one life. A full-scale rescue operation was put into motion with two lifeboats and a helicopter involved. Our damage was slight and we were lucky not to have suffered any casualties. The English Channel is one of the busiest waterways in the world and the Dover Coastguard told me that there were more from this section My Story 35 years on from Hong Kong A gamekeeper's life Airborne aid Aunty Enid Author of many names Before the NHS Caernarfon to Canada Creating a family Discovering Aled Dragon far from home Eric Roberts baritone I didn't realise I was deaf Inspirations from the past Jet pilot Life gets in the way Mindfulness helps My real home Record breaker Remembering Dick Richard's story Roving for Radio Spreading knowledge in Pakistan The art of storytelling Toffeelady for a night Tom Jones, Colwyn Bay more from North West Your Say Talking points Share your views, gripes and passions and make your voice heard. Entertainment Days and nights out Find events for all ages, indoors and out, all year round. Activities Head for adventure Your guide to pursuits on mountains, rivers and at sea.

2 often 60 or more ships in the area at any one time, which included ferry traffic to the Continent. Recent technology has supposedly made things safer, but sometimes it's relied upon too heavily. There have been numerous accidents in that region, some being 'radar assisted' - collisions through too much dependence being placed on what should be regarded only as an aid to navigation. Technology has also made seafaring a more stressful occupation. These days shipping companies and ship owners can be in constant touch with their ships through the use of fax, phone or computer; it's not as laid back and easy-going as it was in the 60s and 70s when they left you more to your own devices. There were two places I always wanted to visit, and being at sea offered lots of opportunities of working your way to a chosen destination. After passing my Master's Certificate I took a year off from ordinary voyaging and travelled across Canada by train from Montreal to Vancouver. It took three days and the scenery was spectacular. I then earned my airfare to Australia by working on a rescue vessel on the British Columbian coast patrolling up towards Prince Rupert and adjacent waters. In Australia I signed on a small New Guinea-registered cargo ship to reach one of the places I'd always wanted to visit. The interior of this island is still very primitive, almost Stone Age in some places, as are certain other areas of Papua New Guinea. It was a tremendous contrast to my other destination, Japan, which I reached a few months later. Though these two countries aren't so far apart geographically, yet one is so primitive, the other so high tech. I finally became a ship's pilot in West Africa, a job which involves boarding a ship as it enters or leaves an area of which you have specialised local knowledge, thus ensuring the safe passage and handling of the vessel in those waters. I was based at an oil terminal in Nigeria where I and others on station piloted large oil tankers to load cargoes of that country's crude oil. It was a wild, and at times dangerous region to work in, but interesting none the less. I later returned home to a family life and worked on local ships sailing out of Holyhead on Irish Sea routes. I have since retired from the sea, but it's still very important to me. My main occupation now is as a marine artist, but I'm also in the process of referring to notes and photographs for material for a book to cover these past experiences." View some of Sandy's photos. your comments david thelwell my father, commodore R.G. Thelwell OBE.RD.ADC.RNR was born in 1896 and after spending a few months on a three masted schooner [as a cook of all things] went to the Navy League in Wallasey. then onto the HMS Lion at

3 the Battle of Jutland. I believe that this ship was Admiral Lord Jellico's flagship. My father told me that other midshipmen on his watch were Edward VII and the King George. I'm trying to find out what anniversary HMS Conway celebrates this year, as I've come into possession of a lithograph of this ship, plus a printed history. Mon Aug 11 10:15: Bob Hughes N/c upon Tyne Wonderful reading your life at sea. Dad's family were Angelsey seafarers too. My grandfather was from Llanrhuddlad and was in deep sea sail. My late father was a chief engineer with Booths and also sailed in the V boats. Amazing to see the photo of Sandy's V boat of Cape Hatteras, brought it all home to me, what my father have had to endure, so I could have pocket money for Airfix kits! Fri Oct 5 12:07:

4 28 February 2012 Accessibility help Text only BBC Homepage Home BBC Local North West Things to do People & Places Nature & Outdoors History Religion & Ethics Arts & Culture Music TV & Radio Local BBC Sites News Sport Weather Travel Neighbouring Sites Mid North East Related BBC Sites Cymru Gogledd Orllewin Amazonian river children come on board the Vigilante at Piria sawmill wharf for sweets and other gifts bought in the USA. Scenes from sealife These pictures from the albums of Sandy Balfour of Holyhead give a taste of his seafaring career. Sandy Balfour sporting one of the straw hats worn under the Equatorial sun. My Story 35 years on from Hong Kong A gamekeeper's life Airborne aid Aunty Enid Author of many names Before the NHS Caernarfon to Canada Creating a family Discovering Aled Dragon far from home Eric Roberts baritone I didn't realise I was deaf Inspirations from the past Jet pilot Life gets in the way Mindfulness helps My real home Record breaker Remembering Dick Richard's story Roving for Radio Spreading knowledge in Pakistan The art of storytelling Toffeelady for a night Tom Jones, Colwyn Bay Vigilante rounds Cape Hatteras in heavy seas and freezing temperatures on the run up from Wilmington, North Carolina, to her home port of New York. Christian Radich training ship at Liverpool pierhead. Sandy joined her in Kristiansand as an able seaman in The view from 130 feet up. Each able seaman was responsible for a mast, Sandy's being the mizzen mast. Sandy at the wheel of the Christian Radich.

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