Please Note :- Most images are linked to larger versions. None are © to the best of my knowledge. My thanks to all the OWs that have collected or supplied their own pictures at various times. OWs feel free to plunder. Other people please ask. Please tell me if you would like your picture removed from the site or credited.

2d

On to other parts of Deep Sea. It has occurred to me that there may be some confusion about the use of the words Deep Sea. The reader may not be familiar with the term. We used it to signify a difference between ocean voyages and trading around the coast.

Found these on SN which gave me a big surprise as that is me on the left. Both pictures MV Essex 1970/1971

Launch of MV Otaki

As mentioned on the previous page my first ship was really the Iron Spencer (on the right) owned by Australian Iron and Steel. I was on her from 14th Jan 67 until 25th Jan 67 as a supernumerary. I was a “shore-side” apprentice at the time and this was a trial trip. I remember enjoying it apart from the noise down the engine room caused, I was told, by an out of balance turbine gearbox. Short trip, but quite an experience for me.

I had a great time on the MV Essex. Hard work but we also had time off which made up for it. I had a “deep sea” trip on her October 70 to Feb 71 as 7th Engineer. I also did a coastal trip for half a month on arrival back in England. There are more details about the Essex on the previous page. I went to places like Tasmania, a lot of the New Zealand ports like Mount Maunganui, Gisburn, Napier etc. All familiar names to seafarers who have been there and other numerous places on the Kiwi and Aussie coast during those great days when we spent 2-3 months plodding from port to port loading and unloading cargo of all sorts. It has to be said that the Kiwi people did not have that attitude of looking down on the dock area as being rough and treated it as just part of the city. There was always someone to wave goodbye from the wharf.

Three guises of MV Otaki. NZSCo - Federal/NZSCo - P&O. Quite a Career, in common with lots of NZS Ships.

My experiences of the Otaki are on the previous page.

MV Otaki

SS Devon

I was on the Devon twice for short periods around the UK coast and she was the only Steam Turbine ship I went on. To be fair, there wasn’t many around so the chances were limited.

MV Essex

One of my favourite photos that I took, at Napier with the Essex behind what may be the Manapouri in the foreground.

Essex at Tasmania

Essex at Tasmania

Essex at The Mount

MV Piako

Send off

Only spent a few days on her.

Left - Right

NZSCo, Federal, P&O Colours

There are only a representative selection of my pictures on this site.

If anyone has an interest, all my pictures are on the Ships Nostalgia site. Click on the Icon above.