Single gating on broad locks

I liked the old Aicirtron, although she had her faults ..... There was no direct access to the engine room from the wheelhouse without going out onto the deck, which could be a bit hairy in rough weather.
We were in very severe weather off the north Devon coast in her and got blocked fuel filters when we were a bit too close to a lee shore for comfort. We got under way again fairly quickly but they launched the Appledore lifeboat in the meantime
(talking to the cox'n later he said they launched because the weather was worsening and if they left it any longer they wouldn't be able to get across the bar and out to us, so they launched "just in case")
They met us off the coast and we both anchored in the lee of Lundy Island until the next day and then followed the lifeboat into Appledore.

First time in all the years I have been at sea that the RNLI was called out for an incident where I was involved  (although strangely we needed their help again about a year later when on a delivery run we lost steering in a shipping lane)


Appledore Lifeboat Mollie Hunt by mudlarker2, on Flickr