Out of Arklow

I Do Not Remember When I First Sailed Out Of Arklow But I Do Remember When I Almost Drowned In The Dock At The Age Of Three. I Was Brought Up In A Fishing Community And In Our Street Of Fourteen Houses Every One Of Them Had At Least One Person In The Family Earning A Living From The Sea. I First Shipped Out Of Arklow As A Boy Aged Thirteen On Local Fishing Boats. Later On I Joined The Merchant Navy And Over The Years I Worked My Way Up From Ordinary Seaman To Master. I Served On Eighty Different Boats And Ships And Was Master Of Thirty-Seven Of Them. These Included Fi Shing Vessels Coasters Tramps Cattle Boats Passenger Ships Heavy-Lift Vessels Nuclear Fuel Carriers Tankers Vlccs Obos Container Ships Dredgers Survey Ships Yachts And Patrol Boats. This Is My Story.