# M/V Dauntless Star.



## Cpt Dick Brooks (May 13, 2013)

I bought Dauntless Star in the spring of 1975. She belonged to Freddie Catchpole, although she was being operated by Putford Enterprises. He had built two fleets of fishing-boats after the Second World War, one called Star for himself and one called Waters for his wife. Dauntless Star was originally the Sunlight Waters, as part of his wife's fleet, but he later renamed her for his own.
Dauntless Star had only arrived back in Lowestoft half an hour before from working as a stand-by ship on the gas rigs north of the Norfolk Coast, when it was suggested by Mr Hashim that I go and inspect her with a view to buying her. Her machinery was still warm as my chief engineer, 'Harold the Kraut' and I looked over her. She suited my purpose just fine, so I returned to their office near the dock-side to complete the transaction. We moved on board straight away and fitted new locks to all the doors.
The pore old captain was really upset when he returned to his ship, to find that she had been sold beneath his feet, but I gave him leave to collect his possessions and the fish down in the freezer that him and his crew had caught while they were on station. I later found him drowning his sorrows in The Anchor Stores by the waterfront of the town. His crew were peeved to meet me, but were soon trying to sign on as deck-crew when the idea came to them. Their hopes were soon dashed when I told them that I was intending to fit her out as a dive-support ship and take her on a voyage around the world via the Persian Gulf. I took her down to Ipswich to prepare her for the voyage.
With 'Harold the Kraut' as my chief-engineer and 'Chrissie-boy' as mate, we set out on our voyage of adventure. When I was asked at the pier-heads when leaving Ipswich dock where I was heading by Aubrey, the lock-master, I told him around the world. I was later told that this had appeared in the Evening Star as my destination in their ships sailings and arrivals section of the local newspaper.
After a wonderful voyage of ten months out to the Persian Gulf, via the Suez Canal, Dauntless Star arrived in Dubai. I was almost out of money, food and fuel, but managed to land a diving job on my second day in port. This was followed by a relief captain's job on an ex-German 800 ton freighter, M/V Lux. Both my crew got jobs on local ships, so the bucks were rolling in. Just before we were ready to sail for the Maldives Islands at the end of the SW monsoon, a wealthy Arab businessman offered to buy my ship, with a contract to be her captain for another two years. Dauntless Star was converted into a water tanker, to deliver fresh water to the hundreds of ships anchored outside of Dubai harbour. We even went out 20 miles to supply drinking water to the Canadian Pacific tankers coming from the well-heads, on their way east to Rus-al Hormuz, then south to Rus-al Hudd and the Indian Ocean. 
When the construction of Jebal Ali got underway, every drop of water had to be carried there by barge from Mina Hamria for the 5,000 ******* and the 200 ex-pat workers, apart for the manufacture of every drop of concrete. As the ******* were Muslim, from Pakistan and Bangladesh, they couldn't buy alcoholic, even if they could get to Dubai in the 64 degrees Celsius heat of the summers of 1976 and 77... so I bought it for them at a nice profit. Dauntless Star became known as 'The Whisky and Water' supply-ship. 
The company, 'Ahli Shipping' had five ships, and also managed three more through our line-manager, Mohammed Ali Hassan Sade. The crew were of many nationalities and couldn't understand each other in pidgin English, and the office staff were Indian. The owner, Mohammed Ahli, made me the fleet captain, as I could translate to the ship's crews, and he referred to me as 'The Fixer'. He didn't trust his office staff, so had me report to his office the first of every month to count out the ship's wages into piles. I deposited the US dollars into my Barclays account and paid my crew in local currency at mid-rate exchange rate from the profits of my whisky business. At the end of my two year contract, I returned to the UK to buy another ship, for a voyage out to the Caribbean and South Seas. If you enjoyed my thread, you can get details of the five books that I have written in the Books forum. All the best, Cpt Dick Brooks.


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## Cpt Dick Brooks (May 13, 2013)

*Re Dauntless Star LT 367.*

Hi, lads, it came as a wonderful surprise this morning when I was working through the hits on my short stories to see the photograph of the Dauntless Star LT 367 on your Random Pictures From the Gallery display. It brought back the wonderful memories of the year that I owned that ship, and our year voyage out to Dubai, in the Persian Gulf, with Chris Holland and Harold Jenson in 1975 to 1976. The two year contract I spent working in Dubai on board her as master after I sold her to Ahli Shipping and converted her to a water tanker was a wonderful experience. We carried water out of Mina Hamria to the ships waiting out in the anchorage to enter Dubai Harbour to unload, and the tankers steaming from loading oil at the well-heads to the Straight of Hormus. 
When they started building Jebal Alley, every drop of water for the construction of this mega-port had to be carried from Mina Hamria by water tanker, and for the 5,000 labourers and the 200 ex-pats working there. This is the subject of my next book, Whiskey and Water, that I'll start to write in the autumn.
I noticed that the fore-mast, erected on the front of the wheelhouse, was not fitted at the time this photograph was taken. Thanks a lot and all the best, Cpt Dick Brooks.


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## RayJordandpo (Feb 23, 2006)

When I worked on the anchor handling tugs for United Towing I remember them using a vessel called the 'Dauntless Star' for crew changing offshore. I believe she was actually owned by UTC at that time. It was certainly no fun jumping across onto that ship in a gale in the middle of the North Sea. I was a crew member on a vessel called the 'Universal Star' which was also an ex trawler.


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## Cpt Dick Brooks (May 13, 2013)

Hi, Ray, good to hear from you. As I wrote in my original thread on Dauntless Star, she was built in 1948 as the Sunlit Waters. Freddie Catchpole built a fleet of drifter/trawler class ships for himself all named Star, and he built a similar fleet for his wife all named Waters. When he eventually started selling off some of his ships, he decided that he wanted to keep the Sunlit Waters, so changed her name to the Dauntless Star. 
When I bought her in 1975 she was part of the fleet of rig-standby vessels in the Putford Enterprises fleet out of Lowestoft, although she was still owned by Freddie Catchpole, who was a member of the board of Putford Enterprises along with the owner of the group, Mr Hashim. I don't know much more than that about her previous history other than she was built in Selby, on the River Humber. 
When I bought her she had only arrived back in port from a month at sea on standby on the gas rigs north-east of Norfolk, half an hour before. Her crew had no idea that she had been sold when they returned to join their ship after three days run-ashore, and were somewhat upset. Her captain was crying in his beer at the Anchor Stores that night along with his crew, but they perked up when news went around the bar that I was the new owner. They all stepped up to the plate to sign on with me, but were somewhat perturbed when I told them that Dauntless Star was turning to starboard when we left the harbour... not to port, as she had done for most of her life. They were even more puzzled when I told them that I was fitting her out as a dive-support vessel and heading for the Persian Gulf. 
Although I refused Putford Enterprises permission to remove anything from the ship, as I had bought her on 'sight as seen', I did allow the crew to remove their possessions, including a chest freezer full of fish they had caught while on station.
When I returned to the UK almost three years later, I went to see Mr Hashim at Putford Enterprises office in Lowestoft to see if they had any other vessels up for sale that would interest me for a voyage around the world, but there was nothing on offer that met my requirements. I travelled throughout the UK, looking for a suitable ship, and settled on the Ross Resolution in Hull, owned by the Helier's Fishing Company, as part of British United Trawlers fleet. 
Now that I am retired from the sea, I spend my days writing about my voyages about the world. I think back with fond memories of my old Dauntless Star, and the adventure I had with her out to Dubai, in the Persian Gulf. When I get my next book published, 'Whisky and Water', I hope you might enjoy the read. All the best, Cpt Dick Brooks.


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## RayJordandpo (Feb 23, 2006)

Very interesting article. I will certainly be reading the book


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## sam2182sw (Jul 24, 2005)

Hi I have a photo of the Dauntless Star being towed away out of Victoria dock Hull by the Hull tug Workman sam2182sw


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## sam2182sw (Jul 24, 2005)

Hi some more info about the Dautnless Star I have just dug the photo out and it is the Hull tug Masterman towing the ship it is a photo from Hull Daly Mail and the date of photo is December 1968 sam2182sw


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## Cpt Dick Brooks (May 13, 2013)

*For Sam2182sw*

Hi, Sam, good to hear from you. I'm always interested in any information about my good old Dauntless Star... she served me well over the year and a half that I owned her, and the following year and a half I served on her as master based out of Mina Hamria, half way between Dubai and Sharjah, in the Persian Gulf. I had a good crew, all from Sri Lanka, and looked after them by fitting a full air conditioning system on the ship. The temperature in 1976 reached 64 degrees Celsius in Dubai. All the best, Cpt Dick Brooks.


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## sam2182sw (Jul 24, 2005)

Hi Dick worked down there myself as M.P.C.U Oficer. sam 2182sw


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## Cpt Dick Brooks (May 13, 2013)

*Whisky and Water.*

This morning I received confirmation from my literary agent that my seventh book, Whisky and Water, was published today. It covers my year voyage out to the Persian Gulf with two friends with the 110 foot Lowestoft trawler, Dauntless Star, then selling her to Ahli Marine... an Arab shipping company based out of Dubai. She was converted into a water tanker, to supply the dozens of ships waiting outside the harbour to unload their cargos with fresh water. Seeing the chance of a nice little earner, I started also supplying them with whisky.
Once the construction of Jebal Alley started, every drop of fresh water for the 5,000 labourers and 200 ex-pat worker, apart from every batch of cement, had to be carried the 25 miles from Mina Hamria to Jebal Alley by water tanker. Twice a week, Dauntless Star carried 110 tons of fresh water and 100 cases of whisky to Jebal Alley, and I sold it to the road-tanker drivers, who we loaded with fresh water from our tanks to distribute around the site. The Dauntless Star became well know as the Whisky and Water supply ship, and kept everybody happy.
At the end of my two year contract to work as her master, I returned to England, where I bought the 189 foot Hull trawler, Ross Resolution. After sailing her to Plymouth, changing her name to Debut and getting a crew together of young adventurers, I set sail across the Atlantic Ocean... the first part of a wonderful twelve year voyage around the tropical world. 
Whisky and Water is published by Amazon on their Kindle website, code B019G8YPOM. I hope you all enjoy the read, Cpt Dick Brooks.


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