Captain GAB King was Duty Officer that day and J H Squire was watchkeeper . According to King's entry in the ship's Log Book, Tuesday 14th April dawned "cloudless, fine and bright" with the wind Calm force 0, although by 8 am there was a light north westerly (force 1-2) across the Strait, he recorded the draft as: F 19' 10" A 21' 10', M 20' 10".^[12]

Click images to enlarge

Captain Hewitt thought conditions "seemed a most favourable day for the attempted passage, fine and sunny with little or no wind"^[15].

The Inquiry recorded conditions as "clear and sunny, with a flat calm and light breeze".^[4]

Captain Durrant judged the conditions "almost ideal for the operation"^.[5] An encouraging and positive start to the day.

But it was conditions outside the Strait in the Irish Sea which had greatest effect on the tides,^[TwoBdge-5]and here the wind was north westerly force 6 increasing 7 with gusts up to F10.^[TwoBdge-7] (The Liverpool Pilot Boat Log Book also recorded a north west wind force 6, increasing to 7 during the morning). This was very bad news for it would have the effect of adding significantly to the strength of the southwest-going stream.^[TwoBdge-7] The Inquiry report observes "It is somewhat surprising to us that the party had no knowledge of the stormy conditions prevailing at sea at the time Conway was to make the passage. Local knowledge may well have been that, under such circumstances, abnormal conditions might be encountered. It seems clear, from the time 'Conway' took to do six cables (9.23 to 10.10), that something very unusual was taking place, possibly a strong undercurrent which is known to occur in the channel".^[4] This is an obvious reference to the Southwest Residual (the SW-going non-tidal current in the Menai Strait) which is known to be heavily influenced by winds in the Irish Sea.^[TwoBdge-4)]

Anchor cables were hove in and the ship put on slips^[4]. Adjustments were then made to the two black balls in the starboard mizzen ratlines that warned other vessels that Conway was under tow and not under power.

The two tugs left their anchorage off Port Dinorwic and made their way up to the ship^[5].

   

About the same time the pilot boat was making its way from Caernarvon to the ship carrying the Joneses, father and son, who were discussing the weather and plans. Jones senior remarked that he would like to enter the Swellies earlier than the time set by Captain Hewitt.^[2]

Dongarth was fast forward and the cadets commenced heaving cables short.^[12] Conway had no mechanical capstans and it was noted that the leads to the bollards were not particularly clean.^[7]

   
   

The two photos above confirm that Dongarth, the forward tug, was secured through Conway's starboard hawse pipe, and that two hawsers were used, a 4' towing wire and a 12' towing spring^[5]. The hawse pipes can be seen in the photo below. They are the small black openings on the right hand side of the front of the ship clearly visible in the white band around the ship.

The stern tug Minegarth was secure aft as can be seen below.

As there were no structural arrangements for securing a towrope astern Captain King and his small working party of cadets and crew had been obliged to a somewhat more Heath-Robinson solution.The two stern towing springs were passed through stern ports and turned (wound) around the mizzenmast nine times and then stoppered off (secured) further forward^[7]. Captain King observed "This was a solid enough way of making fast but not one which was easily slipped in an emergency".^[7] Presumeably this was the approach used for earlier tows from Bangor in '49, from Liverpool in '41 and on the Mersey.

The two towiong springs came inboard through two of the three Sick Bay ports (windows) on the Lower Deck. These can be seen in the photo below, they are the second row of windows down. The windows used were the third and fourth (the open one) on the port side (the left).

They opened over the stern of the ship and had been specially strengthened for the purpose. The large mizzenmast passed down through Sick Bay as as shown by the M in a circle in the deck plan below.

Captain Hewitt, Menai Pilot Jones senior and Captain Miller were in position on the fo'c'sle. Even though it was a clear day all three wore dark coats over their uniforms.

They were ready to cast off from their moorings and begin the transit. The head tug relieved the strain on the ship's cables which were to be slipped to marker buoys. Her anchors formed part of her permanent mooring, they were embedded in the foreshore of the Strait and and were backed up by concrete blocks further back in the banks of the Strait. Conway therefore had no anchors on board; as well as no power to manoeuvre, she had no means of anchoring in case of emergency.

With the cables eased, all hands (including the cadets on board) hauled up the swivel^[16], the anchor cables were slipped to two 3" wire pennants and the pennants themselves buoyed to an attendant boat.^[7] Accounts vary but between 8.15 am and 8.22 am (I have used the time recorded in the Ship's Log Book) Conway was free of her mooring and her passage had begun.