BLUEMOMENT

So, do you know your sound signals? I have to confess that I don't / didn't.

During our wave tossed journey from Lamlash to Largs last Saturday, 2 June we were just south of Gull Point on Little Cumbrae with the intention of proceeding north through the Hunterston Channel but staying outside the buoyed channel on the Cumbrae side while a big ship was catching up with us but was closer to the mainland. She looked as though she was going to follow the buoyed Hunterston Channel ( which with hindsight would have been unusual ) when she started hooting - was she 'shouting' at us? A foreign sounding voice on channel 16 simply said "passing your portside" and she made a definite turn to port to pass up the channel between Bute and Little Cumbrae. Thinking back, I think that she hooted either
long pause short short
or
long pause long long short short

I'm afraid that I didn't hoot back
long short long short

but I did call her on 16 to say "Thank You"

She was the 'Rich Duchess 2', which online research reveals is a 228 M tanker which had been on route to the oil terminal at Finart - http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shipde ... =351048000

Ash

Possibly 2 long, 2 short blasts meaning I will overtake on your port side?

You, having recognised his signal, should have replied with Long Short Long Short to indicate agreement with his intentions.
Mind you it could have been a version of the Calmac 5 blasts which usually means "your intentions are quite clear but I'd prefer you not to continue".

Overtaking = twin long blasts followed by the side of the channel he wants you to stay on.
I remember it by : long long short short _" I intend to overtake on your port side" - sounds like
KEEEEEEEP TOOOOOOOOO star board.
I can't envisage when KEEEEEEEP TOOOOOO port would be used unless it was dans les canals.