The Fog

For the past two nights, the furthest I have been able to see outside has been about ten metres - i.e. four masts. When we first moved here it unsettled me and I used to keep a watchful eye on the possibility of a flickering lantern appearing through the murk.
It's still and very quiet aside from ship's fog horns continuously blaring out at various pitches and the clang clang of halyards as the odd swell pushes in through the marina entrance.
This is November as it's supposed to be.
Of course if sailing, the above is very very unimaginably bad, especially in the Solent where chances of collision are squillirupled compared to other less busy stretches of water. Not a good place to be without radar as we learnt on two occasions. Once on our way out of the Beaulieu river, another time moving outside Portsmouth Harbour. On both counts, it was unforecast. Sometimes it just appears and leaves you powerless, unable to do anything other than keep watch and stay quiet.
The first time, we were pretty calm about it. We switched the engine off so as to be able to hear any oncoming boats and managed to turn back and pick up a mooring until visibility improved. Fur sat at the bow and I helmed; my concentration broken by a seal that decided to silently sneak up behind the boat and bark loudly just aft of the steering position. Needless to say, I was in need of a change of oilskins before we finally left.
The second time, we were on my mum's boat and had just cast off for the weekend. An opaque bank of very thick fog was waiting for us just outside the harbour. Bearing in mind that along with many pleasure craft; cross-channel vessels, hovercraft, fast catamarans and island ferries use this narrow entrance and we were slightly panicked until we managed to navigate our way into a 'safer' area of water. We moved on more than quickly when an extremely big aforementioned vessel loomed out of nowhere at a distance of less than a hundred metres from our starboard side. I don't think I've ever seen my mum so frightened in all my life.
Guess what she went out and bought the following week?