Be Careful Out There

One of the nice things about the Internet for sailors--as for any group of similarly interested people--is that it provides a larger community than one would otherwise experience if one relied solely on direct personal contact.  Jon and I use it regularly for weather report.  Two important sites that have proven to be a treasure of information and support are Cruisers Forum and Noonsite.

In addition, we have a Ham Radio, which enables us to stay in regular touch with fellow boats as we make long ocean passages.    On the recent passage from Mauritius to South Africa, we were greatly assisted by two South African Ham Radio networks, which gave us daily sea condition and weather reports and stayed in touch with us to make sure all was well on board.  Our Ham Radio has a modem (remember those old days before DSL and Fiber Optics?) that encodes text into radio frequency and allows us to send brief emails.  We do have a VHF radio, but that only works within line of sight of our antenna, which is about 65 feet high.  And for emergencies, we have a satellite phone.

Our most recent passage was marked by light winds, contrary currents, and only the occasional rough sea and brisk winds -- we were fortunate in that regard, since the passage from Mauritius to South Africa can be tough.  Nonetheless, we had our days of 20+ knot winds and triple-reefed mainsails, and we were glad to have had Keith and Geert along to share the watchkeeping load.  We saw many other ships, but no sail boats.

So while at sea, yes, we are alone, but we can remain connected.  Once we make landfall, we have many tasks, but we make sure to stay in touch with our friends who are still at sea and keep informed about sailing news.  Checking Noonsite, shortly after we arrived, Jon found six news items worthy of our attention:

Item One:  A woman who was sailing alone on her boat off the coast of Corsica in the Mediterranean and fell off her boat.  She was taking a pee off the side of her boat (which guys do all the time, but I myself have yet to try) and was not wearing her harness, and fell in.  Fortunately for her, she had her waterproof cell phone in her hand and managed to call her mother and help was sent.  I imagine her boat was also rescued, but as for me, I will continue to do my business in what sailors refer to as “The Head.”

Item Two:  A sailboat making an Atlantic crossing hit “something” and sank.  The captain suspects a container, but cannot confirm what hit his boat.  Containers, for those who don’t know, are those large metal boxes stacked on cargo ships.  In heavy seas, they can fall off and float dangerously in the seas, unlit, too low for radar, invisible at night.  They are supposed to be perforated so that they will sink, but that is not always the case.  We sailors know they are a small risk, but it is not one we can do anything about at night and so we try not to think too much about the risk of hitting one and sinking.  Do we have a choice?

Item Three: An Australian couple was rescued in the Indian Ocean.  The Indian Coast Guard picked up their distress signal after their boat lost power and sail and they were picked up by a cargo ship.

Item Four:  A 23 foot sailboat carrying 5 scientists is missing off the north coast of Papua New Guinea (an island country just north of northeastern Australia), and piracy is suspected.  According to village information, 3 males are believed to have been killed and 2 women are being held hostage.  Wow.  Somali pirates are infamous for their acts of treachery across the northern Indian Ocean.  Piracy is also a problem off the west coast of central Africa and sometimes in the Caribbean Sea.  But Papua New Guinea?  We were just sailing there, albeit off the south coast.

Item Five:  Cruisers sailing in the northern Pacific Ocean have been issued a warning to be on the lookout for floating debris from the tsunami and earthquake off northern Japan last spring.  All that stuff that got dislodged and floated out to sea got picked up by currents and is now drifting in the northern Pacific.  Some items might be big, and no less a danger to sailboats than containers.

Item Six:  Perhaps most shocking to us was the news that a German sailor who was visiting Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas is now believed to be the victim of an act of cannibalism.  Charred human remains and clothing were found in a remote valley after a search and investigation were initiated following the sailor’s disappearance.  Yes, we visited Nuku Hiva for about a week in May 2010.  It is where Jon got his tattoo.  It is where we went to an isolated bay to stay for a few days.  Piracy, dangerous containers, and the risks of peeing off a moving boat are not unknown risks to modern sailors.  Cannibalism is.  Most of us cruising those waters believed it to be a historical curiosity only; done away with several generations ago.

Six relevant sailing incidents in one post-passage visit to the internet.  That was unusual and a lot to absorb.  So it was even more shocking, to check our Ham Radio email that evening, after being ashore four days, and to learn from one of our fellow cruisers still at sea that another sailboat had sunk off the coast of Madagascar.  Wizard, a South African mono hull that we met in the Bali marina, was 30 miles away from our friends, sailing at 7 knots in 12-foot swells, and was supposed, but failed, to make radio contract between 4 and 6 am with our friends on November 4.   The Ham Radio network subsequently reported that the boat sank and that all five crew had been rescued.

We later learned that Wizard hit a container around 4:30 in the morning and quickly began taking on water.  They deployed their life raft, triggered their EPIRB (Emergency Satellite Beacon) and spent 7 hours adrift before being rescued by redirected cargo vessel.  The details are in this newspaper article.

Needless to say, we are grateful that our friends on Wizard were unharmed and rescued, but it is still shocking news to hear of a boat being lost.  Our sailboats are our home, our companion in the challenge, and, as our own boat’s name ile de Grace implies, our “island” in the sea.

This was far too close to home for any sort of emotional detachment.  Our friends, who are still underway in some of the more difficult sailing waters on the planet, are constantly on our minds.  We are grateful we can stay in touch with them.  We are grateful for the Ham operators who stay in touch with us.  We are grateful for the rescue operators who respond to EPIRB signals.

Sailing is still safer than driving on Interstate 95.  But we have been reminded that it is not risk free and keeping safety first is always the better part of valor.  We’ll be careful out there.