SAILING TIPS Mike Huston Preparing for the Night The following story is made up –
but everything that happens in it has happened to someone I know or to myself. Ted and his family are out for a
week’s cruise in the San Juan Islands and have anchored in Echo Bay on Sucia. It’s 3 AM and Ted just woke up with a start; the wind is howling through the rigging and the boat is feeling funny. He jumps out of bed feeling disoriented and a bit shaky. He goes out into the salon to look out the ports but of course can see nothing in the darkness. He needs a flashlight but the one he usually uses has dead batteries (the kids used it earlier that day). So, he rummages for some batteries and finally finds some. He sticks his head out the companionway and shines the light around. To his horror he sees another boat just downwind from him and his boat is moving in that direction. He is buck naked so runs into his cabin to put on some pants but can only find his underwear (I am being kind to Ted). He asks his wife where his pants are and she says they were dirty so she put them in the suit case. He realizes time is running short so heads to the cockpit without them. He goes to start the engine but
the key is not in the ignition. He is beginning to panic and yells down to his wife, “Where are the boat keys?” She yells back, “I think they are in my coat pocket, I didn’t want anyone stealing the boat while we were ashore!” At this point he is only feet from the other boat so runs up to fend off. This, of course, wakes up the people on that boat who come up and shine a flashlight on Ted. Okay, so I won’t finish this story
because it is not real but you get the picture. So, how can we best prepare ourselves for the night? Admittedly, we cannot prepare for all situations, but there are some common sense things we can do to be ready; here is a list of the things I do:
48° NORTH, SEPTEMBER 2010 PAGE 52
• Keys In the Ignition Leave the keys in the ignition, you may need to start the boat in a hurry.
• Flashlight Have a flashlight/spotlight, in good working order, near or in the cockpit.
• Clothes Handy Keep clothing in an easily accessible place, including a coat or raingear if the weather might require them.
• Prepare Cockpit When you head down for the night remove cushions, binoculars and other loose gear from the cockpit. For example, we put our Bottomsiders under the dodger. This keeps them from being blown away should the wind come up and keeps the dew off of them. Also, fold down the table so it is easy to move around in the cockpit.
• Anchor Alarm If the weather report indicates the wind might come up during the night set a radius alarm on the chart plotter. Some people use depth alarms but I don’t like them – too many false alarms when fish or seals swim under the boat and they do not tell you if you are drifting into deeper water.
• Know Your Landmarks Take a few moments and look around when you are done anchoring – what boats are nearby, what landmarks are close; all of this will help you determine whether or not your anchor is dragging.
These may seem like small things
but it is surprising how much being woken from a deep sleep with a jolt of adrenaline can disorient a person. Clear thinking is not likely to be present for
a couple minutes or longer. Making a habit of these preparations helps in two ways; it assures the items are where we need them and, through repetition, sets in our minds their locations. This way we can just react rather than having to think our way through a situation.
If the wind does unexpectedly come
up during the night there are some additional actions worth considering:
• Extra Rode Add scope if you have any rode left in the locker. Get your scope out to at least 7 to 1 and preferably 10 to 1.
• Second Anchor Consider powering the boat up to the side of where your primary anchor is (about 50 yards over) and dropping the secondary anchor. Then back down so that they are both out in front of your boat in a V. Use about the same amount of rode for each anchor. This will allow the boat to swing into a place where the load is equal on both. It is also possible to take the second anchor out in a dinghy.
• Anchor Watch If the conditions warrant, stand watch. Let’s face it, if the conditions are that bad you are not going to sleep anyway; so stay up where you can do some good. And it is not just your boat that needs to be watched, your neighbors may drag on to you so look around.
• Chafe Protection Add chafe gear to protect the rode or snubber line.
• Move to a Safer Place If the anchorage you are in is exposed or otherwise a bad spot, consider moving to a better anchorage. But only do this if you are comfortable handling the boat and navigating at night or if your current location is obviously not safe.
Hopefully you will never have
this sort of thing happen, but should it occur, having these basic preparations in place and knowing how to react can be a big help.
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