It could have been a LOT worse
I had a doctors appointment on Monday at about noon in Boston. A massive low pressure system had moved over New England starting Sunday morning and is still lingering around. It brought a ton of rain and winds in excess of 35 knots. Green had mentioned this Sunday as we struggled to surface my dinghy, but I didn't think too much of it since my anchors had shone through a gale in mid May with winds that hit 50 knots.
I left Newport Monday morning bound for Boston. After the doctors appointment, I went to the library to use the computer and read a bit. It was a little weird, because at just about 4:30 pm I was reading Sailing to the Reefs by Bernard Moitessier and the chapter was about these massive gales that rip through Cape Town with winds over 80 knots. He was telling about how well his CQR anchor holds, and my thoughts happen to drift to Winchelsea and how she was holding up in this small gale up here. Well, had I not forgotten my iPhone on my boat, I would have had a new one, and I would have recieved Green's call, as well as the ones from the harbormaster. At about 6:15, I met up with Elizabeth, and we cancelled our plans for a Red Sox game and decided instead on a movie. I asked to use her phone to check my messages, I just still had that feeling. And boy, was that feeling correct.
Green had left a frantic sounding message at 4:19 telling me Winchelsea had "broken free" and was dragging anchor through the mooring field to the south. That was what did it: the wind direction. My anchors were set to the prevailing winds in the area which came from the south. Even strong winds from the east and west would have been alright, but 35 knots from the north was definitely trouble. I called Green and he said it was holding where it was for now (which I later discovered was because my anchor rode had wrapped itself around a lobster trap) but if the wind shifted I would be bumping into lots of boats. He also said there wasn't a lot I could do tonight, but had to take care of it first thing in the morning. Sadly, I told Elizabeth we'd have to postpone and that I had to get back to Newport as soon as possible. The next bus didn't leave for two hours and would get me in at 10:30. We had some dinner, and I tried not to let it bother me too much. There wasn't a whole lot I could do at this point, and these are the reasons why I have as much insurance as I do.
Once I returned into Newport, I had to really convince the water taxi driver to take me out to that part of the harbor. When we got out there I could see why. I had never seen waves and wind like this in the harbor before, but from talking with Green its nothing unusual, especially as fall comes. I found Winchelsea, hopped on board and checked out the anchor situation. I still had both, they had simply dragged. Taking Green's advice (again), I headed to bed and waited for the morning when this was supposed to calm down.
When I woke up I hopped out on deck to see if anything had changed. Not much had. I was in the same place, but it was blowing a lot less fiercely. Also, the harbormaster was just showing up to greet me. She asked why I hadn't answered my phone and I explained the situation. I gave her Green's phone number and asked her to call it, since I needed a pair of warm hands driving Winchelsea in order to get the anchors up. Green showed up about an hour later and he manned the helm as I pulled the chains and lines aboard. The amount of sea life that had grown on these lines was considerable, as well as slippery as hell. I eventually got it all up, and he set out to a place in the harbor that was a little more well protected. I dropped them there, and that was at about noon. Looking back, it could have been a lot worse. That lobster trap may not have been there, and I could have been pushed back further into the mooring field. If this were two weeks earlier, my engine would still be in pieces all over my cabin and I wouldn't have had any insurance. And, most importantly, what if I didn't have friends like Green, Josh, Jeff and Maria? I don't even want to think about it.
I took a launch into shore because, despite the fact I wanted to stay with the boat, I had to get this phone situation under control. Now here I am, sitting at the "Genius Bar" in the Apple store in Providence, waiting to give someone money for a new phone. Sigh....the adventure continues... :-D
I left Newport Monday morning bound for Boston. After the doctors appointment, I went to the library to use the computer and read a bit. It was a little weird, because at just about 4:30 pm I was reading Sailing to the Reefs by Bernard Moitessier and the chapter was about these massive gales that rip through Cape Town with winds over 80 knots. He was telling about how well his CQR anchor holds, and my thoughts happen to drift to Winchelsea and how she was holding up in this small gale up here. Well, had I not forgotten my iPhone on my boat, I would have had a new one, and I would have recieved Green's call, as well as the ones from the harbormaster. At about 6:15, I met up with Elizabeth, and we cancelled our plans for a Red Sox game and decided instead on a movie. I asked to use her phone to check my messages, I just still had that feeling. And boy, was that feeling correct.
Green had left a frantic sounding message at 4:19 telling me Winchelsea had "broken free" and was dragging anchor through the mooring field to the south. That was what did it: the wind direction. My anchors were set to the prevailing winds in the area which came from the south. Even strong winds from the east and west would have been alright, but 35 knots from the north was definitely trouble. I called Green and he said it was holding where it was for now (which I later discovered was because my anchor rode had wrapped itself around a lobster trap) but if the wind shifted I would be bumping into lots of boats. He also said there wasn't a lot I could do tonight, but had to take care of it first thing in the morning. Sadly, I told Elizabeth we'd have to postpone and that I had to get back to Newport as soon as possible. The next bus didn't leave for two hours and would get me in at 10:30. We had some dinner, and I tried not to let it bother me too much. There wasn't a whole lot I could do at this point, and these are the reasons why I have as much insurance as I do.
Once I returned into Newport, I had to really convince the water taxi driver to take me out to that part of the harbor. When we got out there I could see why. I had never seen waves and wind like this in the harbor before, but from talking with Green its nothing unusual, especially as fall comes. I found Winchelsea, hopped on board and checked out the anchor situation. I still had both, they had simply dragged. Taking Green's advice (again), I headed to bed and waited for the morning when this was supposed to calm down.
When I woke up I hopped out on deck to see if anything had changed. Not much had. I was in the same place, but it was blowing a lot less fiercely. Also, the harbormaster was just showing up to greet me. She asked why I hadn't answered my phone and I explained the situation. I gave her Green's phone number and asked her to call it, since I needed a pair of warm hands driving Winchelsea in order to get the anchors up. Green showed up about an hour later and he manned the helm as I pulled the chains and lines aboard. The amount of sea life that had grown on these lines was considerable, as well as slippery as hell. I eventually got it all up, and he set out to a place in the harbor that was a little more well protected. I dropped them there, and that was at about noon. Looking back, it could have been a lot worse. That lobster trap may not have been there, and I could have been pushed back further into the mooring field. If this were two weeks earlier, my engine would still be in pieces all over my cabin and I wouldn't have had any insurance. And, most importantly, what if I didn't have friends like Green, Josh, Jeff and Maria? I don't even want to think about it.
I took a launch into shore because, despite the fact I wanted to stay with the boat, I had to get this phone situation under control. Now here I am, sitting at the "Genius Bar" in the Apple store in Providence, waiting to give someone money for a new phone. Sigh....the adventure continues... :-D
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