Donnybrook Delivery

 

-December 3^rd, 2007.

 

Left Moncton around 6am for Toronto. This trip is a bit out-side of my “box”…I guess that’s one of the reasons I'm doing it…it`s going to push my personal limits and sailing limits.

 

Arrived in Toronto and it was the usual confusion over customs, departure gates etc. I had to get rushed through the line-up to customs. The customs officer was quite interested in the fact that my destination was a boat bound for Barbados. He wanted to know what my job was on the boat, how many were going, my profession etc.

 

I was the last one to board the flight to Providence. Got to the airport and when going to pick up my luggage saw a chauffeur with a “McGregor” sign in his hands. I thought, perfect…the owner has sent someone to pick me up. I talked to the chauffeur, he picked up my bag and we went to get my checked bags. He said a couple of things that didn’t quite make sense to me so I asked him the first name of the “McGregor”…he said Don. We had a laugh and moved on…what are the chances??

 

Took a cab to the boat, to find out it’s still in the paint-shop. I found this a bit un-nerving and wondered, for a minute, what I was getting myself into. I met up with Eric, the captain, and after some chit-chat he drove me into Newport, about half an hour away. We decided that he’ll pick me up on the 4^th…the boat should be in at that point and we’ll have to rig it, stow gear and provision it. We’re set to leave at 5pm on Wednesday. I quizzed Eric about safety gear, medical supplies and equipment and crew-members. As of now, there’s only 4 of us…which also is food for thought. Did I mention I may be moving out of my comfort zone? Seriously, no show stoppers yet and I have complete confidence in my own skills.

 

-December 4^th , 2007.

 

Eric picked me up @ 8am and told me the boat is still not in the water. We went to Brewer’s to do some work on the boat…..there’s lots to do but we can’t do much as it’s the yard’s responsibility. The stanchions, life lines, radar post and other deck gear need to be installed. A second new cable needs to be cut for the steering gear so I helped Eric position the chains and quadrants so we could get an accurate measurement. Down below it looks like a bomb went off. It’s pretty discouraging. Eric and I worked away at the interior and @ noon decided we had done about as much as we could. Eric wanted to take some mast measurements for a new halyard but we couldn’t do that as the “pool area’ was locked.

 

Went out for a bottle of wine and supper but ran into some other travellers. They recognized my jacket (Henri Lloyd) and asked where I was going etc. They took me down to their boat, Arabella, pretty impressive. Has 24 cabins and is fitted out for luxury, intimate cruising. They were planning to leave at 3am, Dec 5^th but were going to hold off until the front passes. They are also heading for St. Maarten.

At supper, ran into another bunch that are sailing a 40 something foot cat down South. Lots of travellers going some-where.

 

December 5^th, 2007.

 

Got to the boat yard and they’re picking up the mast…it’s huge. The boat is sitting in the slings and looks gorgeous…things are looking up. John introduces himself as another crew member and off we go. As the day progresses it becomes more apparent that there’s a shit load of work to-do and it ain’t happening. Eric let us know that we may not be able to leave until Friday…Ok, we’ve now gone from Wednesday night, to Thursday morning, to Thursday night, to Friday am.

We’re staying on the boat tonight…hanging in the Travellift slings. The stern is even with, and about six inches from the dock…the keel bulb is just underwater.

It’s cold but we have 3 little ceramic electric heaters going…..they're pretty effective at tripping the breaker. I manage to find a second sleeping bag to wrap up in.

 

December  6^th, 2007.

 

Woke up at 6am….Things seem to be happening quickly. Brewer guys are getting the boat in the water and by 10am we’re off to get provisions. Eric, John and I each take a cart…I’m doing lunches…and off we go. An hour and a grand later we’re done. Everyone’s up beat that this may happen. We do lunch and what seems like a thousand more jobs like storing food, lashing the dinghy, getting the main on, tidying up etc. At 5pm we leave the dock…..woohoo!! We’re accompanied by Mike from Brewer’s and a small tug as they’re pretty sure we won’t make it out with a 12' draft. Sure enough, after about 10 minutes of motoring we get stuck. We run a halyard to Mike and a tow-line to the tug and after about 15 minutes of dragging through the mud, we’re on our way. The first couple of hours are spent doing some housekeeping…..Eric gave a safety chat and demo, with a concentration on the MOB procedure. It's taped to the bulkhead in the head so there's always something to read! At 8pm I take the helm for a two hour stint. Eric is navigating and puttering. It’s dark and cold but the sky is beautiful. At 10pm, John comes up and takes over. Eric goes down…says he’s really looking forward to sleeping…he hasn’t really slept in a couple of days. I think he’s finally starting to de-flate a little. It’s been pretty stressful for him.

From 10pm to midnight I putter and talk to John…he’s already asked me to sail with him in the future. At midnight I get Fred up then I’m down and pretty much out. Still under power and still cold. At 4am I get the call to go on deck. It’s really cold….can’t keep my face warm. I drive for two hours and then John comes up. I talk to him for a while then start making breakfast…..bacon, eggs, hash browns. I get Fred up at 8am, then John and I eat. There’s some talk of putting up the sails after we eat. I try to get Eric up around 8:15…first to eat and then to help with sails….can’t rouse him. Fred’s driving and John’s on standby. I go to bed and as I write this Eric’s up discussing position with John. We’re 17 miles West of the rhumb line and still motoring. It’s 9:15 and I’m going to try and crash.

 

Woke up at around what I thought was noon to the sound of the main being hoisted. Got dressed and went up on deck. Main’s up with a reef and we’re sailing on starboard at about 135…need to be at 180 or so. At 11:30 I start to drive and the wind starts building quickly. It builds to a steady 25 with gusts to 35. The waves are 8’ and choppy. Boat is hard to drive….alternating between too far down to stalling…..like most boats, it doesn’t handle particularly well with just the main up. Press on and John takes over. We’re continually taking huge waves in the cockpit and getting soaked. One of the diesel jugs is leaking and there’s diesel all over the place and it’s slippery. At 4pm we’re all on deck getting ready to tack. We start with a second reef in the main. We don’t have a lot of steerage and have to let the main out to secure the 2^nd reef line. The main sheet is fouled and when I try to get it un-fouled the main takes off …the loads are incredible…this is an unforgiving boat. We finally get the main in and get settled down. The wind is really starting to build…fast. Eric is driving, Fred is grinding the main and I’m trimming the main. It is howling…..steady 45 knots with gusts to 50 and at least one gust to 52….continual white water in the cockpit and the boat is pounding so hard I swear  its going to break. We have 7,000 pounds on the runners just to keep the mast up. It’s without a doubt the toughest conditions I’ve ever been in. We drive like this for a while and I go below at 5pm. I’m absolutely soaked. I peel off and toss my stuff in a pile. I get dried off, compose myself…feeling shitty and nauseated and get into bed. Eric states he doesn’t have concerns with the boat or weather but the crew is a concern as none of us have experience on this boat. He does however say we’re doing a good job. I manage to doze but it’s like being on a roller coaster alternating with a car accident…periods of weightlessness followed by violent slams into the troughs of waves. Thank-you for carbon fibre and Kevlar. The noise is unbelievable….almost like gunshots…I asked for some ocean sailing and got it. Not much sleep….it’s 1930 and I’m going to get ready to go back up.

 

2000 and up on deck. The wind has diminished but there’s a lot of residual wave slop. I get back on the helm, Eric tells me to hold a course of about 45 apparent. I’m a little dozy so immediately go for 45 magnetic which results in an accidental gibe. Eric has a mini-meltdown but we recover quickly. I guess it’s a big deal as the runners can rip through the main like a knife through butter. No one likes the idea of switching out a 200 pound mainsail!! We’re two or three hundred miles off shore so there’s no-one to help. The wind has gone more west so we’re able to head for Bermuda at about 65 apparent. It’s a pretty good sail….8 to 9 knots with double reefed main, in about 18 knots of breeze.

The wind continues to die so we turn the motor on. John relieved me, I made some tomato soup for us and I’m now killing time waiting for shift change. Eric is passed out, he must be exhausted. We’re still slamming into the occasional square wave but it’s infrequent.

 

December 7/8^th, 2007.

 

2345, I get Fred up. I hang my clothes up as best I can, but everything is soaked…my floater suit won’t be any good at 0400. I find some dry clothes and hit the sack…..I’m out pretty much immediately but the boat still slams every now and then and wakes me up. Fred gets me up at 0400 Dec 8^th…..I find some dry clothes and switch to my pants and jacket…both dry. I go up on deck and relieve Eric. It’s very dark and overcast and as soon as I take the helm it starts to rain. We’re motoring with a double reef in the main and little wind. There’s still a lot of wave slop so the ride is uncomfortable. All I can see are the instruments and the green glow of the bow light on the ocean….spooky. After about 45 minutes I’m getting incredibly tired and sleepy. I start seeing lights in the distance….often in the shape of a decorated building…the Newport Bridge, which I saw last night. I know it’s not real and I’m hallucinating a bit…I also see a glove moving around the binnacle. I’m half asleep and probably dreaming. I do fall asleep on my feet a couple of times but wake up immediately as my legs buckle under me or I fall over backwards....still with a death grip on the wheel. At 0530 Eric asks me how I’m doing and I tell him…he says only a half hour to go. At 0600 John comes up. I go down…Eric’s already asleep. I spend the next two hours of my watch dozing on the wet locker bench and checking on John every now and then. We’re going to change to a 3 hour rotation during the day to give everyone more sleep time.

 

December 8^th, 2007.

 

I wake Fred at 0745 and as he’s getting ready for watch I’m getting ready for bed. I get everything hung up, find more dry clothes and flop into the bunk. There’s a drip on my chest but I just pull the sleeping bag up higher. I don’t have to be up until 2pm to start my next watch. I wake at 1130…coffee’s on the stove and the sun is out. We’re into the gulf stream and the water temperature is 68F. We’re still under double reefed main and motoring. I heard them say that the pin that attaches the vang to the boom was half out…that would have been a problem if it had come out during the gale!! I grab a bite to eat and go back to bed. I pretty much conk out until 1330 at which time I get up. It’s nice enough that I go on deck with just my shirt and jeans. We’re on a broad reach with about 15 knots of true. Since we never did get the #4 on I ask Eric if now might be the time. Even if we don’t need it, it’ll be there when we do. Eric agrees, I take the helm and he and Fred get the jib on. It’s hard work for both of them. Everything on this boat is hard work….it takes two to do anything. We get the jib up, turn the motor off and start sailing along on a broad reach at about 8 knots. It’s sloppy and the jib is ragging a lot. I ask Eric if we should wing it. He says no…I find he’s sailing very conservatively but I understand why.  We sail along nicely until 1700 when John comes up to relieve me. We decide at that time to take the main down as we’re flopping around too much for night sailing. Eric and I take the main down and the motor goes on.  I go down and have some rolls and chilli…..first hot meal in  almost 36 hours… it’s great!! I spend the next 3 hours puttering, cleaning up the cockpit and talking to John…he’s a wealth of knowledge. We’re now out of the gulf stream heading for a southerly flowing cold eddy that should give us about 2 knots towards Bermuda. Our rhumb line takes as within 25 miles of Bermuda as we may have to stop for fuel. Water temp is now 71F. It’s pitch black out but warm….I’ve been on deck a couple of times with just a shirt and harness on. Starting to dry out below….clothes are still soaked. It’s 1930 and Fred’s already up and getting ready for his watch. He makes a sandwich and goes up on deck. I’m not really tired but at 2000 I go to bed. I’m tossing and turning a bit and Eric and John are talking about law school which isn’t helping. I go to sleep and wake up around 2330. Get up and make a sandwich. It’s pretty warm out so I put on my wet weather pants and boots and put my harness over my shirt. I take my jacket with me. 

 

December 9^th, 2007. 2400.

 

I relieve Eric at the helm and continue heading about 165M. We’re out of the gulf stream and heading for the cold eddy which is about 150 miles away. There’s no wind and some residual wave slop. My watch is entirely uneventful although we do have to stop for a few minutes to put fuel in. The motor starved a couple of times while we were rolling around. It’s looking more and more likely we’ll have to stop in Bermuda for fuel. It’s now 0245 and I’m on my standby watch. I’ll be crashing at 0400 and up again at 0800 for a 6 hour watch. After that I’ll be off from 1400 to 2000…..hoping to get shaved and cleaned up. It’s now Sunday and I haven’t had a shower or shave or the other thing since Wednesday. There’s no stink on the boat whatsoever….unless we all stink equally as badly and just don’t notice it!

 

Got up at 0630. The boat was rolling so badly I was alternately slamming into the lee cloth and then the hull…couldn’t sleep. Got up, made some coffee for Eric and I then decided to get cleaned up. Heated some water on the stove then stuck my head in the sink and washed my hair. Managed to get shaved in the head and have a quick “sponge bath”…. feels great. Went on deck at 0800 to relieve Eric. Motored for the next three hours…sun is out, it’s beautiful and warm. Eric transferred some diesel and is puttering as usual. At 1100, John came up to relieve me and I made myself some “brunch”…a sandwich. We continue to motor at @ 9 knots at 168M. Hoping to pick up some Easterly trade winds in the next few hours.

 

We continue to motor with John driving. I decide to stay up as it’s such a beautiful day and I don’t feel tired. Around 1300 I go below to ask Eric if we can pull out the jib…he’s asleep, but agrees. I pull it out and trim and Eric is up almost immediately. He gives me the thumbs up and suggests we put the main up. Eric and Fred put the main up, I trim and John drives. We have a great motor sail for a couple of hours…it’s hot, the wave’s have diminished and I’m talking about cooking some prusciutto wrapped scallops for supper. Fred is driving when suddenly we get a call to shut the motor off. The housing for the impeller has a hole in it and is spouting sea water onto the alternator. Various options are discussed and it’s decided to attempt a temporary repair with epoxy but also to go for the box of spare parts which is buried under hundreds of pounds of dinghies, motors and other stuff in the bow. I’m asked to drive (yes!) while the others move all the stuff. They find the part! We have supper, although it's only pasta, clean up and keep driving on. It’s now 1800 and I’m going to crash until 2000. We’re doing about 9 knots upwind on port tack about 150 miles from Bermuda. Fred gets me up at 2000…dead to the world. I go out on deck….it’s dark but clear. There are stars everywhere. It’s cold. I get dialled in and start driving a fairly steady 180M for St Maarten. Eric has been talking to the owner and tells me that a boat was lost off Chesapeake just a few hours behind us…he doesn’t have any details. Speed is up and down with wind speed but we’re seeing high 6’s, low 7’s and the occasional 8. Eric is still working on the engine. At 2200, John comes up to relieve me and says there’s more bad news. Eric told him the alternator is toast. There is a spare but guess where it is…under the hundreds of pounds of junk in the v-berth….I can’t believe it. This boat may be solid but there’s a ton of things that need fixed and sorted out…..only one head works, the hot water heater doesn’t work, one sink is plugged the other doesn’t have a stopper, the broiler in the oven doesn’t work…and now the engine. At least we’re in the Southern latitudes and not in the North. The trade winds should be kicking in soon. A decision is made to run the engine for an hour and see how things go. It’s now 2325 and the engine has been running for about 20 minutes…the leak has been plugged and everything else seems OK. I’m monitoring the charge rate and at 12.45 volts it’s fine. My feeling is that this is not a new problem but has been around for a while. I’ll wake Eric at 0000 when the shift changes and we’ll go from there. Bermuda is close and is an option. Right now we’re motor-sailing at 10 SOG and 179 COG…both encouraging numbers. Water temp is 72F.

 

December 10^th, 2007.

 

Fred wakes me at 0400…I'm dead asleep. I go out on deck. It’s clear and quite cold. I have all my gear on. The jib has been rolled up and we’re motor sailing under main alone. The motor appears to be working fine. I relieve Eric and continue to steer at 180M for St Maarten. The wind, what little there is (2knots), is on the nose. I basically just drive for the next 2 hours and doze at the helm…seeing things again. Eric comes up and falls asleep in the cockpit. There is an amazing sunrise through low lying clouds and then a quick sunrise-effect breeze. We pull the jib out but it’s short lived. John comes up and Eric goes below. John sails for a few minutes but again we have to pull the jib in. There is still no wind but the skies are completely clear…it’s going to be hot. We check our original forecast done by the router and the trade winds probably won’t kick in until we are south of 31N…we’re still 54 miles away. There’s still talk of changing out the alternator later to-day…I disagree…why fix it if it ain’t broke? I’ll be off for 6 hours at 0800…will grab some sleep and then hopefully some sun. We’re south of Bermuda so stopping there is no longer an option. I’ve pretty much decided I won’t be going to Barbados. It’s 0715 and I’m off to bed in 45minutes.

 

I get up around 1130 and go up on deck. It’s warm and sunny, clear skies. Eric and Fred are transferring fuel and John is driving under main and engine….there’s no wind. I have a club soda and Eric asks me to start moving stuff out of the bow. The decision has been made not to change the alternator but we will retrieve the spare. I spend about 15 minutes lugging stuff out of the bow before Eric comes down and gives me a hand. Within a few minutes Fred is there and we have the alternator found and everything put back within 20 minutes. I go on at 1400 and motor sail for the next 3 hours. Weather is clear and sunny. At 1400 Eric has a crew meeting to tell us that a significant weather system is developing over Puerto Rico, about 100 miles from St Maarten. We decide to change course 20 degrees to the East with the intent of missing the back of the system by 500 miles. It is unclear at this time what we could be up against...there's always a chance that this could develop into a hurricane even though the season is over. The weather router will be contacted in the morning. If it looks like we are headed for trouble then returning to Bermuda is an option. We have reduced speed slightly. Nobody seems concerned at this point.

From 1600 to 1800 having a great sail. Amazing sunset…try to get the "green flash" but no luck. 1800 to 2000 it’s quiet. We’re able to shut off the engine and sail along at about 8 knots. I read a bit…it’s very quiet on the boat save for the bow wave and hum of the running backstays. The pitch of the hum changes as the tension, on the runners, changes as we go over waves….the load cell is reading around 8,800 pounds. Went down at 2000. Had a pretty solid sleep other than a coughing fit which lasted about half an hour…very annoying.

 

December 11^th, 2007.

 

Went up on deck at 0000 to relieve Eric. It’ beautiful out…clear skies…warm …stars everywhere, but very dark. We’re boiling along at about 7 knots with occasional blasts to 10+. The boat really takes off when the wind gets above 10 to 11 knots. The sea is relatively flat but lots of rollers…having a great sail. Eric comes up and we talk about flights out of Barbados. He wants me to change my flight out as he needs the help to get the boat from St Maarten to Barbados. I tell him we’ll have to see what happens in St Maarten. John relieves me at 0200 and I go below for my 2 hour stand-by watch. Almost immediately the wind drops to nothing and we’re back under power…..it’s a little uncomfortable as we’re slamming into the rollers. I’m going out to the cockpit…may have a snooze. I go to bed at 0400 and sleep pretty soundly. Up at 0730 and take care of some business. Out on deck at 0800 to relieve Eric.

This is the best day yet! Clear, hot, dry. Some big rollers coming from the SE. Sailing along at 7 to 8 knots but the wind is building. Eric is fixing the gear shifter which broke last night….I’m less concerned about things breaking as Eric just fixes them. Wind picks up to around 14 to 15 and boat really starts to move…easily doing 10 to 11 knots….it’s a blast. The boat goes from sluggish bear to greyhound. Maintain this speed until about 1145.

I make myself some potato soup and bread. We’ve discussed the impending weather system over Puerto Rico and the consensus is to maintain the status quo. It should be far enough away that it won’t affect us. There may be some residual swell, but the trades should help us power through it.

I manage to wash hair, shave and sponge bath. The boat’s moving around a lot in the swell so it’s tough to do anything…getting cleaned up was a workout! I go on deck for a while and chat with John and bag some rays. I’m off in 15 minutes (1400). I’ve been coughing a lot….it’s that irritating bronchial thing…not sure what’s aggravating it. Gonna crash for a while.

Slept until 1600, then went up on deck….. Fred’s driving. Big seas from the SE. Taking water in the cockpit but we’re smoking along at 12 to 13 knots. Boat is pounding hard at times but it’s a good ride. At 1700 we all go on deck, clip in our harnesses and put the first reef in. Continuing on to our ‘holding” point to the East of the rhumb line. Still doing an easy 12 knots. The weather system off Puerto Rico is now a named tropical depression….”Olga”….nice.

I get up around 1930, get a bite to eat and go up on deck to relieve Eric. It’s blowing a steady 18 knots. We’re easily doing 11 to 12 knots but I’m having quite a workout at the helm….up in the light stuff and down in the puffs. We’re carrying a good sized bubble in the main. The wind is building to 20 so we role the #4 up a bit and blade it out. We’re taking lots of spray in the cockpit and pounding occasionally. John comes up and Eric goes down. He wants the stand-by watch to stay in the cockpit and wants to be woken if it builds to 25 knots  The wind stays at 18 to 20 for the next 2 hours and other than a flying fish landing in the cockpit, it’s uneventful. We’re boiling along at 9 to 10 knots but getting tossed around a lot. I rouse Fred and get ready for bed…..very difficult to move around down below….lots of tossing and pounding..

 

December 12^th, 2007.

 

Manage to get to sleep but wake up a lot. Having weird and vivid dreams and the motion of the boat is very unusual. There is a large, irregular swell from the SE (port side) and we have enough speed that we’re also pounding into the oncoming waves. The boat is moving in several planes at the same time. I go on deck at 0400 and relieve Eric. It’s cool and damp, blowing about 17. We’ve fallen off a few degrees and are smoking along at 10.5 to 11.5 knots. Again, it’s difficult to steer but very exhilarating….the power of the boat is adrenaline feeding. Eric tells me that he wanted to run the motor but it’s overheating. He thinks the impeller needs to be replaced but will wait until daybreak to look at it.

I continue to drive and John comes up at 0600 which is about dawn. Eric starts to work on the impeller and I do some odd jobs, make coffee and chat with John. Within an hour or so Eric has the impeller replaced…shows us the impeller and half the blades are gone....and the motor’s on, charging the batteries. I wake Fred at 0800. I ‘m on again at 1400 so will try to sleep for a few hours. Motion of the boat continues to be erratic and almost violent…just took a huge wave.

We discussed the idea of being into St. Maarten on Friday morning given that we’re doing about 250 miles a day right now. We’re just under 500 nautical miles away.

I slept quite well and woke up at 1130. Had a sandwich and went up on deck. Beautiful day…still blowing around 18 to 20 with large swells. Bagged a few rays. The water is this amazing cobalt blue colour….never seen it before. We’re taking some water in the cockpit so nothing is dry. Down below is hot and humid but we can’t open hatches due to the waves we’re taking…..everything is damp down below. Eric is talking about the plans for St Maarten and Barbados. He wants to leave on Monday….that’s too late for me. I may get a room for a couple of nights…see how it goes. I start driving at 1400. It’s lumpy and blowing 18 to 20. Very hard to steer a straight course. I keep working the wheel and make good speed…..12 knots boat speed and @ 12 SOG. I can smell the barn. They’re making pork tenderloin but I’ve been feeling a bit queasy and have zero appetite. Trying to drink some water. John relieves me at 1700 and I’m on standby until 2000. I spend standby trying to eat a bit and go up on deck to get some air….it’s stifling down below. I try to sleep but it’s impossible. Other than the heat, we are on this incredible sleigh ride that has the boat in motion all the time…..plus it’s pounding hard. The only safe place to be down below is in your bunk. We’re still doing 12 to 13 knots on a tight reach over huge swells. The noise on the side of the hull is incredible. It’s pounding everywhere, bubbles sizzling by, waves crashing overhead, hull and deck creaking, rig resonating….

I hit the bunk @ 2000…everything’s wet. I wake up around 2330 and get ready to go out on deck….just shorts and my rain jacket. It’s warm but wet…..conditions are the same….wind at 18 to 20, huge swells, water everywhere.

 

December 13^th, 2007.

 

I relieve Eric and he tells me they just went through a squall…wind up to 30 knots…had to bear away and drive down. I take the helm and soldier on….tough conditions again…very hard to stay on course. As we drive up a swell the stern has a tendency to slide to leeward so have to drive aggressively…very physical. The wind starts to build…hits a fairly solid 30 knots…not much we can do…Eric plays the main and we try to keep her on her feet. We should have put the second reef in but it’s too dangerous now. We’re taking continuous white water in the cockpit…I’m soaked again.

John comes up at 0200. I play the main for him and we drive on. Wind starts to drop a bit and I go down below. Not much to do other than find a safe spot and sit .

At 0400 I hit the sack…try to find a dry spot and conk out. Next thing I know it’s 0800 and Fred’s waking me up. Get ready...shorts and shirt…and back on deck. It’s still blowing 18 to 22…if nothing else, these trade winds are consistent. Very difficult to drive, but beautiful sunny day….you can feel the UV in the sun. I drive on until about 1030 at which time John and Eric come up to put the second reef in the main. OMG what a difference!!...the boat is much tamer and not much speed lost.

At 1100 John relieves me and I go below to get some food. Go to the head and immediately miss-calculate a wave and go flying into the bow on top of plastic boxes and junk…got some nice scratches.

It’s 1215 and we’re driving on…..11 to 12 knots SOG, wind speed 22 knots, 8 to 10 foot swells, waves breaking into the cockpit…..remember this a 72’ boat…it's pounding hard but….it’s getting to be routine.

St Maarten is 186nm away…we should be in this time Friday.  

Spend most of the next couple of hours talking to John. He tells me that Eric would take me again on a delivery. Bag a few rays and get red. Go down below to get some zzz’s…John comes down with some empties (pop and water only...we're sailing dry). As he’s coming down the companionway, boat does a nasty snap roll and he goes flying through the air and crashes through the thin plywood panelling of the wet-locker. Literally punches a hole in it the shape of his ass…gets a few scrapes and cuts….he doesn’t get hurt badly so we’re able to tease him about it later. Thing about this boat….once you start to fall, you fall about 7 to 10 feet before fetching up against anything! I go down below and try to sleep but again it’s hot and muggy and boat’s rolling around and pounding. We’re still smoking along at 10 to 11 knots.

I doze off and on until about 1930 then get ready to go on deck. It’s dark, blowing a steady 25 knots with gusts to 30 and there’s a 10 to 12 foot quartering swell…tough driving conditions again. We have a double reef main and half rolled up #4. There’s all kinds of water coming in the cockpit. Eric and I are soaked but the water’s 81F so it’s not too bad. We take one huge wave that puts so much water in the cockpit it activates the auto inflatable horseshoe on one of the man-overboard modules. We get that tidied up and soldier on. We’re having a hell of a ride. John is coming up soon so Eric decides to roll the jib up all the way. John relieves me but Eric asks me to stay on deck with him….I think Eric’s getting nervous now that we’re getting close to land.  Shortly after we get the jib rolled up a flying fish prangs the wheel at about crotch level…too close for comfort. Eric got one in the head earlier in the evening and said it hurt.

 

December 14^th,2007.

 

Went to bed at 0000 but didn’t sleep well at all. Everything’s wet…..sleeping bag,  pillows, everything. Went up on deck at 0400. Still blowing 25+ with huge swells on the port quarter.  It’s warm on deck but wet….water temp is now 82F. I drive for about an hour and then we’re hit with a squall….winds 30 to 32 knots with driving rain. It’s over in about 15 minutes, then the sun comes up and there’s two full rainbows behind us. The sun’s shining brightly and it’s going to be another hot one. The swells are bigger than ever with breaking tops. Again it’s hard to steer and everything’s in motion down below. None of us have had a meal in 72 hours…it’s all been sandwiches and junk…..I think I’ve probably lost 10 pounds…not a bad thing. It’s 0650 and we’re about 13 miles from our first waypoint into St. Maarten…should be in by noon!! Eric now wants to go to the marina which is fine by me. Got my phone on the charger….jeez I hope there’s good cell service in St. Maarten.

The islands are starting to loom in the distance…..they have this ethereal, “Jurassic Park” look…amazing.  First Anguilla, then St Maarten. It’s mid-morning and we’re closing in on St. Maarten. We’re going by the French side and heading for the Dutch side….there’s other small islands off to the left. It’s very hot and windy…still big swells. I’m off watch now but there’s no chance of sleeping …we’re just about there!! We can see some huge sail boats coming in and out of St Maarten. We make a 90 degree turn around the last headland and then head into the wind and drop the main…again it’s a huge physical effort to get it down and tied to the boom. We motor down to Simpson Bay and get ready to drop anchor…..that in itself is going to be a huge physical effort. I cracked a beer on the way in…the only one on the boat....a Bud Light, it came all the way from Newport. Eric tells me to carry the anchor, chain and rode up to the fore deck and get ready to set the anchor. The anchor (a Delta) weighs probably 75lbs and with the chain…I just can’t do it…this is my punishment for crackin’ a beer…lol! Fred wants to crack a bottle of rum (one of two that have been stashed for the land-fall)  but is told he can’t. We find a spot to anchor and between Fred and I we’re able to get the anchor and chain over the side. The anchor sets on the first try…damn good thing as the only way to get it up is with a halyard on a halyard winch!! OK…we’re here…..it’s swim time, wash time (during the swim) and rinse time with 250mL bottles of water. We get the dinghy in the water and do some housekeeping. Eric takes our passports and other paperwork into customs/immigration…..we’re all cleared.

 

We get into the rum big time, go to Palapa Marina..... that we’ll be in tomorrow, go to Soggy’s (The Soggy Dollar), go for supper, get shit-faced and dinghy back to the boat.

 

December 15^th, 2007.

 

I get my ass out of my bunk at @ 0830…Eric and John are all ready up…junior (Fred) is pretty much rum-dead-to-the-world. John criticizes Eric for not looking after Fred, while he takes credit for keeping me alive…lol.

Eric ferries John into town @ 0900 and that’s the last we see of him. Eric’s back around 1000 and tells us that we have a berth at Palapa’s and the next bridge opening into the lagoon is 1130. We go through the routine of getting the anchor up…..motor up on the rode while Fred cranks in on the primary, When the chain appears, I snap the spinnaker halyard on the chain, Fred cranks on the spin halyard, I keep the chain and anchor off the newly painted hull. Again it’s physically demanding…even though we’re in the lee of St Maarten it’s still bumpy.

We get the anchor up and on board…..no scratches on the hull. We make the bridge opening and head into the lagoon...the boats…actually ships, are incredible....big, clean…wow.

We find our berth…it’s a stern to, Med style docking. It’s blowing 20 knots with gusts to 30 knots and we’re going to back into the dock beside the 140’ plus Mirabella III. There’s another big ass boat on our port side. We have to drop the anchor (the big Delta) at the appropriate spot and then let the boat back down into the dock. There’s a mooring available but we can’t get it until later.

One of the Palapa dockhands, in an inflatable, tells us when and where to drop the anchor. I get the signal.... barely manage to get the Delta over the side, but I do. It hooks up immediately. We back the boat down…..actually just let it go back by itself but things go bad quick…we run out of rode. The boat continues to drift back into the dock and Fred doesn’t have enough turns on the primary…the anchor rode peals out of his hands…I manage to grab the tail and get it onto one of the halyard winches…..I’ve only got about 2 inches of tail. The crew of Mirabella III are freaking out and dropping fenders as fast as they can. We tie another rode on but the knots won’t go through the cars that we led the rode through. We’re hanging on the rode but have no control over the stern and have no way to let the rode out.

We finally get two stern lines to the dock and get the boat stabilized between the anchor rode and the stern lines. We winch the boat back to within a foot of the dock and tie it off. We shake hands, do a bunch of "high fives". Eric breathes a sigh of relief and tells me that’s the first time he’s done a Med style mooring. ...holy shit! There’s no damage done to any boats, or the dock, so it’s a successful landing.... I go to Soggy’s for a round of Carib’s. Later on, we run a line to a mooring, which further stabilizes the bow. We’re in!! . Shortly after we get in, the 130’ something “Parlay” shows up. Parlay gets in just fine...we’re now a little 72 footer sandwiched between two little “mega yachts”. It’s over…..it was great!! I can’t do the Barbados leg…at least not by boat…that’s a whole other story!