May 6, 2012

Sunday May 6, 2012

The day was glorious as we left Staniel Cay.  Wind Dancer wanted to follow us out so we took the lead, following the rum line out of the inlet.  Fred and I were in the cockpit, he looked ahead and I instinctively looked up also.  We were with in feet of a huge brown coral reef which was not marked on our GPS at that spot, it was a bit to the left.  I yelled to Fred “Turn right, quick, quick, quick”, knowing full well we were going to hit it head on so I braced myself.  Fred turned starboard and we missed it by inches as in 1 foot or less.  It’s not only what you see from the boat, it’s what may be under that darn thing that could sink us in minutes.  We were surely in God’s hands and quite a scare for both of us.  Pay attention...all the time and don’t ever trust GPS rum lines.  We got past the inlet just outside and Fred turned the engine off.  I thought he was raising the sails but that was not the case.  Engine overheated.  I got out of his way and ave him all the room he needed and more as he scurried below to see what the problem was.  I yelled over to Wind Dancer what happened and to go on ahead, we will catch up.  They waited anyway.  As I was looking down below, as if I knew anything about engines I saw him unscrewing a cap that looked like a radiator cap.  I decided to step back a bit in case it exploded off, which it certainly did.  Oil and water went everywhere.  Fred got some burns on his arms but insisted he was okay.  Water.  Yes, low on water.  Simple, simple thing and he forgot to check the water.  He yelled up, “all fixed, start the engine and follow Al and Sue”, which I did until he got things under control below.  I spent the entire short one hour trip to Pipe Creek, cleaning the inside of the boat.

It was time to set anchor.  I was at the bow, looking for a good spot to drop anchor, a sandy spot preferably, and this area was covered with the most beautiful coral and sea fans.  I certainly didn’t want to disturb them nor did we want to drop anchor in the grasses so those pretty clear sandy spots were far and few between.  Finally, I saw one and yelled “Drop the anchor” and he did but it was too late, we set it on a limestone rock ledge and started dragging, into all that coral and sea fans I saw earlier.  I didn’t like the anchor set at all.  The current is very swift in here and rocks don’t do much...or so we thought.  Fred hopped into the dink and started chasing the anchor chain until he found the anchor, sideways.  He came back and said we needed to move and reset the anchor.  I was all for that.  We did the drill, release the snubber, step back and Fred turned on the windless and everything was going as smooth as a baby’s behind then it started jumping.  The anchor was stuck.  It was clear enough for me to see it was wedged under a rock of some kind and Fred maneuvered the boat in all directions trying to pull it loose.  No help.  I attached the snubber to give it more torque.  Nothing.  Then I removed the snubber and he tried again.  It finally came loose but boy oh boy, what a catch.  Up it came, with it a huge piece of limestone with all kinds of beautiful sea growth on it.  It was so heavy the anchor could not make it to the top so Fred dropped it down, trying to release it again.  No luck.  As it came to the surface, part of it broke off leaving the larger portion on the anchor.  I had to nearly hand myself upside down to get it off the anchor, which was no easy feat.  We were drifting slowly so no big deal plenty of room to drift and Fred came back to take a look at it.  As he returned to the helm to move to another anchor spot I looked up and Casa mare was heading straight for Wind Dancer’s bow.  “Fred”  I screamed, put the boat in reverse or turn left, we are going to hit them”.  Then I yelled for Al and Sue to come out on deck, I needed help.  By then Casa mare was in the perfect position to T-Bone Wind Dancer.  Al caught the bow just before it hit him and Fred then had us under control, backing off as fast as we could.  That was the second near fatal heart attack I almost had and the day was not even half over.  We dropped anchor again and once again, we dragged.  This time she caught right at the edge of the grasses, deep and solid, I hope.  The bottom was spectacular.  It looked like a sea garden, full of color and life, purple sea fans and Yellow sponges, swaying in the current like a synchronized sea dance, dotted by tiny fish feeding on whatever there s down there for them.  The underwater screamed of peace and serenity.

Fred and I jumped into the dink and checked the anchor again, then returned the lookie bucket Al and Sue let Fred use the first time he checked the anchor.   They invited us aboard and we discussed the plan for the day.  We returned to Casa Mare and had a banana sandwich and we were off to explore.  As we rounded the first bend, Al ands Sue disappeared.  We turned back and found them with a stalled engine.  Between the two guys, they got it sorted out temporarily and off we went again.  Several times their engine dies but we stuck pretty close in case they needed a tow.  As we left Compass Cay Marina to see the sharks we headed out to the abandoned Decca Tracking Station but we didn’t make it.  We ran right up on a beach that was under about 4 inches of water.  After some maneuverings we broke free and headed back to the boat.  Al and Sue invited us over for a Ginger beer and some deviled eggs.  I wanted to bring something to snack on so we made a big pot of popcorn and brought that over with us.  Time flew and it was nearly six when we left.  Tomorrow there is yet another adventure waiting for us, right around the corner.  I am glad I am snorkeling, a huge chance but worth it, I think.  I have been through worse.  These waters are spectacular.  I am glad I am going in.