A cruising family from Seattle, with two teenage girls, came into Puerto Escondido today, on a sailboat called “Puddle Pirate.” They selected a mooring buoy and tried to connect to it, but the Norther was already winding up and creating problems. We hoped in the dinghy and went to help. By the time we arrived, the older teenage girl, threw a kayak into the water and hopped in, paddle to the buoy and wrested with the tangle rope. After she done all the hard work, I came with a knife and cut an offending line. After they were secure, we came to introduce ourselves. The younger teen took our dinghy line and confidently secured it. Then when the adults left a hole in the conversation, she introduced herself. So mature! I am continually impressed by the cruising kids we meet. These girls are so competent and confident, doing important tasks that impact their family’s safety. Cruising is a great experience for kids, and we often wish that we could have done it when our children were small.
Cruising kids learn that their actions have consequences, not just for them but for the whole family. They are usually standing watch at sea, around age 8-9 with an adult nearby. By the time they are teens, many are standing night watches by themselves. They are home schooled (I mean boat schooled) in about 2-3 hours/day and have no trouble succeeding in college when the time comes.
As predicted on the Sonrisa SSB net, the “Norther” as it is called hit with enthusiasm, bringing winds to 37 knots in the anchorage and a sea of rolling whitecaps. Vicki captured one gust on the wind speed indicator (see photo).Instead of being anchored, as usual, we are tied to a mooring buoy. We have a heavy anchor and we have learned to trust it. Now we are tied to a buoy maintained (or not) by some unknown person, and hoping it is solid. So, we were up several times to check the mooring.
We were sound asleep at 0300 when I awakened with a start. I thought I had heard someone on the radio, on our usual hailing channel, saying “Pan Pan. We are on the Rocks!” A “Pan Pan” call is like a “Mayday” call, but without the imminent threat to life. We jumped out of bed and grabbed the radio. We heard nothing more. We looked outside and could see nothing amiss, so eventually we went back to bed, thinking I had been dreaming.
The next morning we learned that our neighbors, Puddle Pirate, had in fact, been on the rocks. The line attaching them to the mooring buoy had chaffed through and the wind blew them onto the breakwater. Fortunately, for Puddle Pirate, some other cruisers had responded to the call and went to their assistance. Several people were on the deck and on the rocks, fending off, and three outboard dinghy’s pulled Puddle Pirate free from the rocks. Of course, the teens, Gabby & Rose, were up on deck handing lines and doing their part. After learning of their close call we felt bad that we had not been more proactive, instead of writing the experience off to a bad dream. When we talked to them later that day, we learned that we didn’t hear a repeat of the “Pan Pan” call because the skipper, Lew, had changed from the casual hailing channel to the emergency channel (as he should have) and called numerous times. We usually keep the radio on at night in case of emergency. Perhaps we should monitor both channels.
Even when it is stormy....
It's a Wonderful Life - on Adesso!