Well, we made it to within about 10 miles of Port Vila where we then slowed the boat down so as not to arrive in the dark. I had worked the 12:00 to 03:00 shift and was relieved by Jeff at 03:00. At 05:00, I got up and changed course for our destination, and knew that we would have good daylight before we got there. Nonetheless, it is always a bit spooky to be headed for a rocky coast when you cannot see it. It just takes faith and confidence in your navigation, and I felt 100% in ours.

With our friend Bob’s help, we had been in touch with Yachting World, and they were being stellar about helping us in. The normal procedure when arriving Port Vila internationally, is to anchor at the quarantine buoy, and once the authorities come out and clear you, you can proceed to your mooring. I thought this would just be additional waiting and delay for Elisabeth’s treatment, so I had requested to moor first and have quarantine come to the boat there. Elsie, of Yachting World did a step better. She got us that permission, and she arranged for the doctor to come out to the boat and examine Elisabeth.

That, then is what happened. We arrived, Moses from Yachting World came out and led us to the mooring and helped us tie up. Quarantine came and gave a very quick check and clearance, and then two doctors arrived. After checking Elisabeth, they told us that thankfully, she did not have any broken bones. She was, however, badly bone bruised, and would do well to spend time off of the boat for a while. He did not offer a stretcher, and said that she ought to be able to climb off in a day or so. While I liked his optimism and confidence, I still wanted an x-ray and started planning how to get her off the boat.

Our options. Bosun chair and halyard – not an option, as we don’t have one. We have a climbing harness. While it is safer and more secure for climbing the mast, it would be too painful for getting Elisabeth off. The other option was the Lifesling, a “man overboard” device that we could use to help lift her and assist her down the ladder to the dinghy. This seemed to be the best idea, but she didn’t want to leave the boat right away. The next day, we discussed again. Elisabeth was comfortable lying on the settee and didn’t want to move. I wanted the x-ray, and we had a bit of a heated discussion about it. She eventually gave in, and actually managed to climb unassisted to the dinghy. The shock was that when we reached the shore, she really could not walk. She thought on the boat that she was walking fine, but on land, moving took many more steps and was completely different that moving on the boat with its many handholds.

We got a taxi to the hospital for the x-ray, and of course, this was an adventure in itself. The driver was great, and (for a fair price) stayed with us and helped us find a wheelchair to get her across the unpaved and very rutted and rolly car park. I think Elisabeth laughed more during the adventurous wheelchair ride than she had in the previous week. It was fun leaning the chair back and getting a little run on so as to make it out of the next hole. The x-ray confirmed the doctor’s diagnosis of no breaks. What a burden relieved.

Yachting World has some nice rooms, condos, really right at the water’s edge and we rented one for four nights. This is where we are now. Elisabeth is getting her exercise by walking with the crutches and hanging in a life jacket in the water. She is making good progress. Yesterday, it was one week ago that she was hurt. Our plan is to maybe move back on the boat on Sunday. We will see.

Meanwhile, I reflect. I feel that this happened because I broke my own rules. The forecast that we left Fiji with was one that I did not like. We had a guest on board, and we wanted to go sailing with him. We had been looking forward to this for months, and there was much momentum to get going. Although the forecast showed heavy rain and unsettled weather between Fiji and Vanuatu, it did not show any high winds, nor seas, only rain. But, it did show that we would have a frontal passage on the last two days of the voyage with the wind changing direction and coming at us directly on the nose for two days. Normally, I would not have agreed to such a forecast, and would have waited for nicer conditions. Elisabeth and I talked about it at length. She was so enthusiastic and unworried about it – after all, it only showed rain and no big weather. I reluctantly agreed, and we left. It was my decision, and I carry the responsibility. The weather turned out to be more than forecast, but it was nothing more than we had seen in the past. The sail failed due to years of sun degradation of the webbing on the clew. We did not subject the sail to any more stress than it would see on a normal basis, and Elisabeth fell due to the bad luck of being tired and slightly unattentive. We had taken bigger rolls before. But had I kept to my old rules……. I guess that is what I keep coming back to. If you have rules that you operate by, stay true to them. You have them for a reason. Everything is going to be ok with us, and we go forward. But I shudder to think. Learn from this and stay true to your rules.