All night the papagayos have been blowing and conditions quickly became uncomfortable. I, of course, am beside myself with fear. Darold is happy for the wind and interested in seeing how the boat will handle herself. For most of the night Darold was on watch during the night; the seas built due to the wind, and the wind built up to 25 knots, gusting to 30. When wind builds that quickly the wind waves build and have short intervals between them, making for a very uncomfortable and bumpy ride.
It’s hard to describe what it’s like to be in somewhat “heavy weather.” Darold took some video of it and it doesn’t do justice to what it feels like to be in the conditions in real life. Die-hard sailors love this stuff. Sadly, I am no die hard. I am a fair weather sailor. I like the wind coming from behind the boat (so it doesn’t “heel” – lean) and if there have to be waves of a swell, I like them also to come from behind so that the boat isn’t smashing into them.
But imagine this: Your whole house is leaning over 15 or 20 degrees. It pitches up and down as each comes to meet the front of your house. Up, up, up…then down again. If the waves have a short interval between them – say 6 seconds – this is happening often. And the wind is not constant. You get gusts of wind, which make your house point up into the wind and heel over more, causing the side of your house to dip into the water, creating a swirling flood that threatens to come directly into the living room. And the noise…the wind is howling through your roof and each gust of wind. (Editor’s Note – This sound very terrifying. I’m glad I wasn’t on this boat.)
Outside your house, you can see the threatening waves. Whitecaps are everywhere. The wind is blowing a fine spray of seawater off the top of waves. Eyeglass-wearers like myself are doomed to peer through a perpetual haze of seawater mist.
Meanwhile, Dante is safely ensconced in his berth, reading. He comes up above at one point and laughs aloud as he puts his hand in the rushing seawater that fills the deck just outside the cockpit.
Darold is in complete command as captain and is impressed with how the boat cuts through the water. Meanwhile, I am terrified.
Jerry Seinfeld does a comedy bit about people’s worst fears. He says that #1 is public speaking and #2 is death. He concludes that this means that if you’re at a funeral, you’d rather be in the casket than giving the eulogy. I conclude that people were asked this question at the wrong time. It definitely wasn’t mid-papagayo. Because personally, at that moment, I would have most definitely opted for eulogy. Hands down..