{"id":1662,"date":"2015-05-07T08:30:35","date_gmt":"2015-05-07T15:30:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/?p=1662"},"modified":"2015-08-09T10:23:12","modified_gmt":"2015-08-09T17:23:12","slug":"there-are-two-kinds-of-sailors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/?p=1662","title":{"rendered":"There Are Two Kinds of Sailors"},"content":{"rendered":"

There is a saying among boaters that there are \u201ctwo kinds of sailors\u2026those who have run aground and those who have yet to.\u201d\u00a0 For the first 15,000 nautical miles we sailed we were part of the first group.\u00a0 After our trip to the Aeolian Islands off Sicily, we are now firmly part of the second.<\/p>\n

We had completed an overnight sail from Agropoli on the mainland of Italy to the Aeolian island chain, north of Sicily.\u00a0 It was an exhausting passage because we had a swell on the beam and were rolling side to side for most of the night.\u00a0 We had timed the passage so that we would pass one of the islands \u2013 Stromboli \u2013 before daybreak.\u00a0 Stromboli is an active volcano with hot red lava flows that can be seen clearly at night.\u00a0 Unfortunately for us, there was no lava flow when we passed.\u00a0 Undaunted, we proceeded to Panarea Island where an anchorage would offer us protection from the prevailing conditions.\u00a0 We arrived and dropped the hook around 8:30am.\u00a0 The anchorage was small and a little cramped with other boats but good enough.\u00a0 We had a great breakfast of pancakes.\u00a0 A large fishing boat in the next cove over left so we decided to up the anchor and move Benevento over a little bit, to give us (and our neighbors) some breathing space.\u00a0 Soon thereafter \u2013 just as we were falling asleep for a well-deserved nap – the wind started to pick up and shifted, leaving us (and all the other boats) exposed to the growing seas and on a lee shore.\u00a0 We were hobby horsing uncomfortably and close to some rocks, so we upped anchor again and started to make way for another nearby island.\u00a0 As we were leaving, the wind picked up to 30 knots, then 35. We had our pilot guide out and we were trying to determine what anchorage on what island would provide us the most protection.\u00a0 As we were figuring this out, the wind clocked around 180 degrees on the nose and then promptly died.<\/p>\n

We decided to head for Vulcano Island, which had an anchorage on both its northwest and northeast sides, fairly close to one another.\u00a0 Depending on the weather conditions, we could find good shelter in either anchorage.\u00a0 We entered the small anchorage on the west side as the wind had been blowing out of the east and there was a sizable swell rolling into the east anchorage.\u00a0 The small west anchorage was nearly full with cruisers and a bunch of charter boats. \u00a0\u00a0We slowly motored in and asked a British boat on the edge of the anchorage how the hold was and where his anchor is (so that we wouldn\u2019t drop our anchor on top of his.) \u00a0We dropped the hook but were not very happy with our position as we were quite close to an unoccupied mooring buoy. \u00a0\u00a0If a local boat occupied that buoy, we\u2019d have to move.\u00a0\u00a0 By now, it was time for dinner so I made some pasta and we ate in the cockpit to keep an eye on things.\u00a0 As I was washing the dishes, Dante said that someone was picking up the mooring buoy.\u00a0 Darold popped up above and saw a very large commercial dredging boat \u2013 something we definitely wouldn\u2019t want to bump into.\u00a0 Darold said, \u201cMi despeace, andiamo subito!\u201d (I\u2019m sorry, we\u2019re leaving right away.) They looked at him and nodded with a smile indicating, \u201cYes, I think it would be best if you move too.\u201d \u00a0So we had to up anchor once again \u2013the fourth time today.<\/p>\n

We snaked our way slowly through the anchorage to where it looked like there was room for one more boat, but it would be in shallow water.\u00a0 We draw very little 1.6 meters (5\u2019 2\u201d).\u00a0 The depth sounder was showing the water shallowing, but nothing alarming and we were over sand.\u00a0 After all the shallow water sailing we\u2019ve done on this trip, we are comfortable slowly motoring over a soft bottom, so if we kiss the ground we can easily back off. \u00a0A technique perfected in the Bahamas.\u00a0 Then the depth sounder shallowed quickly to 0.5 feet.\u00a0 Darold quickly eased into neutral and just as quickly the depth sounder shot to two feet and increasing. \u00a0We figured the bow (were the depth sounder is located) had glided over a shallow spot, but since we are turning back out of the shallow waters we should be clear.\u00a0 NOPE! As we turned back into the anchorage, we weren\u2019t able to complete our turn. We weren\u2019t moving.\u00a0 The bow was free (moving up and down) but our stern was stuck.\u00a0 I looked at Darold and said, \u201cAre we aground?!\u201d He looked at me and said, \u201cYep.\u201d\u00a0 Crap, I said! Darold then stated this was his plan to try \u201canchor-free anchoring\u201d and that it would be a very comfortable night for us, without fear of dragging!<\/p>\n

The first thing Darold wanted to know was whether we were resting on the rudder so he asked me, \u201cCan you turn the rudder?\u201d\u00a0 I confirmed I could so he surmised we were on the skegg, and not the rudder, which can easily support the weight \u2013 especially in the bathtub calm waters we were in.\u00a0 (Unfortunately that\u00a0would soon be changing).<\/p>\n

There was a French boat just in front of us and I yelled over to them asking the depth.\u00a0 They told us three meters.\u00a0 I told them we were aground but they were confused due to the fact that our bow was free and our mast was moving back and forth so we didn\u2019t \u201clook\u201d like we\u2019d run aground.\u00a0 Finally, they understood.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t have a dinghy but they still offered to help and so Darold heaved them a line (using a monkey fist made by Darold\u2019s uncle, thanks Richard), so they could help pull us off using their winch.\u00a0 Or at a bare minimum prevent our bow from blowing down into possible shallower water.\u00a0 They tried to winch us off but we still were not moving.\u00a0 So \u2013 on to Plan #2, we needed to kedge off.<\/p>\n

Kedging off is a method for pulling your boat free using an anchor (usually your stern anchor).\u00a0 \u00a0This requires taking an anchor in your dinghy as far as possible from the boat, where you drop.\u00a0 Then you wrap the other end of the anchor rode around a winch and try to pull yourself free.\u00a0 Problem:\u00a0 our dinghy is all secured to our davits and the engine is not on it.\u00a0 It would take some time to get set up and to get all our equipment ready to go.\u00a0 So\u2026. I called over to a nearby charter boat to see if they could take their dinghy (with a small motor) and help kedge us off.\u00a0 They shrugged their shoulders at us and explained that their dinghy motor was too small to help (rubbish).\u00a0 But they didn\u2019t mind \u00a0watching our predicament for entertainment purposes. \u00a0So, Darold began preparations to get our dinghy in the water and put the engine on.<\/p>\n

Before Darold even got started, the man from the British boat came up in his dinghy and said, \u201cAre you aground?\u201d\u00a0 Darold confirmed we were, and the British man said, \u201cI would have come over earlier but I didn\u2019t realize you were aground because I saw your mast moving.\u201d\u00a0 He agreed to assist Darold kedging us off, and they worked out a plan.<\/p>\n

As I was handing the stern anchor line to the British man, I introduced myself and Dante.\u00a0 He said his name was Phil, to which I replied, \u201cWell, today you are HelpPhil!\u201d\u00a0 Phil dropped his chin to his chest and shook his head.\u00a0 Dante said, \u201cShe can\u2019t help it.\u00a0 She\u2019s punny.\u201d Phil was laughing as he took the anchor and rode off our stern quarter and set it in, then Darold ran it through a block and began trying to winch us off.\u00a0 Unfortunately, we weren\u2019t budging.\u00a0 Meanwhile, the French boat was still holding a line from our bow boat.\u00a0 Now the wind has piped up to 20 knots, but very little fetch \u2013 calm water.<\/p>\n

Then the French boat suggested that they take our halyard to their boat.\u00a0 Darold said, \u201cOf course!\u00a0 Why didn\u2019t I think of that?\u201d\u00a0 The reason for this is that they can take the halyard, and pulling on it will cause our boat to heel (lean) which will reduce our draft (depth in the water) helping to free us. \u00a0Our spinnaker halyard was too short so Darold tied an extra length of line to it and Phil ferried the line over to them in his dinghy. Darold made the sign of the cross to the people on the French boat and they laughed.<\/p>\n

Darold kept winching us in at the stern as the French boat pulled our mast over, making us heel over to starboard.\u00a0 Dante was watching the clinometer (a gauge that shows how many degrees you are heeling) and kept us abreast.\u00a0 \u201cFive degrees!\u00a0 Seven degrees!\u00a0 Ten degrees!\u201d\u00a0 Ten was our lucky number as we popped off the shallow patch and were free and clear.\u00a0 Woo hoo! \u00a0We were free!\u00a0 Darold had the French released the bow line so that we were only being held with the stern anchor feathering our stern into the wind.<\/p>\n

Now we had to back up through the charter boats in the anchorage, which would require dumping the stern anchor line overboard. \u00a0We had 150 feet of line swimming around our prop potentially as we backed out, so we needed to make sure it was clear of us.\u00a0 So instead, Darold coiled up the extra stern line securing it as a single bundle and gave it to Phil in his dinghy, then Darold released the line from a quick release snatch block and Phil zipped it away in his dinghy at a 90 degree angle from the boat so we wouldn\u2019t get fouled, then he dumped it in the water free and clear of the prop.\u00a0 Earlier, Darold had attached a float to the anchor line so that we could retrieve it and the anchor later.<\/p>\n

We re-anchored on the edge of the anchorage so that Darold and Dante could retrieve the stern anchor and also distribute gifts (booze) to the two boats that had helped us.\u00a0 We gave a bottle of Primitivo wine from the Puglia region of Italy to Phil (\u201cMy favorite!\u201d he said) and we gave a bottle of Sambuca to the French boat. \u201cWat is zees?\u201d they said.\u00a0 Darold assured them that they were in for a treat. \u201cPut it in your coffee! And have a corretto\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

There were too many boats in the anchorage, the wind had piped up, and we were now all on a lee shore. \u00a0We were at risk of playing \u201cbumper boats\u201d if conditions worsened.\u00a0 So – \u00a0as it was getting dark we pulled up anchor and motored to the anchorage on the other side of the island, which would make this our 6th<\/sup> time anchoring for the day (if you count our \u201canchor-free anchoring\u201d incident.)<\/p>\n

As we approached the next anchorage, we were hoping there would be some shallow water.\u00a0 The chart shows good anchoring, but the depth as we approached shore was 90 feet and not dropping.\u00a0 \u00a0Finally, as we got closer, the depth quickly dropped to a manageable 30 feet of water.\u00a0 You could easily imagine the volcano sloping downward into the sea, accounting for the steep angle of the bottom.\u00a0 The two anchorages are separated by a short footpath on the island and we could see the anchor lights of the boats in the other anchorage; they were all bouncing back and forth. \u00a0Happy to be out of that anchorage!\u00a0 Later confirmed by Phil that is got a little dicey and he was on anchor watch through the night.<\/p>\n

We motored slowly into the anchorage in the dark, taking care to avoid a charted reef and dropped the hook in 30 feet of water. It was difficult to tell where the reef was, but using the anchor lights of the boats in the other anchorage as a reference point, we were able to determine where the reef should be and avoid it successfully.<\/p>\n

A few days later, Phil and Alison from Bagheera (the British boat who helped us) came to our side of the island and we spent a good amount of time with them; we climbed to the top of the volcano and had dinner on each other\u2019s boats.\u00a0 If running aground is the cost for making great new friends, like the couple from Bagheera, then I guess running aground has its benefits.<\/p>\n

When we re-hashed the incident with Phil, he politely informed us, \u201cYou\u2019ve only run aground once?\u00a0 We\u2019ve done it three times.\u00a0 You\u2019re barely in our club.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now we spent our days relaxing and waiting for Reg and Phoebe of Three Sheet to meet us in Volcano.<\/p>\n

\"Anchor\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is a saying among boaters that there are \u201ctwo kinds of sailors\u2026those who have run aground and those who have yet to.\u201d\u00a0 For the first 15,000 nautical miles we sailed we were part of the first group.\u00a0 After our trip to the Aeolian Islands off Sicily, we are now firmly part of the second. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1662","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sailing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1662","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1662"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1662\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1769,"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1662\/revisions\/1769"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1662"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1662"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/easethemain.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1662"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}