Has anyone seen the movie The Perfect Storm?.....I think I might need to watch it when I get home to do a comparison of our time a sea versus that! The first day out from Catalina Island we were actually becalmed. Little did we know what was to come. Day 2 saw a large storm brew towards the evening. The boys very valiently took watch while Kym and I stayed in bed. Kym was there because she felt sick, I was there because I thought the waves were smash a huge hole in the side of the boat and cause us to sink! I did not sleep at all because every time there was any kind of noise I would jump and my heart would race even faster. The next day the waves were still big but towards the end of the day everything seemed to get even worse. The barometer had dropped from above 1030 to low 900's. After this the barometer took a huge crash off the top of the cupboard in the main cabin and we thought it may not have been working properly. Upon reflection, it was working fine! On that note, all the stuff in the boat was slopping around. Draws were opening, all the things in the cupboards were sliding, we had to lock off the toilets and basins so the water did not go everywhere and in the really bad bits various stuff would just launch itself across the boat! The waves were bad enough, but the wind and rain was absolutely awful. The rain was so hard. You know how you see they make rain noises in movies where they run hoses flat out against a surface? That was magnified x 10 for this. A storm may be ok to watch at home when you are behind the glass and the washing is off the line, the dogs are happy inside and all the windows are up in the car, but this was something else. It was pelting against the boat so hard it sounded like that alone could break through the boat - are you starting to get the ideas going through my head? I really thought we were going to blow apart - really, really. I can't tell you how scarey that was. The wind was howling unlike wind I have ever experienced. So the waves are crashing and pushing us in all directions, the rain is pelting so hard it sounds like boulders, and the wind is whipping through the rigging as well as off the top of the huge waves making the most angry howling noise ever. Bruce has actually said he felt the port side of the yacht flex inwards as each wave hit while he braced himself against the wall to prevent being thrown around.
At the end of day 3, things were looking pretty bad. I had been hiding in my cabin towards the end of the day as it was getting quite rough. Stuart asked us to all get dressed into our full wet weather gear and life jackets. Tonight we would sleep in all this gear and remain in it for the next 5 days. Stuart took us all on deck. The grab bag was out and ready, the spot tracker was attached to it. We put extra supplies into the grab bag and torches into our pockets. This was real. We went through the exact procedure for launching the life raft to evacuate the boat. I was shaking. I told Bruce he was not allowed to die before bursting into tears. I was petrified of the big seas. While on deck I clung to the edge of the doorway even though I was tethered to the safety lines above deck and Bruce was holding me. The life raft thing was very sensible but at the same time panicking for me. It made it all much more real and made me feel everyone else was getting as worried as I was. This was real. It wasn't just me having a moment, it was necessary. That night the weather was so bad, the boat was put on autopilot and we were all below deck rolling around at the mercy of the sea. It was just too dangerous to be above deck. Once again, I did not sleep. Instead I tried to lay on my bed, waking every couple of minutes to panic some more. At this time the swells were about 10 to 20 seconds apart so there was no recovery. Every few waves were bigger and would smash onto and all over the boat. Poor Bruce. He probably did not sleep very well either with me squeezing his hand so tight every time this happened! He was very good to me, telling me I would be ok and we were alright. Had I been there alone I think I may have lost it. I reflected on the last thing my Aunty Pam said to me before I left " If it gets bad, it won't last forever". Five days was quite a long time though!
Day 4, the seas are still huge. We really weren't eating much and hadn't been since day 2. We had noodles in a cup for breakfast and water to drink. No one really wanted anything more. We had maybe 2 mini chocolates in addition to the cup noodles and that was all for 3 days. I felt sick through anxiety. Bruce and Kym felt sea sick and Stuart was so sleep deprived he couldn't care less. It also meant less trips to the toilet, which believe me is a good thing. I could only manage to get my pants down by resting my head against the door and wriggling, using only one hand. This meant I would headbutt the door as each wave passed. I was trying to avoid anything that may randomly fly out of the shut cupboards in the toilet and hit you on the head while attempting this. To sit down you need to hold on, to wipe you need to hold on on to pump flush the loo you also need to hold on. Impossible! Give it a try! Being in this small enclosed area also puts you at risk of feeling sick for the rest of the day. I love land. The things you take for granted.
The night of day 4 was our biggest challenge yet. At about 5.45pm the headsal furling rope broke allowing the sail to unwrap. This means instead of a little bit of sail being up, all of it was able to catch the wind pushing us way too fast. Think re-packing a parchute after you have jumpedand pulled the cord! Stuart had to rush up to the front to attempt to recapture the sail. I could hear something was wrong. Bruce was calling us out to help. I was desperately trying to do up my jacket and life jacket so I could go to see what was happening. Do you know the times when you are trying your hardest to do something and it all goes wrong?....that is where I was at. Kym ran past me to go outside. I was behind her but still holding on very tightly. Kym made it to the wheel and Bruce told her to keep it surfing directly down the waves with the wind to hold the boat steady. I looked out from where I was standing. The waves were nearly bigger than the boat. I could not really see the sky when the waves were coming. I don't know the real size of waves, but they were very, very big. Bruce says 40 foot waves but captain conservative Stuart says 30 foot. I know they were very big and very scarey. Then Kym blacked out and could not see. This all went very fast. I knew I had to go to the wheel but I was so worried. I could feel my heart pounding and the adrenaline started pumping big time. I made it to the wheel somehow. Wedged my feet either side of the cockpit and then Bruce left Kym and I to it. He went to help Stuart up the front of the boat. The wheel was so huge and the waves were more it control than we were. Kym had to hold me in the seat by my leg. The waves would suck us back and tip us forward to go down the slope of the wave. I was steering a 10 ton surf board down massive waves. I was screaming at Kym "I can't do this". She said "You are doing it". What I really meant was I can't go any further on this trip, but that was not the time to discuss that. I believe I also did a lot of swearing at the sail, the boat and the ocean while being physically moved by the wheel and cramping in my legs undoubtedly due to the lack of food/water. I was also saying "Please don't die, nobody die". I was very serious about this. I really felt the danger in what we were doing and knew we were in trouble. I was the shortest person of the crew and wedging my feet meant my legs were even shorter. To see anything I had to unhook my feet then I could not stay steady. Upon reflection I probably should have just not looked! Eventually, although it seemed like forever, the sail was saved. We all sat down for a couple of minutes to recover. I however was still desperately needing to get below deck so I did not have to see the huge waves. Kym and I had a little lie down - exhausted. The boys did hour on hour off shifts all night that night as the auto pilot would not work.
Day 5 is when we decided to turn around and go back the way we came. It was still rough. We were all getting past it. We were still all wearing all of our wet weather gear and life jackets. I know Bruce and I had not changed any of our clothes since the life raft moment. Everything was becoming a bit gross. That night was another hour on, hour off shift night with Kym and I joining our partners on duty for safety. I was singing all the nursery rhymes I know to try to stay awake for one shift and for another I tried to name all the James Bond movies I know. Strange what you do to stay awake.
Day 6 we woke a little excited becasue we thought we may reach land today. The distance was just too far but the weather calmed a little. Stuart stayed up all night to watch for other ships and the three of us joined him for 2 hours shifts. This time it was just too much for me. I fell asleep 1.5 hours in with my head hanging off the backing cushion of the seat in the cockpit. My mouth was open and I was probably drooling! Stuart very gently said I could go to bed if I needed! I just had to.......very useless. My second shift that night was from 2am till 4 am. I did the whole thing proudly!
Day 7 was the day I woke to see land. Very reassuring. Noodles for breakfast to celebrate. I then happened to mention I thought I was so tired I was hearing voices, fully expecting everyone to think I was crazy, just like the people from work! But Kym and Bruce said they had heard things too. So then I went on to explain in detail the voice I heard - once again oversharing! I heard a very deep male voice like someone from the Caribean and he would say things I couldn't understand but it sounded like "Blubble, bloob, blub......Aaaaaye!" Then everyone laughed at me! Kym said she heard mermaids singing and said she can easily understand why sailors of old would jump into the water following the sounds of beautiful mermaids.
When we reached land we found out about the earthquake in Chile and the earthquake off Hawaii and the resulting tsunami warnings for both. The harbour master at Catalina Island said it had been the worst storms for decades and decades. While it is reassuring I was not worrying about nothing, I am not really happy have been in such bad weather. There was no way to tell what was coming and Stuart was very careful about leaving in the most ideal conditions so it just shows the power of the ocean. I have a great respect for the sea, which I realised once we set sail, but this respect is built on an underlying fear of the power the ocean has. A fear I am not sure I will ever be ok with.
Partly due to this and the rest due to time restrictions, Bruce and I have decided to not attempt the next crossing to Hawaii. I just can't leave firm land knowing there might be any chance of that happening again. I am not a religious person, but I was praying to whoever I thought might listen to get us back safely (plus a couple of messages to Noodle and Jill).
We hope to travel a little more arond America, then fly to Hawaii and island hop a bit before home. We will still blog but tomorrow Kym and Stu will stay on the boat and we will go on our travels. Goodbye yacht Pelon.....see you in Hobart!