Today is November 17, a week and a bit since Ryen's Quest left Halifax. The first three days saw the guys in fine weather, and down to their shorts and tee's. And then they ran into Ida....Hurricane Ida. It could only be described as a great shake down cruise with the new gear. The seas over the past week were so bad that Mack was sick. Allan had never seen Mack so sick in the thirty or so years since knowing him. The weather forecast from Tuesday until Sunday noon, was spot on at 30 foot seas, and 50k wind. That's worth getting sick over! Although the boat held up well, it's contents were not so lucky. Things stowed in the quarter cabin had to be moved to the aft cabin, and moved again to fix something that went sour with the steering. The dining table came right out of the boards, screws and all, and the engine needs to be looked at when the boat gets into Bermuda. With that came the water from their foulies and no surprise, the boat got miserable and damp. Sleeping was not an issue, it was an impossibility. As of yesterday and today, the guys got to be in nice weather again. I thought Al was sounding more rested, but he corrected me and said he was only less tired.
This may well have been Allan's most uncomfortable trip. Although he wanted me to make this passage with him, he thinks my decision to stay back was good given the poor weather. I am thinking I may stay back and wait until they get to the Carribbean Islands and fly to meet him there. Or, the option of flying down now and meeting them poolside when the boat gets there seems viable too.
To anyone planning to sail to Bermuda, I would strongly encourage you to visit the RCC Bermuda webpage and complete their forms. Yesterday, when I called them to give them an update of Ryen's Quest's new eta, they were familiar with us. They were going to begin radio contact! That gives me a warm fuzzy feeling to know that someone was going to start looking for them, had we not made an update contact.
Oh, and the news is...the boys are approximately 230 miles off shore of Bermuda. They spent lots of hours between the wind and the waves, going nowhere. But for them, nowhere is pretty darn close to heaven. As of 2030 hours today, all is good.
If you are reading this James Brown, I hope you have a smile on your face.
2 comments:
I check you blog everyday. Yes, as I was reading your last entry a smile came over my face. I was glad to hear that that they are safe but surprised that they haven't arrived yet. The sea state must have been really bad. If Mac got sick....I would have been a mess. I really wanted to do this trip but.....maybe another time. I enjoy reading your blog entries so keep them coming.
jim
Glad to hear they made it through that weather. Better ahead no doubt!
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