FIVE SAIL ING FRIENDS GO IN SEARCH OF HEAVY WEATHER — AND FIND IT
I got seasick the second day out. My stomach had been roiling ever since we’d slipped out of Howe Sound that morning, but we were all busy on deck working an easterly blow through a finicky strait just above Typhoon Songda—which had put the lights out in nearby Vancouver the night before. Nature comes at you quickly. I jumped to the leeward gunwale to unload my business, but was jerked to a fast stop by my tether and found myself scrambling back up to the high side rail just in time to get my head under the lifelines to the collective “Ewww!” of my four crewmates.
We were on a tough run up the coast in a broken rain, scampering in and out of the cockpit and chasing lines across the foredeck. Our wind gauge clocked 29 knots as our boat cut through waves up to 10ft . Even against a formidable ebb tide, our speed readout was bobbing around 7 to 8 knots over the ground. We were proud of that.
Another day of this would bring us to the infamous rapids at Skookumchuck Narrows, the fastest saltwater tidal change in North America. If we hit it on a flood tide, we’d face a standing wave that could reach over 6ft high. Ebb tides are no less treacherous with their gluttonous eddies and 16 knot currents. This was the gateway to our destination. We were going to take a 36ft sailboat through Skookumchuck. What we were going through now was the easy part of this cruise.
Denne historien er fra July 2017-utgaven av Sail.
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Denne historien er fra July 2017-utgaven av Sail.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
The Floating Classroom
Taking homeschooling to the high seas.
Adventures in Boat Buying
When all else fails, buy another boat
Seascape 18
A fast and simple sport boat that you can also cruise
Drilling Stainless Steel
How to make holes in a not-so-hard metal
Lost and Found
Stop! The ship you lose may be your own
Rick Tomlinson
Rick Tomlinson is one of yachting’s most accomplished photographers, but he is also an accomplished sailor.
Monster At Midnight
Mine is a fishing family. Whether we are running lines off the stern, spear fishing or casting from the boat, we’re always fishing.
Bring It On!
FIVE SAIL ING FRIENDS GO IN SEARCH OF HEAVY WEATHER — AND FIND IT
Wind Chicken Gone Wild
ON THEIR FIRST LONG OPEN-WATER PASSAGE, A SAILING COUPLE GETS INTO THE PROBLEM-SOLVING SIDE OF SAILING
Appendicitis Offshore
A stomach ache turns into a life-threatening emergency while on passage.