20 miles offshore FIRE!
“Hey skipper theres some smoke in the aft cabin you should have a look at I think something is on fire.” I run into the aft cabin and the crew start singing happy birthday holding a cupcake with a candle in it.
What a great bunch of guys.
We are running down the meandering 70 fathom line (420 feet) to avoid crabbing gear. I know this is the depth most likely safe from fouling our prop because I spoke to my friend Capt Lars who fishes this coastline.
He has also advised us to stay in the shipping lane if we approach West Port as opposed to the smaller boat channel to the south of the shipping lane. This is because the boats that catch the gear and continue into port deposit these pots in the shallower water of the channel. This too proves to be good council.
I tell thte crew we will stop in Westport for fuel and to let the bigger seas left over from the last blow subside.
1:30 am no pots sighted
We need to cross the bar in the daylight flood because of pots. The next bar we can make due to tide in this time frame is Newport but I think it will put us in 13 footers.
Note the contour lines.
All really fun stuff happens offshore at 3 am..
The boat is proving to be a bit of a broach coach.
The winds forecast haven’t appeared
Supposed to be 20 now
Need to regain some faith in the boat
3am
Lost charging from alternators (due to regulator failure). Eventually the engine dies because the fuel shutoff solenoid needs power to stay open and is internal so impossible to override.