The dreaded south westerly

27 Jul. 11


The night before last night the dreaded south westerly arrived in force. The wind started blowing at about 30 knots and gusted at 35 knots, steadily building through out the day and evening into a full force gale last night blowing at 45 knots with gusts of up to 55. I had to keep moving around on the deck trying to re stick the roofing plastic that covered all the holes in the boat as the wind ripped it off. Whilst I was up on deck I looked across the boatyard and watched as Mother Nature ruled her fury over the boats. People everywhere were scrambling about trying to tie down pieces of shade cloth and other materials that were being ripped to shreds. Others were knocking in extra chocks as one of the boats started falling over. Two separate walk-ons had their fingers snap and landed in the water preventing access to the boats on the water. The roof on the garage right next to our boat was ripped off and tossed so far away by the wind that I couldn’t even see where it landed. Lola and I kept an eye on the barometer whilst checking Windfinder on the internet every so often in an attempt to find out when the wind would calm down. On Windfinder the force 8 gale was going to reach its peak at 11pm and then calm down. At one point I looked at Lola and could see from her pained expression that she was having difficulty believing that we would survive. I suggested we leave the boat and go sit in the yacht club bar to wait out some of the storm.



After sitting in the club for an hour or so watching the storm rage outside we returned to the boat, turning on some loud music, in an attempt to drown out the sounds coming from outside. At this point we discussed the option of abandoning the sailing trip and rather getting a camper. We are not even on the water and already we are struggling to cope.



This morning’s breaking eye witness news “container ship breaks anchor and runs aground in four metre swells off Ballito”. Yes so perhaps our reaction was normal considering the conditions last night. I don’t know. This morning all is calm again and as we clean up around the boat the memory of last night will hopefully be forgotten soon enough. I am hoping it will be like childbirth. Excessively traumatic but soon forgotten with the rewards of a small baby as consolation.



The dream and the reality.

I am not really sure what I expected this “dream” trip to be like. I suppose it is because I never really gave it much thought except for the romantic notion of a dream holiday on a deserted beech. You know those little dreamy moments just before you go to sleep or in the morning just as you wake up before you actually wake up and get out of bed.



These dreams where usually ignited by reading about others that had done such a trip and their recollections and memories. All the thoughts that I ever had where only of such fleeting moments and the “beauty of the first land fall” the “new smells and the awesome nature and creatures of a tropical paradise.”

The reality is a little different.



We did the whole “romantic sell up and sail” routine just to find real life with all its pressure and stress waiting in the dark corners, ready to pounce and tear you out of your little dream world bringing you back to reality with a bang. The worst is that you are now out of your depth and comfort zone entirely. Nothing that you knew before is relevant and everything has to begin again from the beginning. Your new home is always damp smelling and wet with mould growing in the dark crevices that you cannot find. Leaks are everywhere when it rains and even when it doesn’t your bed has a damp feel whenever you get into it. Your outside patio is small crowded and flooded in water most days with no really comfortable settee.



Any repairs that need to be done will cost your soul and will take longer than you have to live to complete. Maybe I am having a bad day and am not yet qualified to make such judgment calls on the cruising life. I mean we haven’t even started yet so who am I to say.



29 Jul. 11

Today we went to the mall and bought a few more movies. We also looked at some cameras but decided that we will just go with the cheap one that we already have on the wait and see if we really need it basis. I also feel a bit more positive again after the male menstrual stress or mms that I had a few days ago. I decided to manufacture two boxes to fit our outside led lights into but could only measure and draw them on the wood since it is raining again today. A couple of days ago I removed one of the windows and drove all over town and all over Empangeni to find new rubber seals. Nobody could help me with the seals and it appears as if I would either have to buy new port lights, as they are named, or try to make up some sort of a rubber seal modification. We also tried to research a portable water maker that can be kept in the grab bags in the unfortunate event that we have to abandon ship but couldn’t find any.