The Land Drifting North--Part 3

The sky and the sea at night are lost to a darkness unlike the darkness of land. When it is very dark the horizon becomes very close and moves ahead of you differently than the daytime horizon.

The Captain and The Kid had been watching what seemed like land drifting northward. With The Kid's keen eyesight, we determined that the land was at least two large ships moving north and possibly intersecting our course eastward. The speed of the two and the distance between them gave me the idea to split the two and pass between the vessels. As we were adjusting sail and increasing horsepower to motor sail our passage The Kid caught something white flash in the black space where we would make our way.

"I saw it too. What is that?"

We knew it could not be rocks because the first vessel passed right over that course. We had now both seen some flash of white or reflection like breakwater.

The odd stories about the Bermuda Triangle are not stories this Captain pays much heed to. We have had odd occurrences while sailing these waters, but odd will often come with being on the ocean. The ocean is different travel than land travel. Every moment can be its own escape with its own adventure. Getting away by sea gets you away to an escape from the moment you cast off, or haul anchor, if not before. The water beneath you is always moving, thus it has been somewhere and is going to other places. On the water you become like the water in how and why you move about. It is not just about a destination, each moment becomes its own unique destination, especially when you watch the water color change, or feel its thickness, and visit with its inhabitants. The sea is about romance and passion and escape.

We luffed the main and throttled down instinctively while staring into the black space before us between the two large vessels. Our radio crackled a voice we could not understand, then static, so we turned it down. We need to watch and maneuver without distraction or error for what may be dead ahead.

"There!" The Kid hollered above the deafening of the silent darkness.

I brought our sloop hard-a-port and then again. The blackness was not space. The blackness was part of the vessel. We had not been watching two very large ships. This was one! We do not know its length or the type of vessel. It was like a container ship and barge in one. Either end was tall like freighters, but in between was quite low and all dark like a barge. We knew if The Kid had not seen that something we would have hit and been damaged or sunk. A faster boat making the same mistake would have collided for sure. There are stories about fishing vessels hitting freighters and barges at night with fatal consequences.

As the large vessel crawled by us there was no noticeable life, nor any acknowledgment it saw us. It just kept steaming north. We floated for a few minutes. Our Perkins diesel was idling, but our hearts were up around 5500 rpm.

"That was so close." The Kid whispered with a hissing on the s of close, not meant to be heard, but just to express, letting pressure out.

I inhaled deeply, not remembering if I had been breathing, but knowing I was empty and all my muscles were hard with tension.

When you getaway to escape, it is always crucial to keep what's real nearby in case you need it in an emergency. It would not take long for us to recover, to continue our getaway to the Bahamas and to escape among the islands and the people. At landfall, night or morn, we would break out the sundowners and lay back on board to recall our safe passage through the lower quadrant of the Bermuda Triangle.

Oh, yes, after the ship went by our radio and GPS came back. Our friend astern caught up to us in port.

The Captain and The Kid

http://hubpages.com/hub/Boat-Problems-in-Sarasota

The Land Drifting North -- Part 2

The night at sea is a different sea. This Captain and The Kid watched the land drifting north. We were too far west to see Andros and too south for Bimini. What we were seeing was massive and it began to appear to be on a course where we could possibly intersect.

The Bermuda Triangle stories we have all read make for good reading if that kind of stuff appeals to you. Yes we were in the quote, Triangle. The Kid climbed up the mast to get a better visual. "Anything on radar?" came the question from the darkness shrouding the mast.

"Nothing. It looks like land, but its gotta be a couple of vessels."

"Looks like maybe two or three big ships. That's my guess anyhow."

Off the mast, The Kid pointed to the horizon. "See there, there, and maybe there. Three big ships, or two huge ones."

Our concern was the seeming erratic course the vessels were following. We knew it best to give way no matter the maritime laws that govern maneuvers at sea. Our traveling friends behind us had now caught sight of our mast and asked if we had picked up radar to our east.

"Nothing on radar yet, but we think there are few ships out there we need to watch carefully."

As we continued on course, it was clear that what we saw were two large vessels. The first was quite a distance in front of the other and moving faster. We could consider passing to the south of the first vessel and before the second one. The distance appeared to be safe to try this and then our friend behind could sail by after the second ship went by. The two vessels changed course again and it seemed we would have to consider sailing between them or tack way south and fight the stream.

When you are sailing at night the charts remind you about faraway places where you can escape to. They take some of the uncertainty and edginess of the night and put in mind why you are crossing at night. Soon the sun will rise and so will a nearby island. There is excitement and romance in a crossing. Escaping to the Bahamas is always a good escape. Usually, the crossing is good and uneventful, but this night was a good reminder about the need to not lose touch with real on your way to make believe.

"We lost the radio." The Kid said with some nervousness.

"GPS too. What's goin' on?"

Our compass, GPS, and radio were all down or improperly operating. The Triangle thoughts came back as we watched the vessels. The one was now to port and the second well to the south but on the same course. Could these two ships be the cause for our navigational problems? Our radio crackled, but we couldn't discern the words. It sounded like our friend off our stern. By now he must see the ships.

"Let's split the two. We have the speed and the distance."

"Wait." The Kid replied. "Wait."

The Kid had noticed something. It was a flash or reflection, or just a hunch, but it was important to look ahead with strained attention.

"There!" The Kid pointed.

Some water disturbance, maybe from the Gulf Stream, flashed some white water onto the black between the ships. What was revealed is the stuff nightmares are made of.

Next time, what we saw off our bow.

The Captain and The Kid

http://hubpages.com/hub/Good-Heart-Tough-World

Why is That Land Drifting North

Nighttime at sea is dark in so very many ways. The Captain and The Kid had caught the Gulf Stream low. This is the better way to cross to the Bahama Banks when under sail, or even while motor-sailing. You catch the Stream and ride it north until your exit. We decided to get off in Bimini.

"What happened to the sun?" The Kid asked.

"Not sure. Last time I saw it, it was heading west."

So, there we were, in the dark, on the ocean. No problem. GPS is working fine. Next stop Bimini. We were in some contact with a cruiser out from sight behind us. They were beginning their crossing from Marathon, and we had chosen Key Largo. Marathon can be better in that you can run more east and south before the turn north. From Key Largo, you head more south at first depending on horsepower and how much you are sailing vs motoring and where you plan to clear customs.

We took a call on the radio. By location and direction we were sure it was for us.

"Sailing vessel. Are you crossing to the Bahamas?"

"We are." The Kid handled the response.

"We see your light now and then just at the horizon. Good to have this company as we cross."

"We don't see you," The Kid replied, "but good to have you with us. We will watch for you."

In the dark a light is good to see, even if it is distant. We could not see our traveling friend. As it turned out, their sloop was smaller and the mast shorter than ours. The night got darker as we began to turn more north. Stars flickered as they darted in and out of clouds. The water was black. At night it looks thicker.

"Is that land?" The Kid pointed to the east.

It did not seem possible we could be seeing land already. But there was a row of lights in the distance that appeared to be land. Then there was a dark section and another row of lights. It seemed that we were too far south for Andros and too far west to see other islands. As I tried to peer through the darkness, I also tried to keep my mind in focus. At night your mind can be tricked. Add to it that The Captain has a mind that drifts some day and night and enjoys the tricks our eyes play with us. Something was becoming clear. This land mass was moving north.

"Is that land moving?" I asked The Kid to be sure it wasn't me drifting.

The Kid confirmed what we were seeing was moving north. This was an awkward feeling. At sea, movement is something you need to get used to. There are times when you think you are moving and you are not. Other things around you are. Then, there are times when other things are still and you are moving and did not realize it. This kind of perception is what can add to the whole idea about escaping that the sea can provide. You can always be on the move, going other places even when in reality, you are standing still.

As this Captain and The Kid watched the floating land drift north, we wondered about the stories we had read about the Bermuda Triangle. Yes, we were in the more southern part of it, but stories about floating land are ones we had not read.

The darkness grew more dark as the clouds thickened. Light from the stars would have been helpful to try to make out where this floating land was heading and if we were going to intersect with it.

"What's going on out there." Our night friend radioed.

Soon it would be clear what we were seeing that night on the Gulf Stream.
Next time more about the Land drifting north.

The Captain and The Kid
also see: http://hubpages.com/hub/Defragging-a-Good-Heart