The day started perfectly. Our buddies, Jon and Cheri, and we were over the moon excited to sail down the Northumberland Strait and Saint George’s Bay into our perfectly protected anchorage of Havre Boucher. Up until today, we had spent a lot of time motoring so having this perfect sailing weather before us was a real treat. It was like skating on glass. Until it wasn’t…
Around noon, about halfway through our 60 nautical mile trip, as we were approaching St. George’s Bay, the wind turned and we moved our sail from a comfortable beam reach to a close haul. Around that time, the wind and the waves decided to build up to a crescendo of about 23 knots and 5 feet respectively, and the boat decided to heel to a point where the autopilot’s rudder alarm went off and Sandy’s internal “freak out” alarm went off. Fear and anxiety are never a good look so that is when the day turned not only into bad, but also into ugly.
Needless to say the remaining 30 miles of the sail were challenging. Because the waves and the current were working against us, motoring was not an option. Our only realistic option, if we wanted to make it to our anchor by nightfall, was to sail on a close haul, which of course, included HEELING!
When we finally made it to our calm, beautiful anchorage which appeared like an oasis to us, we were exhausted. Luckily, Cheri and Jon got in a bit earlier, and prepared a feast for all of us including grilled pork chops with Montreal Chicken Seasoning (cooking alert – this seasoning tastes great on everything; buy it today!), cauliflower risotto, and vanilla mousse. We talked and talked about our experience of the day, coming up with all sorts of ideas to tackle crazy wind and waves. By the end of the conversation, we were ready to do it again.
For those of you wondering what we came up with to handle the fear and anxiety that may accompany some of us when sailing, here it is:
- Develop a good skill set such as knowing when to reef, sail trim, etc.
- Sail a lot. You need a lot of experience to de-sensitize yourself to things that cause anxiety, and the only way to do that is practice, practice, practice.
- Become “one” with your boat and learn what she can handle. Having a heavy keel is a blessing. So if ever a gust tries to push the boat over, there is comfort in knowing that the keel will fight back, helping to keep it upright.
