Great Seamanship: Salt Water Spear Tips

When Thor F Jensen’s guide, Saltwater and Spear Ideas, arrived on my desk I used to be instantly fascinated by the subtitle, which reads: ‘The world’s first circumnavigation of the island of New Guinea in a conventional crusing canoe’. That’s not the type of story you come throughout day-after-day, so I opened the guide and delved in to find that it is a complete lot greater than only a crusing epic.

It’s an journey of the best order. The boat herself, Tawali Pasana, may be very a lot the actual factor. She consists of an open, impossibly slender hull, supported by two outriggers, constructed very a lot within the vernacular style to function underneath sail and oar.

On the outset, Thor isn’t any professional at crusing such craft, so his native crew are very a lot a part of the motion. Their experience retains the present on the highway within the face of some terrible climate and the daunting prospect of over 3,000 miles in tropical, typically uncharted, waters.

Go to sailaufilm.com and also you get to see what the boat and her individuals really seem like, and decide up all method of in-depth details about the voyage. Proper now we’re going crusing with them. They’re off the North coast of New Guinea, night time is approaching and the prognosis is something however promising…

Extract from Sail Water Spear Ideas

Issues by no means go as you anticipate on this voyage. Round 9pm the wind turned again to the south-east. This was what we needed. “To hell with Yapen,” I assumed aloud. I took a brand new bearing and we began working in a north-westerly course in the direction of Runi Island and its bigger neighbour Wamsoi. The moon was rising in form and lit up your complete canoe; the wind was candy and we coated good miles.

An hour later, Sanakoli needed to throw his towel into the ring. “We take down sail and sleep.” I couldn’t blame him. He’d been steering virtually all day and night time, however we couldn’t relaxation now. We have been nonetheless 30 miles from our objective.

I climbed out of the hull and as much as the entrance of the canoe the place Justin was laying. He was sleeping closely. I woke him cautiously and requested if he might come and steer.

“We not there but, hey?” he stated, not attempting to hide his grumpy disposition.

“No, we nonetheless bought 4 or 5 hours however the wind is nice.”

He rubbed his nostril and seemed round. “OK, you give me one drugs bottle and I drink.” I pulled out a bilum, clinking with small glass bottles of power drinks. My head was buzzing from lack of sleep so I additionally downed one of many syrup-like caffeine pick-me-ups as nicely. The 2 brothers swapped locations and Tawali Pasana bravely resumed her course.

I used to be standing within the hull, locking the sheet with my left hand, my proper hand both bailing water or wanting on the compass to information Justin’s course. There was alleged to be a lighthouse on a small island, Rasi, south west of Runi however I couldn’t see something on the horizon besides just a few flashes of lightning within the distant sky.

The wind was nonetheless beneficiant and Tawali Pasana’s bow chopped steadily via the black swell. The hours handed and there was nonetheless no signal of a lighthouse, as a substitute the horizon had turned ink black, and the moon was smothered by ominous thick cloud. The flashes in entrance of us elevated. It was now evident we have been crusing straight in the direction of an unlimited thunderstorm.

The subsequent hours have been of one other world and the reminiscence of that have continues to be with me to today. It was like being on the stage of a terrific theatre. The artillery barrage of lightning made every little thing distinction, altering from white to yellow to inexperienced. Huddled with the sailors within the hull, I used to be crammed with fascination and marvel in addition to dread and worry. The mast, with its steel level holding our flag and the wires working to the deck, was the one excessive level for 25 miles – this made Tawali Pasana a floating conductor, a lightning rod.

From the hull of the canoe, I might see all of it unfolding – the clouds and the lightning made the sky virtually appear tangible, as if we have been crusing via a labyrinth of black caverns with testy giants throwing spears of electrical energy at one another. It was an otherworldly spectacle. It struck me with a way of immeasurable gratitude to witness – however, on the similar time, conscious of a way of impending doom.

Tawali Pasana and crew relaxation up within the Padaido Islands. Picture: Photographs: Thor F Jensen

The blue wall

We have been in the midst of an infinite bay and there have been no different boats to be seen within the night time. If there’d been fishermen courageous or silly sufficient to enterprise out, they’d have noticed the silhouette of a triangular sail monitoring steadily via the swells, a speck on an unlimited drape firming from darkish blue to graphite gray.

Instantly, they might have seen the canoe lit up by a brilliant flash of white gentle, and absolutely these males would marvel how fortunate this vessel was, gingerly plotting a course via the stratospheric havoc, avoiding {the electrical} supercharges. In the long run, they could additionally doubt whether or not luck would observe this nimble vessel all the way in which to dawn.

All of a sudden, the lightning had stopped and every little thing was pitch black. I checked the GPS – solely eight miles to Runi and security. Then the sail flapped and the wind dropped. I turned my head north and noticed one other darkish blue wall coming straight in the direction of us. We’d been momentarily within the eye of the storm. Immediately my face was hit by a chilly, humid blast of wind and the canoe began rocking. “Get sail down, get sail down,” Sanakoli hollered as he jumped up from the entrance and ran to the mast.

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The sail was let go and the spars hurriedly placed on the canoe. In the identical immediate, we have been hit by an much more huge blow. It was now so black that I couldn’t see my hand in entrance of my face. The canoe was rocking wildly back and forth. The outrigger was dangerously dealing with the breaking waves, being pulled down with each hit.

Justin threw the rudder onto the platform and crawled into the canoe. Collectively all of us held on to the spars and sail in order that they wouldn’t be washed overboard. I had no thought of how a lot pounding the outrigger might take earlier than it broke off. I turned to ask my comrades, however phrases weren’t essential, one take a look at their faces and I knew we have been in nice peril.

The waves stored crashing onto the outrigger and flooding over our platform. I requested Justin if we should always name for assist. He didn’t reply at first however then he stated: “You name.” I first considered the SOS button on our satellite tv for pc gadget.

This may begin a search and rescue operation, however on this a part of the world such an operation might take a day to organise – or longer, and we have been nonetheless afloat.

I then took out the VHF radio and referred to as Pan Pan, the worldwide sign for help. The canoe was jerking wildly. I stored on calling however there was no-one on the radio. I then turned my consideration to the instant risks forward; we have been being pushed in the direction of the rocky shores of Yapen Island. Sanakoli was bailing water and I instructed him to throw out the drift anchor.

Slicing via Pacific waves. Picture: Thor F Jensen

I then seemed on the GPS – the anchor didn’t appear to do a lot for our pace or place. We have been being pushed sideways with three knots of pace. This meant we’d attain Yapen in underneath 5 hours. We nonetheless had time and the outrigger was nonetheless holding. There was nothing we might do however cling on and wait out the darkish. As the sunshine slowly revealed itself over the horizon, my coronary heart crammed with hope. The wind decreased in velocity and the waves stopped breaking on us.

At six within the morning, we wrapped the sail and booms in rope and cautiously manoeuvred the heavy gadgets onto the platform. It was a tough activity within the excessive seas. We have been drained and chilly however focus was paramount. Then we lifted up the storm sail, pulled it into place and hoisted it. It was such a revitalising expertise hoisting that canvas; we have been again in management.

The ocean was nonetheless tough and the wind towards us however Tawali Pasana was crusing and that was an important factor. As Justin and Sanakoli navigated us via the nonetheless treacherous swell, I made us all a breakfast of biscuits, jam and peanut butter that was handed to the sailors which they rapidly devoured with out taking their eyes off the ocean. Our perils have been removed from over.

Sail dealing with approaching land. Picture: Thor F Jensen

Wrath of Zeus

My complete physique was numb with fatigue. It was already afternoon. This was bullshit after such an evening; we deserved to be on that island. It’s proper in entrance of us – so shut however to date – white seaside, coconut palms. There was no wind and, irrespective of how a lot we paddled, the present pushed us out. The sky was now purple and we nonetheless hadn’t come any nearer. Quite the opposite, the present had pushed us even additional out. There have been now 12 miles to the closest island.

A pod of dolphins immediately breached the graceful floor of the water with syncopated puffs from their blowholes. I turned off the music participant and tried to catch them on digital camera however they disappeared. When the music was turned on once more, they reappeared proper subsequent to the canoe (who would assume that dolphins favored Johnny Money?). As the sunshine dimmed and we entered the fourth night time of the crossing,

I noticed one thing in entrance of us that made my hair stand on finish and my coronary heart sink.

With the brand new night time, the wind returned. The fading darkness additionally revealed extra ominous climate in entrance of us, with lightning flashes that have been turning into an increasing number of dramatic. The nice factor was that we lastly had wind once more and Tawali Pasana was capturing steadily via the ocean. The draw back was that we have been going straight in the direction of the subsequent belt of heavy rain. I don’t know what was working via the minds of my companions.

Crew (from left) Sanakoli, Thor, Justin and Job. Picture: Thor F Jensen

I assumed, “Oh no, not one other thunderstorm.” I requested Sanakoli, “Hey, can we tack up alongside the islands as a substitute after which tack once more in between them on the high?”

Sanakoli yelled again towards the howling wind, “I don’t know, perhaps the present will push us out?”

So, I stated, “Let’s give it a strive.” We turned the canoe and ran northward. After an hour it turned evident that the present was nonetheless beating us. Dammit! We’d misplaced an hour and needed to flip again in the direction of the storm once more.

It defied all my intuition to sail straight in the direction of that menacing hazard, but it surely was our solely choice: that or the complete pressure of the Pacific Ocean.

Because the hours handed, we slowly bought nearer to the islands – as did the thunderclouds. They have been transferring in from the opposite aspect now as nicely, as in the event that they have been rising out of Biak Island, which stood as a darkish silhouette within the distance. It was as I imagined Mount Olympus, from the place Zeus the King of the Greek gods would hurl his tridents of fireplace. As we handed beneath Rasi and its lifeless lighthouse, the waves fell and Tawali Pasana picked up pace.

Justin and Job hold Tawali Pasana on the transfer. Picture: Thor F Jensen

Brooding horizon

The horizon in entrance of us had now became an enormous, brooding, evil entity. I handed the final two ‘drugs bottles’ to Justin and Sanakoli, as they have been those who have been going to get us out of this alive. We tacked and aimed to hit Runi. The moon was coated by clouds and every little thing had turned gray. We had tacked too early and missed Runi. All of a sudden, white waves have been breaking in entrance of us. Sanakoli slacked the sail simply in time and we made a rapid flip again. I used to be ordered into the entrance to search for reefs.

On our second tack, we have been on the appropriate course for Runi however as we closed in on the small, darkish island we encountered the nice reef once more. Justin noticed a small hole the place the breakers seemed much less aggressive. Both aspect of us have been ramparts of surging water highly effective sufficient to show our courageous craft into splinters. The sailors yelled at one another, took the possibility and, in a second of seafaring brilliance, crashed Tawali Pasana via the shallow reef wall hurling damaged corals in our wake.

The canoe was instantly lit up by a patch of luminous white sand lurking just under. We have been contained in the reef. There was some present flowing out between Runi to our proper and Wamsoi to the left, however we have been alive.

After half an hour of jig-jagging up via the channel, we lastly reached lifeless calm water, paddling the final 50m to the sandy shores of Wamsoi Island. When Tawali Pasana had been secured with each a shore line and an anchor, it began to rain once more – incessantly. We didn’t care. We simply coiled up in our tarpaulin and handed out.

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