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Life on the Edge

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Good morning everyone. Tropical storm Hanna is on its way though the actual fanfare looks to be way less than earlier news stories would have indicated. The phone has been ringing in the office with folks worried about trips 2 weeks from now. Welcome to life on the edge where uncertainty reigns supreme and you just never know what will come tomorrow let alone next week. As Dad liked to remind us, yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift and that is why we call it the present. As for our sailing schedule, well, we haven't missed a trip... yet.

We have had some of the best sailing this week. I think we have sailed on and off the hook everyday in some really tight situations. The crew has done a fabulous job. Yesterday we had some very thick fog which obscured the lighthouses but which made for some exciting navigation up through the channel from Whitehead Island Light to Owls Head Light. Sara kept the paper plot and Curtis steered the compass courses while Rob kept the foghorn sounding and a very sharp lookout for the few buoys that warned us of the rocks just outside the channel. Careful attention to detail and flexibility to the changing conditions was the hallmark of our success.


So for those of you wondering about tomorrow… welcome to life on the edge. Like the rock pictured here.. hang on tight. It has been hanging on for about 10,000 years!

Have a great day. Be well. Do good.
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Anonymous said…
Well, it certainly did rain, but it looks like it's blown through and will be a clear day for those sailing next week to come aboard on Sunday. Nice of Hanna to blow through overnight Saturday into Sunday. Not like Hurricane Bob when we got to spend the night at the high school in the gym. Looks like good weather again, and a good week for a sail.
September 7, 2008 at 7:37 AM
Unknown said…
Captains - It looks to this casual observer that the worst of the storm has passed. The radar shows the storm has moved to the northeast. The Camden Harbor webcam shows some clouds with a hint of blue sky on the horizon. I trust the Mary Day rode out the blow with her usual aplomb and that everyone boards today ready to sail.
September 7, 2008 at 8:07 AM
Unknown said…
With Hurricane Ike approaching Galveston I can't help but think about the Barque Elissa. I was reading Dr. Jeff Masters' blog about the storm. I've copied a few lines to bring to everyone's attention that Galveston and other areas of Texas are "living on the edge."

Ike's storm surge
According to the NOAA tide gauges, storm tides along the Mississippi coast peaked at about 6 feet above normal yesterday, with a 7 foot storm tide observed on the east side of New Orleans at Shell Beach in Lake Borgne. At 10 am CDT, storm tides of 5-6 feet were being seen in western Louisiana, and were 5 feet at Freeport, Texas, and 5.5 feet at Galveston. According to the latest NWS forecast from the Galveston office, we can expect the following storm surges in Texas:

Gulf-facing coastline west of Sargent... 4 to 6 feet

Shoreline of Matagorda Bay... 2 to 5 feet

Gulf-facing coastline from Sargent to San Luis Pass... 12 to 15 feet

Gulf-facing coastline San Luis Pass to High Island including Galveston Island... ... 15 to 20 feet

Shoreline of Galveston Bay...15 to 25 feet

I hope Kendel and the other Texas friends I made during my Mary Day trip this July are safe and sound.
September 12, 2008 at 1:09 PM
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