graham
Well-Known Member
SIR ROBIN GOES FOR A SWIM IN THE SOUTHERN OCEAN
"The fishing net that got caught round the keel yesterday morning is
not the last straw, its just yet another piece of misfortune just as
I was getting moving. The trouble is that it was 4.5 metres below the
surface and so very hard to get at. I tried for 6 hours yesterday but
to no avail. Admittedly the seas were still big so trying to get a
knife down on the end of some pieces of lashed together battens was
almost impossible. I eventually gave up as I realised I would have to
wait for calmer conditions. I was just hoping the rope was not
damaging the fin too much. I could see where it had sawed into the
fairing.
But today Saga Insurance and I are on our way again. I spent the
night thinking but knew that there was only one way I could really
get at the problem and that was by going swimming. I put on a sailing
dry suit, then a harness, attached it to a nice long line, and went
over the transom. I swam out as far as my safety line but could not
get down to the main anchor line. I got its partner though and
brought it back on board. Interesting watching the boat from maybe
100 feet away. She was rolling horribly. I was also not too excited
about the sudden attention of 3 Albatross who clearly saw my
floundering as some sign of potential dinner in an hour or two! Back
aboard Saga Insurance I winched in the line I had and because it was
twisted round the main line, it brought that close to the surface.
Using an empty cooking propane container as a float, I attached a
line to it, and then pushed it down with a batten to the up tide side
of the line and then let go. It floated nicely up the other side of
the line. Now it was just down to brute force, hauling in on my
messenger until the main anchor line was at the surface at which
point I was able to reach down and cut it with a hacksaw. I then
spent 20 minutes slowly removing the turns between the two lines with
the aid of a batten, and was able eventually to pull it clear of the
keel. We are now sailing again but not very aggressively at the
moment as I am tired and still feel very cold.
The problem with the sailing dry suit is that although it did keep me
dry, it did not insulate me, and I did not want too many clothes
underneath as they would have given buoyancy and made it even harder
to dive, so by the time I got back to the boat, my hands were very
cold and blue but still able to grip fortunately. Hot breakfast this
morning, hamburger and beans, to try and get rid of the chill in my
stomach."
http://velux5oceans.com
RKJ remains my all time Hero.
"The fishing net that got caught round the keel yesterday morning is
not the last straw, its just yet another piece of misfortune just as
I was getting moving. The trouble is that it was 4.5 metres below the
surface and so very hard to get at. I tried for 6 hours yesterday but
to no avail. Admittedly the seas were still big so trying to get a
knife down on the end of some pieces of lashed together battens was
almost impossible. I eventually gave up as I realised I would have to
wait for calmer conditions. I was just hoping the rope was not
damaging the fin too much. I could see where it had sawed into the
fairing.
But today Saga Insurance and I are on our way again. I spent the
night thinking but knew that there was only one way I could really
get at the problem and that was by going swimming. I put on a sailing
dry suit, then a harness, attached it to a nice long line, and went
over the transom. I swam out as far as my safety line but could not
get down to the main anchor line. I got its partner though and
brought it back on board. Interesting watching the boat from maybe
100 feet away. She was rolling horribly. I was also not too excited
about the sudden attention of 3 Albatross who clearly saw my
floundering as some sign of potential dinner in an hour or two! Back
aboard Saga Insurance I winched in the line I had and because it was
twisted round the main line, it brought that close to the surface.
Using an empty cooking propane container as a float, I attached a
line to it, and then pushed it down with a batten to the up tide side
of the line and then let go. It floated nicely up the other side of
the line. Now it was just down to brute force, hauling in on my
messenger until the main anchor line was at the surface at which
point I was able to reach down and cut it with a hacksaw. I then
spent 20 minutes slowly removing the turns between the two lines with
the aid of a batten, and was able eventually to pull it clear of the
keel. We are now sailing again but not very aggressively at the
moment as I am tired and still feel very cold.
The problem with the sailing dry suit is that although it did keep me
dry, it did not insulate me, and I did not want too many clothes
underneath as they would have given buoyancy and made it even harder
to dive, so by the time I got back to the boat, my hands were very
cold and blue but still able to grip fortunately. Hot breakfast this
morning, hamburger and beans, to try and get rid of the chill in my
stomach."
http://velux5oceans.com
RKJ remains my all time Hero.
