August 28, 1986 - A Storm-Tossed SailA Storm - Tossed Sail
By PAUL STOUTENBURGH
There was a good southwest wind
Saturday afternoon that invited Bar-
bara and me to head east in our boat.
The weekend was going to be a busy
one, but with the right planning and
help from the wind, perhaps we could
sneak out and be back before anyone
knew we were gone.
When we got to our tethered din-
ghy, down at the bay, the tide was
way up. Put the wind and a full moon
together and you've got the mak-
ings of exceptionally high tides.
Usually the dinghy, with only two
people aboard, rows quite easily, but
today the strong southwest wind
made rowing difficult and getting to
the moored SeaWind took just about
all the energy I could muster.
We could see the brown tide
throughout the bay. This curse, of
unknown origin, was still with us. It
ran from Riverhead to Gardiners
Bay, giving a tint of brown to all our
waters. If that's all it did, we could
live with it, but its effect on fish and
shellfish has already taken its toll.
What's scary is that we know so little
about it and why it has invaded our
bays and creeks. Further, we don't
know the possible effects it will have
on productivity in the future. Last
year was its first appearance and to
have it again this year is truly dis-
couraging.
It's put a terrible dent in our scal-
lop and oyster industries. These are
the things we can see and presently
know about but what has many of us
worrying is the long -term results of
this tide. Upsetting natural systems
that have operated since time began
could be disastrous for all of us.
Hopefully we will have some answers
soon, as studies are being underta-
ken by state and county agencies in
hopes of controlling this curse.
We had left in the early afternoon
and were in Shelter Island's Dering
Harbor somewhere around four. We
had a good sail down and found it
didn't take long for us to gain our sea
legs. We anchored in the outer har-
bor and settled down to a drink to
celebrate Barbara's birthday.
The weather forecast told us of
southwest winds in the afternoon
with a cold front bringing in the
northwest wind which in itself tells
us fall is not too far away. We had a
fine meal aboard of crisp browned
weakfish roe kept for just such a
special occasion. Mashed potatoes
and fresh garden tomatoes followed
Focus on
Nature
by some of our own ripe peaches
seemed to finish the day in the
proper manner.
Downtown Shelter island
After dishes and a bit of tidying up,
we lifted our little two -horse motor
over the side and attached it to our
dinghy. Usually we'd row ashore but
the strong wind was still blowing and
we were way out in the harbor so we
used the motor. Ashore we wandered
about the streets with their huge
trees and interesting homes and
shops. It was alive with boating
people and the summer population --
everyone trying to cram as much as
possible into the ending summer
weekend.
We browsed through a used -book
store and each bought a book to read
later on the boat. You can never go
wrong buying a book. By then, dark-
ness had settled over the island and
clouds had moved in to obscure the
moon and stars. Was this a sign of
things to come?
Back in the dinghy, we headed into
the pitch black harbor with its maze
of buoys and boats to maneuver
through. A few had lights below
where people were aboard but the
majority swung silently and invisi-
bly before us. In and out and around
we went, sometimes right under the
stern of a sleeping giant. Our
flashlight probed the darkness till
SeaWind came in view.
Out here we felt the full fury of the
wind as the boat tugged at its anchor.
In no time we were aboard and down
below setting up our bunks for an
evening of reading. After some time
passed, I switched the light above my
bunk off and shortly after heard the
click of Barbara's. We were now in
our own world with the wind howling
in the rigging and the boat swinging
to a taut but secure anchor line.
When I awoke at about 1:30, the
rain was pounding the decks and the
wind seemed to be tearing at every
part of the boat. Barbara had
awakened earlier and closed the
hatches and ports when she felt rain-
drops coming down. I took the
flashlight outside to probe the dark-
ness over the stern. Torrents of rain
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Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
STRONG WINDS -- Whenever the wind gets too strong for normal sail-
ing, it's best to shorten sail. Whether it's reefing the mainsail (shorten-
ing it) or not using one of the sails as in the picture above, both ac-
complish the same.
and wind swirled in the air. It was
wild out there.
After checking everything, I
crawled back into my bunk. The
wind was changing from southwest
to northwest and a cold front was
moving in. I lay awake thinking how,
through the eons of time, men have
placed their faith in anchors and an-
chor lines and their holding power.
Nylon, a heavy plow anchor, I hoped,
would continue our trust.
Morning broke clear and windy.
Gusts up to 45 mph swept out of the
dry land to the north. We'd have a
lively sail home. After breakfast we
put a double reef in the mainsail and
would use only half of our furling jib.
At about 10:30 we left to head back
up into the bay.
My prediction of a lively sail was
underestimated. Wild would have
been a better term. As we headed up
bay, past Jessups, we were the only
boat to be seen. How the wind roared
out of the northwest. It was a good
passage but one we had to work at
continuously. Back at our mooring,
the wind still tore at us but we paid
little attention td it. We had had a
great trip, one that will be remem-
bered on those dark cold days of
winter when we need a bit of encour-
agement of better days ahead.
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