I've been on my boat for the past few days drawing cables to provide
additional electric power to the fly bridge, and to connect the GPS to both
helms so I can use my e-nav system up or down. The recent TWL discussions on
GPS/radar/e-charts etc were in the back of my mind, but they were suddenly
brought very much into focus by one of the most unusual things I've seen in
many years.

A yacht out of Portland "ran aground" on John's Rock just outside my marina,
and was literally left high and dry when the tide receded. John's Rock is a
pinnacle just a few feet in diameter, and about 3 feet high when exposed at
low tide. At high tide it lurks about 4 feet below the surface.

You'd have to be extraordinarily unlucky to hit it, but this boat pinpointed
it. Literally. It was absolutely skewered and perfectly balanced on the
pinnacle.  At low tide, one could see more than 65' of boat several feet
clear of the water atop a miniscule "mount". Looked like a full-size trophy!
Of course, amazing sight though it was, it represented a lot grief for her
owner.

However, not so much as might have been. Yesterday, I happened to speak to
one of the people who had been aboard. He said the salvage company had hoped
to float her off at the next high tide, but had no luck, because, as noted,
she was well-skewered. So, they brought in some heavy equipment and knocked
off the top of the rock - good news for the rest of us - and she was brought
off with flotation bags and a slightly higher tide without further incident.

Although unlucky to have had the accident, the owner was very fortunate that
remarkably little damage had been done by the impact, that she didn't fall
over, and that the recovery was very well effected. In fact, it seems that
all that's required is some straightforward fibreglass repair to the keel
which took all the impact and was strong enough to bear the whole weight of
the vessel while on its perch. She was on the ways, so I was able to see
that little more than a foot and a half of keel had been mashed. On top of
that, it all occurred within dinghy distance of one of the better yards in
the region.

I don't know what caused this accident, whether navigating electronically,
inattention, bad luck, whatever. However, the channels are all well-marked,
and I haven't heard of John's Rock having claimed any other victims.
Certainly, no electronic nav system is accurate enough to deal with such
narrow passages. The lesson is exactly what so many TWL members have been
saying all along, i.e. that there is no substitute for anxiety and one's own
eyes and ears when navigating in hazardous waters, which is what the charts
clearly show this particular area to be. A bit of luck always comes in
handy, too.

Cheers, Garrett

Garrett

Your John's Wrock story reminded me of the fate of the Northwest Channel
Light at the edge of the Great Bahama Bank on route between Bimini and the
Northeast Providence Channel.
(Look on the chart. There is nothing but water around.)
In late 1992, the above-the-water portion of the large metal light tower
went missing and some folks thought it was Hurricane Andrew related damage.
In fact it was taken by a yacht about 120 feet in length, who's Captain had
used the Lat & Long of the tower as a waypoint (GPS) and was partying while
running on autopilot.
I was docked at Nassau Yacht Haven, still working on hurricane damage to our
bridgedeck from Andrew, and someone on the morning cruiser's net broadcast
on the VHF came on talking about this large yacht sitting at Potter's Cay,
looking for someone with equipment and torches to remove the Northwest
Channel Light from her starboard bow section.
You can imagine the procession of cruisers in dinghies and others on foot to
Potter's Cay.
It was quite a sight...

Capt. Joe
www.marinesupportonline.com