One big thing on a boat is what’s your plan? things change and go “wrong” all the time but its not a drama if you have a plan and everyone knows what they are doing with that plan should the unexpected happen.

Yep, plan for the unexpected.

The other night we were moored with lines to shore in a tight little bay with little swing room. Not a problem it was forecast completely calm (most of the night we had 0kts wind) and any wind would be from behind driving us out of the bay.

But, of course, this is sailing and for just two hours , from 11pm to 1am the wind picked up and started gusting from our side, up to 25kts. So what was our planned exit strategy?

In order of possibilities:

• use our engines, gently, to take the weight off the anchor (side winds blow the bow across and load the anchor from a difficult angle) and put more of it on the windward stern line.
• Keep this up until the wind eased (See: Sometimes your anchor needs a hand )

Or if that was not possible

• Use engines to keep us in place
• go ashore and release lines and pull them onboard
• have the admiral take the boat out toward the anchor and I’d join in dinghy in deeper water

Or if it was more immediately urgent

• Release the stern rolls (we use stern rolled webbing to tie to shore) and throw overboard
• drive out of bay, picking up anchor on way out.
• come back later and retrieve the stern lines and rollers.

You’ll notice that the “Plan” went from least intrusive to most. What we ended up doing was the absolutely least intrusive, we just kept a watch and everything held tight, as we had set her up for much more wind than was forecast.

plan for the unexpected!!!!