Bent rudder shaft in Catalina Isle

[87Catalina34]

Ok, first I find it difficult to share this embarrassing and heart wrenching experience. But as the forum suggests, maybe there’s something here you’ll get from it.
I sail a Catalina 34 tall rig wing keel.

The short version is , I struck a reef entering the mooring field at Two Harbors, Santa Catalina Island, as I approached from the south.

Why did I hit the reef? Or better yet , what will I do next time?
1. Verify entrance to any anchorage / marina/ harbor , no matter how many times you’ve been there.
2. Have full view of the chart plotter at all times.
3. Have a lookout on the bow as I enter.

It was my first time entering which doesn’t make any bit of difference, but I later learned that the huge “danger reef” sign had been washed away in a storm years prior and the only marker is a washed out unidentifiable white buoy that resembles a “no wake” zone. As we approached the mooring field, this made sense.

The wing keel hit the reef hard and hopped up over it, landing back down on aft and bending the rudder shaft, jamming the rudder against the hull in a starboard position. Not knowing this yet, I cut the engine, raised the main sail to try to get off the reef and immediately went down below to search for any water ingress.

It was then that I realized we were circling back towards the reef and could not maneuver. I dropped the main and she began to drift away from the reef.

With nothing much else to do, and 3 others on board, caught between Bird Rock Isle and Two Harbors, I radioed for assistance.

I had been using hand held vhf at the time and expected Two Harbors to send a tow boat out, since I was just outside their mooring field , but in fact it was Long Beach about 30 miles away that responded that my transmission was very weak. I couldn’t believe they were receiving me at all. I went down below to use the main radio, but I should’ve just switched the handheld vhf to high power.

Coast guard asked for my position, how many people on board and if we were taking on water.
Then Boat US took over and asked for my Boat US member number. All the while, Two Harbors harbor patrol remained silent.

Only about 5 minutes had passed since striking the reef, when Two Harbors life guard services radioed to ask if we were taking on water. After replying no, they arrived within 2 minutes and had a diver in the water trying to investigate the damage. I suspect they didn’t want a sinking vessel in the channel or mooring field.

He let me know there were chunks out of the keel and the visible damage to the rudder shaft. He tried to forcibly kick it straight but it was bent enough that the rudder in a starboard position would just hit the hull. He also let me know everything else looked ok.

They kindly offered to tow us to temporary mooring ball, setting our minds at ease for the first time. The tow was difficult as the boat wanted to turn constantly. I worried about the tow cleat at the front getting jerked. But Two Harbors Lifeguard Services were very patient and careful, and took it slow.

We thanked them immensely and as we pulled in, harbor patrol showed up and took over the situation. He asked if we had reservations. We did, so he suggested staying the weekend as no shipyards would be working on the weekend anyway.

Without much else to do, we decided to try and make the most of it. After all, we weren’t taking on water and the engine and propeller seemed to be unscathed.
After making a few calls and talking it over, I decided that a tow back to Long Beach would be treacherous for the boat and everyone on board, with the rudder locked starboard.

The next day I decided the best thing to do was cut the top of the rudder off that was hitting the hull, in order to regain steering.

I enlisted the help from the local dive shop and after an hour and a half of submerged hacksawing, we had regained steering. We shared lunch with the diver and paid many respects to him and his friend.

Later that day, harbor patrol escorted us to the fuel dock to check our maneuverability. Surprisingly, all seemed normal. Wow, couldn’t believe it. We felt good that we would not require a tow, at all and decided to stay a few days longer.

The sail back home was zero wind but the auto pilot still worked, which was a dream come true.

I had to order a new rudder and the bottom will need major repair at the time of the haul out as well.

[tkeithlu]

Thank you for sharing this experience. You got away OK - it was a learning experience that the rest of us can learn from - I'll be more careful entering harbor as a result of your warning. There are no cruisers who do not have their own past misadventures lurking in their 2:00 AM dreams.

[87Catalina34]

Thanks TKeithlu, I was also advised to file a complaint with the coast guard regarding the reef marking, or lack there of.

[jmorrison146]

Originally Posted by 87Catalina34

Thanks TKeithlu, I was also advised to file a complaint with the coast guard regarding the reef marking, or lack there of.

A request will go a lot farther than a complaint. Just like search and rescue, the Coast Guard has no legal responsibility to do it al all. A couple of years ago, the Coast Guard proposed discontinuing all the aids to navigation around Catalina and turning responsibility over to the locals. There was an outcry that headed that off but I suppose they're cutting back wherever they can. Thus, the smaller buoy.

[Fore and Aft]

Never thought of cutting the top of the rudder away. Good idea and I will file that away in my memory bank.
Cheers

[tsenator]

Good work -- And its good that you have a lead keel instead of an iron one, it's softness absorbs a lot of the "impact" forces that an iron keel wouldn't and its actually very easy to repair that chunk out of the forward part of a lead keel -- Glad it all worked out and wasn't worse as it could have been.

[DougSanborn]

Thanks for sharing your story. It reminded me to check the chart. I was just there in August and I too approached from the south. Although I had been there many times I had never approached from the south before. As you come in there's a narrow point where you've got about 500' between the reef to starboard and the shallow rocks near the rocky shore on your port side.

Despite your problems I hope you had some fun. Love that place. Cant wait to go back.

[svenskflicka]

Thank you for posting this, it is a valuable reminder. Good idea about cutting the rudder!

[killyourguitar]

So you hit that rock between Bird Rock and two harbors where that white buoy is? If that's all it did to your boat you got blessed!