Cape lookout rescue

[Fresh2Salty]

Originally Posted by Sailor Sailor

They anchored in a relatively open anchorage, not protected from the wind from all directions.

I guess the father did not realize that wind backed during a tropical storm.

It looks like child endangerment to me. Also, two school age children cruising during the school year. Brilliant judgment all around.

Please explain how the children would be safer on an anchored boat in an open anchorage during a tropical storm than onshore in a protected, sheltered location.

First of all “child endangerment” is a really serious accusation, one that should never be thrown out there so easily! You do not know the situation, why they chose to anchor in that specific place. Nor What their situation was in that moment. So to make assumptions and very judgmental mental statements says a lot about your lack of character.

Second of all my three kids are school aged. We live on anchor more than we are in any marina. Yet my kids are getting a better education than they ever got in public school. Many of our friends home school on their boats as well. Some of our friend’s children home school 7 days a week! All of our kids get more hands on real life experiences than a brick and mortar school could ever provide. And our kids all get an education with out having to deal with bullying, or schools interfering with religious or ethical views. Our kids dare never required declare their s*xual orientation in order to get an education.

Your comments are judgmental, full of assumptions and very out of line.

[caradow]

I do think Banks Channel in the Wrightsville Beach area would be much safer.
Offers a lot of protection , room for a lot of scope and good holding.
I have been there in squalls to 50 kts without a problem. Yet they were short lived.

[Kettlewell]

FWIW I learned the boat is named Wanderful Life and is a 2001 38-foot Maxim catamaran with a homeport in Dover, DE. I was curious if they might be a local boat familiar with Cape Lookout, but the documentation information doesn't tell us.

Also, saw this report that damage to Cape Lookout was minimal: https://wcti12.com/news/local/minima...seum-to-reopen

[JPA Cate]

Another advantage to anchoring in an open bight is that if you suddenly find yourself on a lee shore, you have a better chance of going out to sea to safety.

Some people on this thread have apparently never been caught by surprise, but it can happen that you want shelter from a particular wind direction, and that when the wind changes, it is time to leave. Generally speaking, there are times when you are better off out at sea with some sea room than trying to get into tide rode inlets. It is that land (where one tends to perceive safety) is also where the hard bits are, and if there is sea room nearby, 100's of miles of it, it truly is a better place to be.

Sitting at one's computer, it is hard to feel how fast things can change, because weather is often slow, but overnight, a storm can change direction, not be predicted, till suddenly the wind starts building, and you have to find shelter. And then, over the period of time it takes to eat a light lunch, the eye of the storm comes over, and the wind quickly blows from the onshore direction, and when it happened to us, we actually had to use both engine and sails to leave that death trap.

What I want to say here is that if you've never coped with a situation, please do not leap to public shaming. At minimum, it is rude; but worse, it is destructive.

Ann

[Kettlewell]

Sitting at one's computer, it is hard to feel how fast things can change, because weather is often slow, but overnight, a storm can change direction, not be predicted, till suddenly the wind starts building, and you have to find shelter. And then, over the period of time it takes to eat a light lunch, the eye of the storm comes over, and the wind quickly blows from the onshore direction, and when it happened to us, we actually had to use both engine and sails to leave that death trap.

True, we all have made mistakes and will continue to do so, but this tropical storm had been predicted to arrive for at least several days prior. It wasn't a sudden blow out of nowhere. Therefore, it would be interesting to know why they were anchored there when more sheltered places were only hours away.

[Nightcrawler]

We live in Beaufort and have been visiting this area for 7 years on our 42' trawler. Cape Lookout bight is a very safe anchorage in a storm. On occassion, some of the big shrimp boats will anchor out there. There is not enough fetch for 8-10' waves. Likely, that number was in the ocean on the way to and from the Cape. We've personally been caught in pop up storm like this one out there. Winds were over 60 knots. Yeah, winds do howl and I'm sure the rigging was a mind blowing scary audio mess, but the boat's not going anywhere. Even if one drags, you're surrounded by sandy shallow beaches. The houseboat that spends the summer out there is still there.

I won't judge the decision to go - but it may well be it was a 'good choice' until the winds howled and the crew panicked. Thankfull all are safe.

[Kettlewell]

Even if one drags, you're surrounded by sandy shallow beaches. The houseboat that spends the summer out there is still there.

Have you heard if they recovered the catamaran?

[Nightcrawler]

Have not heard more about the boat.

[Kettlewell]

We live in Beaufort and have been visiting this area for 7 years on our 42' trawler. Cape Lookout bight is a very safe anchorage in a storm.

Just curious. Where did you ride out Ophelia and how was it?

[Nightcrawler]

We sold Shangri-La in May of this year. We did ride out Mathew in Hilton Head, Dorian here in Beaufort and Eieio here as well. Also, many tropical blows over 6 years.

[Sailor Sailor]

Originally Posted by Fresh2Salty

... And our kids all get an education with out... schools interfering with religious or ethical views. Our kids dare never required declare their s*xual orientation in order to get an education.

That reads like a right-wing talking points or conspiracy theories. Those certainly aren't universally true about public education, and they may not be true at all. What are your reference sources for those beliefs?

(BTW, my questioning that statement is evidence of the critical-thinking skills I learned while receiving a free public education.)

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Sailor Sailor

That reads like a right-wing talking points or conspiracy theories. Those certainly aren't universally true about public education, and they may not be true at all. What are your reference sources for those beliefs?

(BTW, my questioning that statement is evidence of the critical-thinking skills I learned while receiving a free public education.)

Let's leave out your politics.. this thread is about place's to anchor safely in weather, not planting ones soapbox.

[Skipper Kenny]

Originally Posted by Sailor Sailor

(BTW, my questioning that statement is evidence of the critical-thinking skills I learned while receiving a free public education.)

Most certainly is!

[Fresh2Salty]

Originally Posted by Sailor Sailor

That reads like a right-wing talking points or conspiracy theories. Those certainly aren't universally true about public education, and they may not be true at all. What are your reference sources for those beliefs?

(BTW, my questioning that statement is evidence of the critical-thinking skills I learned while receiving a free public education.)

So my references are 7 children of our own and 22 children fostered in two different countries, with a mixture of public school, private school and home school. I feel well capable of deciding when, where and how my children should be educated.
I also do not believe that anyone should be claiming child endangerment or any other very serious accusations based of of some low grade internet information. Those are serious allegations that should never be made without knowledge of the full situation. It’s irresponsible and dangerous to make such accusations. Unless your opening your home to the thousands of kids in fostercare, and unless your willing to get in the trenches dealing with the absolutely trauma that is caused by having a child ripped away from their family over a false allegation, you should leave parents alone to raise their children how they see fit. My source on that being the 22 very traumatized children that I fostered.

Also….about making assumptions about people, you could not be more off base about my political stance. So far off base you are not even in the same field. Not that I owe anyone an explanation of my political stance, more that it was irrelevant to the topic at hand. I don’t care what anyone’s political opinions are, but I do care that some random internet stranger thinks it’s okay to make such serious accusations against any family with no actual facts.

[Declanyates]

Useful thread, thank you, this is an important topic