Grounded!

[Tetepare]

Yes, ran aground. Right in my home port.

We wanted to anchor near a sandbar which has demonstrated significant shifting this year (more than I've ever seen in my lifetime.)

I approached in what should have been 15' of water. Watching the sounder tick off...6'...5'... I'm looking over the side figuring that the sounder is bouncing off the tops of weeds, weeds that should be right here.

4'...3.3' what? I can't see any bottom, but nor do I see weeds. Odd. OK, heck with it. I went forward and dropped the anchor which stopped. Oops, it was on end with the shank visible. Then thump thump as we bounced on the sand.

I couldn't believe it! Of course backed off, dropped much farther out and took the dinghy in. Found that visibility was less than 2 feet, probably due to algae and the recent rains.

[topmast]

Maybe a new sounder???

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by topmast

Maybe a new sounder???

Don't think so the sounder was correct!

[Kenomac]

Don't worry about it, 'eventually happens to everyone. The charts aren't always correct.

[Dockhead]

I hate to break this to you, but bouncing off a sandbar is not the same as being aground!

That's no big deal and not worth confessing. Welcome to the club!

Sent from my D6633 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[topmast]

Tetepare, That was a joke. Gotta blame your equipment or know where to point the finger .

[capngeo]

Those who say they have never touched bottom are either very new to boats... or outright liars!

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

Yes, ran aground. Right in my home port.

We wanted to anchor near a sandbar which has demonstrated significant shifting this year (more than I've ever seen in my lifetime.)

I approached in what should have been 15' of water. Watching the sounder tick off...6'...5'... I'm looking over the side figuring that the sounder is bouncing off the tops of weeds, weeds that should be right here.

4'...3.3' what? I can't see any bottom, but nor do I see weeds. Odd. OK, heck with it. I went forward and dropped the anchor which stopped. Oops, it was on end with the shank visible. Then thump thump as we bounced on the sand.

I couldn't believe it! Of course backed off, dropped much farther out and took the dinghy in. Found that visibility was less than 2 feet, probably due to algae and the recent rains.

Don't feel bad. I ran aground right outside our club earlier this year, in full view of all the members and the local harbour control tower, at 6.5 knots, on a falling tide. Took the bigger of the local rescue boats to pull me off, his twin 300HP combined with my 100HP before I budged.

All it cost me was my dignity and a carton of beer.


Oh yeah, and the sandbar HAD moved. Just sayin'.

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by GILow

Don't feel bad. I ran aground right outside our club earlier this year, in full view of all the members and the local harbour control tower, .

I totally blew a dock landing this year. Same boat, same dock, two decades. Blessed as I was, NOBODY was there to see it!

[Tayana42]

I do hope your wife was on board. She gives you the perfect out. You can always blame your wife for most any calamity like so many other sailors do.😉


S/V B'Shert

[SV Bacchus]

Originally Posted by GILow

and the sandbar HAD moved. Just sayin'.

Atta Boy!

[30yearslater]

If there were no pictures taken it didn't happen. Witnesses are highly unreliable.

[Teknishn]

Originally Posted by capngeo

Those who say they have never touched bottom are either very new to boats... or outright liars!

Or have never left the dock.....

[sailorchic34]

Touching a sandbar a time or two is just the braille method of finding bottom. It's also good for cleaning the keel...

It's a good way to check calibration of the depth sounder. If your not there for 12 hours, your not aground.

[zeehag]

i made the shoal in san diego bay a part of my monthly hull cleaning--used to be folks were allowed to anchor out-- we went in the steelie i was with, from north to south bay's crown cove-- i judged it so well we always lost depth sounder from cleaning it on the shoals ledge. the island inmiddle of crown cove became a n issue as i had just cleaned the sounder and it was still non functional--hahahaha. friends helped me off the island which was showing increasingly more with each passing minuet ha h ah ah a
and then there was barra de navidad lagoon-- after coaching the punta to playa chant, i ran aground semi-softly on an outgoing tide on my way out of the lagoon for my last time for a while...we were still in very very slow motion, so i figgered we werent that hard aground, and my friend miyo was driving taxi panga, so no evidence was presented for the remaining cruisers not yet out of barrra for summer. at least i got the growth off the bottom of my keel. blessing was--i left at 2030, so no witnesses other than my friend miyo.
if you aint been aground ye aint been around. i learned that at age 8 or 9 when we grounded uncle phils sloop and used lead lines and knots lines the boom to shorten our 6 ft draft... and learned to take bearings. remember we had no engine.