Anchoring, and then "Oh, s**t!

[tkeithlu]

Many of us have "Oh, S**t" stories to tell about coming up on deck after a night at anchor and finding the situation not to be at all to our liking. Over the centuries, many boats have anchored on lee shores and the crews paid for it with their lives. Honorable mention, though, I think must go to a particular incident I recently uncovered while reading some history.

Two small sailing/fishing boats anchored for the night off the French channel coast. When the crews came on deck at dawn and the mist began to clear, they found themselves anchored between the Allied armada, all 5,000 ships of it, and what we Americans called "Utah Beach." It was June 6, 1944. The bombardment had not yet begun, and the two little boats were allowed to raise sail and make their slow way back to Cherbourg unmolested. Bet they had laundry to do upon landing.