"Capri" wrote:

In another post here a new sailor asked about what to do when he runs
aground. He was smart enough not to ask what to do WHEN not IF he runs
aground. For even though you have the best charts and atre the most
diligent about watching where you are going you will eventually run
aground. MY first experience with it was on the ICW south of Cocoa and
Just North of the Pineda Causeway. Beautiful day. Wind out of the east
all sails pulling full, Main, jib and Mizzen, running down what I
thought was the middle of the channel making at least 6 knots, when all
of a sudden we hit a sand bar in about 2 feet of water. Maggie Mae drew
about 4.6. so all of a sudden we were hard aground heeled over on the
side. I made sure everyone was OK then proceeded to call Sea Tow,
Thank goodness we had a contract with them so it didn't cost anything
for them to take us off. I had let the boat wander just a few yards out
of the channel. All my fault. Never happened again. Well, execpt for
the night the anchor dragged when we were all asleep onboard.......but
thats another story. Anyone else have any good grounding tales?

The first time I ran aground it was in the Patuxent under sail with my
daughter #1 and SIL aboard. My SIL had just made a fool of himself by
asking why we didn't have our boat in covered storage, so he was happy
that he could go to work and tell everyone that his MIL ran aground.

The second time I did it, we'd been in Indian Creek for a couple of
days weathered in, and I temporarily forgot that the red was supposed
to be on the left going down river, and tried to pass the red at the
end of the sandbar on the right. The boat kind of stood on her nose,
and our guest in the saloon fell and hit her head.


grandma Rosalie