Justine’s Blog

Those were the words in an email this morning from a friend in Adak. So close yet so stuck sums it up nicely! Today we weren’t tempted to have another go at the crossing to the barren islands as there were white caps in the protected passage between our small island and the mainland of Shuyak. It rained heavily until about 4pm and I didn’t go outside the tent until my bladder could take it no longer at after midday. Tomorrow’s forecast is no magic formula but we will wake up at 4am with enough time to get ready for the east going ebb if it feels calm enough, otherwise we’ll have another chance later in the afternoon. If not Thursday looks a little more promising in the afternoon at the moment.

Sometimes it’s good to turn back and recognise your limits.

We got up well before the birds at 3am to see whether yesterday evening’s unforecasted calm was still making a crossing to the Barren Islands a possibility. We could just see each other and the outline of the rocky shore when we launched at 4.45am. There was only a light breeze but the 4am NOAA forecast warned of E winds increasing to 25 knots this morning. Karel predicted 20 knots.

We decided to see what the sea felt like and decide whether to attempt a crossing or head East 4 miles to another headland. As soon as we left the shelter of our Cove we were being pulled gently North by the rolling swell of a half asleep tidal race, our kayaks bouncing down into the troughs with a light splash. It was a little disconcerting in the dark and Sarah turned to me and said she didn’t like it. We decided not to cross but to head East to Praline headland (not her real name but one chosen by the always-hungry Sarah). After an hour we were half way there and the darkness had lifted enough so we could see the waves. They didn’t look so intimidating now and the wind was still less than 10 knots from the ENE. We discussed options and decided we’d have a go at heading north to the islands. We’d try sailing and see if we could make rapid progress that way. If we could reach the Islands around slack water, we could hopefully avoid the tidal races. Even at the start of the flood
the wind and tide would be in the same direction so it should be calmer. Thankfully we’ve been lent a working GPS by the crew of the fishing boat Venturess who came to Blue Fox Lodge so we could measure our progress.

After half an hour of a 3 foot swell which was bouncy but manageable, we came up to an area of 6-8 foot waves that were breaking powerfully on occasions. I think this tidal rip coincided with a very shallow area on the chart so may well have been short lived but it was enough of a warning to me that we shouldn’t be attempting this crossing today. If that’s the sort of sea we could encounter at random then imagine what the notorious tidal rips that guard the Barren Islands would be like if the wind did pick up to 25 knots. I paddled up besides Sarah who said she really wasn’t enjoying the conditions. We turned around, dropped the sails and headed for a new campsite 4 miles east of our last one.

So here we are, camped up in the grass above a gravel beach which almost completely disappeared this afternoon under one of the largest tides of the year. There have been a few breaks in the rain today so Sarah made a fire and cooked dinner on it and we’ve been drying damp themals over the embers. Tomorrow’s forecast is for 30 knots from the East so we’ll most likely still be here. My flight home on Saturday is looking less and less likely but things sometimes change quickly here.

My friend Luke had been sending me limericks to keep me smiling! Here’s todays!

There once was a lady from Wales
Whose hardness was like that of nails
Her name was Justine,
She liked all things marine
Except force 7 North Easterly gales.

I’ve had a frustrating day looking at a much calmer sea than forecast and wishing we’d made a crossing to the Basten islands.

We have 4 forecasts to chose from. One emailed to us from Karel Vissel and three NOAA forecasts which overlap about where we are. The NOAA ones all predicted 25 or 30 knots today from the NE or E ( and the same until Thursday). Karel’s initial forecast was NNE and dropping from 20 to 8 knots this evening. We have a 16 mile crossing to do heading north in an area with strong currents. The islands we want to get to are to the north east so we need to leave when the tide starts to go east which today was about 4am or 4pm. It only runs east for 5 hours and we probably need 6 hours to cross so the closer to the start of the easterly flow we leave the better. This also means we’d arrive at the islands close to slack water which hopefully ensures the many tidal races that guard the islands should be at their calmest. People as far away as Dutch Harbour have warned us about the Barren Islands and Jerry added to the picture yesterday by pointing on the map to where a wave smashed in one of
the windows on his boat.

Sorry if I’m boring you with details but this is one of our more technical crossings and maybe you’d like to understand why we’re being cautious and why we didn’t just jump on the water during the day when it seemed the forecasts were wrong.
The wind was maybe 10 knots from the NNE this morning so we were tempted to catch this afternoons tide. To be on the safe side, we phoned Karel is Israel to get an update for exactly where we are and he warned us that stronger winds were likely this afternoon and evening. Disappointed, we read and slept instead. In fact, when I got out of the tent to cook dinner at 7pm it had calmed right down to the extent that the midges came out to enjoy their dinner too. The never ending rain paused and the persistent mist lifted, tantalising us with the jagged skyline of the Barren islands and the snowy peaks being Cape Douglas to the West. I even think we could see the Kenai peninsula 35 miles away.

So now we’re planning to get to at 3am and if it’s still fairly calm we’ll get ready for the crossing. If we get on the water and it looks too rough then we’ll either come back or we’ll move four miles east to the easternmost headland on Shuyak Island. Then again, if it’s howling we’ll go back to sleep.

I’ve had a frustrating day looking at a much calmer sea than forecast and wishing we’d made a crossing to the Basten islands.

We have 4 forecasts to chose from. One emailed to us from Karel Vissel and three NOAA forecasts which overlap about where we are. The NOAA ones all predicted 25 or 30 knots today from the NE or E ( and the same until Thursday). Karel’s initial forecast was NNE and dropping from 20 to 8 knots this evening. We have a 16 mile crossing to do heading north in an area with strong currents. The islands we want to get to are to the north east so we need to leave when the tide starts to go east which today was about 4am or 4pm. It only runs east for 5 hours and we probably need 6 hours to cross so the closer to the start of the easterly flow we leave the better. This also means we’d arrive at the islands close to slack water which hopefully ensures the many tidal races that guard the islands should be at their calmest. People as far away as Dutch Harbour have warned us about the Barren Islands and Jerry added to the picture yesterday by pointing on the map to where a wave smashed in one of
the windows on his boat.

Sorry if I’m boring you with details but this is one of our more technical crossings and maybe you’d like to understand why we’re being cautious and why we didn’t just jump on the water during the day when it seemed the forecasts were wrong.
The wind was maybe 10 knots from the NNE this morning so we were tempted to catch this afternoons tide. To be on the safe side, we phoned Karel is Israel to get an update for exactly where we are and he warned us that stronger winds were likely this afternoon and evening. Disappointed, we read and slept instead. In fact, when I got out of the tent to cook dinner at 7pm it had calmed right down to the extent that the midges came out to enjoy their dinner too. The never ending rain paused and the persistent mist lifted, tantalising us with the jagged skyline of the Barren islands and the snowy peaks being Cape Douglas to the West. I even think we could see the Kenai peninsula 35 miles away.

So now we’re planning to get to at 3am and if it’s still fairly calm we’ll get ready for the crossing. If we get on the water and it looks too rough then we’ll either come back or we’ll move four miles east to the easternmost headland on Shuyak Island. Then again, if it’s howling we’ll go back to sleep.