Ok this is too funny (well, not really). After enduring the foul weather & tornado warning episode last night, you would think we could not milk any more narrative out this remote anchorage location. We awoke to a sunny windy day with the wind direction changing and increasing in strength throughout the day. For this reason, we decided to stay put for one more night.
We slipped into a lazy day routine of reading & board games. By the early afternoon the wind had worked into a frenzy; getting up to 25+ knots from the west (as opposed the last two days from the south). These changing conditions had registered with us and we were monitoring our anchors closely with the view “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”. We figured that if they held through last night’s weather, our bow and stern anchors were “locked in". Apparently not.
Sure enough, the wind and the start of the ebb tide all conspired against Catan and the stern anchor broke free. Catan spun around the bow anchor (still safely clear of any shoreline), and settled into her new orientation. In the course of our near 180 degree spin, the dragging stern anchor line got caught up in the running gear (rudder and props). Try as he might with a boat hook, Eric could not un-foul the anchor line from grasp of the running gear.
Since entering alligator country months ago, we have not been in the water. I, in particular, am very alert about gator due diligence, so when Eric told me that he had to dive under to resolve this matter, I was not happy at all! To make matters worse, within minutes of this situation occurring, an air boat blew by with “Gator Bait” sarcastically displayed on the air rudders. He was heading further into our little anchorage to show his tourist clients the local reptiles. The photos below were taken on two separate days - he came by twice a day with a boat full of tourists.
So picture this, Eric is in the water off the stern sorting out the line issue below, and I am nervously standing shot-gun on the swimming platform armed with a long boat hook waiting to thrash any gator with a good poke in the eye. After 3 or 4 tries, Eric had resolved the line issue below and was out of the water in less than 10 minutes. Honestly, it was a long 10 minutes watching from the safety of the swimming platform, and scanning the water's edge constantly for any movement.
Safely out of the water and after a warm, soapy shower on the swimming platform, I told Eric that he was my hero. Truly, I still cannot believe that he got in that water!
