Careening the Boat...by accident!!

We were heading downstream on the St Lawrence, concerned about a strong wind issued for that night beyond Tadoussac.  Expecting 15-25 knots from the west, we motored in to L'Anse de Originale, an anchorage recommended by the guide books.

We dropped anchor with 11feet of water under the keel at around 5:30; had a light supper, read a little, then we hit the sack.  We figured we would get some early rest in case we awoke and had to deal with high winds.  The guide books stated the anchorage would give good protection in south to southwest winds with high hilly terrain surrounding us and had a sandy bottom, so we slept soundly.

I awoke at 11pm when I felt an unusual bump.  I got up, looked around the boat and did not see anything strange.  Back down in the pilothouse, I noticed only 0.3 feet under the keel.  The tide was going out and we were on the bottom!

Rubbing sleep from eyes, we started the engine and tried backing into deeper water but it was too late.  I checked the tide schedule and realized we were still one hour away from low tide and the tidal range was 14 feet.

Now we knew that the boat was going to go over on her side, which is exactly what starting to then happen, and there was nothing we could do about it.  At first, not sure if we would take on water as she went over, we considered inflating the dinghy or using the life raft in case we were going to get wet.  Then we remembered pictures of boats we had seen careening on beaches at low tide to have their bottoms cleaned, so then we were no longer worried about getting wet.

As Maggie secured stuff on the high side, I took a flashlight to check the water under the hull.  I was relieved to see, in about 4 feet of water, a clean sandy bottom, no rocks and no anchor under the boat.  If she laid on her hull, there would be no damage.

Having done everything we could, we turned out the lights and went to bed with our hearts thumping and minds racing. We waited as low tide approach to see if she would lay over, but she remained afloat albeit listing over at around 60 degrees - a surreal sight in the gloomy, quiet darkness.  After about an hour, she started to right herself in the rising tide and the relief was palpable.

We never did get the strong winds we were originally worried about and counted our other lucky breaks that we got that night.

1. It was midnight, so nobody could see what the fools from no-tide-no-brains Toronto got themselves into.
2. A sandy bottom with no rocks nor anchors under us.
3. No wind or waves to contend with.
4. Hull remained afloat with the keel on the bottom.
5. Everything remained secure and nothing leaked.
6. We did not panic and calmly assessed the situation.
7. Sophie seemed enjoy it all.

With that free but harrowing lesson indelibly etched into our minds, rest assured that we will never make THAT mistake again.  Others for sure, but not that one.  And as long as we sail away from those mistakes without a scratch to crew and ship, I will joyfully tell you all about them, as well as the triumphs.

Now if you will excuse us, we have some laundry to do.

Branko