Frontier - 35. FR Chapter 35

We relaxed and had dinner downstairs, since there was just the four of us on the yacht, and we all pitched in to clean up afterwards. As it neared 2000 hours, I announced that it was time to leave, so Simon showed the boys how to release the mooring ropes, and how to stow the ropes, while I slowly motored out of the harbour. Once we were clear of the main harbour, Simon and the boys pulled up the mainsail, before they all came up to the fly bridge.

“Ok boys, from now on, you are not to be on the outer deck, while we are at sea, as Simon knows from experience, it is very easy to fall overboard, so its indoors at all times and that includes staying off the fly bridge,” I said to my brothers.

Before Simon could go, I asked him to take the helm, while I went down to the main bridge to take control again, before he went to his cabin to sleep, before his galley shift starting at 0600 hours and his helm shift at 0900 hours.

Simon had elected to stay in the single crew cabin, so as to reduce the risk of going overboard again. Once he had gathered a few days’ worth of clothes and personal belongings, he settled into his new lodgings for the night. I asked the boys to go and shower and get ready for bed, and when they had done this, I allowed them to watch a movie in the lounge area of the bridge, before they went to bed.

The overnight shift was quiet and uneventful, with good seas the whole time, and shortly after 0630, Simon arrived with a cup of tea and some toast, and I had him take the helm, so I could use the bathroom, before taking over and starting my breakfast, while Simon returned to the galley. An hour later Simon returned with a fresh cup of tea, and he stayed for a while to chat, which was interrupted, with the arrival of Neale and Jedd.

“Good morning, Boys. Did you sleep well?” I said to them with a smile.

“Yes, Anton, but someone in a neighbouring cabin was snoring,” Jedd replied, and I saw Simon blush a little making me chuckle.

“Guilty as charged eh, Simon,” I said with a big grin, and the boys laughed.

“Go and have your breakfast, before I feed it to the sharks,” Simon said, and the boys dashed down stairs, to eat their breakfast, leaving Simon and me to laugh.

“How are we going with being on schedule?” Simon asked me.

“We are a little ahead at the moment. We had good seas and good winds the whole night,” I replied to my good mate.

“That’s good to hear. Should I get a weather report, to see what is ahead of us?” Simon asked me.

“Yes, that will be a good idea. Thanks, Simon,” I replied, and he headed over to the desk, where the laptop computer was located. He turned it on and logged onto the BOM website. Moments later he printed two pages.

After a minute of looking at the printout, he frowned before handing me the weather printouts, for me to look at.

“Well, I see you are going to have some fun later on this afternoon” I said, after taking a good look at the weather report, which forecast strong winds and high swells due to happen around 1500 hours that afternoon. This would give me at least 5 to 6 hours of sleep before we started being tossed around.

“Just to be safe I suggest that we close the pontoons to protect them from the rough weather. Even with them closed, we will have some stability, but it just means it will be a little rougher than planned,” I said to Simon, who said that he needed to clean up the galley before starting his shift, and he headed downstairs. Shortly after, the boys came upstairs, and I said they could go into the formal lounge to watch a movie.

Simon took over the helm at 0900, and I headed straight to bed, to get some sleep. When I woke up the yacht was rocking and going up and down. I looked at my watch, which read just before 1700 hours. I was pleased to have had an extra hour of sleep, and after a shower, I headed to the galley to get something to eat. I found a note in Simon’s handwriting, “Lunch is in the fridge. Just reheat and eat. Enjoy.” I smiled and I looked in the fridge, to find a defrosted roast beef and vegetables, and once it was heated, I placed it on a tray and with cutlery, I took it upstairs to the bridge.

“Good afternoon, Boss. Did you sleep well?” Simon said as soon as he saw me arrive.

“Good thanks, Mate. How are things going here?” I responded, as I sat down in the lounge area to eat my meal.

“Not too bad. I’m glad of your decision to close the pontoons. It’s been getting quite rough out there, but we are still ahead of time,” Simon replied, and I nodded my head in understanding, as I continued to eat. Once I had finished eating, I headed downstairs and cleaned up the galley, before going up to the formal lounge, where my brothers were playing monopoly.

“Hey, Guys. How is the game going?” I asked them with a smile.

“Good, but we are starting to get bored getting stuck indoors all the time,” Neale replied and Jedd nodded his head in agreement.

“Well, as soon as the seas calm down, we can go up to the fly bridge to soak in the Jacuzzi. But only when the seas are calm enough, and only with Simon or me with you,” I said to my brothers sternly.

“Ok,” the boys chorused together, sounding disappointed with my decision, and I gave them a small smile.

“It’s for your own safety, Boys, so don’t go against my decisions. Ok?” I said to my brothers, and both of them nodded their heads in agreement before I returned to the bridge, to check on the weather report.

I was pleased to see that the seas would be calming down at around sunset, a few hours before I took over at the helm, but it also gave Simon a few hours of easy sailing. When I showed Simon the latest weather report, he was pleased to see that it was going to be calming down soon, and I headed down to the galley to start preparing dinner for everyone. Once I had completed all the preparation work, I headed back upstairs, and out into the formal lounge, where I found the board game abandoned, and the external door from the saloon to the aft bridge slightly ajar.

Seeing the clock on the wall, which read 1615 hours, and feeling that the seas had calmed a little, I guessed where my brothers would be, and I was not happy. As I walked up the stairs, I could hear my brothers laughing, and I saw their shorts and shirts discarded on the floor. When they saw me arrive they went silent.

“Do you remember what I said to you earlier?” I said to my brothers in a semi calm voice, as I tried to keep my temper in check.

“Yes, you said we could come up to the Jacuzzi when the seas have calmed down,” Neale replied almost right away.

“That was only part of what I said. I also mentioned that you could do that only with either me or Simon present, and since you have not waited for permission to come up here, and come up without Simon or me with you, you boys will now have to spend the rest of the journey indoors, with no outdoor access,” I said to them both.

“But, Anton?” Jedd started to say.

“No ‘buts’, Boys. Get out of the Jacuzzi and get back indoors. Get showered and changed, right now,” I said to them in a raised voice, and the boys did as I said.

When I stepped indoors after them, I stopped, closing the external doors, and using my keys, I locked the doors, so they couldn’t be opened without the keys.

“What’s wrong with the boys, and why are they wet?” Simon asked me as I came into the main bridge. I sat down in the lounge area to calm down a little.

“They went against my orders, by going up to the Jacuzzi, without you or me supervising. I have key locked the saloon doors to the aft deck, so they won’t do it again, and they are confined indoors for the rest of the journey,” I announced once I had calmed a little.

“Well you are their guardian and the skipper, so I agree with you on this matter, and support you with this decision. I will keep my set of keys on me at all times, so they can’t get out,” Simon responded.

“I appreciate your help with this,” I said to Simon with a slight smile, and I returned to the galley to start cooking dinner for everyone, which was apricot chicken, roast vegetables and minted peas. When Neale and Jedd appeared, they looked upset, with their heads down.

“We are sorry for going against your decision, Anton. We won’t do it again,” Neale said to me, and I looked at both of them.

“Ok, Boys. I accept your apology, but you must realise that I don’t make these decisions lightly. It is for your safety that I don’t want you up there on your own,” I said to them, and they looked up at me and gave a little smile. “That still doesn’t mean you get off that lightly. I will review the punishment when I wake up tomorrow afternoon. Ok?” I said and the boys nodded their heads.

I showed the boys what I was cooking, and I encouraged them to help prepare the dinner, before they went to the formal lounge to pack away the board game. They spent the rest of the afternoon reading books. Once I had served dinner to Neale and Jedd, I delivered a plate to Simon on the bridge, and I took over at the helm so he could eat.

“Wow, this is nice. Well done, Skipper,” Simon said to me with a big smile, and I let him eat his dinner, while I checked out current location and sailing speed.

Finishing with a loud burp, Simon smiled as he handed me his empty plate. “Thanks mate. That was delicious. Can I have a cup of tea please?” he asked me as he took over the helm again. I headed down to the galley, where the boys had finished eating, and were now starting to wash the dishes. I ate my dinner, before taking Simon his cuppa, and I chatted with him for a short while, before heading downstairs, to see how the boys were going.

“Boys, we have just finished one day at sea, and you have not listened to what I have said, as your brother, and as skipper of this yacht. I told you not to go outside for your own safety. It is a big open ocean out there, and the chance of finding you if you go overboard is very slim, so please listen to what I say, as I don’t want to lose you guys either. Do you understand?” I said to my brothers. Both of them nodded their heads before saying yes.

“Ok. If the seas are good, you can go up to the Jacuzzi, but only with me or Simon supervising. You are not to go up there alone at any time while we are at sea.”

Yes, Anton. We understand and agree,” Jedd said to me.

“When we get to Invercargill, where we have to go through customs and quarantine, we better do some shopping to get you boys some more games, books, movies and also some school material,” I said to them both and they were pleased with this news.

I relaxed for a while, before heading down to my cabin to freshen up a little, before making sure the boys had showered and were in bed. Then I headed to the main bridge to start my shift at the helm at 2100 hours. Once again it was a non-eventful night of sailing, even with a slight swell and good winds, now that we were well and truly in the South Pacific Ocean.

About an hour before sunrise it began to rain, and the wind picked up, making the waves bigger, and more difficult to tackle. It took me some effort to make sure that we stayed on course. At about 0630, Simon arrived with a cup of tea and toast for me. He stayed for a while to chat with me, and to get a weather update from the laptop, which read that there was a storm front that we would go through in less than an hour. So, I asked Simon to go outside, staying on a safety line, to check that everything was secured and locked down.

When he returned, he was dripping wet, and looked annoyed. I chuckled at him. “Go and get dried off and warm. I will be fine for now,” I said with a smile, and Simon headed downstairs, taking with him the empty plate and tea cup. When I heard noises in the galley below, I smiled, knowing that Simon always seemed to be happiest when he was in the galley. Sometime later Neale and Jedd appeared. “Good morning, Skipper,” they both chorused to me.

“Morning, Boys,” I replied with a smile.

“It’s fairly rough. Will it be calming down sometime today?” Neale asked me.

“We will be entering a storm shortly, so it will get rougher first, and I’m not sure how long it will last,” I replied to my brothers.

“Ok, thanks for letting us know. We are going to get some breakfast now,” Jedd replied, and they headed back downstairs.

When Simon had finished cleaning up after breakfast, he came up with another cup of tea for me. He checked the weather website for an update on the storm, which appeared to be getting stronger the closer we got to it.

“Can you please make sure that everything is stowed away properly, and everything is secured, as it looks like we are in for a real wild ride. Get the boys to check the guest cabins, to make sure there is nothing loose in those cabins,” I said to Simon, who headed downstairs to do as I had asked. When Simon returned to the bridge about half an hour later, he smiled.

“All is secure, Skipper, and the boys are staying in the crew mess area during the storm, where there is less movement,” Simon said to me, as he took over at the helm.

“We are under full sail, so watch that we don’t capsize. If need be we may have to go on engine power and pull the main sail down,” I said to Simon.

“Understood, Skipper. I will let you know if it gets to that stage,” Simon replied and we chatted for a while, before I headed downstairs to grab a snack, then to my cabin to get some sleep. Somehow, I managed to get to sleep fairly easily, and only woke when I heard loud knocking on my cabin door.

“Come in, Boys,” I said still groggy from sleep.

“Simon requests your help on the bridge,” Neale said to me in a worried tone, just as the yacht pitched and slammed down hard. I jumped out of bed, put on some trousers, and grabbing a shirt I made my way quickly up to the bridge, where the yacht was really getting tossed around in all directions. As I arrived on the bridge, the look on Simon’s face was enough for me to see that he was panicking.

I looked at the instruments in front of me, to see that the winds were gale force at 104 km’s per hour. The sound of the rain was very loud, and I could see that Simon had turned the yacht into the wind, to lose most of the wind out of the sail. “Ok, Mate, keep her steady. Start up the engines, and I will go out and get the mainsail down,” I said to Simon, as I grabbed my weather gear, and put it on before heading outside.

Passing through the main living area, I saw the formal dining chairs scattered around the area, and the outside dining chairs that had been stacked near the BBQ area, were now scattered around the aft deck. I headed up the fly bridge, and pulled down and stored away the mainsail, before heading back down to the aft deck to restack all of the outdoor dining chairs, and secure them with straps, to keep them in place.

Once inside, I removed my wet weather gear, before stacking up the formal dining chairs and placing them between the dining table and the nearest wall, so they would stay there. I retrieved my wet gear and headed downstairs to hang my gear up, so it could dry. I chatted with my brothers, while I prepared some hot drinks, and a few minutes later with two cups of tea, I returned to the bridge, and handed a cup to Simon.

Now with the engines operating, and not having to worry about the mainsail, he concentrated on cruising through the very rough seas. I sat down at the desk to get a weather report update, and I was glad to see that it would be calming down soon. It was then that I realised that it was just after noon, so I had been asleep for less than two hours.

“It will calm down soon, and if you are ok now, I am going to get some more sleep,” I said to Simon.

I fell asleep almost right away, and I woke up when I heard knocking on my cabin door again. This time I looked at my watch, and it read 1645 hours, so I was pleased that I had managed to get enough sleep. I also noticed that there was very little movement of the yacht.

“Thanks, Boys. I am awake now. I’m going to shower and change, so I will be out soon,” I said to my brothers. Once I had cleaned up, I made my way to the galley. “Hey, Boys. Thanks for letting me sleep that long. I really needed it,” I said to my brothers.

Once I had made two cups of tea, I headed upstairs to the main bridge, and I gave Simon a cup.

“Thanks, Skipper. I need this,” Simon said with a smile.

“So how did you go for the rest of the afternoon? Did it calm down soon after I returned to my cabin?” I asked Simon.

“It was gradual, and didn’t get to this stage until about an hour ago,” Simon replied.

“Well done on doing a great job, and I see we are under sail again,” I said slightly surprised.

“Yes, I had the boys hold onto the wheel, once facing into the wind, and I ducked out quickly to raise the sail. Once we were under sail I took over at the helm,” Simon explained, and I chuckled.

“I bet the boys enjoyed that,” I said and Simon laughed and nodded his head. “Well I better get started on dinner for all of us. I can’t have a mutiny with hungry crew, can I?” I said as I headed down the stairs.

Once again, I had the boys helping me with preparing dinner. While I peeled the potatoes and pumpkin, I had the boys pull out a packet of lamb chops from the freezer, and defrost them in the microwave oven, while I chopped the vegetables, and put them into boiling water.