Skating Uphill - September 2024
Living a Healthy Lifestyle
“An adventure doesn’t have
to involve fear, but mine sure did!”
— The Uphill Skater —
My husband, Bill, and I have sailed thousands of miles including all around Hilton Head, down the coast as far as Key West, up as far as Annapolis on the Chesapeake Bay, and all around the Bahamas and Exuma Cays. We have sailed across the Mediterranean, and Bill has done the Atlantic crossing. We have sailed around Tahiti, Morea, and Bora Bora. We have even sailed up the coast of Australia.
They have all been quite exciting escapades, but our biggest adventure was totally unexpected and not meant to be an adventure at all. It was expected to be a quiet, easy day sail from Fernandina Beach, Florida, north to the Golden Isles Marina on St. Simon’s Island, Georgia. How hard could this be, right? We had sailed this trek many times before and had a wonderful time. It’s mostly Intracoastal Waterway filled with dolphins, bird life, and scenery that is breathtaking. Not much of an adventure, right?
We were about halfway there when the weather started to turn. Again, we were not particularly alarmed since our radio is tuned to the NOAA weather broadcast, and they are saying the seas are at one to two feet with winds at about 12 knots. For non-sailors, this is a really nice day—no worries!
As we kept heading toward St. Simon’s Island, the wind started to really come up, and the sea swells became white caps and really rolled. Still, we were not too worried. We had been in pretty heavy seas before, and our boat had done very well.
At the time, we had a Catalina 36 named “Serenity”. During this sail, we had a full load of groceries below deck, a canoe strapped to the deck, towels out drying on the line and our little yappy dog, Mike, with us. For sure we were out for a nice sunny day. I had even thought to do a little wash and hang it out on the sail lines.
Little did we know we were about to have the ride of our lives, as the weather reports stayed the same the entire afternoon—light winds and calm seas. As you may have guessed, the wind kept getting stronger and the seas kept getting rougher. It turned out we were caught on the back end of Tropical Storm Andrea. Her winds reached 65 knots, and the seas rose to 15 feet.
Water started coming over the Bimini top and the boat was being tossed around like a cork in the washing machine. My husband was sick over the side, the dog was not far behind, and I was at the wheel crying so hard I could not see my hands in front of my tear-stained face. We sailed through this for what seemed like hours, just holding on for dear life. Finally, in the distance we saw the outline of the Marina ahead. I turned for it immediately but a minute later Bill grabbed the wheel out of my hands. I was so anxious to get ashore, I had forgotten about the shallow banks surrounding the docks. We would have run aground for sure.
Bill navigated us into the safety of the dock area and several people helped us tie up. The storm raged for another hour, and then as if by magic, all was calm. It took us hours to clean up, but finally we were done, and boy, were we really done. We slept in the front bunk, dog and all, for nine hours and awoke glad to be alive! In 20 years of sailing, I had never known real fear, but I did that day. We drowned ourselves in our faith, and our prayers were answered!
Here’s to many fun adventures…weather permitting. Be safe out there!
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Judith Lawrenson is a former Hilton Head Island resident who has a huge heart and is loved by all who meet her. She has served and volunteered with numerous charitable organizations while living in the Lowcontry making an impact wherever she went. She and her husband recently moved to the wild hills of West Virginia to be closer to grandchildren. Judith is an avid sailor, a retired reading resource specialist, and a children's TV host whose local show originated from the Boys and Girls' Club. Judith is also a long-time seeker of healthy, happy living and a lifestyle dedicated to service to others, balanced with love of God and love of self. Check out her blog www.skatinguphill.com for fun info, recipes and nutrition ideas, current updates on nearly everything in the world, and lots of comments and opinions.
Though I do tons of research, and have done so for many years, I am not a doctor and I share only my opinions. I enjoy research and subscribe to several magazines and publications and read up on all new trends. I hope you do, too!