CaptG
Member
Got a call from the marine patrol this afternoon, a 44 foot sail boat was adrift, lost his motor and at this time don't know why he was not under sail. 6 foot waves spaced at about 5 seconds apart and 20 knot winds pushing him towards shore and the rocks. I got the rope to him and he tied it off for the tow. He had set his anchor and was only about 80yards off the rocks and shore. I started the pull and the rope (1 1/4 dia.) snapped, cut by something he put the rope over when he tied it off. Back round for another pass and hooked up again. Same thing. Around again and a 10 foot wave popped up from somewhere, grabbed my tow boat and turned me on my side and started surfing me towards the sail boat. Wheel hard over, on the throttle and was shooting away from him to circle and come around again when I discovered he had cast off his anchor line from the boat. I saw it as I went over the top of it. Yup, fouled my prop and killed the big diesel jerking me to a stop. I am now dead in the water with his anchor holding me stern first into the waves about 100 yards off a rocky lined shore. CRAP. Boat fills up with water washing over the stern and sinks. My auto inflate life jacket works and I made it to shore with only a few scrapes from the rocks. I have a nextel brute phone that is supposed to be water proof to 3 meters. It is not. I borrowed a phone from one of the rescue team when they arrived to remove the 4 persons from the sail boat 'cause it washed up on the rocks shortly behind me, to let my boss know I sank his boat. He took it pretty well, even brought me another boat so I can recover the first one and the sail boat when the lake lays down in a couple days. I gotta go to bed, for some reason I am tuckered out.
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