A long couple of days

It looks like it is going to be a long couple of days. The wall we are tied to is every bit as uncomfortable as was claimed. It is really kind of weird. Looking out across the water it does't look like much is going on, just small ripples and wavelets with no noticeable rollers and no whitecaps. But the boat is pitching and rolling, squishing fenders and tugging its lines until they stretch, then recoiling back against the wall. It seems that the river is subjected to lake-generated surging that flows up the river, bouncing off the breakwaters, walls, and shoreline. The surging water is far more powerful than the wind. Where 25 knots of wind isn't really that big of a challenge, surging water is an entirely different animal. We are constantly readjusting lines and fenders (two of which have already been nearly destroyed) to protect the boat, but it is an uphill struggle.

I was hoping we would get through this without damaging the boat. And we might have if I hadn't asked too much of the starboard side cleat. But it couldn't take the load of both a fore and aft spring line working to hold the boat against the surge. Fortunately, we discovered that it had sheared 3 of the 4 mount bolts just before sunset when we went out to tighten the lines again. We re-ran a fore and aft spring lines off the the bow and stern cleats which are much heftier. If they don't hold, well, that's what insurance companies are for. To add to the fun, the constant motion of the boat added to the concern that something else will fail, making getting any kind of rest near impossible. We are both feeling the effects, which is why there are only two pictures with this post. I'm not sure how long I can go without sleep. I have had about 6 hours worth in the last 36. It has been a long time since I've had to work those kinds of shifts.

Would it have been worth the half a boat buck to be at a dock? It sure looks that way. The docks are far better protected from the surge, something we simply didn't know enough about to make the right call to get off this wall. But hindsight is always 20/20 and it doesn't matter now. We either get out of here without breaking anything else, in which case this will be just another story of how much fun it is to live on a boat. Or we will not. It which case it will be a different kind of story. We toyed with the idea of getting into a slip this afternoon. But one thing that seems pretty clear is that it would be near impossible to get off the wall in these conditions. Getting into a slip would be just as much of a challenge. Such an attempt would almost insure damaging something else. So there is nothing to do but keep adjusting the lines, resetting the fenders, and wait it out.

Yep, a long couple of days...