From "Latitude 38"
Capsized on the Bay
January 27 - San Pablo Bay
On Sunday, January 22, around 3 pm, Breck Davis and his buddy Mark capsized Davis's 17-ft Boston Whaler Montauk in San Pablo Bay - and spent several hours waiting for rescue as dusk fell on that chilly winter day. They'd been out fishing for sturgeon and had had no luck.
"What seemed to be a nice day of boating out on the Bay on a sunny day with a new boating friend, Mark, turned out to be a nightmare brought on by a poor combination of events," explained Davis. "We dropped anchor at the pumphouse in San Pablo Bay and went to set it. After it was set, the anchor line got fouled in the prop, causing the stern to be pulled down, and these Whalers have low freeboard. Water came in fast over the stern. We cut the anchor and tried to get a call off for a mayday when the boat flipped on top of me, throwing Mark into the bone chilling water. I was momentarily trapped under the hull, tangled in lines and railing. We made it to the top of the hull in shock.
"The next few hours went from frustration to fear as we drifted with the current towards Vallejo and tried flagging passing boaters, and planes that flew above, to no avail. We were taking the impact of oncoming waves, drenching our efforts to wring out our clothes as the sun faded. Our chances of being spotted seemed hopeless going into a very cold night. I had attempted to right the boat, much to the dismay of my buddy, having to go into the water again. The fleet was scattered and most boaters were home watching the NFL play-offs.
"Our luck turned at dusk when a passing yacht saw me - 6'6" in a bright blue wind breaker making distress signals - and came to our aid. The 44-ft pilothouse yacht saved us from enduring a long night adrift going into hypothermia. The skipper lent me some sweat pants and called the Coast Guard. The crew of the
Coast Guard 25-ft Safe Boat #25432 from Vallejo arrived in less than 10 minutes. They went above and beyond for myself and Mark, and took the vessel safely back to Port Sonoma.
"In hindsight I recommend that all boaters have on them a submersible VHF/GPS and an inflatable harness. I had 30 years boating experience on San Francisco Bay and the ocean, but it didn't matter how much experience I had or how much equipment was on board. I had a GPS plotter VHF, float coat, vest flares, etc. - all out of reach when the accident happened. Our cell phones shorted out as they hit the Bay. When you are freezing, adrift inside the Bay, without a clue if someone will spot you and rescue you, while sitting atop one of the 'safest' boats on the market, it's totally a wake-up call knowing anything's possible.
"I am trying to reach the skipper of that yacht [th] in a remote way to say thank you. He is likely to be a reader of Latitude with the kind of yacht he has."
Capsized on the Bay
January 27 - San Pablo Bay
On Sunday, January 22, around 3 pm, Breck Davis and his buddy Mark capsized Davis's 17-ft Boston Whaler Montauk in San Pablo Bay - and spent several hours waiting for rescue as dusk fell on that chilly winter day. They'd been out fishing for sturgeon and had had no luck.
"What seemed to be a nice day of boating out on the Bay on a sunny day with a new boating friend, Mark, turned out to be a nightmare brought on by a poor combination of events," explained Davis. "We dropped anchor at the pumphouse in San Pablo Bay and went to set it. After it was set, the anchor line got fouled in the prop, causing the stern to be pulled down, and these Whalers have low freeboard. Water came in fast over the stern. We cut the anchor and tried to get a call off for a mayday when the boat flipped on top of me, throwing Mark into the bone chilling water. I was momentarily trapped under the hull, tangled in lines and railing. We made it to the top of the hull in shock.
"The next few hours went from frustration to fear as we drifted with the current towards Vallejo and tried flagging passing boaters, and planes that flew above, to no avail. We were taking the impact of oncoming waves, drenching our efforts to wring out our clothes as the sun faded. Our chances of being spotted seemed hopeless going into a very cold night. I had attempted to right the boat, much to the dismay of my buddy, having to go into the water again. The fleet was scattered and most boaters were home watching the NFL play-offs.
"Our luck turned at dusk when a passing yacht saw me - 6'6" in a bright blue wind breaker making distress signals - and came to our aid. The 44-ft pilothouse yacht saved us from enduring a long night adrift going into hypothermia. The skipper lent me some sweat pants and called the Coast Guard. The crew of the
Coast Guard 25-ft Safe Boat #25432 from Vallejo arrived in less than 10 minutes. They went above and beyond for myself and Mark, and took the vessel safely back to Port Sonoma.
"In hindsight I recommend that all boaters have on them a submersible VHF/GPS and an inflatable harness. I had 30 years boating experience on San Francisco Bay and the ocean, but it didn't matter how much experience I had or how much equipment was on board. I had a GPS plotter VHF, float coat, vest flares, etc. - all out of reach when the accident happened. Our cell phones shorted out as they hit the Bay. When you are freezing, adrift inside the Bay, without a clue if someone will spot you and rescue you, while sitting atop one of the 'safest' boats on the market, it's totally a wake-up call knowing anything's possible.
"I am trying to reach the skipper of that yacht [th] in a remote way to say thank you. He is likely to be a reader of Latitude with the kind of yacht he has."