CD25 Swamped in Cook Inlet

T

tpbrady

New member
I heard from a friend of mine this evening about a CD25 that was swamped in the Cook Inlet on Saturday. The seas were around 6 feet plus at the time. The boat was trying to retrieve its anchor using the windlass and the motors. Apparently they ran over the anchor line and fouled both props. From that point on how the boat swamped was unclear, but it filled with water and floated with the bow out of the water. A nearby charter operator rescued the people on the CD25 and attempted to tow the boat toward the beach. They were unable to do this and set it adrift. On Sunday the boat was on the beach near Anchor Point and was recovered although it was a total loss.

That's all I have heard about it, so if anybody hears anything else it would be nice to hear the details and learn from it.
 
You'd have to screw up pretty bad to swamp a 25 with its self-bailing cockpit.
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I am not so sure about that. If enough water came over the back to flood the cabin floor, which is about a foot lower than the cockpit and not self bailing, I doubt the scuppers would remain above the water line. And even if the door was shut, if the water came into the cockit all at once, as it would with an anchor pulling the stern down while a wave came over it, just that might be enough wieght to submerge the relatively small drains.

If it was my boat, it would for sure swamp. The outlets for my self bailing system are located by design a few inches below the water line, and they drain slowly if not underway.

This story is a real eye opener for me. I often weigh anchor in a stiff current, and almost always engage the prop to relieve the tension. I think about it constantly when doing so, and watch the pivoting bow roller to know when the line is slack. My guess in the above story is that the rode fouled the props with enough length in the water for the anchor to remain set, and the boat was essentially anchored from the stern preventing it from rising with the swell. That could sure screw up a guy's day.
 
Dan,

From what I hear it was definitely a 25. A lot of the charter operators didn't go out after 10 that morning because it was too rough for the clients. Not having a windlass, I always use a bouy. The vast majority of the charter captains who have windlasses still use a bouy to get the anchor to the surface. Having been associated with the charter business in the Cook Inlet for the last ten years I have heard of several boats that sank (not swamped) after getting their motors and anchors fouled.

I like the bouy and will always have one even after I get a windlass.
 
Couple things I was wonderin: Were they using poly rope ? (it floats and poses a threat like this)
This has happened in the past in the Cook Inlet :!: swampings from the stern in that aweful current out there.

Have anchored out there long ago and I know how bad it is... I just don't anchor there anymore. Drift-fishing is good enough for me.... even though you may loose more gear that way. A fella better not be too relaxed when retrieving anchor there that way.... lord knows I came close to tangling my anchorline in prop out there... waves kick-up, making it hard to determine exactly where your rode is, waves also push bow around changing your course in situations like that. This is where I would opt for that "windlass' I never want to add to my boat complexity :crook
:|
 
Tyboo Mike,

When you are on the Columbia, do you use the Columbia River System anchor with the large bouy and anchor lift? Or do you just use your windlass?

After reading these peoples woes I am thinking I may just invest in an anchor lift system similar to what is used on the Columbia.

I sure feel for these people! I hope everyone was OK. Boats can be replaced, lives can't!
 
gljjr":2zbkdq5p said:
Tyboo Mike,

When you are on the Columbia, do you use the Columbia River System anchor with the large bouy and anchor lift?
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Nope. That's why I got the windlass, so I don't have to go out and fetch the ball. It is no more complicated, or dangerous, than any other operation performed on the water. You have to keep the rode in front of the boat and not under it. Requires the same skill and common sense used to keep anything in the water, like buoys, docks, other boats, the shore, etc., from under the boat. Mistakes can happen with anything, and they are no more apt to happen with a windlass. If any point could be argued, it is that a windlass system - alone - is the safest.

Just watching those guys make the big circle around the anchor ball out in the middle of all the other anchored boats is kinda scary, and enough to dissuade me from that system. The first year I had a C-Dory on the Columbia, I pulled the anchor the old fashioned way. But without a competent second hand aboard, it is not safe in the current. With the windlass, I can go fishing alone or with the kids, and not have to worry about it.

When I need to power up to relieve the anchor line tension, it is due to current. I power forward only enough to do that, and not overrun the rope. It is either in/out of gear, or throttle up/down to help the windlass. I still make it do the work. If it is slack water, and no line tension, the windlass does all the work.

When I stated earlier that the story was an eye opener for me, I meant it in the same sense as passing a car wreck on the highway is an eye opener. It always makes one more cautious on that particular spot in the road, and more careful with the lethal weapon attached to the steering wheel in your hands. It does not necessarily make you change routes in the future, or alter the features of your car.

Now then, reading back over all that it sounds like I'm being a smart aleck. Not my intention at all. Events like depicted in the initial post here are good to be informed of, because it increases the awareness and decreases the likelihood of it happening to me. I appreciate that.

Now that you all know I am not the smart aleck you thought I was, it is a good time to share a thought or two about raising the freeboard in the splash well. I have thought about it myself, and decided against it. If water slapped the stern with sufficient force and volume to come over the splash well and cause immediate danger, it is most likely that it would be able to get over the extra six inches that the transom board would provide. Without the transom board, the depth of retained water is six inches lower than the sides of the boat. That's 1250 pounds of water that would immediately fall right back out as soon as the wave that brought it subsides. (If the wave doesn't subside, then you're screwed anyway.) If you get that much water that suddenly, the boat is in immediate peril and the skipper's pants are wet whether the water came into the cabin or not. I would think that evacuating the water as quickly as possible is key. If the water made it over an added transom board and filled the boat, it's time to jump ship. If it came over the stock splash well, and filled it only to there, you still have a fighting chance. If you are calculating your diminished risk by having six inches more boat, then you really should just get a bigger boat in the first place. At the very least, construct the added board so that it resists external pressure, but breaks away easily from internal force.

OK Dan, doggone it, go ahead and beat the crap out of me.
 
Thanks Mike for making that post,

You said what I would have said if I had had anchor bouys enough to jump in and do it. The bottom line about that mishap is, if in fact the line got wrapped around a prop, that it was most likely pilot error. I only say that because I like Mike have used the anchor windlass on this boat and many others from here to Alaska without over running the anchor rode. I have watched hundreds if not thousands of others use the anchor ball/bouy system without mishap of over running the anchor rode. And yes I too have spent my share of time on the foredeck pulling in the slack with the skipper at the helm steering in the direction my arm is pointing, without over running the anchor rode.

The tragedy that happened in Cook Inlet does not sound like an equipment failure or a bad choice of an anchor retrieving system but a mistake made. As Mike said it is always good to learn from mistakes. We may learn more from our own rather than someone elses but hopefully we will all always learn. My guess is that the owner of that vessel has learned and wished that he, like us had read about a situation such as this and hence avoided his perilous mishap.

All that being said, my best wishes for the crew of that boat are for speedy recovery from all that has come to them and may their future voyages be with Gods speed and protection.

Tim
 
I have been repeatedly told that a large portion of the boats (in the under 30' range) that sink up here, sink due to a wave over the stern. The make, model, manufacturer or material does not seem to matter. "Unsinkable" boats may still float, but they can get flipped by the wave tossing everyone into the cold stuff.

I notice that more people wear PDFs of some sort up here than any other area I have ever visited. Due to the water temp, even with that you still only have about 15 minutes before you lose your core body temp and perish. Greg pegged it when he said you can't be too relaxed, even on a C-Dory!
 
tyboo . let me fill in as smarty pants for you. anyone can piss on a electric fence and learn a lesson, but a smart man only needs to hear the blood curdling scream of another man to learn the lesson.
 
Tom, that is perfectly stated. Thanks.

And hey, smarty pants, it's good to see you back here. Where you been?
 
Surprisingly, more boats sink from defective leaking through-hull fittings than from the wave over the stern swamping. Several years ago, we watched the "Dusty Rose", a 27 ft. diesel powered Sea Sport, swamp and sink in relatively calm waters 36 miles West of Newport.

The skipper and crew were busy landing Halibut when the engine stopped running. Quick inspection noted a major leak from a through-hull fitting but it was too late to save the boat. Fortunately, several other boats were fishing the same area of "the chicken ranch" and the crew were rescued. Check those fittings and hoses located below the water line. :)
 
tyboo.. man I have been working a lot and just to tired to post. worked the weekend and took my sons friends to the lake for his birthday. bbq and tubing. It was a great day. I just dropped the boat at the plant monday and will be boat less this weekend. I have to post some pics some time this week. all the kids jumping off the roof of the Susan E.
 
Point taken Mike, but I've gotta go with the splashwell filler with a quick removal system as the best option, at least for my purposes. Pop 2 pins and it's out of there. A matter of very few seconds.

I have pulled the anchor line with a bouy for years, until I put the windlass on, without a problem. Having said that, stuff happens and nobody is immune to a bad situation. Getting the anchor line fouled in the prop or props is usually the makings of a tough day, particularly in a bad water environment. Cook inlet can be especially unforgiving and is an area where too much caution can't be taken.

My thoughts and best wishes go out to the skipper and crew of the CD25.
 
Had to check to see if the stories were true (at age 10 or so). Yep, it does flow up stream! Goes throug a "rubber" bike tire too. Hope I am wiser with my older age now. As for anchoring, I think I'll go back and review some of the anchoring threads on this site.
 
Thought I would chip in here and share my two cents.

I agree with Tyboo in respect to the safe use of a windlass. Most of our windlasses are strong enough to pull the boat under most circumstances without the aid of motor power. The windlass may grunt a bit and slow down but reasonably charged batteries with main (out of gear) pumping out a few amps has more than sufficed for me. One thing every boater should keep ready is a sharp knife located aft. It would definitely be a challenge to cut a line fouled around the prop in time to prevent a disaster but if recognized early enough, certainly possible. Another good reason to wear a PFD.

In regards to filling the splash well, I agree with Mark and Mike. I'm not sure any filler would circumvent sinking a boat in the apparent conditions faced by the unlucky souls up north, but it's sure nice for the occasional steep waves I've run into while drifting around. My solution was to install my cooler in this space which reduces water in the cockpit by at least 90%. Tim
 
In the Cook Inlet the reason most charter operators use bouy's for pulling anchors even if they have a windlass is wear and tear. They are generally anchoring in 150' plus of water with tides running up to 5 knots. Two 200 hp motors pull an anchor off the bottom faster than a windlass. When you are doing that twice a day, a windlass would see a lifetime of work in a very short time. They also have teen age deck hands to do the rope pulling.

I have already filled in the splash well of my 22 not so much to keep water out, but as part of a work table, rod holder, bait cutting station. It also cut the motor noise down substantially. The added benefit of that is keeping big waves out of the cockpit.
 
I have to say that adding the cutting table to my stern area made me feel a lot better, not only is it a good work area and fillet table but I really like how it keeps the water out. You can see my design at: http://www.alaskaphotography.com/2005tr ... _2475.html I am pretty tall, so I made it tall.

My 2 cents, I guess it sure makes sense to avoid being anchored in such large seas, especially with such a tremendous tide as cook inlet.

Joe
 
I had dinner tonight with another friend visiting from Pennsylvania who was going out halibut fishing on a charter the same day (32 foot Almar) and heard the distress calls on the radio. After the charter cancelled due to wind and waves, they decided to go to Homer and ran into the boat's owner that afternoon on the Kachemak Bay Overlook on top of the hill outside Homer. They (the five that were on the boat) were still a little bit shakey after their ordeal and thankful they all got out ok.
 
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