April 14, 2004
Abandoning Ship...Temporarily

Nearly all voyagers will eventually confront the issue of departing from their vessel and traveling far away for a period of time. Maintaining health, financial interests, family connections, and occasionally immigration issues seem to head the list of reasons sailors must from time to time leave their boat in a foreign nation for days, weeks, months, or even a year or two. Such exits planned well in advance are the norm. More spontaneous trips may be necessary. We have experience with both categories over the course of our voyage, and we're hoping a little vicarious learning may be valuable for you. We feel that the most important considerations are security from theft, from weather-inflicted damage (wind and waves from cyclones or other severe conditions, lightning), from pests (rodents, insects), and also "interior storability" (the potential for humidity and condensation, and resultant mold and other collateral damage). Perhaps the most fundamental decisions are whether the boat will be left afloat or stored on the hard, and the degree to which responsibility for the vessel will be allocated to persons other than yourselves.

The ideal situation is to store the boat on the hard in a cyclone-free, cool climate with good theft security and no one allowed aboard except in an emergency. In the Pacific, New Zealand and subtropical Australia (e.g. southern Queensland and New South Wales) fit the bill well. We twice left ELAN on the hard at Gulf Harbour Marina, just north of Auckland, New Zealand, (latitude 37 S and change) for four months with excellent results across the board. The boat has now been on a hardstand in Mooloolaba, Australia (about 27 S) for seven months. We are attempting to compensate for the heat by running a dehumidifier, also a good option for metal boats in colder climates to fight condensation. In no cases did we engage personnel to enter the vessel to air it out or do any work in our absence. These are all examples of planned departures from the boat.

We've had four unplanned departures, the most spectacular of which was in 2000 when Wendy developed sudden neurological symptoms in the remote island group of Vava'u, Tonga (severe headache, deaf in one ear, half the mouth numb). We got her on the next plane to Auckland where close friends could meet her. Ryan, 11 months old, went along because our friends were essentially like relatives and were happy to tend him for a bit while we sorted ourselves out. I stayed and secured ELAN for storm conditions in back of a close friend's home in the harbor, waited for him to return from the USA so he could watch over the boat, and then joined Wendy and Ryan who were by then near Philadelphia, USA, where she was recuperating from what turned out to be parasitic meningitis (rat lungworm contracted from raw cabbage-individually wash each leaf of any raw greens, soak them all in 10% bleach solution for 20 minutes or cook and you'll not likely catch this). We were lucky to have the support in Auckland that allowed us the luxury of leaving a crew member to properly secure the vessel and then follow. During our six-week absence ELAN weathered two unexpected 50 knot blows on the combination of anchor gear and shore mooring lines I'd set, spider-webbing the boat with bow facing the harbor opening, stern to a cliff, with an experienced mariner watching over her from his front porch.

The other three unplanned departures and strategies were: 1996, Wendy returned home from Christmas Island, Kiribati for endometriosis surgery and treatment, I stayed aboard ELAN since we were anchored offshore on the outer reef for the duration; 2001, Wendy and Ryan returned home from the Marshall Islands for Wendy to receive treatment for nerve damage sustained during the parasitic meningitis bout, I stayed to relocate ELAN to a temporary cyclone-free refuge in Tonga; 2002, Wendy and Ryan went home for Ryan to have surgical repair of a hernia, I stayed aboard ELAN in Pago Pago, American Samoa as we were on a mooring during cyclone season. In all three cases we had excellent support waiting in the USA. Note that we might have been able to work ELAN into the lagoon at Christmas Island and secure her with a local friend but we deemed the sum total of the prevailing conditions risky. At both the Marshall Islands and American Samoa, several crews did leave untended vessels on moorings during returns stateside for various reasons with results ranging from no problem to some theft and interior mold. For us, in each instance at these locations, it would have meant abandoning the boat afloat during cyclone season, so I stayed.

What advice can we give you? The planned absences are easy--maybe you've got a neighboring crew to watch over your boat or better yet, a trusted crew member to stay aboard. You can't beat the safety and security of a hardstand in a temperate zone boat yard, although successful arrangements are available in the tropics and subtropics. It's the unplanned departures that force you to be more creative, particularly when they occur during an active portion of a sailing season in some remote area. We have plenty of heavy line and chain, three major anchors, two minor anchors, and our boat locks securely. If our whole crew had to bail out, we'd certainly enlist the services of the most trusted local we could find. These situations make you think about some interesting choices and values. In the end, the boat is just a hunk of plastic, wood, cement, or metal, and may have to be left to fend for itself if you develop a serious health issue or if a loved one needs you more.