Subtle Pressure

There is a very understandable pressure that builds up when you are stuck in port waiting out a gale off shore before continuing a journey. At first you cannot believe that you are going to be stuck very long so you just carry on with projects or things that need doing anyway (grocery shopping, laundry and such) thinking all the while that you will get the weather clearance to get away any minute. As the days go on you pay closer and closer attention to the weather and think that perhaps it will be tomorrow or the day after. When the long range forecast drags you, kicking and screaming, to the conclusion that it may be days and days and a slight depression sets in and the real pressure to go out starts.

We landed in Newport, Oregon a week ago and here are still waiting. Gale force winds south of here and periodic closings of the Newport bar have had the brakes on for all this time. It looks like there is finally a window developing a few days from now but I do not want to get my hopes up too much. We lost one crew member because he would not have been able to continue if the window came past this last Saturday and still make back to his job as scheduled. That had increased the pressure for a time as well.

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One of the things I have to keep in mind for this voyage is that the jobs on my list are always there to be done. So for me, the non-skipper for this trip, the lack of being underway mostly means that I have time to work on the project list some more. In some places that is easier than others and given the good quality of the marine stores (chandleries) available the inventiveness I can ascend to is wonderful. Since I am never able to know ahead of time what parts I really need each job is about inventing a system as I go. This translates to making more than one trip to the chandlery. It turns out that I love going to chandleries because this is the moral equivalent to every hardware store I have ever been in that wasn’t a big box store. Lately we have followed the trend of calling West Marine by its recently heard name of Tiffany’s-By-The-Sea, so you can see where my sympathies lie in any case. A well run chandlery offers so much more to the senses if you are a discriminating mariner. It’s still true that my visits to Tiffany’s-By-The-Sea are numerous when in the neighborhood but here in Newport there is a well stocked marine store that does not emphasize clothing over functional marine hardware and the like. Delicious is the word that comes to mind.

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One other seldom mentioned plus for staying in a port for awhile is that the wine available is a bit better than off shore. Yes, yes, I know, I generally don’t have wine with my dinner off shore but I DO notice when in port that the bill of fare is improved if only because we can instantly, or nearly so, replace the missing bottles from the wine rack! Far be it for me to quibble over this detail of luxurious living when available. When sailing along it takes a spectacular day to consider having all that much of a real meal. Typically the galley is not the place you want to be unless you just like slamming into the stove as you try to brace for the next wave set. Give me cheese and crackers and an apple on watch and I am fairly happy with the state of things when it’s getting raucous out. Eat well when you have the chance and stay ready to leave.

Keep in mind too that in port we have “regular” hours. That is, at sea we have regular hours by way of the watch schedule. You have 2, 3 or 4 hours to sleep and you damned sure better get some sleep given any opportunity. No one wants to come out for their watch and find you asleep in the cockpit. Things can happen all too quickly when you are not vigilant. Get rest as needed in port because you may not get all you want when you leave the dock. This is one of the tiniest pressures that you can start to feel after you have been too long in port. Keeping yourself ready to go is an attitude you develop when you are “going” but hard to maintain in port.

Now this may seem weird but another issue is cleanliness… that would be personal cleanliness. In port you likely have the opportunity to shower and if you are going to be putting to sea you hope you have had a recent shower. Further if the decision to leave is on the instant and you aren’t the prime mover and decider that becomes a problem. There can be little time to run to the shower, which is often a hike away, and get back in time to do all the little chores that need doing to get moving. Hmmm, pressure abounds.

Jobs that come up suddenly at the end of your stay somewhere are always one of the lurking suspicions that you cannot plan for. This is the pressure that awakens you at some odd hour while you are in port and keeps you on track and wondering what needs doing next. We had been in Astoria for several days when I finally had the idea that I should test the as yet untested macerator pumps that had been installed. This proved to be the dumbest idea I have had this year. The pump worked so well that the pressure was more than the hoses could tolerate in their current state of tightness… pretty soon the aft cabin had that special head smell. This was as Sandy and I needed to get in a quick nap before our 0200 departure to cross the Columbia bar. Neither one of us got all that much sleep as a result. I did manage to tighten everything up but there was one very persistent drip that took another day to solve. (Note: It turned out that there had never been any Teflon tape applied to the through hull fitting from the original hose installation, likely years prior.)

None of this is particularly frustrating to me but I am sure that it puts some load on those around me because they are often not as involved in trying to find solutions and mostly what they know is that things are broken for the moment or not complete from time to time. This probably leads to some sense of pressure wondering if we are ok to continue. As a crew member with a large resource of time in my favor I don’t have that sense of pressure other than to be ready to leave port when the weather says that is the thing to do. It helps them, I am certain, for me to try to explain where I am in any delaying project but sometimes that may not be enough. For me there is no drama but for others I can see that it might lead to an emotional rather than logical response. All I can do for this is understand what is driving them to their reaction.

Finally, there can be a sense of having a life that from some point of view is not as productive as it might be. So there can be an odd sort of guilt that creeps in to spoil the party if you aren’t convinced that you are doing what you should be doing right now. I guess being comfortable with yourself is part of what this different lifestyle is most about.

Then, suddenly, the weather window opens and all is forgotten. There is no pressure, only the open ocean and the spirits are quiet again.