The seasons first weekend sailing was a pleasant and familiar trip to our #1 favorite  destination. On our way home, we made a stop at our second favorite spot, for supper. Right around the corner (..if islands have corners) a yacht caught fire. On the radio we could hear  that the crew had jumped overboard and quickly got picked up by yachts nearby.  We could also hear that police, rescuers and firemen were rushing to the scene. A couple of their boats passed through our anchorage, without much fuss.

What happened next, on the radio, saddens me. No less the 3 different weekend captains thought it proper to complain about the waves the boats of the emergency services made. One of them even took it upon himself to lecture the firemen. Apparently this emergency did not justify making such waves, he explained. A burning yacht drifting towards land, potentially starting a forest fire on an island, was definitely not a reason to make him spill his drink…

Lysakerfjorden Latitude: 59° 53.293 N Longitude: 10° 40.026 E Click chart to view larger scope, or here for an even larger scope in a separate window. Chart data ©Kartverket.

For several weeks I have studied the forecasts; each week picked the windiest  day of the week and each week made it down to the marina on that day, just to watch the dead calm sea and the stationary wind gage rotor. Then finally…

Lysakerfjorden Latitude: 59° 53.708 N Longitude: 10° 39.315 E Click chart to view larger scope, or here for an even larger scope in a separate window. Chart data ©Kartverket.