IN THE SPRING of 2019, I had the opportunity to sail in European waters. The trip began with pleasant weather as we left Portsmouth, England, en route to Oslo, Norway. As we left the English Channel, and headed into the North Sea, we received a weather forecast that predicted strong winds( 30 + knots) and associated waves.
While on watch, I observed that, within the course of slightly more than two hours, the barometer had plummeted by over. 10 inches. This is a massive drop – indeed, if we were in the tropics( which we were not), a drop of this magnitude would typically be
associated with an approaching hurricane.
Photo by Linda Lakin
As it turns out, the forecast wasn’ t quite correct. In particular, the wind didn’ t stop in the low 30s – it built to 40 + knots and seas rapidly increased to 10 to 15 feet. The meteorological definition of a gale is sustained winds of 34 knots and over. We were already well beyond that. What were we going to do? Was the weather going to continue to deteriorate? If things got worse, would we need to call the Coast Guard? Wait a second: I am in the Coast Guard, and I was on a Coast Guard ship – the USCGC EAGLE.
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