July 21, 2011
Off Napakataktalik Island, Labrador
“Go behind them! Now come alongside . . . a little closer.”
“Mick just hold your course,” yells Russ.
Of all the things I thought we’d be doing on the wild coast of Labrador, having a photo shoot wasn’t one of them! But what a bl . . .
We first saw SV Hannah in Baddeck in 2009 on our way up to Newfoundland. We pulled in and gazed at this beautiful gaff rigged boat from the UK. We figured we’d meet them the next day but the next day dawned and they were gone. We saw them again as we pulled in after dark to Shelbourne, Nova Scotia on the way home. Surely this time we’ll get to meet them. Woke up in the morning and they were gone.
But we had a connection having met a cruising couple in Baddeck on our way home that were meeting up with them and were also on a cool looking boat, Robin & Jackie off Blackthorn. In cruising, your last name becomes your boat name. Yet another good reason not to name your boat something strange like “Passing Wind”. The e-mail connections were made and we stayed in touch as we were planning this trip.
Pulling into Block Island on the way up we thought the boat we saw was Hannah. Sure enough Mick e-mailed it was them. Since both boats were leaving early in the morning we still didn’t have a face-to-face meeting.
And so it went . . . we took different directions from Block Island, Andante to the Vineyard and Hannah to the Cape Cod Canal. Crossing to Nova Scotia in that thick fog, we heard Mick on the radio and realized they were 7 miles from us.
They were delayed waiting for a part for their cooker (that’s a stove to us Americans) and we went home for the wedding. Hopscotching up the west coast of Newfoundland, we’d e-mail each other our positions. But still no face to face.
Then July 4 and we made landfall in Labrador at Red Bay. Hannah pulled in out of the fog and celebrated the 4th with us. No hard feelings on their part over our independence!
We’ve heard cruising friendships are intense. You can never be sure when you’ll meet up with someone you’ve seen before or how long you’ll be going in the same direction. If you find a couple you enjoy, you take advantage of those fleeting moments.
And so it’s gone. We’ve shared walks and talks and meals, a lot of laughs and found common ground. Mick’s a year younger than Russ and Bee is a year younger than me. They’ve been together the same amount of time as we have. Bee shares my fascination with graveyards and also can't tell which direction the wind is coming from! One of the biggest differences is they’ve been out here cruising for 11 years. Their blog’s a great read:
P.S. For our mid-Atlantic friends - I found a stink bug as we were crossing to Labrador and it was still kicking!
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