Forced Landing.

Carvel planked boats of the so called Cape Island type, have a weakness in that their fastening are prone to failure after about ten years,  depending on the quality of the original . Some fishermen opted for copper and bronze fastenings, with a greater life span but at a much higher initial cost for the hull.

When fastening failed at sea disaster is most always the result, with the boat going down, sometimes with loss of life. In nautical parlance such an event is referred to as  ““ springing a butt. “ What happens is a failure of the fasteners, generally nails, for economy’s sake,  where the ends, or “butts,” of the planks are joined. Failure of this kind most often occurs toward the forward part of the boat. The nails let go, on one or more timbers (ribs) the plank end, or butt springs outward, instantly causing a breech to the sea as per the width of the plank.

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It was one of those days in May that were called, around home; “ A smokey sou’wester “ visibility is restricted, but the sky is clear and sunny. 

Harry Hodgson and his stern man, Spurgeon Gammon were hauling lobster traps  at about ten AM up to wind’ dard of Coffin Rock Shoal, fishing was good, and Harry was in his usual excellent spirits, thinking of the duck stew that awaited him on his arrival home that day.

The wind had been “ airing up “ all through the morning, and was now blowing at about twenty knots from the sou’west,  so now, between traps  Miss Drum Head was hitting quite hard in the breaking SW lop, ( Our navy is wont to call this ‘slapping’) Spurgeon happened to look down in the starboard side kid, and saw that water was above the floor boards, and said, “ Harry she’s got some water in her. “ 

Now when hauling gear in a small boat, water will naturally accumulate in the bilge, and is pumped out periodically through the day, so Harry wasn’t alarmed at Spurgeon’s statement, and his answer was, “ Pump her out !”” 

So Spurgeon grabbed the handle of the box type pump and proceeded to comply with the order.

After a couple of minutes, he saw he was making no headway; the water was, in fact, rising.               “ Harry,  I think she’s leakin. ! “said Spurgeon.  Harry finished hauling the trap that was on its way from bottom, sat it on the stern and went for’ ard to open the engine box cover.

What he saw chilled the marrow in his bones. The water in the bilge was up to a point that the front end pulley on the Dodge was running in it.

Back in those day’ s life jackets and rings were not yet mandatory on small fishing boats; everyone, my dad and I included, went fishing with absolutely survival gear on board whatsoever, except for sword fishing, when a dory was carried for the purpose of drowning fish (swordfish) I guess that it wasn’t realized then that flotation devices can save lives.

With no other boats in sight,  Harry knew that they were in very serious trouble and that their only hope of survival was to beach the boat on Goose Island and the only favourable place on the island would be Noshey’s Cove.

With Spurgeon steering and Harry with his great strength and endurance on the pump, they headed down around Flying Point for the salvation that was the sand and gravel of Noshey’ s Cove Beach, 


Even pumping as hard as he could Harry was losing ground with the ingress of water. On the straight six Dodge the distributor is mounted on an angle on the side of the block, the water was almost to where the shaft emerged from the block, the starter was by now submerged, the coil, mounted on the cylinder head, was still safe and they were now abeam Camp Cove.

Harry took the wheel as they passed close in to Noshey’s Cove cliffs, where the water is deepest, by now Miss Drum Head was very logy in the water in her sinking condition, as luck would have it, the tide was “tip top high “ Harry pulled the Dodge wide open and the boat made the ground just north of the windlass. The same windlass that hauled the skiffs of so many of our ancestors, landing on the Island for a duck hunting trip.

A couple of boats hauling back of the Horse ( the White Horse )  saw what was transpiring and quickly steamed up to the scene. One of them volunteered to go in to the mainland for a skiff, so Hary and Spurgeon could be taken off the island. 

Once ashore, Harry rounded up George Burke, who in turn, rounded up his tools ( or what hand tools he would need ) and after the boats were done hauling a goodly crowd sailed in Victor Luddington boat, for Goose Island to repair and launch Miss Drum Head, now recumbent on her starboard side in the gravel and kelp.

By the time we got out to Noshey’s Cove there was a bit of a sea running, and the Cove ws breaking across. We had taken Greencorns big halibut dory for landing and after some consultation it was decided that I take the oars,  as it was said that I had more experience landing in surf than any of the others present. That was the consensus, but not necessarily so.

We loaded George’ s tool box and seven men counting me, the rower,  I had them sit low aft, so the dory was well trimmed by the stern, but as we got in the breakers  just off the end of the cliffs, one guy panicked, and jumped to his feet and grabbed the oars, hoping to assist me,  thus speed up the landing progress, but his unsolicited efforts caused me to lose control and the dory went sideways and went with the sea, almost to the southern end of Soldiers Sand Beach.

Three more trips and we were all ashore,  and Little George cut a big chew of Pictou  Twist  and went  at the sprung butt, while some more of us went to cut skids.  Good skids are scarce around that part of Goose Island, but we got twenty or so and carried them out to the shore.

In due time George had the butt back to it’s place and refastened and had recaulked ( recorked,  in the idiom of the shore)the relevant seams.  It was now late afternoon and Miss Drum Head was ready to launch ( lanch ) 
We managed to get a few skids under her keel, due for the most part on the prodigious  efforts of her owner. Then we, to use a Syd Burke phrase, ( Syd was there )  swiddled her; pushing her sidewise until her bow pointed toward the water.  We laid our skids and started down the beach with her, Harry and his stern man on board with engine running. 

We kept her going until she was almost afloat, when Harry give it to her and the blade took hold and they went flying out through the surf with the spray sheeting away from her bows,  heading for home. The launchers poured the water from their boots, wrung out their home knit socks,  went back on board Victor’s  Winsockie,  and soon were following in Harry’s wake,  with Greencorn’s  big old dory standing back on her tow line, Little George quidding, not Bonded Jacky, but Pictou Twist, out a-lee.  Home;  to re-hash the day’s happenings in Gammon’s store that evening.  

Would that I could live it all again.

Seanachie 

P. S.  Quiz time readers;  From what poem did I plagiarize the words; “ Bonded Jacky. “ 


(Answer from TheAncientHippie: A Ballad of Cape St. Vincent, by John Masefield)