“ We are not afraid to die if we are together”

Author: Gordon Cook and Alan East

Characters: Gordon Cook, Wife Mary, Suzanne- 7, Jonathan – 6 ,Herb Stigler- Swiss, Larry Vigil – American

Introductions: Gordon and wife dreamt of sailing in the wake of famous explorer and spent their past 16 years’
worth of leisure time honing their seafaring skills. Planned 3 year voyage, about 105,000 kms
Wanted to duplicate the round-the-world voyage made by Caption James Cook200 years ago. (Famous explorer)
Wave walker:
23 m, 30 ton wooden-hulled beauty which was professionally built
Author and wife spent months fitting it out and tested it in the roughest weather.

July 1 1976
Set sail from Plymouth, England
The first leg of journey passed pleasantly as sailed down the west of Africa to Cape Town,
Took in two crewmen to tackle Indian ocean.(author mentions it as world’s roughest seas)

Day 2 of reaching Cape Town:

Encountering of strong gales that blew continuously for next few weeks.
Sizes of waves were alarming 15 meters, as high as main mast.

December 25 1976:
Reached 3.5k km east of Cape Town.
Midst atrocious weather, a wonderful holiday complete with x-mas tree.

January 1 1976
No improvement in weather.
Hoped for change- it did. For worse.

January 2 1977- dawn

Setting:
Waves were gigantic
Sailing with only small storm jib still making eight knots
As ship rose to each wave- saw endless enormous seas rolling towards them
Screaming of wind and spray was painful to ears.
(Had to slow boat- storm jib dropped , lashed a heavy mooring rope across the stern)
Preparation for the worse:
Double lashed everything & Went through life raft drill & Attached lifelines & Donned oil skins and life jackets.
First indication of impending disaster – at 6 pm with ominous silence:
Wind dropped and Sky immediately grew dark
Growing roar and enormous cloud towered aft of the ship
Realizations: Not cloud but wave like no other.
It was perfectly vertical and twice the height of other waves with frightful breaking crest
The damage : The roar transformer to thunder
Stern moved to face the wave
Author thought slight chances of riding over it. But?
Tremendous explosion:
Torrent of green and blue water broke over the ship
Gordon smashed head into wheel and was aware of flying overboard and sinking below waves
He felt death approach and felt peaceful while losing consciousness
He survived: Head popped out of water,
Wave walker capsizing her masts all horizontal, but then wave curled her up
His response:
Grabbed guard rails , sailed through air into main boom.
Subsequent waves tossed him like ragged doll.
Despite injuries lined up the stern for new wave
Gordon damage 1x:
Lefts ribs cracked &Mouth filled with blood & Broken teeth
Setting now:
Water – everywhere
Below ship-water but couldn’t abandon wheel to investigate.
Mary is here!
Enters through front latch
Screams that they were sinking, reason being decks were smashed and filled with water.
Larry and herb pumping like madman
Timber here and there hung at crazy angles.
Whole starboard bulged inwards; clothes, crockery, charts, tins and toys sloshed in deep water.
Children!?Half swam-crawled children’s cabin found out that they were fine, in upper bunk.
Sue damage 2x: Her head hurts , big bump.
Gordon his hero episode: Finds a hammer, screws and canvas, Stretched canvas and waterproof hatch covers
across gaping holes. Without repairs sink.
Water continues to steam bellow , but most of it deflected to other side.
More problems! always! Hand pumps blocked up with debris floating around cabin.
Electric pump short circuited.
But- Gordon found two hand spare pumps-along with forestay sail, the jib , the dinghies and main anchor.
Remembered locasyh of another electric pump .
The night dragged with endless , bitterly cold routine of pumping, steering , working with radio.
No replies to may day calls- remote corner of world.
Sue damaged 2x+100dmg:
Head swollen alarmingly with two enormous black eyes. Deep cut on arm- shows now.

January 3 1977
Water level controlled enough to have 2 hours rest in rotations.
Tremendous leak somewhere below the waterline,
On check found main ribs frames all smashed to keel.
Nothing holding up whole sections of starboard hull except few cupboard partitions.
Survived 15 hours wave hit.
Wave walker cannot survive till Australia.
Gordon – big brain moment
Calculated using charts – two small islands few 100 kms to east.
One of the lle Amsterdam- French scientific base- pin pricks in vast oceans (only hope)
Great wave put of auxiliary engine.
January 4 1977
36 hours of continuous pumping
Progress done- now had to keep pace with water coming in.
No set of sail on main mast- as pressure of rigging would pull the damaged sections of hull apart.
Hoisted storm jib instead.
Corned beef and cracker biscuits (Mary found ), first meal in two days.
4 pm- black clouds
Winds back to 40 knots.
Weather continues deteriorate throughout night
Dawn of 5 January 1977
Situation desperate again.
Family screen time: (climax)
Jon worried about dying and Gordon assures him that they’d make it.
Jon went on: we aren’t afraid of dying if we all can be together.
Energy boost: Gordon determined to fight with the sea now.
To protected weakened starboard side, heaved undamaged part hull facing the oncoming waves, using improvised
sea anchor- heavy nylon rope and 22 barrels of paraffin
Romance: Mary and he held hands, as motion of ship brought more and more water in and they felt end was near

January 6 1977
Wave walker rode out storm
Tried getting reading on sextant. Chartroom: worked on wind speeds , changes of courses , drift and
current in effort to calculate the positions.
Determined there were in 150,000 kms of oceans looking 65 kms wide island.
Father and daughter or sue 2x damage + 500 dmg:
Sue, painfully moved joined him.
Left side of head swollen and Blacked eye narrowed to slits.
Gives card she made front page having Caricatures of Mary and him
SOMEHOW THEY HAD TO MAKE IT.
Gordon – big brain part moment 2
Check and recheck his calculations
Lost his main compass so used spare which as not corrected for magnetic variations.
Estimate he includes of westerly currents which flow brought this part of Indian Ocean
2pm . Asked Larry to steer at course of 185 degrees and If lucky could see island about 5pm.
Climbed on his bunk bed and dosed off.
Woke up at 60m , dark outside. He thinks they missed the island.
Success!
Tousled head-Jon appears, asks for hug becoz he’s best daddy and captain in the world .
Sue in matter of fact voices states the island is found.
The most beautiful island in the world- Ile Amsterdam.
Gazed at relief at the stark outline of island, a bleak piece of volcanic rock with little vegetations-looked
beautiful.
The battle success
Anchored offshore for night.
Next morn cheered by 28 inhabitants as they helped them aboard.
The thank you slide.
Herb and Larry – cheerful and optimistic under the direct stress.
Mary who stayed at wheel for all crucial hours.
7 year old- head injury took 6 minor operations to remove a recurring blood clot between skin and skull.
6 yo boy who was not afraid to die.