May 31, 2026 – The Day We Got Stuck
By Jacqueline Munder
We woke up at 5:00 a.m. and immediately checked the weather. Winds were forecasted at 15–25 knots, and conditions at the inlet looked rough. The ocean waves were larger and more frequent than normal.
We filmed the waves for a while. There were very few boats out. One fast boat launched completely into the air as it hit a wave!
A small blue sailboat passed near us and caught our attention. At first, we thought it might be drifting unmanned, but we eventually realized someone was aboard. We never figured out exactly what was going on.
We decided to wait until around 3:30 p.m., hoping the tide would help push us in the right direction.
Unfortunately, the wind had other plans.
Then we discovered a new surprise below the waterline. Our anchor and chain had become incredibly heavy after weeks of algae growth. Nova and I spent a long time scraping algae off the chain with a knife and dish scrubber. It made a huge mess—algae covered the front of the boat!
Finally, we pulled the anchor up. As we were preparing to move, Adam missed the small window needed to push forward, and the boat drifted onto a sandbar.
We were stuck.
Thankfully, a nearby boater—the same man whose dinghy we had helped rescue earlier—came over to check on us. By now, we had become friends. He confirmed we were on a sandbar and called Tow Boat US for assistance.
We waited.
Eventually, the tow boat arrived and pulled us free.
When the tow boat captain arrived, Adam communicated with him through texting because Adam is Deaf. It was amazing to see how technology bridged the communication gap and helped us work together in that stressful moment.
However, conditions were still not good enough to continue, so we anchored again and decided to wait until morning.
The forecast showed winds dropping to around 5 knots the next morning.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure we could do it. I was already expecting we might need another tow.