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Sportfisherman SOP for rogue waves

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BrianBM

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Prevailing theory on rouge waves is that they appear and vanish in an instant.  Their genesis is purported to be due to random wave interference where several waves overlap for a fleeting moment.  To think you would have any chance to respond is wishful at best.  If you were to have the profound misfortune to encounter a true rogue wave or a rough trough (giant hole) you would be best served by maintaining aquate emergency preparedness training and tools (a strong faith couldn't hurt either).  But otherwise, there are oceanic conditions and zones to avoid that improve your chances of never encountering one that most people already adhere to, ie. not going out in storms, avoiding shoals during a good swell, etc.

 

Here's an informative video on the topic.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ylOpbW1H-I

Edited by cbinvb
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18 hours ago, BrianBM said:

Do we have any good stories about anglers having to cope with an outsize sea, even if not quite a rogue wave?

I've been caught out in some pretty bad weather in my 30 ft Blackwatch. Just throttled back to around 10 knots and lowed through them. Took some green water over the bow, but it didn't have much of an effect, th boat shed the water like a duckling.

====Mako Mike====
Makomania Sportfishing
Pt. Judith, RI
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I have fortunately not had an experience with rogues,but a good friend circumnavigated the the globe on a 31 ft seawind sail boat. He was on a leg of the trip to go from  Singapore to Cape Hope S. Africa, when they were running with following seas of 10-15ft and looked behind and saw a wall of water several stories high less than a quarter of a mile behind that fortunately  broke before getting to their boat.  Sometimes it helps to be lucky.  They were at sea for 30 days without sight of land and only celestial navigation..  No thank you. This adventure took place in 1970's

I know most of us have seen the "perfect storm",some waves you just can't handle.

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3 hours ago, nightfighter said:

This was sent to me by someone who was onboard in 2018. Commercial crab boat in Dutch Harbor after taking a rough wave.... Their season was obviously done as repairs were eventually done in Seattle. This is one of forty photos he sent me. Just massive damage.

IMG_0856.JPG

That’s a special place on the planet for sure.  I was involved in shipping and would operate mostly panamax vessels taking the great circle route across the North Pacific. This crosses Bering sea, through the Aleutians and down below Alaska. Had a file of pics and videos I left when I retired.  Windlass torn off, anchor boxes stove in, rails torn off, bulbous bows dented in, cargo hatches knocked off their rails.  In deep winter lows come across every week or so, nasty seas.  Wasn’t uncommon for them to seek shelter in the lee of one of the aleutians for a day or two. These are ships 225-250m long, 75-83k mt  dwt. 

"I have ... put a lump of ice into an equal quantity of water ...  if a little sea salt be added to the water we shall produce a fluid sensibly colder than the ice was in the beginning, which has appeared a curious and puzzling thing to those unacquainted with the general fact."- Joseph Black

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  • 3 weeks later...

Going in the direction of very large waves is especially dangerous because of the risk of broaching. As the wave gains height, the vessel can slide down the face and lose control, causing it to veer to one side or the other. With a large enough following sea this can be a death sentence. 

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20 hours ago, Seadogg said:

Going in the direction of very large waves is especially dangerous because of the risk of broaching. As the wave gains height, the vessel can slide down the face and lose control, causing it to veer to one side or the other. With a large enough following sea this can be a death sentence. 

yep, I was out once in my 28' Chris Craft. It was getting uglier than forecast, so I turned & ran for home. After a couple of waves rose menacingly behind me I started zig-zagging. It took longer; but I felt safer.

The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it is not utterly absurd

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