Off Topic: Rogue Wave! Part II

In the short time since my previous post about rogue waves, there have actually been some developments on the subject. And judging by the number of hits generated by that post, I am not the only one who's fascinated by this phenomenon.

During the last two weeks, rogue waves have been a topic on one of my favorite TV shows: Season two of Deadliest Catch on The Discovery Channel. If you are not familiar with the show (shame on you), it is an ongoing documentary series about the Alaskan crab fishing industry. Camera crews went out with five different boats to capture the experience of fishing the deadly Bering Sea. According to the show, forty-one crab fishermen have lost their lives in the last decade, and watching the show, it's easy to see why. The Bering has consistently bad weather and high seas.

On last week's episode, the fishing vessel Aleutian Ballad had to return to Dutch Harbor prematurely, in order to drop off a suicidal "greenhorn" crew member. The Aleutian Ballad was not a "regular" on Deadliest Catch, and did not have a camera crew on board. But while back in Dutch Harbor, the boat's crew were apparently given cameras by the show's producers, in order for them to capture footage on the fly. Good thing for us viewers!

After putting out -- again -- from Dutch Harbor, the boat ran into a severe storm. By 3AM,the captain (sorry, I couldn't find any detailed info on the Aleutian Ballad on the internet) commented that the sea state was confused, with waves coming from multiple directions, and that he was having trouble navigating through the storm. Suddenly, the boat was slammed by a 60-foot rogue wave from the starboard side. The camera, pointed out the wheelhouse window, captured the wave as it began to break over the deck; then the impact knocked the camera out the cameraman's hands, and put everyone onto the deck. The engines died, and boat lost all power and was left listing to port. The captain was recorded by the camera (still lying on the ground) saying, "I've got no steering!"

I doubt whether any skipper could experience a more heart-stopping moment. A boat is at her most vulnerable when reeling like the Aleutian Ballad was at that moment; in huge seas, without steerage, a second wave could easily capsize her, and then it's lights-out for good. Eventually, the Aleutian Ballad righted herself, and the captain got the engines started (the steep list had caused the engines to lose oil pressure). The crew got banged-up a bit: The captain apparently broke a couple of ribs, and his daughter (the ship's cook) was thrown out of her bunk with such force that her body smashed open a wooden door on the opposite wall. We in the audience had just witnessed either a strong recovery from difficult circumstances (glass half full) or a near-sinking (glass half empty).

Incredibly, camera crews on board the Time Bandit, a series "regular" (see ship's model at left), caught another monster wave on tape later that same week. I don't know if it was technically a rogue wave, since it seemed to be in line with the swell, but it was incredibly big, and it did have a trough in front of it. Captain John Hillstrand watched dumbfounded as the Time Bandit slid down into the trough, then he grabbed the mic and called a big-wave warning to the crew: "Bigbigbigbigbig!" The wave broke over the boat, and no crew were injured; but it could certainly have gone differently. That's why these guys make the big bucks. What a great show!

I can't help but wonder how much of a part the ships' designs played in their ability to recover from big waves. Both of the above boats are "house aft", which simply means that the superstructure (bridge, deck house, etc.) sits at the back of the boat instead of the front ("house forward"). I guess it doesn't matter if you ship a wave from either side -- if it's gonna get you, it's gonna get you -- but it seems like a big advantage to have the house aft when your boat's pointed into high seas. Also, it lets the skipper keep an eye on the water and the deck crew at the same time, which has to be a good thing. (Below: Time Bandit's partner vessel, Debra D, in relatively calm seas.)

Last time, I mentioned how the QE2 was one of the most famous ships to encounter a rogue wave. Captain Ronald Warwick described the sight of that wave as looking like they were "Sailing into the white cliffs of Dover". The wave height was equal to the height of the bridge windows -- an incredible 95 feet!

Sir Ernest Shackleton also famously encountered a rogue wave during his desperate journey from Elephant Island to South Georgia Island. But unlike the cushy, 963-foot-long QE2, Shackleton's boat was the James Caird, a 23-foot wooden whaler -- basically, a lifeboat. The expedition carpenter, "Chippy" McNish, had modified the boat by raising the gunwales and adding a deck over the top, to keep out the weather. Shackleton was on top of this deck, chipping away rime ice, when he spotted what he thought was a strip of clear sky high above the gray horizon. Then he realized that it was actually the white crest of an enormous wave that was bearing down on them! He managed to shout a warning down to the rest of the crew: "For God's sake, hang on! It's got us!" The wave smashed down onto the tiny boat, but somehow the James Caird, overloaded with ice and supplies, managed to stay afloat.

Alaskan crab fisherman, cruise ship captains, polar explorers...they all have one thing in common: They all take a risk every time they go out to sea. And they're all either braver, or crazier, than me! I'm guessing it's both.

Launching the James Caird from Elephant Island