Gulf of Aden Crossing

So much has been written about the Gulf of Aden (GOA), a body of water that separates the Arabian Peninsula of Asia and the African Continent.  Some stories are scary and dangerous (piracy) and some stories are treacherous (weather).  During the NE monsoon season, winds are prevailing from the E to ENE, which is exactly the season to sail from Socotra Island to Bab el Mandeb at the southern mouth of the Red Sea.  Sea Child's crossing of the GOA was fast, busy, and certainly in good company.  We had been reporting our position daily to UKMTO, a Dubai organization that represents a security coalition of nations (India, China, Japan, Korea, EU) daily at 0800 UTC  since our departure from the Maldives.  This sense of security was welcome on board, giving us at least some comfort that others were paying attention to our location, speed, course and destinations.  This was a part of our daily tasks aboard Sea Child as we sailed down the GOA.  Upon initial contact with UKMTO, we were advised to join a convoy since we were sailing the GOA without hired security on board.  The requirements to join the slowest convoy was that we had to maintain a boat speed of 10 knots under power, and meet at a specific position at a specific time.  This convoy option was not possible for Sea Child as we could not guarantee that we could maintain the required speeds.  The following is a detailed look at our 3 3/4 day passage of the Gulf of Aden:

DAY ONE
Monday, March 28, 2016 12:30pm-Tuesday March 29, 2016 Noon.  Days run 182 Nautical Miles

We departed  Socotra Island at 12:30pm and set a course of 290 degrees, which would take us more northerly towards the security lanes (IRTC) that had been established for commercial traffic transiting the GOA.  There are specific entry points into the lanes (position A or position B) and we were headed towards the east entry lane, located at 14 degrees 26,095N, 53 degrees, 0,189E.  From the west end of Socotra, this entry location was due north, so sailing a course of 290 would have us intersect the security corridor about 174 NM from Socotra Island.  The winds at our departure were gusting to well over 25, having us sail under full main alone as we surfed down the wind waves towards the shadow of Socotra.  Once there, around sunset, we spotted a few anchored fishing boats who we believe were from Socotra Island.  They waved as we sailed on by.  Throughout the night, we were sailing a more northerly course, around 335 degrees to keep the wind angle at 60-70 degrees, which was fine by me since it brought us closer to the security lanes earlier than the 290 course.  We did not pick up any AIS vessels until we were within about 20 NM of the IRTC.

During Eric's late watch, (2am-6am), he had jibed us onto a course of 270 as we motor sailed making water, winds ESE 8 knots.  When I came up for my 0600-1000 watch & realized how far south we were from the IRTC, I became concerned.  We were sailing in an area between the lanes and the Horn of Africa, and I felt that if we were closer to the shipping lanes we would be safer.

DAY TWO
Tuesday, March 29, 2016 Noon-Wednesday March 30, 2016  Noon, Days Run 182 Nautical Miles

Around 1400, a Japanese surveillance plane flew over Sea Child, and within a minute the Japanese Navy contacted us on VHF CH 16.  By this time, we had picked up several ships on AIS and the Japanese Navy asked us if we needed any assistance, was there anything they could do for us, have we seen any suspicious activity? If so, they are always standing by on VHF CH 16.  Eric asked them where they were, as we could not see them on AIS?  They stated that they receive but do not transmit.  Sounds logical.  The seas were 1'-3' following us, winds ESE at 10 knots and we were making about 7.5 knots boat speed under full main & screecher.  We were now 2.8 NM SSE of the IRTC.

During our dinner, we had an EU Warship on our port, and they sailed with us for about two hours before turning S towards the Horn of Africa.  We had cleared the wind shadow of Socotra Island, and were now being affected by the Indian Ocean swells that were coming up between the Socotra Islands and Somalia.  This created a very rolling sea, winds picked up to ESE 17-20 knots, and Sea Child continued to sail around 9 knots with full main & screecher.

During my late watch, 2200-0200, the roller furler on the jib came undone around midnight, and in order to re-furl the sail, I had to wake Eric.  He went forward to hand turn the furler system while I drove Sea Child deep down wind and held out the sheets.  The winds were picking up in the darkness, and once the furler was secure, and we rolled up the screecher, Eric went back down for some more much needed rest.  Our 4 hours on, 4 hours off watch was taking adventure travel to a whole new level of stamina, so any amount of sleep, even a short nap, was much needed and somewhat refreshing though we were both so exhausted.  We were now 400 NM to Bab El Mandeb, and had just entered the HRA (High Risk Area), an area between 49 degrees E to 46 degrees E.  We noticed the Indian Navy sailing with a large group of AIS targets, heading east, about 10 NM from our location.  Another security check for us that again made our passage feel much safer.  We could focus on sailing Sea Child, sending in our daily UKMTO positions, maintaining systems and provisions, monitoring batteries, fuel consumption, and of course, trying to get any sleep we could.

By sunrise, we were 115 NM N of Somalia, 92 NM S of Yemen, seas 5'-6', winds 19-20 ESE, 9 knots boat speed, course 242 degrees.  We sailed deep downwind with main alone, as the waves began stacking up behind us, close together and very steep.  We were now close enough to the IRTC that we could see the giant commercial ships as they headed eastbound.  Super huge tankers and freighters went by, some in convoys of 5-7 ships, some alone.  We heard the EU Warship contact one of the eastbound ships, asking them why the ship did not have their AIS turned on?  The ship replied that they were not in a convoy, that their captain had the AIS off until out of the HRA.  The EU Warship told them that they were safe, please turn on the AIS, and again, the ship denied the warship request.  The ship was then questioned at length about details, last port, next port, cargo, personnel, tonnage, etc.  After a few minutes of talk back and forth, the EU Warship was standing by on VHF CH 16.

DAY THREE
Wednesday, March 30, 2016 noon - Thursday, March 31, 2016 noon.  Days run  210 NM

The afternoon was spent with Eric on the bow, fixing the Harken Roller Furler System that we had bought in Pangkor Marina, Malaysia.  The system was brand new and unused in heavy seas until we left Thailand in February.  On the crossing to the Maldives, the roller furler system failed and as we sailed closer to Uligan, thankfully the jib was not needed in the light air.  Eric tackled the first repair of the furler system, where he found that the hidden set screws that keep the furler attached to the drum roller had backed out of their sockets.  He set them in with Locktight and thought the problem was solved.  However, as problems always seem to happen in big winds, big seas and of course, dark nights, the problem with the furler was not fixed, as the set screws backed out again.

As Sea Child sailed downwind in the GOA, the bows rising on each steep wave, dropping into the troughs and picking up speed, then rising again, Eric held a drill just perfect into the set screw holes and redrilled them, then resest the screws in a tighter puka (hole) so that they would not back out again.  We were now sailing hard and fast deeper in the GOA, and would definitely need the roller furling system on the jib to work properly as we neared the Bab el Mandeb straights into the Red Sea.  We intend to let Harken know that they have a problem with the design of their furler system, and no where in the schematics that were included with the new system is there any picture or description of these hidden set screws that backed out, causing the drum to spin around the roller furler and therefore, system failure.  It would be logical to know how it works so we can fix it or at least diagnose problems while out at sea.  As Eric wrote in the log after his repair, "Harken Sucks". 

By dinner on Wednesday night, we again had company join us as we sailed deeper into the HRA/GOA.  This time, we picked up a Japanese Warship around 1600, right before the main crash-jibed on a steep wave.  They came as close as 2.2 NM from our port stern, and cruised with us through dinner, eventually passing us and sailing literally into the sunset.  Our auto-pilot, affectionately named "Otto" was having a hard time holding any type of course as we were now wing & wing with full main & jib.  We were trying to maintain a course that would keep us within a mile of the IRTC, sailing parallel and south of the lanes without crossing the eastbound head-on traffic .

We were sailing a course of 252, hand steering at this point to maintain course and speed, Sea Child surfing along at 8 knots.  Waves would pick us up and knock us around, and as we sailed closer to Bab el Mandeb, we heard strange noises on the VHF, people making cat calls and playing random music.  By 0100 on Thursday morning, we had finally sailed out of the HRA, a nice feeling at the right time of day.  UKMTO had mentioned to us in an email that the highest probability for piracy encounters were either at dawn or dusk.  We were fortunate to have the two escorts with us at dinner and send sincere thanks to both EU and Japanese Warships for their presence during our sail through the HRA.

By noon on Thursday, we had sailed a total of 501 NM since leaving Socotra Island and had about another 158 NM to Bab El Mandeb.  We again changed sails from the jib to the screecher and another Japanese surveillance plane flew out of the clouds overhead Sea Child.  They again called us on VHF CH 16, asked the same questions as before, and this time I told them we were fine on board and thanked them for their security presence in the GOA.  

DAY FOUR
Thursday, March 31, 2016 noon - Friday, April 1, 2016 noon.  Days Run 170 nautical miles

Our course to Bab El Mandeb now was 280 degrees, which would have us cross the IRTC lanes and sail on the Yemen side of the corridor.  Winds were ENE 12-14, seas 2-5, sunny skies.  We were sailing with the full main & screecher on a starboard tack and crossed the lanes with no problem.  As the day wore on, the winds began to increase and the waves continued to stack up, steeper and closer together as we neared the straights at Bab el Mandeb.  Dinner was a non issue, our minds set on focusing on what we needed to do in the next few hours.  Our boat speeds were increasing too, with 7 knots becoming 7.5, then a jump to 9 knots, 10 knots, surfing like crazy on the steep, fast waves.  At one point, it was so crazy on board that it became hard to make log entries and by 1900, Eric had to put 2 reefs in the main as Sea Child hit speeds consistently of 18-20 knots.  Yes, we were flying down the steep waves and the night wore on, again, hand steering as Otto was not capable of handling the conditions.  The closer we sailed to the straights of Bab el Mandeb, the more ships came into view, both entering and exiting the straights.  The winds started backing off a bit, but with so many ships coming our way as we started to make the turn into the straights, it was difficult for me to trim the sails, keep watch on AIS targets, and hand steer course.  As we neared the corner of Yemen, the  winds began to pick up again, now up to 20 knots, and Eric put a double reef in the main and reefed the jib 40%.  By 0530, the Mayyun Islands of Bab el Mandeb were just to our starboard, and we officially had entered the Red Sea.  But the excitement was still all around us, with the winds and again steep waves, we ended up dropping the main completely and ran with the furled jib alone.  As we entered the Red Sea, the waves became closer together and therefore much higher, 6'-8', some as high as 8'-10' and with the winds, Sea Child surfed down many of them, hand steering since of course, Otto could not handle the winds and waves, downwind sailing.  It was hard to steer the steep waves of the Red Sea, a fine welcome to a mostly busy and safe passage of the GOA.  Winds increased to S 25-30 knots with gusts to 40, and by mid morning, we were sailing 8-10 knots with a 40% furled jib alone.  Crazy, rough ride.  We were excited to have entered the Red Sea, yet so very exhausted at the fast passage of the GOA with all the security concerns and sea conditions.

In summary, Sea Child sailed the 659 NM from Socotra Island to Bab el Mandeb in 89 hours, average boat speed 7.4 knots.  With the rush at the entry to the Red Sea, we'd thought that we would have averaged better speed.  It was a safe, busy, exhausting passage.  Thankfully, the security of the UKMTO Coalition of Nations, including Indian, Korean, Japanese, EU, Chinese and Coalition Warships kept the GOA passage safe and secure.  Given the weather conditions of the passage as well as the security of the warships and onboard security guards listed on several AIS vessels, we could not even imagine a pirate attempting to overtake a vessel.  Hopefully those pirate days in the GOA are all in the past, and all we will read about them will be in the history books.  Sea Child had a successful passage of the GOA.  Now, the challenges of the Red Sea lay ahead of us.

Around noon, Friday, April 1, 2016, a Coalition Warship passed Sea Child to port as we sailed into the Red Sea, just off the coast of Yemen.  The Warship was making great speed, we were doing about 9 knots and she passed us in no time.  We thought that perhaps the Coalition Warship was headed to Suez, up to the Med for security purposes in the Middle East.  Little did we know what was coming as night would fall.  To be continued in our next post, Red Sea Passage

Written offshore Southern Egyptian Coast, Red Sea
Friday, April 15, 2016

POS: 
25 DEGREES, 18.820 N
34 DEGREES, 46.076 E

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