CDavis2 said:
My wife called our base which was relatively close and requested emergency assistance. I am not sure exactly how long it took for cavalry to arrive with a boat to tow us back but it must have been the longest 30 minutes of my life even though our anchor was holding once it reached about 40’ of water and we had drifted to within 100 feet of the shore.
Thanks for sharing this harrowing experience and glad to hear it all ended safely. In the heat of the emergency did you consider broadcasting a PAN-PAN message? I'm thinking one of the Trellis Bay/Scrub Island/Spanishtown ferries or VISAR would have heard the message and might have arrived much sooner than the chase boat to render a tow (or at least render assistance if the anchor dragged and it quickly became a MAYDAY situation).
If I were drifting onto a lee shore, I would probably first broadcast a request for help from (hopefully) nearby vessels before calling the charter base. A reminder that we should all be monitoring Ch 16 when we are underway - never know when or where we might be called upon to provide assistance.
