We are not Afraid to die if we can all be together-chapter- 2nd ( Hornbil ) Easy Summary and Explanation

Hornbill May 5, 2021 0 3827 Add to Reading List

Introduction

The Story, ‘We’re Not Afraid To Die—if We Can All Be Together” Is A Story Of Extreme,,,
Courage And Skill Exhibited By Gordon Cook, His Family And Crewmen In A War With Water And Waves For Survival.

Beginning

It Was July 1976 The Narrator His Wife Mary Son Jonathan 6 And Daughter Suzanne 7 Set Sail From Plymouth England
They Wanted To Duplicate The Round The World Voyage
Made 200 Years Earlier By Captain James Cook
For The Last 16 Years They Had Spent Their Leisure Time In Sharpening Their Seafaring (Traveling By Sea) Skills
Their Boat Wave Walker Had Been Professionally Built It Had Been Tested In The Roughest Weather For Months

First leg of journey passed

The First Part Of Their Planned Three-year 1,05,000 Kilometer Journey Past Pleasantly
They Took On Two Crewmen American Larry Vigil And Swiss Herb Seigler
They Were To Help Them Tackle One Of The Roughest Seas The Southern Indian Ocean
They Sailed Down The West Coast Of Africa To Cape Town They Were Heading Towards East

Encountered Strong Gales

For Next Few Weeks They Encountered Extremely Strong Winds .
The Size Of Waves Was Alarming (Up To 15 Meters High)
They Celebrated The Christmas In Spite Of Rough Weather.
The Weather Continued To Be Bad Even On The New Year's Day On January 2nd The Waves Were Huge
Endless Big Waves Came Rolling Towards Them The Wind Simply Screamed

Precautions

To Slow The Boat Down, They Dropped The Storm Jib
They Tied Heavy Ropes Across The Stern (Backside Of Boat)
They Attached The Lifelines, Put On Oilskins And Life Jackets
The First Sign Of The Coming Disaster Came At About 6:00 PM The Wind Dropped The Sky Grew Dark .
Then Came A Growing Roar That Changed Into A Thunder
A Tremendous Explosion Took Place
It Shook The Deck A Wall Of Green And White Water Broke Over The Ship

Wavewalker Near Capsizing

Narrators Head Crashed Into The Wheel
Accepted His Approaching Death
Waves Tossed Him Around The Deck
His Left Ribs Cracked, And His Mouth Was Filled With Blood And Broken Teeth
He Was Losing Consciousness And Wavewalker Was Near Capsizing
Suddenly His Wife Appeared And Cried We Are Sinking
Larry And Herb Were Pumping Like Madmen
Clothes, Crockery, Charts, Tins And Toys Lay Scattered In Water
He Crawled Into The Children's Cabin
They Were Safe Only Sue’s Head Was Swollen She Had A Deep Injury
The Entire Night Was Spent In Pumping And Repairing
By Morning On January 3, The Pumps (Electric Pump) Kept The Water Level Under Control
They Could Rest For Two Hours In Rotation

Search For An Island

There Was Still A Big Leak Below The Waterline
Boat’s Rib Frames Were Smashed
They Had Survived For 15 Hours Since The Waves Hit Them
But Wave Walker Could Not Hold Together Long Enough For Them To Reach Australia
The Narrator Checked Their Charts He Calculated That There Were Two Small Islands A Few 100 Kilometers To The East
One Of Them Ile Amsterdam Was A French Scientific Base Their Only Aim Was To Reach There
However, The Great Wave Had Put The Supportive Engine Out Of Action
On January 4th, The Water Level Could Be Contained They Could Not Set Any Sail On The Main Mast
But They Hoisted The Storm Jib And Headed For The Two Islands
They Ate Their Meal After Almost Two Days At 4 Pm Black Clouds Were Building Up Behind Them
Wind Was Back To 40 Knots And The Seas Were Getting Higher .
The Weather Remained Rough Throughout The Night, Situation Remained Same By Morning On January 5th
The Narrator Went In To Comfort The Children. The Narrator Tried To Assure His Son But Jon Said We Aren't Afraid Of Dying If We Can All Be Together. The Narrator Was Speechless
Narrator And His Wife Felt That Their End Was Very Near. Wavewalker Rode Out The Storm And Narrator Rechecked His Own Calculations.
And Could Expect To See Island At About 5 Pm On January 6th Evening

Safe Landing

The Son Jonathan Seemed Quite Excited And Wanted To Hug His Father Also Told Him That He Was The Best Daddy In The Whole World.
They Found The Island Ile Amsterdam
The Narrator Rushed To The Deck And Saw Ile Amsterdam Before His Own Eyes
They Anchored Offshore For The Night
The Next Morning All 28 Inhabitants Of The Island Came To Cheer Them