DURBAN - EAST AFRICA – following the dhows south continued. Durban lay just 480 miles further south. We caught the tide as it drained from the Bay of Inhambane and said goodbye to the dhows for this was the last we would see of them. These craft were the trademark of our travels. Ultimately graceful with their sails made of anything possible – some even stitched together maize meal bags - their slender masts creating the perfect foil to power them on their way. Always amazing to watch and in perfect harmony with their surroundings they will remain indelibly printed on my memory. I caught a king mackerel off Torfo as we passed. It made great eating and spirits were high. We made good time to Cabo Das Correntes with the full force of the Mozambican Current pushing us southwards. From here we struck out along the rumbline heading directly for Durban . The breeze was ESE and we were averaging 6 to 7 knots over the ground. More reading and cards passed away the time – with the occasional dolphin sighting to brighten up our day. The miles were flying by and everyone aboard was excited with the good progress we were making towards our ultimate destination. About 70 miles from Cape Vidal the wind died to a flat calm. When it started to fill in and build from the south our situation became less enviable. The wind built to over 30 knots and pushing hard against the current whipped up a short steep very uncomfortable sea – especially for a 35 foot cruising catamaran. We decided to head for the shore for flatter water which proved to be the answer – but 70 miles downwind and 70 miles upwind into a big sea are two different scenarios and at 3.5 knots even with the engines going – it was going to take a good 20 hours. When doing a delivery one can never be sure how well a boat has been maintained and there is always a fear that some small oversight is going to cause a big problem along the line when you least need it. We made slow progress towards the coast under 3 reefs and a reduced Genoa . With the waves on our beam Innisfree shuddered as the white water crashed against her freeboard. One wave landed in the dingy and nearly ripped it off its davits breaking the pulley system that secured it. Another nearly swept the dingy motor off the mounting bracket on the stern. The bows were plunging deep into the waves and I guess it was inevitable that some damage was to be inflicted. Both the forward tramps split along a welded seam and on the port side the aluminum rail securing the aft edge ripped out of the hull. On reaching the coast it was able to cut it free to prevent further damage. We continued to tack upwind within a mile of the shore and slowly watched the Cape Vidal and Cape St Lucia lights go by. An impressive sight was an overtaking cruise ship. This floating city traveling at over 20 knots seemed not to even notice the conditions that were giving us a lashing. In the glow of its lights you could sea the waves being pulverized by its wave piercing bow – a hot knife through butter. I entertained (a short) thought of what a mess it would be if we were run down by one – do they really check their radars or do they rely on smaller vessels to stay out of their way – makes you think ? I also imagined the old folk aboard sitting down in their dinner dress – wondering if they had any idea of what was going on outside – I am sure the answer was - NO ! We were later to learn that what we were experiencing was a typical coastal low pressure system. Little did we know that there was another one on the way ! Dawn broke and we had reached Richards Bay in a gentle mist and dead calm. We dodged the anchored tankers and soon the North East had filled in again. We had only 85 miles to go. Hump back whales breached to keep us amused and 30 miles before Durban I cooked up a barbeque chicken in chutney and mayonnaises baste. Yummy! Further south the sky was dark and we wondered if there was something else in store for us – this was almost like our fight with ‘the one that got away!’- two steps forward one back. A perfectly formed cigar like cloud was approaching against the 20 knot North Easter. Ahead of us we could see the spray being whipped off the waves. We reefed down in anticipation. The expected blast did not arrive immediately as we passed through the centre of the low but on the other side it came through strongly at close to 30 knots from the south. At this stage we were about 5 miles off the bluff and I contacted Durban radio for clearance to enter the harbour. I was informed to wait to the east of the entrance until a slot to enter the harbour was available. We did so and as we waited the southerly got stronger and sea condition deteriorated. We doused the flogging sails and were just able to maintain our position head to wind under motor. I wasn’t particularly comfortable with our situation and at the back of my mind I kept thinking we would be better off in the shelter of the beachfront. The possibility of having an engine problem and getting in the way of the tankers moving in and out of the harbour was clearly a concern and potentially very dangerous. A large MSC tanker took on a pilot by helicopter and headed up the channel towards the harbour. Soon after it disappeared, another dark shape blocked out the backlights of the city as another tanker started to leave the port. I kept thinking we were vulnerable and “what if he turned to starboard.” Seconds later my fears were confirmed and we had a super tanker on a collision course. In a flash I yelled to the crew to unfurl the Genoa and to hoist the mainsail and we started to head towards the shore across the shipping channel. The tanker had altered course out of the channel and was heading straight for us. It was quite nerve racking and thankfully I had anticipated the situation well in advance so we were able to scoot to safety. Once in the lee of the shore and the high rise buildings the sea was flatter and we approached the breakwater from the Vetchies Beach side. Shortly before we were due to enter the channel, Durban radio informed us that we needed to wait another half an hour to enter. I radioed back saying that this was not very convenient and that we were almost in the channel and had restricted maneuverability. “We were coming in – hell or high water!” We must have tacked 20 times going up the channel which barely takes a width of a super tanker. The southerly was whistling through the rigging and the little 20 Hp Yanmar engines were battling to keep us going in the right direction. It took some time to make our way forwards but soon enough we were heading down to the Point Yacht Club Marina. Approaching our intended anchorage just off the ‘walk-ons’ the starboard engine cut out as we picked up a floating piece of polypropylene berthing hawser. With no time to resolve the situation we were committed to a ‘do or die’ maneuver. Luckily our position allowed us to approach under one engine and drop anchor without having to maneuver at all. After dragging the anchor towards a line of anchored boats for a nerve racking few seconds, the line eventually pulled taught and relieved we were able to put down our weary heads and sleep for a few hours. We had arrived in Durban - following the dhows south from Tanzania . We had seen beautiful places and people en route, caught a few fish and got a sun tan. The approaches to Durban had proved challenging to last metre. As they say in the classics, “It’s never over until the fat lady sings”.
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