Now to find out how good a sailor I am!

[Detnor]

Keep busy rather than just trying to wait for the time to pass, cool fresh air if you can, watch your surroundings, helps keep the mind occupied. Having spent a long time working on ships, there is no magic solution, although some medication can move you from the rail into the disco!

 

[Chris]

We had quite a bad trip from Santander a few years back.

My wife and daughter were very sick.

I felt sick but wasn’t but I did leave a full pint of lager which isn’t like me.

 

[SIFTA SAM]

My Dad was a stoker in the Royal Navy for many years and always took a few days to get his sea legs back and I grew up on horrendous stories of the Bay of Biscay. I don’t think stabilisers had been invented in those days. He liked rum as I think that tasted much the same coming up as going down. I don’t know how you spell it but he also made Kai or cai which was a delicious chocolatey gooey drink from condensed milk , cocoa or chocolate. Happy days.

Kai was a must during the night Watches.
I always felt sorry for the stokers at sea, having to spend long periods well below decks in noisy and smelly compartments, in addition to getting Drafted (posted) from ship to ship.

 

[Spriddler]

When on the Jubilee Sailing Trust tall ships they recommended Stugeron to prevent seasickness as we would often sail in rough seas and some needed them.

I've sailed about a dozen times as a Watch Officer on the square rigger 'Sir Winston Churchill' around the U'K., to the Canary Islands and to the Azores with 17 of the 51 crew, all 15 to 18yrs old in my watch. Many had never been at sea. One lad from Bolton who had been sent by the Court had never even seen the sea. When seasickness struck them even the very poorly girls behaved stoicly and as a team, helping and encouraging each other. Most of the guys were complete wimps.
On an early trip we had run into some really bad weather for 18 hours en route to Lisbon. Many of the on-watch and off-watch crew were hanging over the leeward rail with feet awash, throwing up and some sobbing. I shuffled along the side deck providing bottles of water and ginger biscuits whilst holding them steady with my arm across their backs and my hand locked onto the rail the other side of them so that they could remove one hand to take a swig or hold a biscuit. I had headbands for the girls as most had very long hair which blew across their faces becoming horribly messy and upsetting them even more. Anyway, the Purser called me onto the after deck and gave me a right dressing down, telling me that on NO ACCOUNT was any officer to make any contact whatsoever with female crew above their elbows. I must say that rather unnerved me.

 

[scotzsue]

Purser called me onto the after deck and gave me a right dressing down, telling me that on NO ACCOUNT was any officer to make any contact whatsoever with female crew above their elbows. I must say that rather unnerved me.

Interesting you could do what you liked below that level?

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[carolyn]

Honestly, I ate all that chocolate and a full English and then it wasn’t even rough, what a let down. Unless it was rough in the night and I didn’t notice I suppose. I’m not even sure now when the rough bit was supposed to happen.

 

[MikeD]

Honestly, I ate all that chocolate and a full English and then it wasn’t even rough, what a let down. Unless it was rough in the night and I didn’t notice I suppose. I’m not even sure now when the rough bit was supposed to happen.

The rough bit is usually as you cross the Biscay. It's as the waves seem to arrive from the side so the ship has an unfortunate movement.

If the weather has been a bit inclement when we have travelled they usually keep the "pedal to the metal" and belt across that bit.

We have in the past also gone a fair way out to sea to deeper water so the waves are not too steep when they get to the ship.

I think it was forecast at around a 3 metre wave height so pleased you had a good crossing.

 

[EuroTrotters]

God you lot are so mard.

 

[MyrtleGuru]

My Dad was a stoker in the Royal Navy for many years and always took a few days to get his sea legs back and I grew up on horrendous stories of the Bay of Biscay. I don’t think stabilisers had been invented in those days. He liked rum as I think that tasted much the same coming up as going down. I don’t know how you spell it but he also made Kai or cai which was a delicious chocolatey gooey drink from condensed milk , cocoa or chocolate. Happy days.

You are absolutely right. I come from a family of seafarers, some of whom suffered quite badly from seasickness. Most people are fine after about three days at sea ('finding your sea legs', as you say). Unfortunately ferry journeys don't last long enough

I think it is mainly about training your brain to deal with the conflicting information coming from your inner ear (sense of balance) and your eyes. So the old advice about staring at the horizon does often work, whereas below dock you will suffer most: your eyes tell your brain you are in a room that is not moving, while your inner ears tells you something quite different. On one occasion in a storm and at the helm I was fine then, after we got into port and I was on land, I was sick as a dog -- it felt to me that the land was moving.

I have mostly got the hang of it these days, but take some cinnarizine along with me just in case it gets too much.

 

[EuroTrotters]

Here

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[EuroTrotters]

I’m already on wave watch for our ferry on Dec 27 which is on the Cap Finistre, normally we use the Pont Aven which unfortunately does not do the Spanish route this time of year.
If it looks as if it will be too rough then I will change the ferry the day before and drive down through France instead.

Yes it does

 

[Mikeco]

Yes it does

Not as far as I can see, I believe that it finished in November and starts again March time.
It’s either the Cap or the economie one on the schedules.

 

[Larby]

When I did Rally navigating we could do 200 miles at night. I had to work out clues, read the road and collect time controls. I had to look at map and look at road.
I found that an empty bladder and a full stomach was the answer.
Only sick once, a week after my father died.

 

[Jubjann]

Seriously ... I’m almost feeling queasy just reading this thread ?

 

[EuroTrotters]

Not as far as I can see, I believe that it finished in November and starts again March time.
It’s either the Cap or the economie one on the schedules.

She’s finishing a couple of western Chanel trips whilst Baie de Seine and Connomera serves Bilbao and Santander, after her refit.

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[EuroTrotters]

Yes it does

Sorry, I read it as cap finistere.

Yes, pont aven is having a new 4th engine and along with her usual winter duties, will be doing new year / Christmas special cruises

 

[bobandjanie]

Our friends are on the 22.00 from Plymouth tonight but they only go to Roscoff and drive down, ? they got so used to the ferry stopping there because of bad weather. ? Bob

 

[MikeD]

I think the next time Pont Aven sails to Santander is 18th March 2020.