4 on sailboat barely survive Lake Tahoe storm; South Shore marina loses rental boat
A rental boat at Camp Richardson capsizes May 7. Photo/Bob Sweatt
By Kathryn Reed
A skipper with 30 years of experience on Lake Tahoe was barely able to make it to shore safely on Wednesday because of the 4 to 8 foot waves.
Mike Young of Incline Village left Obexer’s in Homewood about 2pm May 6 destined for Incline Village, but wound up at Camp Richardson about 7pm. By that time all four on board the vessel had their lifejackets on, the Coast Guard had been called and uncertainty was setting in.
“We were pretty close to the East Shore. We saw one little squall coming across the west to Incline and thought it would blow by and we would be good,” Young told Lake Tahoe News. “But it filled up fast.”
Someone on shore alerted Young that the waves were high and the wind was howling so it would best to try to land elsewhere.
Young wasn’t worried about whether the boat could handle the storm; he just needed a place to dock.
He called the U.S. Coast Guard when he was off Zephyr Cove.
“They said when you are in trouble, call us and we will send a helicopter,” Young said.
The Coast Guard, which is stationed in Tahoe City, said the boat was not in distress. Uncertainty, alert and distress are the three levels of search and rescue, according to the USCG. Because the boat was able to sail, it did not need rescuing, according to USCG protocols.
“We are not allowed to give navigational advice,” Thomas Hussey, USCG boatswain’s mate second class, told Lake Tahoe News. This is because if the vessel does not make it, the Coast Guard does not want to be held liable.
Hussey said it was from Camp Richardson personnel that they heard the boat was going to moor there.
Young said the decision was made to head south because that was the direction the wind was coming from.
He turned the sailboat around. At first shelter was found at a cove near D.L. Bliss State Park. Waves were 3 to 4 feet going across the lake. Then he tried to find a nearby buoy, but was unsuccessful so he headed toward the mouth of Emerald Bay.
A call to Camp Rich was made and people there said it was not windy. But that didn’t last.
Bob Hassett, who runs Camp Rich Marina, said in a one-hour period the wind at Lake Tahoe Airport measured 5 mph from the southwest and then it was variable before having gusts of 30 mph out of the northeast.
“That is abnormal,” Hassett told Lake Tahoe News of the 180-degree change. “Then it churned the lake. The waves were from one direction, wind from another and that is where you have troubles.”
By the time Young, who was under motor power for this stretch, made his way to the South Shore resort the wind had done the 180 and he said waves reached 8 feet at times.
Camp Rich employees went out in a skiff to retrieve the four from the sailboat. While Hassett said he doesn’t like to put employees in harms way, not helping wasn’t an option. Young was appreciative of all the assistance the Camp Rich guys provided.
For now the sailboat is on a buoy; waiting for the weather to clear so it can be sailed to its home part in Incline.
In addition to Hassett’s employees assisting with rescuing the four sailboaters, Hassett lost one of his rental motorboats and another was damaged, but is salvageable. New, the boat costs between $30,000 and $50,000.
Still, the marina operator said he would open for business May 15.
C’mon Kae, every sailor here, even old former ones like me, want to know what type and size the boat is. Otherwise, why read the story?
Once he safely reached a sheltered cove like at Bliss and Emerald Bay, my opinion is, his safest course would be to have sat it out and wait. There is no boat too big to sink in the right conditions and errors and if someone at Camp Rich talked to him and told him, as reported, there was “no wind” and then the wind came up to a full on gale with 8-10 foot waves, it is pure negligence not to have warned the incoming boat to avoid it if they knew he was trying to come in to dock. The Coast Guard, as reported, “doesn’t give advice” and waits for trouble is simply outlandish if true and they should revise their rules as they should have the standard government immunity most agencies do and should have given instruction to stay at the closest safe harbor.
agree, copper. this story, devoid of that info, has a lazy feel to it…
Justice:”. . . they should have the standard government immunity most agencies do and should have given instruction to stay at the closest safe harbor.”
When Ms Dogula awakes from her afternoon nap she’s going to have a comment that, for the first time ever, I’ll agree with.
I don’t think skipper has ever seen a 8 foot wave
Thanks to the Camp Richardson folks for helping out in this situation. Bob should be proud of his employees.
Emerald Bay is the place I would be.
Used to sail a Catalina 26′ (as I recall), out of San Diego. Very much a fair weather sailor. After moving up here and looking at the lake in foul weather, I can see why things could get quite alarming for any typical sloop. Very short and choppy, being thrown all over the place. Not being able to get good anchorage on a lee shore courts disaster. In this case the lee shore switched. Cudos to Camp Rich. Ware the boom and ready about.
a wild and crazy weather day !!
I agree with Buck, E Bay would have been safe from the large waves building out on the lake.
It can still get very windy in E Bay but at least the waves can’t get too large in there.
What length and make of boat ??
arghhhh! Cpt kiwi Steve .ahappy endings always good.
Anyone know, with the draught, how much water in the Emerald Bay entrance? I recall it being pretty shallow (although well out of reach of my 3′ keel) during the last draught. I question the 8 foot waves, but troughs anywhere near that with a deep keel (since we haven’t yet learned the size – the thing could be a tall ship for all anyone here has learned) trying for Emerald Bay with its shallow entrance, swirling winds and iffy moorings might have been a bad choice.
I’ve been caught out in the lake in high winds and it gets scary real fast. Water coming over the bow and the bilge pump going full time.
White knuckle boating on Lake Tahoe! OLS
I find it quite disturbing that the Coast Guard didn’t provide assistance. I supposed I understand them not giving out navigational advice because of liability issues. But did the skipper use the international distress call of “mayday, mayday, mayday” ? If he did that and the Coast Guard didn’t come out then what the heck are they good for? However, if the skipper was too proud to call mayday, well then anything that happens is on him. Glad to hear everyone is safe though.
Wasn’t the weather forecast predicting wind, rain & snow for the day? Spring is typically a tricky time of year. Unstable weather patterns are quite common.
Given the drought, I would not try to go into Emerald Bay with a fixed keel, unless I had assurance of the depth. The guy did alright.
I remember back in the late 80’s going on a Champagne cruise with the Lake Tahoe Wine Association when the lake suddenly turned into a swirling ocean. We were on Harrah’s 45′ boat out of Round Hill Pines. Destination was the Hyatt for dinner to be followed by an evening cruise back to So. Shore. It got so bad everyone (approx 30pp) was crammed inside as waves were breaking over the bow. After several hours of battling what were surely 8ft + waves we landed safely at North Shore Marina. Women were weeping as they kissed the dock. Harrahs sent busses to get us back home as no one was getting back on board that night!
So glad Mike and his crew were safe. I know that must have been a frightening day. Many thanks to the brave folks at Camp Rich who felt an obligation to help. Serious questions about the Coast Guard. So they only wait until there are bodies to pluck out of the water? Everyone afraid of liability can be a sure path to disaster.