Day 31 ~ In which we go 'round the Horn!'

 February 9, 2022

Familiarity with danger makes a brave man braver, but less daring. Thus with seamen: he who goes the oftenest round Cape Horn goes the most circumspectly. - Herman Melville

I'm a huge fan of the movie Master & Commander at the Far Side of the World.  The dire conditions endured by the captain and crew of the HMS Surprise are the stuff of cinematic adventure writ large. I thrilled to the scene where the captain orders all hands to one side of the ship, to keep her from toppling in the gale. Clinging to the rail, the Surprise surged forward as her crew lent their weight to the authority of the ship's rudder. I wept at the need to cut a wrecked mast free to save the Surprise, and with it, the hope of a sailor who'd been swept overboard. It's a wildly exciting tale to watch.

Not so much to live through, I expect.

The Horn is a notorious ship-killer.  At the 56th latitude south, there is nothing to stop the wind from whipping around the planet unimpeded by any land mass. I've heard there is about a 3 foot difference in elevation between the Atlantic and Pacific, so those two great oceans smack together with violence. Ninety-eight foot waves have been recorded in the 500 mile wide Drake Passage. Sailing around the Horn solo is roughly the nautical equivalent of climbing Mount Everest. It's not a place to sail blithely into.

Fortunately, our Captain Olaf is one of those seamen who are brave, yet circumspect. We had the balmiest of weather possible for our cruise around Isla Horn. There is a logic to making this trip. It is safest accomplished by traveling from west to east, which we did. 

To my surprise, Cape Horn is not the toe-like protuberance of Tierra del Fuego. It's an island, the southernmost one between South America and Antarctica. It should be listed in Webster's next to the word "desolate." Yet it is not lifeless. We didn't see any marine animals, but around the island and sometimes on its rocky beaches, there are reputedly sea lions, elephant seals and leopard seals (the wolves of the sea!)

There are also a few people living on Isla Horn. Sergeant George Toros of the Chilean military and his wife and four children are stationed on the island to service the light house there. His tour of duty is for 12 months. I found myself wondering how the family dealt with the isolation. Obviously, the kids are being home schooled, and supplies would need to be ferried in from time to time, but what happens if a child falls down and breaks a leg? Or what if the house develops plumbing or electrical problems? I live such a life of convenience. While the solitude of an island calls to me, sometimes, we need someone else to fill in the skills we lack. 

Now that we have successfully rounded the Horn, Captain Olaf has informed us that the DH is entitled to wear a gold earring in his left ear. And to dine with one foot on the table! (Evidently a mariner who has also rounded the Cape of Good Hope is permitted to eat with both feet on the table. I'd actually pay good money to see the DH try that!)

Since the opening of the Panama Canal, not much shipping traffic braves the Horn. The occasional aircraft carrier, private yacht, fishing boat, or cruise ships are the only vessels we'd be likely to see. That's probably a good thing. 

Not every day in this part of the world is so friendly.

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