It all changed so fast... [E359]
November 30, 2025 · 20 min · 2K views · Hog Cay, Ragged Islands
What this video covers
A headsail halyard fitting fails mid-passage when an aluminum crimp on a stainless wire — taped over and never inspected — fractures, blowing out the top of the headsail and forcing Alex and Cory to motor toward Ragged Island under mainsail only.14:52 Minutes later, Wildly Intrepid grounds hard on a sandbar in rapidly shoaling water — the worst grounding on the boat to date.16:44 At low tide with the mainsail unable to draw at the wind angle, Cory deploys the dinghy to heel the boat off; it works.16:13 The crew anchors at Ragged Island and Little Ragged Island, then finds conditions too rolly at Fragonard Island and returns the two hours north to Hug Cay.19:25 Earlier in the passage, the family spends an extended stay at Hug Cay in the Ragged Islands, hiking trails across the island, spearfishing hogfish and triggerfish near the cut north of Hog Cay where reef sharks close in aggressively, paddleboarding along protected cliffs, and gathering conch. A sea turtle repeatedly scratching its back on the keel and rudder in 16 feet of water produces alarming banging noises below.6:59 The halyard failure traces directly to taping over a corroding dissimilar-metal crimp connector, which trapped moisture and accelerated the failure.18:56
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