Never parley with a squall. Take in sail at once. You can never tell from the appearance of a squall how much wind is in it. The most innocent-looking are generally the most dangerous. I was once on a yacht when a squall appeared that looked more like rain than wind. All hands except the skipper, an old man, decided that it would not amount to much. The skipper, much to our disgust, insisted upon taking all sail off. We had scarcely got the canvas lowered and gasketed before the squall struck, and laid the yacht over on her side and kept her there until the blast had spent itself. The force of the blow was terrific; probably the air was traveling at the rate of 70 or 80 miles an hour. A large lumber-laden schooner close to had her foresail blown clean away and lost part of her deck load. This taught me a lesson I have never forgotten.
Squalls:
If becalmed, at the approach of a squall, get the vessel headed toward the point you expect the blast to come from, so that the wind will strike her bow on, and not on the broadside. If the squall looks to be a lasting one, anchor, if in shallow water.
Squalls, time of:
Squalls on the seacoast generally come off at either high or low water. If they come between tides they are apt to be bad ones. If your feelings or the barometer tell you a squall is likely to come off, carefully watch inshore for the appearance of the wind. White squalls—that is, sudden blows unaccompanied by cloud or rain, are the most likely to catch you napping. They sometimes precede a sudden change of wind. If you see the water suddenly whiten inshore, look out for trouble, and lower all sail at once.
Squall, struck by a:
If struck by a sudden squall, let go your main throat halyards first—not the peak. By keeping the peak up you will be able to luff the boat; letting go the throat will relieve her until you can get in the wind and get your sail down and muzzled. If you cannot get your sail down, get her off before the wind and haul your mainsail flat amidship; then steer so as to bring the wind dead aft. This will split the force and give you a chance to take in sail.
Tides:
The time of the tide has much to do with the strength of the wind in sounds, bays, and channels. If a morning flood brings in the wind it will usually blow all day. Ebb tide in the morning is apt to produce calm or light winds during the summer months on our Eastern seaboard. Thunder squalls are also affected by the condition of the tide, coming off land at either high or low water.
