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The previous afternoon, as we had approached the mouth of the Rio de la Plata ship channel it became obvious that we would reach Buenos Aires in the middle of the night. Sonny, our captain, decided that in order to avoid that, we would slow to a speed of 1.5 to 2 knots, thereby arriving in Buenos Aires at daybreak. I paid little attention to all this, and went to sleep right after dinner.

When Mark and I went on watch at 0200 it was a beautiful, clear night and the lights of the city up ahead were spectacular. We were moving too slowly for the autopilot to work so we spent our watch with Mark steering manually and looking for flashing red and green navigation lights while I navigated and helped look for those lights. That was harder than it sounds, with all those city lights in the background, some of which were red and green! I took GPS readings and plotted our position every half-hour to be sure we were where we were supposed to be. We also checked the numbers on each navigation light and channel marker we passed and then found them on the chart to verify our position. The channel is not straight, but has a couple of "dog legs," and has two branch channels leading off to the side.

Mark and I both also watched for ships and during the course of our watch had to scramble to get out of the way of three. That was harder than it sounds, too. The channel is only about 100 yards wide in most places and, of course, the big ships like the middle. With our engine running we couldn’t hear them and in the darkness you couldn’t see them except for their running lights, which are red and green, same as the navigation lights. The chart showed quite a number of obstacles and foul areas so Sonny had been adamant in his instructions not to stray outside the channel.

With all the running lights, navigation lights, "dog legs" and side channels against the background of city lights, and trying to avoid getting run over by a ship, staying on course was no easy task. We did well, but it was a busy and tense watch.

When we saw the cutter’s flashing lights and heard the horn we stopped right away. They stopped too, and signaled for us to come alongside. Sonny took the wheel and we turned around and motored up next to them, starboard to starboard. They weren’t happy about that and signaled for us to turn around and come alongside port to starboard, facing the same direction they were. When we did that, they tied us off securely, bow and stern. They didn’t speak much English and none of us was fluent in Spanish but we quickly gathered that they were very upset with us for running the ship channel at night without calling in on the radio for clearance to do so, and especially for poking along at less than 2 knots, interfering with maritime commerce and posing a hazard to navigation. As our captain, Sonny was interfacing with the captain of the cutter, whose body language and facial expressions indicated a high level of agitation. Although I know a little Spanish, I didn’t pick up much of what he said but I heard him use the word "arrest" several times. During all this the cutter started heading toward the harbor with us still tied alongside. After a long discussion and a couple of radio conversations with his base, his mood improved and he decided to let us go, wishing us a good visit to Argentina. They dropped us off just outside the Yacht Club of Argentina, who sent out a man in a launch to lead us in to a slip in their marina. We tied up in our slip just before 0800.

Sonny hadn’t known that he was supposed to radio in for permission to run the channel at night, and thought for a while that he was going to get a stiff fine. They had even threatened to impound the boat, in which case we all would have had to fly home, but it all turned out O.K. Sonny managed to escape with a fine of $50 U.S. and a stern warning to stay the hell out of the channel when we sailed for Rio.

LESONS LEARNED:

Always apply the six P’s: Proper Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance

There is no substitute for good planning.

Before beginning a cruise research all potential ports of call for conditions and

regulations.

Never approach a strange harbor at night unless it is absolutely necessary

A thorough analysis of the chart would have revealed that in spite of obstacles and foul areas, there is plenty of good water to approach Buenos Aires outside the channel, or in a worst case, to anchor for the night.

Poking along at less than two knots in a busy commercial ship channel can be

hazardous to your health; especially at night.

When dealing with authorities, especially in another country, always be courteous, respectful, cooperative and repentant, and there is a good possibility

that they may be lenient with you.

For cruising this region, the following guides may help!

South Atlantic Circuit

Havens and Anchorages Companion to the South Atlantic Circuit

The Patagonia & Tierra Del Fuego Guide

About the Author:

Charley Hester's book, Sailing with Strangers, is now in its second printing. To learn more about his voyage aboard the Sea Wolf III, you'll have to buy the book. You won't regret it! Charley Hester is an experienced sailor and an avid fly fisherman. His article documenting his experience at Cape Horn was published in the July 2003 issue of Sail magazine. He lives with his wife Maureen and daughter Molly in Indiatlantic, Florida, and West Yellowstone, Montana.