The Viking Sky was in the news recently because it had run into dangerously rough seas in a shallow bay. There are many You-Tube videos of furniture and people on the Viking Sky dealing with the effects of the seas. I had already been puzzling through the sea state we had encountered in September 2016 on the Viking Star. Until this recent incident with the Viking Sky, our journey on the Viking Star may have been the worst Viking had suffered through. The storm we endured was quite short in time – less than 24 hours. We had been told that we had 60-foot waves and 90 miles an hour winds. Later I would wonder if that was even possible. Was it really 60-foot waves and 90 miles an hour winds, or was it 90-foot waves and 60 miles an hour winds?
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| View from 5th Deck of Viking Star After Storm |
Friends had taken the same route on the Viking Star in 2017 and had also encountered rough seas and some damage to the ship and tenders. We had talked briefly about our experiences in the past, but when Bill and Roberta joined us on the Viking Sun this year for part of our trip, we had more time to discuss the details. Bill is a retired sea captain, so his opinion was something I really value.
Bill was reluctant to state an opinion on the sea state. The official call of the sea state is made by the Captain of the ship. There is no scientific method of accurately measuring sea state from a vessel– the final decision on sea state is based on the Captain’s experience and judgment. When I asked Bill if I could have the numbers on sea state versus wind reversed, he said it didn’t matter. The numbers were so high the accuracy didn’t matter.
After Bill and Roberta headed back home, I did some more research on sea states to try to understand better what Bill meant. And shortly after the incident with the Viking Sky, we happened to have lunch with Robin Petch, the Wildlife Expert on the Viking Sun. Robin’s first assignment with Viking was on that Viking Star cruise in 2016. I asked Robin what he remembered about the seas and winds. He couldn’t remember the exact numbers, but he said he remembered that the sea-height was over 40 feet, and the winds were hurricane force.
Sea State
The height of a wave is measured from the trough (lowest point) to the crest (highest point). The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) collects data on wave heights from buoys scattered across the oceans. These are considered to be the most accurate measurements, but they aren’t everywhere. So the WMO also collects sea state data from ships all over the world to augment their data and calculations about sea states. According to Bill, these inputs from the vessels provide critical real-time adjustments to the data supplied to every vessel. The data from the ships is based on the judgment and experience of the Captain. But when the ship is moving up-and-down with huge waves, it is much harder to make an accurate assessment.
On this trip on the Viking Sun, we have experienced the “very rough” range of waves several times. On the Viking Star, our Sea State code would have been “phenomenal” — essentially over the top of the chart! So now I understand why Bill said it didn’t matter if it was 60 feet or 90 feet. Based on what Robin remembered, though, the lower number had to have been the waves because 60 mph winds are below hurricane strength.
Winds
Living on the Gulf Coast for over 30 years has made me very familiar with the Saffir-Simpson Scale for hurricane winds. The categories range from 1 to 5, with 5 having the highest winds and the highest potential for massive damage. Still, a Category 1 storm that is very wide and very slow can cause more harm than a narrow and fast hurricane from a higher category. The descriptions of the categories are from the National Hurricane Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Although I vaguely remembered the talk about “hurricane-force winds,” I have become so used to higher winds in hurricanes that a “Cat 1” wind level didn’t stick in my memory as much as the 90 mph number.
Slipping and Sliding
Does everyone on the ship feel the effects of rough seas and high winds the same? No. It matters where you are on the ship. The Viking Ocean ships are relatively small – 8 decks up (numbered 1-8) and 2 decks down (a and b). The lower the deck the less you are affected by the rolling of the ship. The effect is similar to an earthquake in a tall building. Small quakes may only be felt on the top floors of skyscrapers while people are the ground don’t even know anything is happening.
Most of the videos I saw of the Viking Sky were from the Explorer Lounge on Deck 7. The Explorer Lounge has mostly smooth floors with padded chairs and couches that are reasonably lightweight. While sitting in the Explorer Lounge with 16-foot waves, the chairs would slide a few inches to one side and then swing back a few inches the other way. On other decks, the furniture pretty much stayed in place with the same 16-foot waves.
On the Viking Star in 2016, we were in a restaurant on Deck 1 when the storm hit. The dining tables, chairs, and people in the chairs were sliding maybe a foot or two and then would swing back. Wine racks crashed to the floor at the far aft end of the restaurant, but the experience was more unnerving than hazardous. Later we heard that the response from the waiters near the wine racks was, “We never trained for this!”
After dinner, we decided to go to our room rather than to the theater on Deck 2. On Deck 5, things were sliding around much more than on Deck 1. We put the bathroom tumblers and soap-dish in the bathroom sink. We put our water carafe and glasses inside our trash can. When the storm was over, none of these items in our room were broken. The next morning we heard from others who had done the same were not so lucky. I peeked through the window at times to see the storm, but most of the night, we just stayed in bed and rocked back and forth.
After the Storm
In the morning, all was calm. I went out and took photos. The divider between our outside deck area and our neighbors was gone. Later we noticed that several of these had blown away in the storm. We went up to the 7th Deck World Cafe for breakfast. Many of the crew were seasick and exhausted after their experiences through the night. The World Cafe was nearly deserted. Many of the dishes and glasses were broken in the storm. But that had all been cleaned up before morning. The waiters in the Pool Grill and Bar were very proud that none of their glasses were broken (all plastic!).
We traveled on and missed some ports because of bad weather but finished our journey.
Windy
Now we travel with the Windy App (https://www.windy.com), so we can see for ourselves what the winds, waves, and swells are and what we are heading into. We are learning we can walk (carefully) with 16-foot waves, but limit our movement. Bad weather is part of life and traveling.
#myvikingjourney
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