Cape George Auxilliary Coast Guards

We had a very important rescue mission one evening when we were in Nova Scotia. Brent and Jimmy had stopped in at the wharf on their way to pick up the truck when they met Uncle Gerard. We had been summoned to help a poor family that was stranded in the middle of the ocean.

Well, this mission was not for the faint of heart and no-one knew the severity of the situation so of course Brent and Jimmy bee-lined back to the cottage to pick me up, along with my camera. After all - someone needed to be the acting photojournalist.

Uncle Gerard was waiting for us on the boat. The motor was running and the ropes were untied. We quickly jumped on the stern and were off. The time it took to reach the family felt like an eternity. You could feel the tension on the boat as we all prepared for the worst!

Finally after 10 or 15 minutes (I know - they were a long ways out there) we spotted them. The family was huddled together trying to be calm. My camera was ready to capture this miracle in action. The next few minutes was a flury of activity, Jimmy and Brent threw the to-line to the sailboat's port side while uncle gerard checked and rechecked his knots to ensure they would hold. The family frantically rearranged their buoys to ensure the least resistance and damage for the ensuing tow.

Uncle Gerard was ready to bring them in. He revved the motor and started at a steady pace. These waters can change in the blink of an eye - all sea faring folks know this - and so uncle gerard wasn't going to waste a minute. The sailboat's captain in his greenback ways was concerned about the speed. But we all knew that Uncle Gerard's knowledge of the seas was where we were placing our bets.

Our timing was perfect, just as the sun started to drop (an no-one wants to be out on the atlantic at dark) we floated them in port side. Someone was looking out for that family that night!

(You can see how serious the guys are)

(don't the skies look ominous)