It’s 2am and I’m twenty miles out to sea. It’s my shift so I’m alone in the wheelhouse lit only by the instruments on the helm and staring out at the black sky. If I’m lucky, there’s a moon lighting my way, nature’s flashlight I always say, and I’m grateful for it since I don’t feel so alone when there’s a shimmer on the water letting me see just a tiny bit better. On the radar screen are blips that need to be watched. Some are cargo ships hauling their wares from countries far away. Some are shrimp and fishing boats taking advantage of pelagic nighttime fish. And others, the ones that worry me the most, are tugboats towing barges. They have cables connecting all the pieces that, I’m told, if an inexperienced boater didn’t know about and tried to sneak between, would smash their boat and probably kill their crew.Read more
