Finding Bimo (2/14)

Kat & Bimo almost completely obscured by huge swells.

"Bimo! Bimo!", I raised my radio high up, but not higher than the surrounding waves raging around me.

"Bimo! Bimo!", again I tried.

"YH, please try to get Bimo on the radio." YH was a distance behind and had a closer range to Bimo's last known location.

"Bimo! Bimo! Report!," YH's voice came over the radio.

On the shores of Batan, the advance team was listening to the radio chatter with some amusement and just the right concern. They took time doing some touristy stuff, finding places to pee, munching rations, and taking in the sights.

Sometime around 3.50pm, the advance team decided to head for Basco to set up base to coordinate the possibility of evacuation by boat. They took a further 2 hours of upwind paddling, reaching Basco at 6pm.

I had already stopped paddling and was drifting with the current, waiting for the last kayakers to catch up.

"Bimo! Bimo!", I tried again on the radio.

It was important to stay on the water, as a relay station between the last kayakers and the advance team. At 4pm, I decided to turn back to get a better range on the radio. Bimo was using a 5w radio and might not have heard my 6w unit (which has a longer range) calling him.

I asked Moria if she would follow. In this sea condition, a solo paddler is not quite safe. 

There were 2 possibilities. The most preferred would be that they turned back to Sabtang due to the worsening conditions. The worst case would be they had capsized and drifted helplessly out with the strong currents. 

Knowing them, I knew they could take care of themselves and maintained hopes they made the right choice. But in break contact like this, we just have to assume the worst case scenario. Another fellow paddler would do the same for us next time. So, we kept our paddles on deck and let our kayaks drift down with the currents.

On the way downwind, we met the trio of YH, K, and YK. They had been drifting badly and asked if the evac boat is already on standby. 

"Yes, radio Chan as soon as you need to activate it. Or call Joseph. Head back to Sabtang as it is easier. Its your choice. We are going downwind to re-establish contact with Bimo. Good luck and see you later!", I said and we parted.

At 4pm, all 4 groups of kayakers were still on the water. The advance team was on their way to Basco, the trio was heading north trying to hit E10, and the search pair was drifting south downwind expecting to find Bimo and Kat.