If you were to look online for the definition of hunkering, you would see several. Here are a few you might run into:
To squat down and hunch over
To settle in or "dig in" for an extended period of time
Crouching low to minimize the impact of something bad such as weather, a collision, or a coming punishment from human or natural causes
Hunkering is a key life skill as you will learn if you become a boater, a multiday hiker/backpacker, a self-supported bicycle tourist, or any number of similar things where you are exposed to weather or other forces beyond your control. This is a key point - you hunker when you cannot change the circumstances to eliminate the need for hunkering.
Hunkering is not a desirable thing. You’ve reached an uncomfortable place – physically and/or emotionally – when you decide it is time to hunker.
Mary Beth and I are preparing for our first hunkering of this trip. We are anchored in the Berry Islands in the Bahamas. Almost all the anchorages in the Bahamas provide weather protection in a 45 to 90 degree compass bearing. There are very few that have “hurricane hole” protection. The one we are in now has good protection from waves and weather from the NE, E or SE directions. Outside of those it is pretty exposed and it would be very uncomfortable to be anchored in stormy conditions. We would have very large waves and Mary Beth’s crew would not be happy with the Captain.
When icky weather is forecast we often must make a “hunker or run” choice. Keep in mind a sailboat's top speed is about 7 mph – think of a leisurely jog down your street and that would be us at top speed in Regina Maris – so running is mostly not a great choice.
As you’ve guessed by now we are entering hunker time as I write. Winds are forecast to build up to 35 mph soon and stay there for a couple of days. The forecast is for them to stay in that arc I mentioned earlier (NE-SE) which means we’ll have pretty good protection from waves for the duration of the storms. So hunkering is appropriate, however, if our forecast is wrong….
So far so good. Things are getting bit rougher, but remain manageable.
Perhaps after reading this, you may want to hunker down yourself for some reason. Keep in mind that one condition of successful hunkering is chocolate and a good book, so plan accordingly. Mary Beth usually bakes when we are hunkering so it’s often a good choice for me!
Thanks for reading!
David
David