The 'Gitgo' camperandnicholsons.com
When we awoke, I went once again to the library window to view the streets. On this day there were more groups of people passing by. The first group of about ten were even pushing a loaded up shopping cart, well worth the lost two hundred dollar refund now, I thought to myself. Then I saw an older couple, much like the Abbotts, strolling down the lane pulling along only one small suitcase, the man aided by a cane. I wondered if they were heading to Alameda. I rushed out to intercept them at the front gate and walked them to the Abbott’s kitchen, telling them there should be a truck later in the day and they could hitch a ride. Lucille was already up and at the stove cooking beans and slices of potatoes and onions for everyone’s breakfast, the coffee also brewing. So they sat down and enjoyed a meal, thanking us for our kindness.
I asked them how they knew where to go, and they said that two soldiers had come to their door last evening, telling them where to report. There’d be a station at the University Plaza and a bus to carry them to their new residence. The soldiers from the convoy must have fanned out and made some house calls while the governor was with us. I was surprised by the degree of organization and planning already in place. I could see it was a very enthusiastic staff that was carrying this project forward.
“Well if that’s the case you can continue on your stroll after breakfast” I said, “it’s all downhill and less than two miles away. Or you can pass the day here as our guests. The Abbotts and Lucille here will be going there too.”
They decided to pass the morning on the back deck, admiring the tomato plants in bloom, chatting with the Abbott’s about how exciting this all was.
For the rest of us, it was a packing day. We didn’t put out the sign like yesterday or open the Abbott’s front gate as we all wanted to take showers, and with so many of us, that would take several hours. I gave Claire the job of packing for both of us, showed her a row of suitcases to choose from and where my clothes lay. She only had the few that Naomi lent her, so I told her to consult Jane on finding more. I also told her to check through the sections of the two libraries not locked away and pick out some reading matter as it would be a long trip. I mentioned anything to do with sea voyages or sailing, or tropical islands would be best and some bird and animal and plant guides for Scout, along with the binoculars.
I went down to the basement to hear what radio news was coming in. We didn’t receive a call from the mayor’s office before noon, we received Mr. Tanaki himself, honking a horn at the front gate. He was in a jeep with its driver asking me to take a ride to the docks in Oakland where a small coast guard launch would take us to check out some sailboats. They’d already visited a dozen marinas this morning and informed the yachters that if anyone with a boat that could take on eight others wanted provisions and a guide to Tahiti, to assemble at the yacht club in Emeryville.
When I saw the jeep, I asked if Jaime might come along. The two of us climbed in the back. As we drove down the hill and reached the larger avenues the streets were congested with people, pulling their luggage along in groups, all headed north towards the freeway. It looked as if every store window was smashed and the place looted for any valuables, which I thought was a good thing, as anything that might help was better off in people’s hands than sitting uselessly on some shelf.
As the going was slow, I asked Mr. Tanaki to tell us what happened the Saturday before and how they’d made their escape. He said that even before they reached the Hayward airport, his driver had noticed someone following them. Mr. Tanaki tried to call us but his phone was dead, so he knew something was up. On the tarmac, as chance would have it, his plane was being serviced right in front of an open hanger, and they were able to pull up to it with their pilot standing before them. The other car stopped some forty feet behind, and a man with a gun got out and approached them.
“He motioned for my daughter and me to get out of the car and go towards the other vehicle, where that driver had also stepped out with a gun in his hand. But the man was standing too close to the door of my driver who’s also an expert in the martial arts and my bodyguard. He slammed the door open into this man’s side knocking him down and quickly disarmed him while we hurried to crouch in front of our car. The man forty feet away saw that he was outnumbered, jumped into his car and drove off, without a single shot fired.”
“My driver now handed the gun to our pilot and dragged the man into the hanger and out of my daughter’s sight. My pilot told me that our plane was fuelled and ready to go. Five minutes later my driver returns to us with bloody knuckles and tells us that the man is Russian and that some sort of attack is coming soon. At this very moment, the loudspeakers from the tower blare out that the airport is being locked down. It was at this point that I made a hard choice, but without a plane, I would be powerless to help anyone, so I instructed my pilot to take the three of us on board and to take off. And it was lucky I did. Just as we reached our altitude, my pilot informed me that all communications with the coastal airports had ceased and that some of our navigational equipment stopped functioning. But my pilot was well skilled and had flown this route many times. As we approached Tahiti, their tower reached us, and they brought us in safe and sound.”
“I’m glad you made it away” I said, “but how on earth did you ever get back in touch with us four days later?”
“When we arrived it was already late, so we spent the night at my residence in Papeete. The next morning, as we were fuelling the boat to take us to our island, a messenger comes and tells us that there’s been a nuclear strike on America and that the world is at war. My first concern was the safety of my daughter, so we hastily set off for my island, some four hours away. But after two days of putting everything in order there, my mind couldn’t bear to stop thinking of your fates and that of the rest of the world. I owed you a deep debt of gratitude for my daughter’s life, and honor would not allow me to forget it. So I returned to Papeete alone and hired five shortwave radio operators to spend day and night scouring the waves for any news from the west coast.”
“Five” I exclaimed in disbelief, “how many ham sets do you have out there?”
“Hundreds, my good friend. It wasn’t until ten years ago that we had the satellites for good cell phone communication. Before that it was all shortwave, and luckily, we were out of range of your EMP blasts. In fact, on our return flight here I brought your good governor another twelve sets in working order. He was very grateful for that. And it was on the second day of this quest that one of my operators told me they were in contact with a ‘Roland house’. Even as I took the mike and heard Naomi’s voice, I was overjoyed and resolved at that moment to rescue you, whatever the costs or danger.”
It was at this point in his account that we pulled up to the quay. The launch was there waiting for us and also the strange character I’d seen the evening before, the sailor, with the same grim look on his face, with the same hat, the same clothes. He had a large, green duffel bag strapped over his shoulder. He looked quite fit standing there, weathered and tanned, in his mid-fifties, with a flock of gray hair below the cap as if he’d spent most of those years at sea.
“This is the man whom I trust to sail us back to Tahiti,’ Mr. Tanaki said, as we approached the figure, ‘his name is Higgins. He’s from Australia.”
“Yes I am” he replied, “and from a long and proud line of criminals and sailors, I might add.”
We boarded the launch and set off with four coast guard men in charge. Soon we were approaching the Emeryville marina. There were already several large craft bobbing in the water, moored right near the entrance where they had been instructed to assemble. I could see other white sails in the bay heading towards us as if they too wanted to compete for the prize.
As we drifted past the first of these boats, admiring their lines, I thought I could see a look of disappointment in the faces of their occupants as they stared back at us from the cockpits. But it was no contest. We glided past a half dozen fifty and sixty foot long sailboats, all of them beautiful, yet one stood out like a jewel. It was ninety feet long. We drew up to the side and asked permission to come aboard. The crew welcomed us, a man and a woman in their early forties, I guessed, and two younger men my age.
Mr. Higgins boarded first, up the rope ladder. It was his objective to inspect the craft and see if she were seaworthy. Mr. Tanaki followed and then Jaime and I. While the owner led the others on a tour I sat down in the cockpit and talked to the woman. Her name was Helen. She told me her husband’s name was Dan Rutherford, and the deckhand who stayed behind with us was ‘Tom’.
“This is quite an amazing craft” I started. “Why haven’t you sailed away already?”
“Our GPS is down and we have no destination, that is until we heard of your offer this morning. We can accommodate at least another ten people. We have six double cabins, luxurious, each with their bathrooms and the forecastle which sleeps four. I have two children who will be joining us and also several friends who want to come along. But if they can’t fit on this craft, there’s another large boat that can sail alongside.”
“I think we may have a deal if Mr. Higgins agrees. By the way, how old are your children?”
“We have a thirteen-year-old boy and a ten-year-old daughter.”
“Perfect” I immediately replied, “we also have a ten-year-old girl in our party. Maybe they’ll be good friends. Why aren’t they here?”
She pointed to a sailboat moored next to theirs. I could see two children on deck waving back at us as she waved.
“We didn’t know what sort of party you might be” she explained. “We were expecting older, affluent people planning to escape all this mess and some of them dislike children. You know how fussy they can be. So we planned to have the children sail with our best friends, the Herberts, and follow us in the other yacht if that was the case.”
“You must be pretty well off yourselves to afford such a large vessel” I said.
“We are now, but it wasn’t always so. We were quite poor when we married. It wasn’t until our son Christopher was five years old that my husband’s company started turning a profit. But after that, it took off. When Apple decided to buy us out three years ago, we had this beauty built and christened her the ‘Gitgo.’ We entertain friends all summer and sail around the bay. The farthest we’ve sailed is Monterey. I probably shouldn’t be telling you that, but we are outfitted for the longest voyage. In fact, we were planning on sailing to Hawaii before all this happened.”
At this point Tom spoke up. “This boat is equipped with the very best gear, a water purifier, solar panels and a wind-powered autopilot. But what about the GPS? How can we navigate?”
Mr. Higgins resurfaced to the cockpit, with a faint smile upon his face.
“She’ll do. She’s a new boat, but I won’t hold that against her. She’s in good order.”
He must have overheard our last exchange because the next thing he did was answer Tom’s question.
“We have charts, nautical maps for all the Polynesian islands and reefs and also a sextant, a compass and two trusty old timepieces. I don’t need your electronic gizmos. I can sail this craft anywhere. I’m the navigator.”
“How could you possibly have nautical maps to where we’re headed?” Dan burst out.
“Why, I was just there yesterday. There’s plenty of maps of Tahiti in Tahiti, and we brought them along for this trip.”
Mr. Tanaki broke in, “he was, indeed, there yesterday and we have all we’ll need to guide the ship. I traded a Learjet for the use of your boat, and I hope you’ll see by that act my commitment to this voyage. The coast guard pilot can tell you of my agreement with the governor. You’ll get all the food and fuel necessary for the expedition. Once we arrive at my island off Tahiti, you’ll be our welcome guests for as long as you want to stay. We have provisions there enough for all your crew, for months on end.”
Our boat owner was won over. He immediately agreed, shaking Mr. Tanaki’s hand and then ours. The coast guard pilot asked him for the list and said it would be delivered later today. We waited while he made it and I told him we’d return in the morning, the whole group of us, with our luggage and that if we could set sail by midday that would be great. I also mentioned that all of us joining him were young and in good shape and expected to pull our weight in managing the craft, once we learned the basics of seamanship under Mr. Higgins tutelage.
“And darling” Mrs. Rutherford broke in, “they have a child, a girl Chrissie’s age. The children can sail with us. Isn’t this wonderful.”
“But tell your friends, the Herberts, they’re welcome to sail along with us if they think their boat is seaworthy. I don’t see why any of these sailboats can’t tag along on this trip” I said. “It’s a free ocean, and Mr. Tanaki tells us life is already back to normal on the islands. They were outside the range of the blasts, and I doubt that the major powers of the world are interested in them if there is an ongoing war. The islands would be a haven to ride out the storm.”
“Mr. Tanaki, don’t you agree?”
“We’ll have to put that question to Mr. Higgins” he replied.
“So now we’re making it a flotilla” Higgins said. “I’m good with that, though it will slow us down. Tell each vessel planning to join us to lay in a large supply of flares so we can stay together. We’ll have to drop sail each night to regroup. I won’t be going chasing after everyone who gets lost. Those are the conditions. Take it or leave it.”
“Tom” I said, “could you be so good as to inform the people on these other yachts that they’re all welcome to sail along with us tomorrow?”
“I’d be happy to bring them such good news” was his reply.
“And Ken, that list your making, we have ‘carte blanche’ on the governor’s express orders. Make it a large one in case any of these other boats need supplies.”
With this matter settled we boarded the launch and set off back towards the Oakland port authority. Even before we rounded the point, I could see Tom lowering the dinghy into the water and rowing towards a group of yachts.
As the little craft bounced up and down upon the gentle waves of the bay, the thought recurred of what I’d said to the first people on pilgrimage to the central valley the morning before: “Travel in groups. It’s safer that way.”
