Ode to the James Caird

Set course due north, into the rolling seas,
The James Caird and her intrepid six,
Against the deep and its towering freeze,
Voyage towards their expedition’s fix.
The vessel mained and mizzened to withstand
The Southern Ocean’s violent gales,
She navigates the cold, wet wasteland
Keeled against Poseidon’s careless wrath,
Cutting through on deftly maneuvered sails
Desperately keeping a perilous path.

At helm, at sail, at bailing water out,
The six sojourners make quick through the sea.
The Caird holds fast, a haven strong and stout,
A trustworthy friend when from danger they flee.
She challenges the mountainous waters
That circumnavigate ‘round the Drake,
Protecting these vulnerable yachters
From an anonymous watery grave.
Though bent and wet her will does not break,
Her mission to deliver the six, the brave.

The southern winds whip their frozen spray,
Driving her down with a burden of ice.
Desperate to avoid being blown astray,
Trapped between storm and rocks, her own vise,
The Caird makes way through the briny deep,
Spotting clues of land amidst the storm.
Her crew wide-eyed due to lack of sleep,
They spot the rising peak of promised land.
Through the wind and surge its shape takes form.
For the Caird and her six, deliverance is at hand.