What events could lead you to being stranded?

Lidiya · Mar 2, 2014

I was wondering what events could lead someone to be stranded in the middle of the ocean or an island. I've thought of the following ideas but they're probably pretty implausible:

1. MC is scuba diving near an island and the boat that took her there leaves her stranded.

2. There's a shipwreck.

They're pretty cliche, I know. Correct me before I write a whole novel based on utter speculation

Helix · Mar 2, 2014

Stranded while diving is not at all implausible. It happens from time to time.

Realspiritik · Mar 2, 2014

Lidiya said:
I was wondering what events could lead someone to be stranded in the middle of the ocean or an island. I've thought of the following ideas but they're probably pretty implausible:

1. MC is scuba diving near an island and the boat that took her there leaves her stranded.

2. There's a shipwreck.

They're pretty cliche, I know. Correct me before I write a whole novel based on utter speculation

Just a few weeks ago, we heard about the castaway who says he spent a year adrift before washing ashore on the Marshall Islands.

There's been speculation that Amelia Earhart crashed on a small Pacific island.

Ocean-going yachts sometimes run into serious trouble.

Last fall, a passenger was caught on video as she fell off a cruise ship. (She was intoxicated at the time.)

I think there are quite a few plausible ways your MC could be stranded in the ocean.

Cathy C · Mar 2, 2014

A squall comes up while the diver is underwater or exploring the island, and the anchor isn't strong enough. Poof! Boat gone with the wind.

Lidiya · Mar 2, 2014

Some great ideas, thanks guys!

Cathy C said:
A squall comes up while the diver is underwater or exploring the island, and the anchor isn't strong enough. Poof! Boat gone with the wind.

I really like this idea! I'd like the MC to be separated from her family, with maybe a few other strangers with her left behind. Would they let a 16/17 year old girl scuba dive with another group besides her family?

Also, how big would the boats taking them there be?

Thanks for all the info!

Helix · Mar 2, 2014

You'd have to make it a private trip. It would be a very slack commercial scuba diving outfit that had no one on board to watch for the weather and maintain position in the case of an anchor dragging.

(That's in Aus, where the dive industry is tightly regulated. I don't know what it's like in other parts of the world. We only leave tourists behind occasionally.)

Lidiya · Mar 2, 2014

Helix said:
You'd have to make it a private trip. It would be a very slack commercial scuba diving outfit that had no one on board to watch for the weather and maintain position in the case of an anchor dragging.

(That's in Aus, where the dive industry is tightly regulated. I don't know what it's like in other parts of the world. We only leave tourists behind occasionally.)

I was thinking of setting it in Australia anyway.

How far out do they take the divers out? Would it take long to sent a rescue crew out?

NateSean · Mar 2, 2014

That's a good point. The scuba diving industry would suffer a major drawback if it seemed like the governments of the world didn't send a strong message that said, "Hey! We'd like it if people stopped dying on this supposedly recreational activity."

Lord of the Flies and Castaway both involved a plane crash of some sort. Gary Paulsen's The Hatchet involved being stranded as a result of a plane crash as well.

Also, maybe it's not a commercially sanctioned trip out to sea. Maybe your protagonist hooked up with a bunch of other teenagers. For whatever reason, maybe they hijack someone's motor boat and go blazing into the sunset, even though none of them have any clue how to operate a motor boat. That could be what leads to the poor girl getting stranded.

Cathy C · Mar 2, 2014

There are plenty of kids who live on coasts of all countries who have been diving since they were old enough to swim. I could easily see a few friends who own their own equipment taking a boat out on their own without their parent's knowledge. Teens can have a sense of invincibility so even if there was a forecast of storms, it could be ignored or downplayed. :Shrug:

Just a thought...

Lidiya · Mar 2, 2014

NateSean said:
That's a good point. The scuba diving industry would suffer a major drawback if it seemed like the governments of the world didn't send a strong message that said, "Hey! We'd like it if people stopped dying on this supposedly recreational activity."

Lord of the Flies and Castaway both involved a plane crash of some sort. Gary Paulsen's The Hatchet involved being stranded as a result of a plane crash as well.

Also, maybe it's not a commercially sanctioned trip out to sea. Maybe your protagonist hooked up with a bunch of other teenagers. For whatever reason, maybe they hijack someone's motor boat and go blazing into the sunset, even though none of them have any clue how to operate a motor boat. That could be what leads to the poor girl getting stranded.

I love this idea too -- how easy would it be to hijack a boat?

jaksen · Mar 2, 2014

This happens where I live, a bunch of kids go off on a boat. They're supposed to ask permission from the father-uncle-owner, but they've got eight six packs of beer and figure, hey nobody will know. They get drunk, do stupid things, end up on rocks, whatever ...

Kayakers get stranded, too, sometimes. They're in a marsh or inlet and suddenly find a current dragging them out into the open ocean. Kayakers are in a boat by themselves, though they might be with other kayakers.

I've seen reports of this happening with adult men and women, too. They get taken out to sea, tip over, grab onto a buoy, and hope someone will find them before they drown or freeze to death. They've been reports of losing their phones in the water, etc.

There are many, many small, uninhabited islands up and down the east coast of the US, and I can well imagine it's the same along the coast of Australia, too.

lbender · Mar 2, 2014

A 3 hour tour. The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the ship would've been lost. The ship wound up on the shore of an uncharted desert isle, with whoever you want.

cornflake · Mar 2, 2014

lbender said:
A 3 hour tour. The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the ship would've been lost. The ship wound up on the shore of an uncharted desert isle, with whoever you want.

Goddamnit, beaten to the punch. :gaah

Helix · Mar 2, 2014

Lidiya said:
I was thinking of setting it in Australia anyway.

How far out do they take the divers out? Would it take long to sent a rescue crew out?

In Qld, they take divers out to the outer Great Barrier Reef -- places like Michaelmas Cay and Agincourt Reef are popular. Note that commercial trips to the GBR are licenced and regulated. The whole GBR is a marine park and commercial operators are restricted to mooring at certain spots.

In Western Australia, the most popular reef diving area would be around Ningaloo. It's best known for the whale sharks.

There are numerous popular diving spots along the south coast. (No coral reefs, but plenty of rocky ones.)

Commercial dive operators will take out beginners for lessons, but they usually take a lot of boat staff as well as one or more instructors.

Once they realised that people were missing, they'd send out rescue immediately -- helicopters, planes and boats. Or, more accurately, once the boat staff told the police there was a problem. You could give them a bit more time by having the operators trying to cover their arses by not telling the police, but motoring back out themselves. If the divers have drifted, then it'd take more than one dive boat to relocate them.

One of the problems in trying to strand them on the GBR is that there are relatively few 'safe' (ie sandy cays or rocky continental islands) areas rising above the water. Coral will cut you to pieces. It will slice through neoprene, esp. thin suits. Your divers might only be wearing stinger suits, which are even thinner.

How long do you want to strand them? For a short time, the Whitsunday Group might be fine. The islands are close to the coast, but there's a lot of them. (If you're not sure where they are, look for Airlie Beach on Google Maps and go east and south-east). Another area, which is much less accessible to commercial tours, is the east coast of Cape York Peninsula. This is very remote. (Find Cooktown and head N along the coast.)

If you wanted to lose them forever, send them on a private tour to the islands of the Kimberley in NW Western Australia. Find Broome (or Derby) and head NE.

Watch out for saltwater crocodiles. Sharks. Box jellyfish. Stonefish. Cone shells. Fire coral. And so on.

frimble3 · Mar 2, 2014

Also, if it's a bunch of kids, stealing a boat and out for a joy-dive, maybe the one they left on board 'for safety', decides that everyone else is having fun, why not them? What harm could a quick dip do?

He/she's already in a divesuit, since they chose the 'guard' at the last minute. He/she goes over the side, hey, it's only a few minutes. The wind shifts, the anchor gets dragged, and there's no-one left to sound the alarm.

Until/unless someone notices the drifting boat, or the missing boat, they could be out there a long, long time.

Or, the kid on board doesn't actually know how to start it up, (maybe he's a non-boating, non-diver, just came along to hang with his buds) so once the boat drifts, there's no way to get back to the others.

On the other hand, modern story, if he can get a signal on his little phone, he won't have to try to work the radio to call for help.

Justin K · Mar 2, 2014

Oh I know

Having lived on an island for over a year.. some of the lesser thought of, yet actual reasons people become stranded include..

Bad weather - no boats goin anywhere!
The scheduled boat breaks down.
The boat came but you just missed it - most common.
Financially stranded because you spent all your money.

and for some extraordinary ideas..
You secretly wanted to experience being stranded.
Publicity stunt.
Economic collapse.
It was a peninsula at low tide.
You were abandoned. (Island of the blue dolphins[san Nicholas island]).
A "Water World" scenario.
Modern day Pirates captured your vessel
Disneyland closes before you take the canoe back
Your fedex plane gets lost in a storm and breaks apart
A three hour tour turns catastrophic, somehow
Youre in the matrix

Lidiya · Mar 3, 2014

Helix said:
...

How long do you want to strand them? For a short time, the Whitsunday Group might be fine. The islands are close to the coast, but there's a lot of them. (If you're not sure where they are, look for Airlie Beach on Google Maps and go east and south-east). Another area, which is much less accessible to commercial tours, is the east coast of Cape York Peninsula. This is very remote. (Find Cooktown and head N along the coast.)

If you wanted to lose them forever, send them on a private tour to the islands of the Kimberley in NW Western Australia. Find Broome (or Derby) and head NE.

Watch out for saltwater crocodiles. Sharks. Box jellyfish. Stonefish. Cone shells. Fire coral. And so on.

I think I want to strand them for about a month... maybe have them build a raft and try to get back (how possible would this be?).

Thanks for the in depth answer, you've given me a lot to think about

frimble3 said:
...

On the other hand, modern story, if he can get a signal on his little phone, he won't have to try to work the radio to call for help.

I thought about that too. Maybe I should set it during the early 2000s, where phones weren't so popular and as capable as they are today.

Justin K said:
Having lived on an island for over a year.. some of the lesser thought of, yet actual reasons people become stranded include..

Bad weather - no boats goin anywhere!
The scheduled boat breaks down.
The boat came but you just missed it - most common.
Financially stranded because you spent all your money.

and for some extraordinary ideas..
You secretly wanted to experience being stranded.
Publicity stunt.
Economic collapse.
It was a peninsula at low tide.
You were abandoned. (Island of the blue dolphins[san Nicholas island]).
A "Water World" scenario.
Modern day Pirates captured your vessel
Disneyland closes before you take the canoe back
Your fedex plane gets lost in a storm and breaks apart
A three hour tour turns catastrophic, somehow
Youre in the matrix

I would seriously question the mentality of someone who actually acted upon the fantasy of being stranded on an island! I think we've all wanted to be at some point as a child though

Lidiya · Mar 3, 2014

Also, I have to ask, are there certain plants and fruit in the islands of Australia that they could eat? Any animals that could present a threat? Or just any life in general?

How common would it be to find a stream of crystal clean water to drink?

Helix · Mar 3, 2014

Lidiya said:
I think I want to strand them for about a month... maybe have them build a raft and try to get back (how possible would this be?).

If we're talking about the Qld tropics, there are coconuts and casuarinas (she oaks) on cays that are large enough to support vegetation and the continental islands often have well developed rainforest. They'll be at the mercy of the winds and tides, of course.

Lidiya said:
I thought about that too. Maybe I should set it during the early 2000s, where phones weren't so popular and as capable as they are today.

If we're still talking Australia, excuse me for a moment...ahahahahahahahahaha!...lousy mobile coverage outside the towns and cities. And even in populous areas the connectivity isn't too hot. There's coverage to the landward side of some of the inshore islands (from land-based towers), but it would be easy to have a mobile dead spot.

Lidiya said:
I would seriously question the mentality of someone who actually acted upon the fantasy of being stranded on an island! I think we've all wanted to be at some point as a child though

A fellow called EJ Banfield, his missus and their retainer Essie took off to Dunk Island, Far North Queensland, in the 1900s and spent many years in a rainforest paradise. His Confessions of a Beachcomber is available online. Dunk is quite a benign island, not far from the mainland and Banfield wasn't stranded, which makes a bit of a difference to his story. Some of those islands would be quite difficult to live on.

If you've got time (and are interested) have a look at the story of the Batavia, a Dutch vessel that was shipwrecked off the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia, in the 1600s. The Abrolhos Islands are not the place you'd want to be stranded. (And the Batavia's crew were not the people you'd want to be stranded with.)

NateSean · Mar 3, 2014

Lidiya said:
How common would it be to find a stream of crystal clean water to drink?

If you can watch Youtube videos, look up Bear Grylls, or Man Vs. Wild clips for ideas. He even does a whole episode devoted to survival on an island, though like with any research you would have to mix and match in what you choose to use for your story and what you chuck out.

There's also the blanket of artistic license. Since it's an island, you don't have to be %100 accurate as long as you get the things people will notice.

For example, you might not find a clean source of water, but it is possible to make fresh water from salt water using just the sand on the beach.

At your local library or book shop, see if you can find a copy of Worst Case Scenario or any other basic survival guides. At the end of the day, when it comes to survival, it's down to the individual.

Is your character likely to panic?

Lidiya · Mar 3, 2014

NateSean said:
If you can watch Youtube videos, look up Bear Grylls, or Man Vs. Wild clips for ideas. He even does a whole episode devoted to survival on an island, though like with any research you would have to mix and match in what you choose to use for your story and what you chuck out.

That actually sounds like a pretty good idea, thanks!

There's also the blanket of artistic license. Since it's an island, you don't have to be %100 accurate as long as you get the things people will notice.

For example, you might not find a clean source of water, but it is possible to make fresh water from salt water using just the sand on the beach.

I guess I could mix and match a few details; I just don't want to get angry Australians going, "That's not right!"

At your local library or book shop, see if you can find a copy of Worst Case Scenario or any other basic survival guides. At the end of the day, when it comes to survival, it's down to the individual.

I've seen plenty of those books before, I should be able to find one in a library.

Is your character likely to panic?

Well she's lived a pretty good life so far -- spoiled in a rich family. She hasn't really come across any real problems. So yes. I guess she would freak out.

Helix · Mar 3, 2014

Lidiya said:
Also, I have to ask, are there certain plants and fruit in the islands of Australia that they could eat? Any animals that could present a threat? Or just any life in general?

How common would it be to find a stream of crystal clean water to drink?

Food: Turtles; seabirds; turtle, seabird and megapode eggs (in season); coconuts; crabs; fish; crocodiles, if you're game; oysters and other shellfish.

Threats: Crocodiles on land and in water. Plenty of nasty things in the water. On land, it's really only venomous snakes (which would depend on the island's location). There are ticks and green tree ants, centipedes and big spiders -- the standard range of terrestrial invertebrate bities, but they're not usually dangerous, unless someone has an allergy or one of the inverts is carrying any one of the more annoying arboviruses. On rocky islands in Qld, I'd be watching out for stinging trees. They are very common and very easy to miss if you don't know what you're looking for.

Water would be easy to locate on a rocky island -- especially in the wet season -- and a bit more difficult without a solar still or something on a coral cay. I'd suggest sticking them on a rocky island. That will give them plenty of resources.

Bear Grylls did an episode on a Torres Strait Island. I'm still looking for the newspaper article where they interviewed locals, who thought it was all a bit of good fun and implied that you'd have to be a bit of a chump not to be able survive on the island he chose.

NeuroGlide · Mar 3, 2014

Lidiya said:
Well she's lived a pretty good life so far -- spoiled in a rich family. She hasn't really come across any real problems. So yes. I guess she would freak out.

I suggest the book Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales. It's about the psychology of survival and how you can develop it even if you don't have it at first.

Lidiya · Mar 4, 2014

Helix said:
Food: Turtles; seabirds; turtle, seabird and megapode eggs (in season); coconuts; crabs; fish; crocodiles, if you're game; oysters and other shellfish.

Threats: Crocodiles on land and in water. Plenty of nasty things in the water. On land, it's really only venomous snakes (which would depend on the island's location). There are ticks and green tree ants, centipedes and big spiders -- the standard range of terrestrial invertebrate bities, but they're not usually dangerous, unless someone has an allergy or one of the inverts is carrying any one of the more annoying arboviruses. On rocky islands in Qld, I'd be watching out for stinging trees. They are very common and very easy to miss if you don't know what you're looking for.

Water would be easy to locate on a rocky island -- especially in the wet season -- and a bit more difficult without a solar still or something on a coral cay. I'd suggest sticking them on a rocky island. That will give them plenty of resources.

Bear Grylls did an episode on a Torres Strait Island. I'm still looking for the newspaper article where they interviewed locals, who thought it was all a bit of good fun and implied that you'd have to be a bit of a chump not to be able survive on the island he chose.

Thank you for that information!

I looked up those stinging trees and they look vile... I wonder which character will get killed off due to their sting...*cue sadistic ways*.

I remember that Bear Grylls episode I think. Some of the things he does just disgusts me (like eating massive maggots, etc). I think that it sometimes isn't necessary in his situation, but he just wants to show what would happen in dire situations I guess.

How far away from the coast would those small-ish (but big enough to sustain life) islands be?

NeuroGlide said:
I suggest the book Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales. It's about the psychology of survival and how you can develop it even if you don't have it at first.

Thanks, I'll look it up.

Helix · Mar 4, 2014

The continental rocky islands are no further than 35 - 40 km from the coast. Most are closer. Perhaps you could have your characters run out of fuel for the outboard and drift, so rescuers have no idea where to look. If they end up stranded on one island in a group of islands, which is a fair distance from where they started, it would take an awful long time to locate them. After a while, the official search would be called off, although boaties would probably still keep an eye out for them.

If the stinging trees aren't bad enough, there are also stonefish. A colleague of mine was stung by one and suggested to the ambulance officers that they amputate his foot because it was preferable to the pain. I don't think he used those exact words.

ETA: I just had a look at Penrith Island. That's 70km ENE of Mackay. It's not very big, though.

What events could lead you to being stranded?

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