15 Sailors Reveal Fascinating and Terrifying Experiences at Sea

1.

Whilst fishing during the night, we heard something hit the boat. Now, of course, sometimes it's just some wildlife that couldn't see it in the dark, but we still went to look. I shone a flashlight into the water, only to see a person's body, face-up, floating there. Needless to say, I freaked the heck out and nearly dropped the light. We reported it. Authorities came. We never found out what happened, but the theory we had was it was related to some sort of sinking, due to the life jacket they had on. -InkblotDoggo

2.

Being out at sea was definitely one of the best experiences of being in the Navy. I got to see the northern lights, a meteor shower, and a blood moon. My favorite pass time was identifying the constellations. Eventually when I got to learn a significant amount I was able to tell what direction we were going. I’m seriously grateful I got to experience that. -ChiliConCarne44

3.

Was standing topside watch on a dark night when the sky suddenly turned bright. For about three seconds something was incoming that lit all the weather decks up like daylight. This sparked quite a reaction on the bridge and in operations. We were forward deployed during wartime although not in a region where active fighting was expected. For a moment people scrambled, fearing we had been targeted for a surprise missile attack.

Then the sky went dark again just as suddenly as it had began, leaving us safe and alone again. Yet there was still a whole bunch of commotion on comms as people jabbered stuff that amounted to whiskey tango foxtrot. The only crew member who saw what had really happened was me. "It's a meteor. It's a meteor. It's a meteor." -doublestitch

4.

We were fishing close to an island, and saw something orange in the water. Now, my buddy thought it was just garbage, until it moved its head up. Turns out it was a fox. It came close to the boat, and I grabbed it and brought it aboard. Poor thing must have been treading water for ages, because it fell asleep in my arms. We released it on land after it had woken up. -InkblotDoggo

5.

Giant spears plunging in and out of the sea. In the gulf of Alaska, I have seen some stuff. But one of the most terror inspiring things I’ve seen are what can happen with some of the loose logs from the logging trade. Sometimes when a big log gets loose from a raft, it becomes partially waterlogged and floats small end up. So you have this 4 foot diameter telephone pole in the sea, sticking up 40 feet into the air. No biggie. Shows up on radar, and easy to spot.

Now, give that pole 20 years of floating around or so. It rots in such a way that it becomes sharpened to a perfect point by wind and waves, and looks quite menacing. Now, put it in a gale with 25 foot waves (50 feet trough to peak.) -bidet_enthusiast

6.

"Intrusive thoughts of jumping in.” I used to work on a yacht and when I was on night watch I had this thought constantly. I thought it was super messed up, but now that I see this comment I’m happy I’m not the only one lol. -Train23

7.

I went diving in the Galápagos Islands and it was like being in a parallel universe. Marine iguanas 6 feet long swimming up with you to the waters surface, baby seals dancing with you and booping you on the head, little penguins bubbling while zipping around you like a Disney movie, birds landing on your head when you’re bobbing in the water… -EveFluff

8.

My dad was competing in a marlin fishing comp near Weepa (the pointy top bit of Australia). Battled a fish for 4 hours (they catch and release). As it neared the boat, crew readied to haul it onboard and a camera team went in for the tight shot, hanging right over the edge.

The marlin breached the water and then a huge Great White shark breached under it. Full length above the water, inches from the crews faces. Shark took the whole marlin, plus a big bite out of the boat. All caught on camera. Everyone was pretty shaken for a while after. I’ll never forget the pics of the bite mark, exactly like people do to crackers, with individual tooth marks, but a metre+ wide. -MadameMonk

9.

I once saw a rainbow by moonlight. Sadly this was before digital cameras, so I had no chance of getting a picture. -Mogster2K

10.

Creepiest would be underway on 31st October / Halloween day off maybe 15miles off the coast of Florida near Miami. Lookout sights a white house boat looks like it’s just drifting. So we get closer on our Fast Response Cutter (154’) to make contact with them. Nothing, no one responded used radio, loud hailer and ships whistle.

So Captain said lets launch our small boat and go investigate. During the small boat mission brief I reminded everyone that it’s Halloween day and this looks just like a horror movie storyline. So the boat launches and the crew gets onboard. The doors are closed, but lucky open so the crew can investigate. The boarding team slow conducts its safety sweep while looking any crew onboard.

So here is a house boat floating on the ocean with no land in sight abandoned. So the boarding team marked the vessel with spray paint and left it. House Boat is probably in Europe if it didn’t succumb to the relentless sea. -RBJII

11.

Ended up doing oil rigs and one beautiful morning there were Sharks going under the main platform like always but there were two dead sharks, next morning three new dead, then four the next day. Then a steady four or five a day for a week or two...they would float up under the see through deck that looked much like a metal colander. Crew would have to punch them down so the current could catch them with a large pole.

What made it really weird was they looked like they had heart attacks or died in their sleep, no marks or bites or anything. The guys on the rig had all kinds of theories. Then one morning while in a room that was completely submerged and had a beautiful view as we sat in a meeting...everyone got to see the reason the sharks were dying like viewing it on a movie screen.

This Octopus had made itself a home between the base and the deck. A shark was swimming by in a cruising fashion and we see these tentacles grab it right in front of the glass and snap it like a glowstick. -Cannotakema

12.

In the pitch black of night, in the middle of the vast emptiness of the sea; you see the stars filling the heavens, and more shooting stars than you would expect streaking to the earth with their firey tails. As your eye draws down to the water, you find that somehow the ocean is darker and emptier than the sky. Your eyes strain for a glimpse of anything, but ultimately you only catch glimpses of strange and mysterious creatures lithely swimming just beneath the surface occasionally peeking above the surface or triggering flashes of bioluminescence that disappear as suddenly as they appear. -Timitz

13.

Standing off the fantail in the pitch black of night when a lightning storm cracks off. It looked like somebody flipped the lights off and on repeatedly. Quick flashes of ocean as far as the eye can see, then back to black. -gmtjr

14.

Was on watch and a lookout reported a ship on fire on the horizon. Looked through my binos and saw what they were looking at. Looked like a plume of flame really far away, just over the line of the horizon. Went and consulted the Astro books and discovered that it was actually moonrise.

15.

Racing catamarans in the Gulf of Mexico and the water turning purple as far as I could see from BILLIONS of jellyfish. -Alpaca-Bowl420