Hearing voices

[Capt Hook]

On a trip to Puerto Rico motoring across the Gulf Steam, I heard rumblings and peering through the fog, a US submarine crossed directly in front of us. The crew did not even acknowledge our presence.

How do you know it was a US submarine?

[moctrams]

Only a guess.

[Steve Laume]

I didn't think you could hear US subs.

[bottomscraper]

I haven't heard voices but I have "seen" things in the fog.

[Cathy Monaghan]

Okay, I am going to come clean here.

......What I hear is not like voices in your head telling you to do things or in fact any specific words at all. It is more like a broadcast that is being played in the next room where you can't actually make out the words. Except there is no radio or other room. It is always an indistinct male voice. I just let it ramble on, when it wants to and pay very little attention to it.

So does anyone else care to admit to an experience like this? The psychological aspect of solo sailing is kind of fun.

Feel free to have fun with this at my expense, Steve.

I heard voices on a regular basis while trying to sleep in the aft quarter berth of a 43 footer while at sea. The boat was equipped with an SSB radio and the backstay was used as the antenna. The voices, which were whole conversations, were coming from the backstay. The radio was always off when this phenomenon occurred. We only used the SSB for daily weather updates.

Cathy

[Oswego John]

I've heard voices on the water many times. The voices I heard were no mystery. They were human voices but they were part of a faraway conversation, usually of lower pitched male voices

I was born and raised on or nearby bodies of salt water. I can't say the voices are peculiar or particular only to salt water, perhaps also heard on sweet water, too.

As a child, I questioned the source of the voices. My elders told me that under the right conditions, heavy fog, and dampness, snow, the humidity acts like a conductor for sound. Sometimes the source of the sounds might be many miles away. How often have I heard the slow bum, bum, bum of the diesel tugs towing scows of sand and other materials to NYC to build the skyscrapers. These tugs can be five or more miles away. For whatever the cause of the dampness of the mostly night air, in a short time the fog horn will be calling out to us, mesmerizing us to deep sleep with its mournful song.

I don't mean to discount any thought of maybe some paranormal activity. That thought is very interesting. The one thing that really bums me out is the crew anchored two moorings away. Often times there is drinking, loud laughing, sometimes fighting and abusive language late into the night when you are planning for an early departure.

Voices on board? Definitely, all kinds of voices.

JD

[Neil Gordon]

I was sailing with a friend, doing a coastal passage in heavy fog. Heard a bigger-than-a-boat (smaller than an oil tanker though) horn, and responded in kind. A minute of so later, same thing... something we kept up for 15-20 minutes. We were obviously heading in the same direction, no change in apparent direction of the horn, but there was nothing to see through the fog. No other noise, either, but for some splashes on the hull... the wind was around 10 knots and we were sailing.

So after 15 or 20 minutes of this, Chuck said to me, "Do you hear people talking?" (Sound does funny things out there!)

[scarduner]

Certainly nothing to have to hesitantly own up to. And nothing to do with "paranomal". I have had several hallucinations while sailing alone - and yes being overly tired... For people like myself with an eye disease (I have glaucoma) there is even a name for this - Charles Bonet Syndrome. But one need not have any disease or anything other than the right circumstances for your brain to kick in and fill in sounds where there are none or sights... When sensory inputs are dulled - exhaustion or dusk or - yes - fog, the brain is getting less perceptual data than it is used to so it just creates some of its own - from memory... It's spooky at first because it "sounds so real" or "looks so real" - but that's because what we hear is not what comes into our ears but what the brain sends to our awareness - usually mostly from what we perceive, but when your perceptual inputs are muted it draws from elsewhere. Same with vision. (Vision is thought to be 80% memory) If you are open to the experience it's an interesting peak at how your brain actually creates what we take as reality in our day-to-day lives. And how quickly we are to categorize things as "real" or not real...

[Steve Laume]

I love the idea that my brain can create things for itself when there is little else to entertain it.

The idea of selective hearing is something every man in a relationship has heard at some time. It is in fact true that you can tune into any sound that there is and lose many of the others that constantly surround us. When sitting in a restaurant or at a party with conversations all around, you may not hear any of them or chose to concentrate on one in particular. The same for a particular instrument in music. I suppose the same applies to sight.

Part of what I love about off shore sailing is that it reduces the noise and clutter that surrounds me. That is part of the reason I sail alone. People have offered to help me out with a supply of music but as much as I enjoy listening to music I choose to go without when I am far away from land. It is kind of like a cleansing to go without for a while. Only very simple and familiar sounds are heard. It is very peaceful and something we seldom get a chance to enjoy in modern life.

I look forward to hearing more of the voices my mind wants to provide for me, Steve.

[Oswego John]

Steve,

As you mention, some voices might be okay. Be careful if you think they might be the sounds of the Lorelei. Woo Hoo, lol

O J

[Sea Hunt Video]

I must admit that when Steve first posted this thread I was amused. I thought he was joking and it was funny. As more participants posted I started to wonder what to think. Is it possible Do people hear voices When I was married I was always told I NEVER heard her voice Am I now at an age when I hear voices that may or may not be present

This article recently appeared in my hometown newspaper. I am hopeful that those who are interested are able to open the thread. As we all know, my computer skills are slightly below that of a Neanderthal.

http://www.berkshireeagle.com/stories/i ... ten,496624

[Doug Gibson]

Many years ago, while taking an offshore sailing class, we had a 'hearing voices' experience among the crew. On our second night out (course consisted of sailing west out the Golden Gate for 2 days, then sail back), we got into some stronger winds and rougher seas... resulting in all the crew (1 instructor and 4 students) experiencing moderate sea sickness. I was off-watch. Our instructor was topside, with two students, and he began to exclaim that "zee pink sea cows were singing to me! Look, right zere," he pointed over the side of the boat. "Can't you hear zhem? Can't you see zhem?" He carried on for 5 minutes, insisting on the presence of the pink sea cows. Out instructor, Michelle, was a young man just out of the French Navy with a very heavy accent.

The on-watch crew convinced him to go below and get some rest. From my bunk, I could see him undressing and noticed a scopolamine patch behind his ear (we all had one)... and another one on his back! Apparently, he thought the first patch had fallen off so put another one on. Scopolamine overdose! We helped him pull both patches off and put him to bed. A few hours later, he seemed to be back to normal and denied ever seeing or hearing the pink sea cows. We didn't let him forget his 'sighting' for the rest of the trip. Among a small circle of sailors, the legend of the Gulf of the Farallons pink sea cows lives on.

Naturalist Note: Stellar Sea cows did exist in the Bearing Sea, but were hunted to extinction around 1770. They were mute, according to Steller, making only heavy breathing sounds. ...and no mention of a pink coloration!