The Rogue Wave

By Han Ying

It was a sunny day in late summer. Hurricane season was still very active. The latest one to come our way had decided to stay out to sea, much to our relief. However, it came close enough to the shore to stir up some spectacular waves. Our family decided to go to the rocky shores at Fort Williams, Maine to watch the great mountains of water crash upon the rocks.

We found the perfect place to watch the giant waves come rolling in. It was a small outcrop of rocks at the top of a rock cliff that fell sharply down to the water’s edge about 20 feet below. It was almost as if nature had crafted a comfy little lookout post for us to watch her annual contest featuring the waves against the rocks. For a good 30 minutes or so, we enjoyed the impressive power of the mighty waves. The collisions of water against stone created thunderous noises that sounded like a hundred cannons firing all along the shoreline. The children squealed with delight every time a great wall of water smashed against the cliff, sending sprays high above our heads and often sprinkling us with salty mist.

It was all fun and laughter until Mother Nature decided to get a little ornery. Without warning, a rogue wave, larger than any other we had seen, slowly rolled toward us. As it lumbered up the shore I could tell its crest was higher than usual. I still remember that feeling of dread when I realized we had no time to scramble up to higher ground. In seconds it was upon us. This time the explosion of water threw much more than a little salty mist on top of us. My wife, Lori, and I were a few feet higher on the rocks than the children. We managed to avoid getting very wet, but the children were drenched and dripping. The shock upon our faces slowly gave way to relief when we realized that everyone was safe. The rogue wave had not managed to dislodge any of us from our rocky perch and drag the hapless victim out to sea. As we sloshed our way back to the car for the journey home, our relief evolved into laughter once again. Despite a little scare, it was a memorable experience that became a part of our family history.