Sleeping aboard a boat comes with unique night noises depending on wind, waves, and swing of the boat. During the day we don’t notice the various creaking lines, slapping halyards, tapping snap fasteners, and squawking squeaks.
Apparently the cue for these unsettling noises to start, is the moment you turn off the lights and start to nod off. “What’s that sound?” is the predominate conversation, quickly followed by an anchor check to make sure no dragging is happening. Then settling down again, starting to nod off there is a tap tap tapping sound followed by a thump thump thumping sound, then a swing of the boat followed by a moan of the snubber line.
On a calm night in a protected anchorage the noises are much less, maybe a lapping of a wave against the hull.
The noises once identified are something we get used to. Knowing what “normal” sounds are and what sounds that need immediate attention comes from experience and we are gaining lots of experience.
