Captain Sinbad's crew had gone down with a fever … with cabin fever. Captain Sinbad and his crew had been sailing for months, maybe even years, they couldn't remember. They couldn't remember the last time they had seen land, they couldn’t remember the last time they had felt the sand between their toes. They longed for dry land, they longed for clean fresh water, and they fantasised about fresh food, especially fruit.
You may know that you need to drink lots if you have a fever, but they were becalmed on a flat sea under the hot sun, slowly going nowhere. Stocks were low and soon there would be nothing left to eat, and there was nothing left to drink. They needed to find land soon.
'Land ahoy!' – a cry from the Crow's Nest. Looking up at the top of the mast, the cabin boy was jumping up and down with excitement, pointing into the distance with his finger.
Captain Sinbad pulled out his brass telescope and looked out over the sea – there was a smudge on the horizon, but it could just be low cloud.
'All hands on deck! Haul the halyards and get the main sail set!' he commanded.
Suddenly a breeze filled the sails and they sailed closer to the island. Sinbad had checked his charts to find the island, find its name and find the best harbour to steer towards, but there was no island on his map! A new island to discover … exciting! Dangerous? With his Captain's hat on he needed to risk assess the situation …
What might be on the island? If the island were to be deserted, would there be any fresh water or food? If it was inhabited, would the people be friendly, would there be food enough to share, or would they need to fight them for it? What dangers could there be? Would there be swamps, poisonous plants, or could there even be monsters?
Part of the island was covered in cloud.
'What can you see?' Sinbad asked the boy up in the Crow's Nest.
'The beaches are deserted… it is a low island but the part that is under the cloud may be higher ground.'
'Is it cloud or smoke?' Sinbad wondered. His mother used to say 'there's no smoke without fire' – maybe there was a native tribe gathered around a big bonfire, or perhaps a live volcano spouting smoke, lava bubbling up before an eruption?
'Can you see any trees, or any blue lagoons?'
'I can see a cave,' the boy shouted down.
'… and shallow water!' shouted the boy.
'Stow the sails and anchors away,' commanded Sinbad. He arranged for his men to get the longboat in the water. They would row around the island, get a bit closer to see what they could see before they landed. The cabin boy was first in the longboat, eager to explore.
'Listen men we need to stay alert!' ordered Sinbad.
It was certainly a mysterious island. The beaches were shallow and sandy, and there was a cliff under which there was a cave. As they rowed into the cave they were silent. All they could hear was the sound of the waves. It was dark inside, but as they felt about they found the cave was full of rubbish washed ashore, old barrels lying on their side, fishing nets, lots and lots of empty bottles.
Sinbad picked one up that wasn't empty – it had something inside, perhaps it was a message? He broke the wax seal and pulled out the cork. He unrolled the old torn piece of paper and lit a candle to read it … there was riddle inside:
'Where there is water, cloud is near
How to collect it lies in here
All of your crew need to eat
Look to the sky to find a treat
Everyone likes a quest for treasure
So follow the maze for fun and pleasure.'
Sinbad and his sailors were curious about the riddle. To find treasure they usually needed compass co-ordinates. What was wrong with North, South East or West, 360 degrees and landmarks – the riddle maker was certainly not a sailor! Must have been a land lubber!
'So we need to make a map the island,' suggested the cabin boy.
Sinbad agreed:
'We will explore the island, perhaps we can find a tree to climb and then we will see what we will see … but first we need to clean up this cave!'
So they did. They put the empty bottles in the rowing boast and the best of the wooden barrels, and rolled up the fishing nets, and they rowed around to a sandy cove. The first mate jumped ashore and pulled them up onto the golden sand. The beach was as golden as the first mate's beard …
'We will name this Yellow Beard's Cove,' declared Sinbad.
'What about the cave – what shall we name that?' asked the cabin boy.
'That’s easy – "Riddles Cave!" said Sinbad.
'I've forgotten the riddle - read it again Captain,' said the first mate.
'What's the magic word?' asked Sinbad.
'Maze?' said the first mate …
'Please?' said the cabin boy…
'Correct!' said Sinbad and read out the riddle:
'Where there is water, cloud is near
How to collect it lies in here
All of your crew need to eat
Look to the sky to find a treat
Everyone likes a quest for treasure
So follow the maze for fun and pleasure.'
The cabin boy's hand shot up …
'So we need to head for the clouds then!'
'Aye lad!' Sinbad shouted, 'But we need to bring as many bottles and a barrel in case we find water or food.'
They set off towards the part of the island still shrouded in cloud.
As they entered the cloud they could only see a few steps in front of them, the path narrowed, it twisted and turned so much they started to feel dizzy, but the path was lined with spiky bushes that scratched at their ankles. Sinbad repeated the first line of the riddle.
'Where there is cloud, water is near …'
'No that's the wrong way round … where there is water cloud is near,' said the cabin boy.
'It's a riddle so it could work both ways – but where’s the maze?' cried the first mate.
'We're going round in circles,' said the cabin boy.
How long they trudged that winding path they couldn't tell, but by the rumbling of their stomachs they decided the sun must be high in the sky by now.
Gradually the cloud cleared and they found themselves at the top of a gently sloping hill under some leafy palm trees.
The cabin boy started to climb one of the rough trunks …
Sinbad looked up and cried:
'Coconuts! Lots and lots of coconuts! Roll up! Roll up! Unroll the nets and bag them up!'
'All of your crew need to eat, look to the sky to find a treat ...' cried the first mate.
'Cabin boy, can you see a maze from up there?' Sinbad called.
'I think the maze may have found us! I can see it, and it was right under our feet… it was the path we followed.'
'Everyone likes a quest for treasure
So follow the maze to fun and pleasure.'
Sinbad scratched his head. The coconuts gave them food and juice but they needed water …
'Where there is water, cloud is near
How to collect it lies in here …'
'We can use the bottles and barrels to collect water, but where is fresh water?' Sinbad muttered.
'Finding a treasure chest would certainly give me pleasure!' the first mate suggested.
'It must be under our feet, in the centre of the maze under these trees! So we need to dig,' Sinbad agreed.
They took apart an old barrel and used the bent wood as spades to dig, but the ground was grey and hard and as they jabbed their scoops at the rubbery surface, water started to gush from a hole like a fountain as the water erupted under their feet and the ground started to quiver and rock.
'Quick men, fill up the empty bottles with the water!' ordered Sinbad.
'This isn’t an island …' cried the cabin boy, scrambling down the tree as fast as he could.
'What do you mean, boy?' shouted Sinbad above the sound of the fountain.
'It's not an island – it is a whale!' cried the cabin boy.
'Abandon Ship! Abandon island! Abandon whale!' ordered Sinbad.
The island sunk into the sea beneath them … a giant wave swamped their boat and sunk their ship. Sink or swim, the sailors could do nothing but splash and scramble to hold on to anything they could get their hands on or drown. Sinbad got hold of one of the palm trees… and another giant wave took him far away from his crew … to another island … with some very savage inhabitants …but that's another story …
Sinbad had a long time to think as he drifted alone in the sea …
'The cabin boy was right!' thought Sinbad. 'But if the island was a whale, it must have been a very lazy whale! So lazy that as it lay on the surface of the sea, sand had gathered around it, and the palm trees grew on top of it.'
Perhaps it was a sick whale – there was a lot of rubbish under its tail, so how much rubbish would be in that whale's stomach … what if the sea made it sick?
He was thirsty and hungry and he thought about the riddle - perhaps fresh water was the treasure?
Suddenly Sinbad spotted land … an island. There was a beach, palm trees, and he could see a man climbing the tree. He started to wave at Sinbad, and a rowing boat was coming to get him …
'I'm safe at last!' gasped Sinbad.
But was he?
Can you write a story about what happened next to Sinbad? Which island was he washed up on, and what did he find there?
© Jan Bee Brown 2020