A new documentary out tonight unravels for the first time what five men went through to survive the Enchanter tragedy, which claimed the lives of five others in March.
The skipper is under investigation by Maritime NZ for being out with clients at the remote Three Kings Islands big game fishing when a severe storm was lashing Northland.
But the survivors tell a different story, which will unfold in Newshub Investigates: The Enchanter Tragedy.
Ben Stinson, Shay Ward, and Jayde Cook were once strangers, but all now have a shared bond - they cheated death.
"At the moment it feels like a movie story that I am telling, but we were part of it," Stinson told Newshub.
"I thought about dying, I thought about how I was going to die, but I didn't think I was going to die," Ward said.
"It's tragic, five men, five families you know," Cook added.
They were on a bucket list charter from Mangōnui to the Three Kings Islands.
Those who didn't make it home were Mark Sanders, Richard Bright, Mike Lovett, Mark Walker and his father-in-law Geoff Allen.
Deckhand Kobe O'Neill survived, so too did the Enchanter's owner Lance Goodhew - he's now under investigation.
"Everyone is making all these crazy stories up. It's not only hurting us but the families who lost loved ones. So that's why we've come here to put the story straight," Ward said.
After three primo days fishing at the Three Kings, they said they sought shelter as a major storm hit Northland.
"A lot of people think the weather was terrible. I understand why because it was raining and pissing down onshore, but it wasn't like that out there," O'Neill said.
But tonight, they reveal just what got them off North Cape on their journey home.
"Zero preparation. Nothing you can do, it was just a freak wave," Cook said.
"It was easily 10 metres," Ward added.
And it tore the Enchanter apart.
"Like, I seen the light flash before my eyes and thought, 'F**k, I'm gonna die," O'Neill said.
Ten men with a front-row seat in hell.
"The boat was upside down, the props are spinning, there's black smoke everywhere," Ward said.
There are questions over the route skipper Goodhew took around North Cape. It's one of several things investigators will look at during their year-long probe.
When you talk to local fishermen in this area, they will tell you it's a notorious stretch that's claimed at least four boats in 20 years.
"Just a rogue wave. Every now and then you will see them out there and you'll think - glad we are not next to that one, but they are real and they will get you," O'Neill said.
Oceanographers Newshub's spoken to said it's feasible - rogue waves, once a maritime myth, are rare but they can happen.
"So you've got waves travelling in different directions. When they combine on a very rare occasion they will produce a very large wave and they can be quite steep and very dangerous," said oceanographer Dr Kevin Ewans.
And when you're waiting up to five hours to be rescued, so too are sharks.
"I had a big hole [on] one side of my leg in the top of my thigh. It wasn't until it was dark that I said, 'Jayde, I'm bleeding out here'," Ward said.
"So pulled my belt off and strapped his leg up to stop the bleeding," Cook said.
For these men, and the skipper who's yet to comment, surviving is bittersweet - five of their new mates perished at sea.
The extent of delays to get multiple rescue teams out will be unveiled tonight.
"As a fisherman, I always told my family if I died at sea, I'd die doing what I love and I know my mum thought about that a lot. But you know those guys died doing an incredible trip," Ward said.
A trip that remains the subject of multiple investigations and a lifetime of 'what ifs'.
Newshub Investigates: The Enchanter Tragedy airs Wednesday at 8:40pm on Three and ThreeNow.
