The ocean is still home for Robert (Bobby) Lambe.

One year after a freak wave hit his 40-foot fishing boat, New Nuts, and claimed the lives of his two friends 70 miles off the coast of Bermuda, he remains tied to his life on the ocean.

Mr. Lambe spoke with The Royal Gazette after spending most of his day out on the water fixing up a friend's boat, revealing plans to paint his own boat - a 38-foot vessel he hopes to call New Nuts as well.

Although he lost his two friends, fellow fishermen Alan Edness, 56, and Micah Battersbee, 29, he continues to love the mysterious and often treacherous sea.

“It was the worst moment of my life... (But) we fish the barren sea and it's a known fact that you play roulette everyday. You accept the fact that you have a dangerous job.

“But you don't want things to happen again so you take a little more precautions.”

Mr. Lambe spent 20 hours floating in the mid-Atlantic last January after losing his boat and two friends to the deep. He was picked up by a passing US Naval medical ship, the USS Comfort, which was by chance passing by on its way to the Middle East.

The experience however, has not caused him to give up his life as a fisherman, he said.

“They (Mr. Edness and Mr. Battersbee) wouldn't be too pleased with me if I stopped fishing. I'm not going to stop and if I was gone I wouldn't want them to stop.”

On January 7, 2003, Mr. Lambe and his two friends went out searching for the missing sailing vessel, Altair. He was the only one to return alive.

He says his most vivid memory from the night, even today, is the moment the wave hit New Nuts.

Next thing he knew he was being tossed about in the rough seas on a piece of wood from the boat - staring up at the stars and watching the tiny lights of airplanes flying overhead.

He is calm as he retells the tragic events of a year ago.

He says it was the same way when he was out in the ocean - he believes that keeping his composure during that terrible time saved his life.

“Instead of dealing with a situation, people just freak out. If you get yourself hyped up you can't think straight you begin to fall apart.

“I, at first, thought that the windscreen had blow in but I realised there was too much water there and you realise pretty quickly that the boat is actually upside down.

“I wanted to stay on the boat as long as I could but I could tell it was going down fairly quickly so I looked around for something to hang onto which is when I spotted the piece of wood.”

Mr. Lambe hung on to the piece of his old boat until a US Coast Guard plane finally spotted him and he was then eventually picked up by the Comfort.

A self proclaimed daredevil who loves to “live on the edge”, Mr. Lambe said he now has to take a step back every time a new sea adventure is proposed to him.

“They called me up and asked me if I would go and get the Sea Gypsy, the fishing boat that was just recently abandoned, but it took a few minutes for me to think about. I thought about my mum and I figured I had to try and keep the peace for a little while longer.”

Neither his mother nor his ocean ordeal last year stopped him from delivering a boat to West Palm Beach, Florida in September however, or from hauling lobster pots just one week after arriving back home from the sea tragedy.

“It was really good to be back out on the water. Even though being stranded out in the middle of the ocean isn't the best situation to be in, I was glad I was out there because I am so comfortable on the ocean.”

But every time he ventures out to sea, he thinks of his friends its waters have claimed.

After winning a fishing tournament over the Cup Match holiday, Mr. Lambe dedicated his win to Mr. Edness and Mr. Battersbee. This year, he said he will be adding friend and lost fisherman, Sam Outerbridge, to his list of dedications.

“Sam used to love Marlin fishing. I'll be doing some tournaments and this year we'll see if we can make him proud.”

Tuesday - a year to the day from the tragedy which claimed his friends - Mr. Lambe said he spent the whole day out on his boat.

“You pick up the pieces and press on regardless and you put your best foot forward,” he said.