Three Californians rescued this week from a 42-foot sailboat say they believe their yacht was swamped by a rogue 50-foot wave created by Hurricane Julio that capsized the vessel, knocked down its mast and tore open its locked hatch– filling the vessel with water and stranding them in the Pacific Ocean for 24 hours.

It was like a scene from "The Perfect Storm," they said.

"I am not a real nervous person, until the galley was half-filled with water," Ben Neely, 61, of Stockton, Calif., told reporters at Matson Inc.’s container shipyard at Pier 52 in Honolulu after arriving there early Tuesday morning.

Neely — captain of the vessel — his son, Lee, and Lee’s friend Mike Vanway were en route to Hawaii from California when their boat ran into Hurricane Julio on Sunday night just over 400 miles northwest of Honolulu.

"It kind of looked like ‘The Perfect Storm,’" said Neely, referring to the 2000 movie starring George Clooney. He said they were "probably close to the eye with winds up to 90 mph.

"As the storm was passing, it kept sucking us in with it," Neely said.

The trio said they would return to Stockton as soon as they could book a flight after what was supposed to be a one-year voyage to Asia that began in May. The men expressed gratitude to Matson and the Coast Guard for their rescue.

After receiving the distress call Sunday, Matson turned around its cargo ship Manukai, which had almost reached Oahu after leaving California on Wednesday, to aid the 42-foot Walkabout. The Manukai was south of its normal path to avoid Julio and was scheduled to have docked at Sand Island on Sunday night.

Neely said he had arranged to keep up with the storm through a friend, who had been sending him Julio’s projected storm tracks. He said he was trying to outrun Julio, hoping he could stay in front, but the hurricane kept moving "further and further east."

The Coast Guard said the sailboat may have been in the rim of the eye of Hurricane Julio when it was swamped Sunday.

The white caps of the waves "looked like smoke," Neely said. "Visibility was almost nil … less than a quarter of a mile. The rain felt like stinging needles."

The Coast Guard reported winds from the storm were 90 to 115 mph.

Vanway said the crew couldn’t get the vessel’s sail down, and "it kept whipping in the wind."

"It was really crazy," he said. "I have a hard time describing it."

Neely said he believes the vessel was hit by a rogue wave that kept building until it was 50 feet when it capsized the Walkabout. The boat was built with a kneel of 6 feet 6 inches to withstand heavy seas with its internal ballast.

However, nothing could stop a rogue wave "even if we knew it was coming," he added.

Neely was in the galley of the Walkabout when the hatch protecting the inside of the yacht was blown open. He said he was slammed into the side of the vessel, hitting his chest and losing his breath.

Vanway, fearing that Neely was more seriously injured, radioed a distress call that the captain may be suffering a heart attack. Neely said the confusion was understandable considering the chaos.

Lee Neely also was sitting in the galley, reading a book, when the starboard side of the vessel was hit by the huge wave.

The Walkabout "turned turtle," referring to a nautical term describing when a vessel capsizes and turns over, he said.

Both Neelys are experienced fishermen who believe that the vessel listed more than 90 to 100 degrees.

Vanway said he was in the cargo hold in his bunk relaxing when he "felt the sudden shift and felt the boat flip over."

This was his first time sailing in deep waters.

"I thought that this was it. I was covered with water on the port side as the water kept pouring in," said Vanway, who hopes to become a commercial fisherman.

The Walkabout was equipped with a GPS satellite device that was able to send a digital distress text message to a private provider in Texas, which contacted the Coast Guard at 7:15 p.m. Sunday.

"I was scared but I believe in these guys. We worked together for two years. They know what they are doing. I knew this was going to work," Vanway said. "They are good seamen (referring to the Neelys). They kept me positive and confident."

Matson Master John Bloomingdale, who has been a captain on the Manukai since 2005, led the rescue with a crew of 22 and two additional sea cadets.

"I am thrilled it went as well as it did," Bloomingdale said.

Bloomingdale said the Manukai arrived on scene at 10 p.m. Sunday.

Manukai Chief Matt Merrill said there were three attempts to get alongside the Walkabout to get a line to the distressed sailboat. By midnight the three survivors said they were too exhausted to continue rescue attempts.

At first light when visibility had improved, the Manukai was able to get a line to the Walkabout and drop a 30-foot ladder. Using the rope ladder with fiberglass runs, the trio scrambled up the side of the Manukai to safety at 7:52 a.m. Monday.

"I kept my fingers crossed because something always could go wrong," endangering the lives of the crew on both the Manukai and Walkabout, Bloomingdale said.

The dramatic rescue was aided by a Hurricane Hunter aircraft that had been diverted from inside Hurricane Julio to locate the Walkabout. The aircraft established radio contact with the yacht at 10:49 p.m. Sunday — three hours after the Coast Guard got the first mayday call.

The Neelys will return to Stockton with plans to build another vessel.

Ben Neely, a civil engineer, had planned to finance the trip with stops in Japan, the Philippines and Thailand to buy teakwood.

"This was my planned retirement home and job," he said.