December 2008
Hi again and Merry Christmas!
We arrived in San Diego in late September, knowing and understanding that time was becoming critical as Steve's dad's illness was escalating. I can't explain the emotions as we sailed into San Diego Bay. Being gone two years, and assuming we would likely not be returning in the near future.... It was a beautiful day and a lovely sail.
As always, we are so blessed. Our yacht club found a lovely temporary slip for us in a town where slips are difficult to come by. After a few days of decommissioning the boat, we drove over to Sedona to be with Steve's dad (in the hospital) and his mother. In early November Steve's dad passed away peacefully in his sleep.
I'll check in again soon with more information, but we wanted to say a wonderful Merry Christmas to everyone. More pictures will be up soon.
God Bless,
Jill
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Catalina Island
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Santa Catalina
22 September 2008
I cannot imagine a more beautiful island exists than Catalina. (Oh, I’m sure there is one, I just can’t imagine it ;-) I have only wonderful memories of this island – the many times I brought my 20’ sailboat here, fun with my stepsons when they were small aboard our old ketch, taking mom to Avalon on the ferry, a rendezvous we hosted here…. As I write I’m enjoying a warm Autumn day (today is the Autumnal Equinox) with a lovely breeze, birds singing, a little boy playing “pirate” in the sand, dozens of boats on the moorings…. This is the absolute perfect month to be here. The crowds are gone, the weather is warm and the breezes are fair. We sailed 58nm to Catalina from Channel Islands Harbor (in Oxnard, about an hour or so North of Los Angeles) and spent a few days on the “back” side at our favorite cove, Catalina Harbor. Cat Harbor is designated by the U.S. Coast Guard as one of 3 natural “Year-round Safe Harbors” in Southern California, meaning they are safe to put in to 365 days a year. Two yacht clubs have facilities (I’m using that word liberally) at Cat Harbor but basically it is a large, natural harbor protected from swell and fetch. At one time bison were seen roaming nearby hills (we saw one) but they are now confined to grazing areas in the center of the island. They were brought to the island in 1924 for the filming of The Vanishing American. At present there are about 400 remaining on the island. I wish I could show you how lovely the evenings are when the moon comes up from behind the 2,000+’ hills, the breeze subsides, and we’re at peace in the calmness.
A note about Channel Islands Harbor. While there we recognized a cruising boat formerly owned by a friend of ours. After meeting the new owners, we discovered that they, too, retired and departed from Alameda (as did we) and are heading to Mexico. Cindy and Gary Ladd are avid water people and are both very accomplished – she as a National winner in rowing as well as a synchronized swimming coach and he, among other things, a winner of the swim from Alcatraz to the City (San Francisco). Quite something. And did I mention that Cindy plays the banjer? (banjo) We’ve enjoyed their company as we met up with them at various islands and harbors. They left today for San Diego, then on to Mexico, the Galapagos, and off to the South Pacific. A large part of the cruising lifestyle consists of meeting nice, interesting people in addition to the beauty of sailing and sea life. As always our stay at Catalina will be much too brief. The plan is to depart for Dana Point on the 24th or so, visit with long-time friends, then head on to San Diego. Once there we’ll be seeking a permanent slip as we’ve postponed our continued cruising for now.
22 September 2008
I cannot imagine a more beautiful island exists than Catalina. (Oh, I’m sure there is one, I just can’t imagine it ;-) I have only wonderful memories of this island – the many times I brought my 20’ sailboat here, fun with my stepsons when they were small aboard our old ketch, taking mom to Avalon on the ferry, a rendezvous we hosted here…. As I write I’m enjoying a warm Autumn day (today is the Autumnal Equinox) with a lovely breeze, birds singing, a little boy playing “pirate” in the sand, dozens of boats on the moorings…. This is the absolute perfect month to be here. The crowds are gone, the weather is warm and the breezes are fair. We sailed 58nm to Catalina from Channel Islands Harbor (in Oxnard, about an hour or so North of Los Angeles) and spent a few days on the “back” side at our favorite cove, Catalina Harbor. Cat Harbor is designated by the U.S. Coast Guard as one of 3 natural “Year-round Safe Harbors” in Southern California, meaning they are safe to put in to 365 days a year. Two yacht clubs have facilities (I’m using that word liberally) at Cat Harbor but basically it is a large, natural harbor protected from swell and fetch. At one time bison were seen roaming nearby hills (we saw one) but they are now confined to grazing areas in the center of the island. They were brought to the island in 1924 for the filming of The Vanishing American. At present there are about 400 remaining on the island. I wish I could show you how lovely the evenings are when the moon comes up from behind the 2,000+’ hills, the breeze subsides, and we’re at peace in the calmness.
A note about Channel Islands Harbor. While there we recognized a cruising boat formerly owned by a friend of ours. After meeting the new owners, we discovered that they, too, retired and departed from Alameda (as did we) and are heading to Mexico. Cindy and Gary Ladd are avid water people and are both very accomplished – she as a National winner in rowing as well as a synchronized swimming coach and he, among other things, a winner of the swim from Alcatraz to the City (San Francisco). Quite something. And did I mention that Cindy plays the banjer? (banjo) We’ve enjoyed their company as we met up with them at various islands and harbors. They left today for San Diego, then on to Mexico, the Galapagos, and off to the South Pacific. A large part of the cruising lifestyle consists of meeting nice, interesting people in addition to the beauty of sailing and sea life. As always our stay at Catalina will be much too brief. The plan is to depart for Dana Point on the 24th or so, visit with long-time friends, then head on to San Diego. Once there we’ll be seeking a permanent slip as we’ve postponed our continued cruising for now.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
The Channel Islands, Sea Life and Gales!
Hi all,
We had a lovely sail to Santa Cruz Island from the harbor at Santa Barbara on September 10th. Your "three hour tour." So after four hours, we dropped the hook (actually, hooks, as it is a bow-and-stern anchorage) in Pelican Bay on the North side of the island. Pelican Bay has great holding, about 5 fathoms of water. We were the sole boat for a few days, then enjoyed watching the "working folk" arrive by boat from Santa Barbara over the weekend. By Saturday I'd say there were about 15 boats in the anchorage. The fragrance of the island is unique. The terrain is rugged - and dry this time of year - with a few windblown trees and lots of brush. The Chumash Indians are said to have lived on this island many years ago, building their tomols (redwood canoes) and hunting game and fish for survival. Though Santa Cruz is quite close to Santa Barbara/Ventura/Oxnard, one is wise to remember that this Island is rugged and remote - and the weather can change from fair to force 6+ in a blink. Weather patterns are dominated by strong, almost daily, northwesterly winds that often reach gale force as they accelerate at Point Conception and impinge on the islands.
After several days at Pelican we scooted around to the East end of the island and anchored in calm waters at Smugglers' Cove (I can't help but wonder what one would smuggle to or from the island...). This was a different kind of beautiful, with olive trees planted in smart rows, and somewhat barren hills. The water was emerald and calm. Except for the 250' Navy ship (non nuclear) that pulled in and anchored next to us (!), we had the anchorage to ourselves!
Intentions for the following day (Monday, Sept. 15th) were a 12 hour motor/sail to Santa Catalina Island. After a double-check of the forecast, we elected to abandon that plan and proceed to Channel Islands Harbor (Oxnard), which would allow us to avoid the predicted gale force winds. Oh, btw, my upper back began acting up again which effectively means that Steve is single-handing the boat. I provide the brains and he provides the brawn. Rest is the only "thing" that helps my back heal, so helming in a forty knot breeze is not an option (heck, I wouldn't want to do that if my back was as strong as Arnold's!). We arrived after sailing thru lumpy, gusty seas and winds in the Channel Islands Harbor after a 3 hour passage from Smugglers. What a blesssing. This is a lovely Harbor and I'm so thankful we didn't miss it! And, btw, we had another hitchhiker. A homing pigeon, banded on both legs, arrived while we were at Smugglers, stayed the night on deck, and came with us (most of the way) to Channel Islands Harbor. To say this bird had personality is an understatement! But why s/he pecked at all our portholes, climbed up and down the ropes and lines, trotted around the deck counterclockwise, and refused to eat or drink is beyond me. Guess you need to be smarter than the bird to understand it all....
Tomorrow we once again intend to trot along to Catalina Island. About 58nm. We flight plan for about 5+ knots (and, with wind, we can make about 6 knots speed made good) so if you do the math it's apparent we'll be underway ALL day. Ahhh, the (almost) full moon will come in handy!
More from Providence and her crew soon.
Blessings,
Jill
We had a lovely sail to Santa Cruz Island from the harbor at Santa Barbara on September 10th. Your "three hour tour." So after four hours, we dropped the hook (actually, hooks, as it is a bow-and-stern anchorage) in Pelican Bay on the North side of the island. Pelican Bay has great holding, about 5 fathoms of water. We were the sole boat for a few days, then enjoyed watching the "working folk" arrive by boat from Santa Barbara over the weekend. By Saturday I'd say there were about 15 boats in the anchorage. The fragrance of the island is unique. The terrain is rugged - and dry this time of year - with a few windblown trees and lots of brush. The Chumash Indians are said to have lived on this island many years ago, building their tomols (redwood canoes) and hunting game and fish for survival. Though Santa Cruz is quite close to Santa Barbara/Ventura/Oxnard, one is wise to remember that this Island is rugged and remote - and the weather can change from fair to force 6+ in a blink. Weather patterns are dominated by strong, almost daily, northwesterly winds that often reach gale force as they accelerate at Point Conception and impinge on the islands.
After several days at Pelican we scooted around to the East end of the island and anchored in calm waters at Smugglers' Cove (I can't help but wonder what one would smuggle to or from the island...). This was a different kind of beautiful, with olive trees planted in smart rows, and somewhat barren hills. The water was emerald and calm. Except for the 250' Navy ship (non nuclear) that pulled in and anchored next to us (!), we had the anchorage to ourselves!
Intentions for the following day (Monday, Sept. 15th) were a 12 hour motor/sail to Santa Catalina Island. After a double-check of the forecast, we elected to abandon that plan and proceed to Channel Islands Harbor (Oxnard), which would allow us to avoid the predicted gale force winds. Oh, btw, my upper back began acting up again which effectively means that Steve is single-handing the boat. I provide the brains and he provides the brawn. Rest is the only "thing" that helps my back heal, so helming in a forty knot breeze is not an option (heck, I wouldn't want to do that if my back was as strong as Arnold's!). We arrived after sailing thru lumpy, gusty seas and winds in the Channel Islands Harbor after a 3 hour passage from Smugglers. What a blesssing. This is a lovely Harbor and I'm so thankful we didn't miss it! And, btw, we had another hitchhiker. A homing pigeon, banded on both legs, arrived while we were at Smugglers, stayed the night on deck, and came with us (most of the way) to Channel Islands Harbor. To say this bird had personality is an understatement! But why s/he pecked at all our portholes, climbed up and down the ropes and lines, trotted around the deck counterclockwise, and refused to eat or drink is beyond me. Guess you need to be smarter than the bird to understand it all....
Tomorrow we once again intend to trot along to Catalina Island. About 58nm. We flight plan for about 5+ knots (and, with wind, we can make about 6 knots speed made good) so if you do the math it's apparent we'll be underway ALL day. Ahhh, the (almost) full moon will come in handy!
More from Providence and her crew soon.
Blessings,
Jill
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Greetings from Santa Barbara!
I'm not sure I've seen a more lovely area than Santa Barbara. The mountains glow pink at night, the northern Channel Islands are visible during the day, the winds are steady at 15 knots, the sun is shining, the aroma from the SB Yacht Club galley is wonderful....
We are visiting with Matthew, now a senior at UCSB and a Communication major, and enjoying the time immensely. The immediate plan is to have no plan (!). Likely (if we feel like it) we'll depart on Monday (Sept. 8th) for the Channel Islands which include Santa Cruz, Anacapa, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel (a sea lion rookery), as well as the more well known Santa Catalina Island (about 75nm South of Santa Cruz island). Our trip into Southern California waters was mostly uneventful, for which we are grateful. We did have a hitchhiker - a little Plover who landed his/her weary body on our boat and rode along with us for 10 minutes. At last glance we saw him/her fly away toward shore (2+ miles away). We believe this is an endangered species, so we're glad to do our minor part. We aren't certain of the success of the return flight to shore (about a mile away) as the flightpath seemed to take a nosedive into the Ocean. Let's assume the little bird did make it to shore, thus providing a happy ending to this brief blog. BTW, we saw one of our former boats in the Santa Barbara harbor. Nice guy, Jim, is the owner now. Not only do we have
the boat in common, but Jim (who studied at the New England Conservatory of Music and is a musician/composer) is a double bass player. I just happen to have one on the boat (an electric upright "double" bass) so he dropped by to play it a bit. Very cool!
We are visiting with Matthew, now a senior at UCSB and a Communication major, and enjoying the time immensely. The immediate plan is to have no plan (!). Likely (if we feel like it) we'll depart on Monday (Sept. 8th) for the Channel Islands which include Santa Cruz, Anacapa, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel (a sea lion rookery), as well as the more well known Santa Catalina Island (about 75nm South of Santa Cruz island). Our trip into Southern California waters was mostly uneventful, for which we are grateful. We did have a hitchhiker - a little Plover who landed his/her weary body on our boat and rode along with us for 10 minutes. At last glance we saw him/her fly away toward shore (2+ miles away). We believe this is an endangered species, so we're glad to do our minor part. We aren't certain of the success of the return flight to shore (about a mile away) as the flightpath seemed to take a nosedive into the Ocean. Let's assume the little bird did make it to shore, thus providing a happy ending to this brief blog. BTW, we saw one of our former boats in the Santa Barbara harbor. Nice guy, Jim, is the owner now. Not only do we have
the boat in common, but Jim (who studied at the New England Conservatory of Music and is a musician/composer) is a double bass player. I just happen to have one on the boat (an electric upright "double" bass) so he dropped by to play it a bit. Very cool!More soon.
Have a blessed day!
Jill
Have a blessed day!
Jill
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Monterey - Leg 4
We spent an extra day in Santa Cruz getting the alternator bolt repaired. The old bolt head had sheared off and left the body of the bolt threaded into the mount that is also part of the engine’s thermostat. I tried an “easy out” that was designed to remove screws and could not remove the old bolt—so we contacted the local boatyard when they opened and they got us right in. Amazing what a machine shop with all the right tools can accomplish. In about ten minutes, they were able to remove the bolt. This was the ideal time to replace the thermostat, since the yard had to remove the thermostat. Lots of words to say, “this became a maintenance day.”
The next day we planned to go to Monterey. However, the “weather guessers” were calling for 25-30 knot winds from the NW, so we figured that the last half of the trip would likely be boisterous, along with beam seas that come with 30 knot winds. So off we went expecting some excitement. Instead the trip was beautiful, 12-15 knots of beam reaching. The winds actually got lighter as we passed the half way point on Monterey Bay. We clearly have much to learn about weather forecasting and making our own estimates of likely conditions.
We are spending the day restocking the boat. By the way, Monterey has an amazing Farmer’s Market each Tuesday afternoon. It was two city blocks of merchants, just a few blocks from the marina, and is the place to get your fresh produce. Jill also managed to find a music store, from which I had to drag her after an hour.
We will take off early in the morning for San Simeon. This is an amazing little anchorage just below the Hearst Castle and we plan to spend a day or two before continuing South.
The next day we planned to go to Monterey. However, the “weather guessers” were calling for 25-30 knot winds from the NW, so we figured that the last half of the trip would likely be boisterous, along with beam seas that come with 30 knot winds. So off we went expecting some excitement. Instead the trip was beautiful, 12-15 knots of beam reaching. The winds actually got lighter as we passed the half way point on Monterey Bay. We clearly have much to learn about weather forecasting and making our own estimates of likely conditions.
We are spending the day restocking the boat. By the way, Monterey has an amazing Farmer’s Market each Tuesday afternoon. It was two city blocks of merchants, just a few blocks from the marina, and is the place to get your fresh produce. Jill also managed to find a music store, from which I had to drag her after an hour.
We will take off early in the morning for San Simeon. This is an amazing little anchorage just below the Hearst Castle and we plan to spend a day or two before continuing South.
San Luis Obispo - Leg 6
The off day in San Simeon was a bit of a disappointment.
The fog continued most of the day, but we did get a few glimpses of Hearst Castle on the nearby hilltop. (Jill’s note: with binoculars ;-)
However, we were second guessing our decision to stay for the extra day since the weather service was calling for a gale warning for the next day, between Piedras Blancas and Pt. Arguello—right where we were located.
Fortunately, the winds were not expected to increase until the afternoon.
Our options were to remain in a foggy San Simeon for three more days, dash to an equally foggy Morro Bay and wait out the two days of gale winds, or proceed to Port San Luis and wait out the gale.
We chose the latter since we could always divert into Morro Bay if the winds (and seas) built earlier than forecast.
I think we made a good decision as we got to Port San Luis (PSL) about 4pm on August 30th, just as the winds were starting to build.
PSL is a large, open harbor with a long seawall that blocks the predominant West and Northwest winds and seas. However, PSL is a working harbor and we got our first taste of refueling from a pier with nothing but the pier pilings to use for tieing-off. I had been telling Jill we needed fender boards for Mexico and had planned to make them in San Diego. We must have generated “Tourist” comments from the local fishermen as we tried to hold our precious painted and waxed surfaces away from the barnacle encrusted telephone poles that hold up the pier. The fuel “dock” operator lowered the hose to us from ten feet above our heads, complaining all the while that it was time to “close up shop,” “I’m not supposed to be working this late” (it was 4pm), “why was our fuel tank so far forward?” etc.,etc.
After we finished fueling, he kindly pointed out a couple of rocks that lie awash near the fuel “dock.” If you don’t really need fuel and visit PSL, you may want to skip this experience.
We anchored in the East end of the harbor, in 30 feet of relatively flat water with good holding, while watching the effects of gale winds outside the harbor. A good way to experience gale winds, in my opinion.
A peaceful night of good sleep ensued and today we will get some boat chores accomplished. (Jill’s note: which means Steve is changing fuel filters and diving the boat in 58 degree water while I’m reading a book and playing the mandolin ;-)
The gale conditions have potentially been extended another day. We will likely leave on this upcoming Tuesday or Wednesday once we know the worst of the wind and 13’ seas is over. The next leg is the rounding of Pt. Conception (sometimes called the “Cape Horn of the Pacific”) after which we plan (there’s that word again) to anchor in Cojo to savor our re-entry into Southern California. We have stayed in Cojo several times and never cease to be amazed at the difference in weather in this anchorage, located just a mile East of Pt. Conception.
The fog continued most of the day, but we did get a few glimpses of Hearst Castle on the nearby hilltop. (Jill’s note: with binoculars ;-)
However, we were second guessing our decision to stay for the extra day since the weather service was calling for a gale warning for the next day, between Piedras Blancas and Pt. Arguello—right where we were located.
Fortunately, the winds were not expected to increase until the afternoon.
Our options were to remain in a foggy San Simeon for three more days, dash to an equally foggy Morro Bay and wait out the two days of gale winds, or proceed to Port San Luis and wait out the gale.
We chose the latter since we could always divert into Morro Bay if the winds (and seas) built earlier than forecast.
I think we made a good decision as we got to Port San Luis (PSL) about 4pm on August 30th, just as the winds were starting to build.
PSL is a large, open harbor with a long seawall that blocks the predominant West and Northwest winds and seas. However, PSL is a working harbor and we got our first taste of refueling from a pier with nothing but the pier pilings to use for tieing-off. I had been telling Jill we needed fender boards for Mexico and had planned to make them in San Diego. We must have generated “Tourist” comments from the local fishermen as we tried to hold our precious painted and waxed surfaces away from the barnacle encrusted telephone poles that hold up the pier. The fuel “dock” operator lowered the hose to us from ten feet above our heads, complaining all the while that it was time to “close up shop,” “I’m not supposed to be working this late” (it was 4pm), “why was our fuel tank so far forward?” etc.,etc.
After we finished fueling, he kindly pointed out a couple of rocks that lie awash near the fuel “dock.” If you don’t really need fuel and visit PSL, you may want to skip this experience.
We anchored in the East end of the harbor, in 30 feet of relatively flat water with good holding, while watching the effects of gale winds outside the harbor. A good way to experience gale winds, in my opinion.
A peaceful night of good sleep ensued and today we will get some boat chores accomplished. (Jill’s note: which means Steve is changing fuel filters and diving the boat in 58 degree water while I’m reading a book and playing the mandolin ;-)
The gale conditions have potentially been extended another day. We will likely leave on this upcoming Tuesday or Wednesday once we know the worst of the wind and 13’ seas is over. The next leg is the rounding of Pt. Conception (sometimes called the “Cape Horn of the Pacific”) after which we plan (there’s that word again) to anchor in Cojo to savor our re-entry into Southern California. We have stayed in Cojo several times and never cease to be amazed at the difference in weather in this anchorage, located just a mile East of Pt. Conception.
San Simeon - Leg 5
Another good example of needing to be flexible with your boat plans.
The Plan was to depart Monterey at 5am and be around Pt Pinos at daylight.
Then we would have a beautiful daylight run past some of the most incredible scenery in California—Carmel, 17 Mile Drive with all the mansions, Pt Sur, and the ocean perspective of miles of Highway 101.
The Reality is that we left (almost on time) under starry skies and got to Pt Pinos and promptly encountered the fog. We proceeded down the coast about four miles offshore in visibility that ranged from 150 yards to a half mile, and did not see land at all—ever once—for the whole day. I had planned the trip of approximately 85 miles so that we would get to San Simeon Bay before dark. However, the Plan assumed some wind for motor sailing. The Reality is that we had no wind and our speed across the bottom was approximately 5 knots. Reality said there was no way to make landfall before dark.
Remember, the fog I mentioned earlier? Well it was still with us as we approached San Simeon. Running a nice slow entrance with the radar and chart plotter for guidance, we put the anchor down in this really wonderful place about 9pm.
We are taking the next day to enjoy the view (hopefully) of Hearst Castle.
We plan to proceed to San Luis Obispo the day after that.
The Plan was to depart Monterey at 5am and be around Pt Pinos at daylight.
Then we would have a beautiful daylight run past some of the most incredible scenery in California—Carmel, 17 Mile Drive with all the mansions, Pt Sur, and the ocean perspective of miles of Highway 101.
The Reality is that we left (almost on time) under starry skies and got to Pt Pinos and promptly encountered the fog. We proceeded down the coast about four miles offshore in visibility that ranged from 150 yards to a half mile, and did not see land at all—ever once—for the whole day. I had planned the trip of approximately 85 miles so that we would get to San Simeon Bay before dark. However, the Plan assumed some wind for motor sailing. The Reality is that we had no wind and our speed across the bottom was approximately 5 knots. Reality said there was no way to make landfall before dark.
Remember, the fog I mentioned earlier? Well it was still with us as we approached San Simeon. Running a nice slow entrance with the radar and chart plotter for guidance, we put the anchor down in this really wonderful place about 9pm.
We are taking the next day to enjoy the view (hopefully) of Hearst Castle.
We plan to proceed to San Luis Obispo the day after that.
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