Journal 5

August 29, ‘05

Sunshine! Took the bus, it runs once a day, from Bodega Bay into Santa Rosa. A 45 min. trip into town that left the Spud Point Marina and traveled inland through some beautiful agricultural areas. The gravenstein apples were ripe and ready for the picking. A lot of the orchards reminded me of Pete and Jane Hammond’s place out in Metchosin. Lots of organic fruits and vegetables, as well as some really great wines are available in the Sonoma Valley. It would be great to have access to a vehicle so to stop and pick up some of the local produce. Unfortunately, the bus has a schedule and it doesn’t include any stops at the farm gate markets.
It was hot in the city, we found summer! We also found a great little café that had great coffee and allowed us to access the internet. I’m surprised how difficult gaining access to wireless remote has been since we have entered California.

August 30, ‘05

More sunshine, day 2 of summer. We hung around the marina today making phone calls and second guessing ourselves about having stayed. However, when they say small craft advisory SCA we stay put, we don’t need any extra drama in our lives. It’s plenty exciting without encouraging the wrath of the sea gods.
Its 3 weeks since I gave myself a hair cut. I would like to say it was more successful than the first time I cut my hair. I was 6 the first time I explored my career option as a hair stylist, the day before the grade 1 school picture. I’ve even been practicing on Dick over that past few months. His cuts seem to have worked out ok! Yes, maybe a little less of a challenge than doing a full head of hair, but nonetheless I thought looking into that polished stainless ‘mirror’ in the minimally fluorescent lit marina washroom, my head held high over the sink draped with toilet paper I was looking pretty professional. I proceed, I mimic the moves I’ve watched may hair stylist, Michelle, make a hundred times over the past 4 years and convince myself that yes I can do this. I have evidence that my skill level hasn’t improved all that much since that first try! Time heals and hair grows, I think its long enough now to get someone who knows what they are doing to ‘fix’ it!
We had a BBQ and then the crew from Veleda came over with a copy of Harry Potter 1 on DVD. There’s nothing like having friends over for a movie and popcorn.

August 31, ‘05

Day 3 of summer and we’re out of here! Winds are down, and the swells were only 9ft. in 9 seconds making a pretty comfortable trip around Pt. Reyes. It was a short day but a really pleasant day of motoring.
We’re anchored in Drakes Bay, about 25 miles from San Francisco.
Tomorrow we’re planning to sail under the Golden Gate. The weather is supposed to be ideal.

Happy Bday Brendan!

September 1, ‘05

A pewter start after spending an uncomfortable night anchored in Drakes Bay, the wind was light but the swell or maybe current or whatever was making anchoring bumpy and noisy. Dick didn’t sleep a wink, which is unusual for him. He can usually settle down after a bit. We had been rafted up to Veleda till about 2:00 a.m. when we decided it might be better to have her anchor on her own. During the unrafting Alice got her hand got between the dinghy kicker (outboard motor) and our top rails. She didn’t break it, just squashed it and gave herself an ugly bruise.
Coming into San Francisco, was exhilarating I have never seen so many boats, mostly commercial and sport fishing vessels. It was like watching two lines of ants, there was barely a break between vessels just a steady flow. I don’t know where they went or where they came from as we neared the bar there was just Blue and Veleda going into the Bonita channel. I was asked in an email what "crossing the bar was a non event” meant. So for my nonsailing buddies I hope this clears the mystery up, for those of you that do sail. Crossing a bar, according to Maureen, can be a real challenge as this huge mass of ocean water is either being squished into or out of a bay depending on the tide. As the water gets squished it carries along with it a pile of sand. The sand is then dumped into the narrowing and the channel becomes very shallow. Now the wind and the current and the tides have an opportunity to add their level of challenge. The wind can create wind waves and/or add to the already existing swell. Mostly wind waves just make you wet, but the swell can carry ugly rogue waves that can lift you up and throw you around like a paper boat in a fountain and they don’t discriminate they toss loaded freighters around just as easily as they do a 34’ steel sloop, or they can land on you and your deck, hard. Then the current and tide (depending on your timing) can have you almost standing still or even going backwards as you rev your engine to no avail. So when I tell you that we crossed the bar uneventfully, it means we timed our crossing so the tide was working for us, and that there was a manageable swell. We’ve crossed bars that we almost as flat as glass and some, well not so much. We timed our entry of the bar to San Francisco, on a flood tide, 3ft. swell, light fog and . . . was about 30’ deep.. . . For this momentous occasion as we passed under the Golden Gate bridge we popped the cork off a bottle of bubbly (unfortunately we had run out of the favourite KP Plonk Blonk) and watched as the fog lifted off the tops of the bridge and the sun came out and we motored in Sausalito. We checked into the Clipper Yacht Marina, made a quick trip to town. When we returned we had decided we needed a nap and at 4:00 p.m. passed out the next time we were conscious it was 6:00 a.m.

TECHNICAL ADDENDUM: BAR CROSSINGS by dick.com

Most of the harbors large and small along the American west coast occur where rivers empty into the ocean. This covers large entrances like the Columbia River and San Francisco Bay as well as small ones like Noyo River or Bodega Bay. As these rivers flow out they dump sand and silt at the delta to form sand bars. The US Army Corps of Engineers has built breakwaters on either side of these deltas. There is also a large and continuous westerly swell from the open Pacific which runs anywhere from 3 to 12 feet and larger in storms. Usually it is in the middle of the range. When these swells cross the sand bar they form breaking waves as the water shallows from 200 to 30 feet or less. If the tide is flowing out with the river current (ebbing) the waves are always steep and severe because the outgoing water is opposing the incoming swell. If the tide is flooding then the incoming tide overwhelms the river outflow and the current actually runs with the swell. The swells then become just big smooth hills and are easily negotiated.

When you add the prevailing westerly wind to this mix it simply adds wind waves to the height of the swell and makes crossing the bar that much more interesting.

The US Coast Guard is a phenomenal organization that provides incredible services to boaters. There is a USCG station at every harbour and they respond immediately on VHF ch 16. They will give you bar reports, current conditions, and weather reports, escort you in or even tow a vessel in peril. Some of our fellow boaters have used the escort, many have used the bar condition report. They monitor the bars and even close them to traffic if conditions are severe or close them to, say, boats under 25 feet.

Our first crossing at Gray’s Harbor was so benign we missed it altogether and did not realize we had crossed until we entered the marina. Our second was the notorious Columbia River and that was also a non event. This time we were more aware as we watched the depth sounder until we were through. Our fifth crossing we were so confidant that we even tried it at the beginning of an ebb tide. This was a mistake. The swells were big steep and ugly and it was all I could do to hand steer all the way in, Never again. In 19 crossings that was our only bad experience and now we only cross on the flood.

September 2, ‘05

Pewter till noon and then glorious sunshine. We spent the day in search of a kicker. As from here on down the coast we’ll be using the dingy a lot while we’re anchoring or tied to mooring balls. We found a Honda dealer in San Rafael and hopped on the local transit bus to go and check it out. San Rafael is about 10 times the size of Sausalito and there is at least 10 times the number of vehicles. We bought a 5hp Honda, and the owner of the shop offered us a lift back to Sausalito. I was wondering how we would get the motor back on the bus! Another day of successful hunting and gathering.

September 3, 05

Pewter till noon and more sunshine! Really warm if you can get out of the wind and just hang out in the sunshine. We’re anchored in the bay, across from town. Now that we have the dingy available to transport us to shore we don’t need to pay marina fees. The Sausalito channel is very busy channel; there is a constant parade of boats of every description. Sausalito seems to be rather expensive and I think the cost of housing is pretty high. There are lots of float homes here, some of them are huge! I saw one that I think is a triplex.
We went to the Sausalito Art Festival, there were over 250 artists displaying their goods. Apparently this is the largest show in the US, so anybody who is anybody is here. I know that my artist and art savvy friends would have thoroughly enjoyed this show. There were some truly unique pieces of artwork available. The prices on the items were way up there, but people were walking out with packages under their arms.

September 4, 05

Sunshine and we were able to get a mooring buoy in front of the Sausalito Yacht Club. As members of the Blue Water Cruising Association we are able to get reciprocal privileges. It is a rather rolly mooring but it’s secure and we’re really close to town. The folks at the club are very accommodating. They are accustomed to having BCA tied up here. Meridian Passage and crew just left a few days ago after spending a week. They have provided us with access to their wireless connection. The club has a shower, dinning room, and bar. What more could you ask for?
Last night was the first night that was so clear and warm you could actually spend time outside and drink in the view of San Francisco with all her lights twinkling I especially liked the way the lights were strung along the top of the bridge that spans from San Francisco to Oakland, outlining the bridge against the darkness and reflected in the water It was spectacular.

September 5, 05

Sunshine, and more summer. Took the dingy to town and picked up a few groceries. This is a really uncomfortable mooring. There is a lot of surge, and most of the boaters traveling either up or down the channel don’t abide by the 5kts. posted this close to the end of the channel. We’ve seen vessels actually boarded by the coast guard and fined for speeding a little closer in, but for some reason not here. We’ve talked about staying another day however, when you can’t even have something sitting on the table without flying off its just no fun!

September 6, 05

We’re out of here, it’s just too bumpy! Sunshine and we’re sailing to Richmond. We were able to sale off the mooring ball and straight down Raccoon channel between Tiburon and Angel Island. It was a great sail and we attempted to moor at Pt. Richmond, however, they’re under major renovations and couldn’t accommodate us, probably just as well as we ended up meeting Meridian Passage, Veleda and crews moored at Richmond Marine Harbour, the staff at the municipal harbour were extremely helpful and found us a slip. The first slip we were assigned was occupied, and after my 3rd docking for the day in a surge and hollowing wind, wasn’t looking forward to negotiating with another slip. I guess 4 times lucky, as we slipped into a 12ft. wide berth with 20kts of crosswind without even a bump on the dock. I think I’m getting a handle on this parking stuff! Dick has been bragging about my accomplishments.

Spent a couple of hours with Paul and Julia, talking about there passage down to SF. They went out 150 miles and tacked back in to arrive at SF 6 days later. They could have been here in 5 but needed to time the crossing of the SF bar. So they slowed down (an interesting concept for a sailboat) in order to arrive on a flood. Meridian Passage had 6 on board so were able to turn shifts around fairly comfortably. Paul and Julia, their 2 kids Erin 22 and Michael 18, Erin’s boyfriend Jordie 22, and a nephew! Only twice did Paul have to go up and discourage the ‘boys’ from trying to achieve 9kts. in 30-35 kts winds. Gratefully, they had a pretty uneventful passage!

September 7, 05

Pewter to start turning to a glorious afternoon full of sunshine. Jens and Alice from Veleda and the crew from Blue hopped aboard the local bus, and then onto the BART (rapid transit) and headed to Berkley. What a great adventure! The local bus drive talked about her travels to “all over the world”, except Alaska, Denmark and a few other places! Then negotiating the BART! It’s relatively inexpensive to use the local transportation. Groceries are about the same as in Victoria, only American dollars and housing is out of this world! I can’t figure out how people can afford to live here! Minimum wage, depending on the county is from $6-$12/hr. and an apartment is upwards to $1700. /mon.

Happy Bday Hartley!

September 8, 05

Pewter, as we leave Richmond and head to Alameda (an Island), to moor for 10 days at the Oakland Yacht Club. The channel is bustling with activity, we watched huge freighters loaded and unloaded of all their wares, jockeyed for position with a number of tugs pushing and pulling enormous loads, the local harbour patrol on his rounds, and a few other power and sailboats headed for points unknown.

Arriving at OYC, was a bit of a challenge. The slips are 30ft. long and 12ft. wide with a narrow alley way ~50ft. between the docks with many of the vessels hanging out a good long ways. We are 34’ and 11’ wide, so makes for an interesting event. This very nice young man, Chris thought he would be able to ‘catch’ Blue as we came into our slip. I think he was rather surprised that she wasn’t as easy as some of the boats he’s caught before. Most of the boats in this club are racers and are really light! After a brief wrestle and a slip of the transmission into reverse we were in without embarrassing ourselves or throwing poor Chris in the drink. Not the kind of impression you want to make on the members, throwing them in the drink!

September 9, 05

Sunshine. Really lazy day. Hair appointment, naps and reading. No luck trying to get a new computer on line. Dick spent about 5 hrs. trying to decipher Dell’s online catalogue. Oh! Well I guess we’ll continue to struggle along with this puppy until something else comes along.

Dinner at the yacht club and it was a real event visiting guests were honored and as Bluewater Cruiser members (Veleda & Blue) were introduced Dick made a really nice and yes brief speech thanking the club for embracing us and providing us with all the privileges of regular members. They have provided us with 5 days of free moorage and then it will be $5. /day after that. We also received access to their wireless internet gratis! that usually has a $5. /day fee attached. They have a TV room that includes a library that we have access to, as well as the most wonderful showers. There’s even an ice machine for those little afternoon cocktails we on occasion have imbibed. We had an extra BCA burgee and presented it in a reciprocal exchange for an OYC burgee.

September 10, 05

First day of real sun and heat. Quite encouraging. Went to a flea market at another yacht club right next door. What a lot of junk/inventory/boat jewelry they had for sale, we couldn’t find anything to buy. Just like Boater’s Exchange in Sidney, only more of it...

Took a dingy ride to the boat show at Jack London Square, a life long dream of Dick’s and while we were there, oh my we fell in love with a boat that is way beyond our reach. A gorgeous Island Packet 37’, what a beauty too bad she’s not steel. Oh well, back to our sweet Blue whom everyone admires and so much. BBQ pork loin with the crew of Veleda. And off to bed.

Meridian Passage arrived today and is moored at the club next door.

Sept 11, 05

More summer, hot and sunny! While having brunch at the club Paul and Kristi from Shearwater arrived. They have had quite a trip. We spent the day visiting and doing some long overdue boat jobs.

The people here have set a new standard for friendliness. Honestly offering any thing we might need from charts, to their own personal vehicles to get the longer distance chores done, just anything and everything. An incredible find!

We’re off to Vegas tomorrow with the crew from Veleda. A repeat visit for the Veleda crew but Dick and I, well it’s our first time! Maybe we’ll hit it lucky and bring home the dough for the Island Packet! That would be lovely but not likely as neither one of us particularly likes/knows how to gamble. Ah! I’m sure from what I’ve heard the shows will be where we spend our time.

All is well in Alameda! Hope all is well from where you hail!
Take care

m&d
svblue