Blog Discontinued

Hello everyone,

As you know if you have been looking at this blog we have not updated it in over a year. We have found that the software is too cumbersome and the time commitment too big to maintain the blog in a condition that we are satisfied with.

We send out a monthly newsletter by email that has also been excerpted and published three times over the past year by Latitude 38. We have over 90 people that have requested to be included on our email distribution, each month we send out a text email of around 6 pages along with 30 or so pictures. If you would like to get the newsletter please email us through the Contact Us link and send us your email address and we’ll add you to the list.

Thanks for looking at our site!

Fair Winds,

Wayne & Elly

SV Zeppelin

 

Elly’s Published!

Hey everyone, Elly had an article picked up and excerpted on Latitude 38′s “Lectronic Latitude” site, check out the link to the right!  The full article will be coming up soon in a post about Catalina. So proud of her!

Wayne

 

Welcome to our blog!

Here we will be telling the tales of our adventures as we embark on our new cruising lifestyle. If you would like to get to know us a little and read a short history of how this change in our lives has come about please see the About Us page.

If you are interested in more details about our boat Zeppelin please see the About Zeppelin page.

Please also take a look at the Kudo’s page, without the support and encouragement of all our friends we don’t know how we could have done it!

For those of you new to blogs, the postings appear in order from most recent to oldest so if you haven’t checked in for awhile or this is your first time you will need to go down to the last post that you read and then work your way back up.You can also just click on the date of the last post you looked at on the calendar at the right and it will take you to where you left off. Cool, huh!

 

San Francisco to Santa Cruz

We were planning to leave San Francisco on Friday November 27^th after our US Thanksgiving with friends, but we too were struck with bad weather. Bad in the sense that there were howling winds and huge waves in the Pacific. The seas were over 15 feet high and the winds were up to 40 knots. Being that is our travel roadway, we were not going anywhere for a couple of days. The anchorage we were in had winds up to 15 knots over the water, which is not usually a problem but with the wind tucking around the corner it meant swells which were a tad uncomfy at times. The storm did chill and we were able to leave at 6am on Sunday.

We had the sun rising as we headed underneath the Golden Gate Bridge and bid a fair adieu to San Francisco. Such a beautiful city and lovely bay. We arrived in Sausalito September 15, moved to Berkeley November 3^rd to 26^th and left the anchorage at Treasure Island November 29^th, passing by Alcatraz sitting there all majestic like. In honour of sailing by Alcatraz a few times during our stay one night we watched the DVD “The Rock” with Sean Connery, Nicholas Cage, Ed Harris and a great cast.  That was fun! Digressing here…

As we headed out under the Golden Gate the sunrise was spectacular and the winds were light. The seas were calm with just a 4 to 6 foot swell rolling in from the west and no chop. Our friends in Sausalito had told us that the magic number for crossing the bar was 9 foot swells, if the reports had the swells less than that then it is safe to go. The other thing they said was to take a look at Four Fathom Bank to the north off the starboard side as we headed out, if the swells were not breaking over that bank then we didn’t have to go all the way out the deep water channel before we turned south, we could turn left at the first marker buoy, R8, and go through the gap in the bar that shows on the chart. This saves about 3 to 4 miles.

Since we only had about a 6 foot swell and no breakers off Four Fathom Bank we turned at R8 and went through the gap. Even with those benign conditions we went over 3 rollers that had built up to over 10 feet as we went through but no problems as the waves weren’t breaking. We could sure see how rough it could get and how important it is to watch the weather & sea condition reports. Local knowledge is also a wonderful thing!

We decided to by-pass Half Moon Bay and headed directly to Santa Cruz. All in all a superb trip down – sunny conditions, high teens in temps, we were about 3 miles from the coast and could even see the cars on the coastal highway in some spots. Winds were super light so we (once again) motored with the main sail up. Seems we do that a lot! We had some areas with high waves but we just flowed up over them and were set down gently afterwards. I would say the swells were about 8 feet but because they were so far apart and had such a gentle motion, it was really cool. Now when we have had 8 foot swells in the Strait of Georgia – yikes – short, choppy and very uncomfy. So this was a nice experience. For most of the afternoon we sat out on the bow with the auto pilot remote with us and cruised along.

As far as sea life we saw our usual porpoises and sea lions and lots of birds. Still a bit early for the gray whales as they are heading down to Sea of Cortez in December, and we would need to be further out. They only travel close to shore on the way up the coast in the spring as the moms have the new calves. We might see them passing by late December when we are at the Channel Islands. How cool would that be?

We arrived just at sunset and it was beautiful looking back as they sky was glowing. A number of boats were out enjoying the sunny afternoon and we all headed towards the entrance to the harbor as the sun went down. Although we left before sunup and arrived at sundown it did not seem like a long day.

Approaching Santa Cruz harbor is a unique experience. As you round Pt. Santa Cruz you see the large commercial pier with the town in the background. As you go by the pier you see a large old style amusement park right on the beach, complete with an old wooden roller coaster, ferris wheel, and all the usual rides! The summer anchorage is off the beach right in front of the amusement park, sheltered by the point and the pier, but in winter it’s a little too rolly to be comfortable. The entrance to the small boat harbor is on the other side of the bay, it’s actually an old river mouth that was dredged and had breakwaters added on either side to turn it into a harbor.

This small harbor is split in two about halfway up by a bridge, so the lower half is where all the larger sailboats are and the upper half is mostly small powerboats and sailboats with masts that can be lowered.  On your way in there is a large fuel dock on the right and the harbor police docks and offices are right after that. The harbor office is in charge of all the moorage and you call them to get space.

The end ties of each set of docks are supposed to be reserved for transient boaters however in practice many of them have boats that are there on a full time basis. You will almost certainly have to raft up to someone, which is required for all the end ties, and they still charge you full rate. However the rates are very reasonable as it is a municipal marina.

The fuel dock is also used for overnight moorage once it is closed for the day however it is very exposed as it is right at the entrance to the harbor. Unless there is nothing else available I would pass on the fuel dock and raft as far into the harbor as possible. The harbor is subject to quite strong surge that penetrates all the way in, as well as strong tidal currents in and out. We were rafted on an end tie 2/3 of the way to the bridge and were still bouncing around, tying to the other boat and leaving it proved to be quite a challenge to not damage either vessel!

We spent Sunday evening and Monday in Santa Cruz. We rode our bikes along the ocean (bike paths are super) and made our way to Capitola (about 5 miles). Funky town with shops, galleries and restaurants. Quite a tourist spot in the summer I would think. Very pretty on the ocean, surfers around, waves rolling in.  It was neat passing by the guys in their wet suits and surf boards but what was great to see was that they weren’t all 20 year olds – these guys had grey hair! Surfing in your 60’s on a Monday afternoon on the last day of November- how incredible is that?

We found a great internet coffee shop over looking the beach in Capitola and another one in downtown Santa Cruz called Lulu Carpenter’s, outstanding cappuccino and food. We hung out there while Wayne checked emails and did work stuff.  There is a mooring field and anchorage right off Capitola that is open in the summer and early fall months. It is very protected and has a public dinghy dock for access to the town, they close it for the winter due to storms but it was actually calmer there than in the Santa Cruz harbor when we visited.

Seas were very calm that week as a high pressure system was there. Air temps high teens, reaching 20 degrees and lots of sun. So a good time to be heading down the coast. A bit of wind to sail with would be our only request! We left for Monterey on Tuesday December 1, a short 24 mile trip across Monterey Bay.

 

Up the Sacramento River

On Friday October 9^th there was a big storm forecasted to hit the San Francisco Bay area on Sunday. They were calling for up to 50 knot winds and over 50 mm of rain in a 24 hour period, and the temperature was going to drop over 10 degrees F! Considering that Richardson Bay is wide open to southerly winds, which is what was called for, and the fetch is all the way to Oakland, about 10 miles, it was going to get very rough and bouncy in our slip as we were side tied to the main dock and would be sideways to everything.

We decided this would be a good weekend to go explore the river delta and get away up to where it is much warmer and protected from the winds. We left on Friday afternoon and headed for Benicia, a small town 4 miles up the Sacramento River from the head of the bay, a total of 25 miles from Sausalito.

The trip takes you from San Francisco Bay into San Pablo Bay and then into the river, going by Tiburon, Angel Island, San Rafael and Richmond.  It is via a channel kept dredged for freighters and military ships and even though you are out in the middle of a big bay you have to be careful to stay in the channel as it is very shallow in San Pablo Bay. One of the interesting things you go by is an old lighthouse on Brothers Island off San Pablo Point. The lighthouse is a working beacon and it has been converted to also be a B&B. You can go out to it by lifeboat and they drop you off to stay for the night or weekend and come back to pick you up afterwards. All the funds generated go to help support search & rescue groups. http://ebls.org/  is their website.

As you enter the Sacramento River you go under the Carquinez Bridge. It is an interesting structure in that the original steel riveted bridge is still in use, it handles traffic going one way, and right next to it is a new modern sectional concrete bridge that was built to handle traffic going the other way once the traffic volume got too high for the original two-way structure. The contrast of the old vs new construction methods is very cool. This type of construction is common throughout the bay area, they are building a new Bay Bridge between San Fran and Oakland right now doing the same thing.

The Napa River merges into the Sacramento River right beside the bridge and you can go north up it to Vallejo and into the Napa River wine country. We decided not to head that way as we wanted to get further inland out of the storm.

Benicia is a lovely little town that now lives on tourism and has a beautiful marina inside very secure breakwaters. The marina was built by the city and then turned over to private enterprise to operate it under contract. This system works great, the marina has first class facilities, is secure and very well maintained, and keeps a significant number of slips available for transient boaters. The Benicia Yacht Club is right at the marina and it welcomes all visiting yachties, they don’t seem to be too concerned about reciprocal privileges. It has a great restaurant and bar that overlook the marina, the staff is very friendly and helpful and the marina is 2 blocks from the heart of the historic downtown district.

There is a lot of history in Benicia, it was the first incorporated city in California, it was once the capital of California for 13 months, and it originally had the largest tannery operation on the Pacific Coast, producing over 1/3 of the leather in California. Jack London lived there for several years and two of his works, “Tales of the Fish Patrol” and “John Barleycorn” are based on his experiences there. The downtown area has been restored and preserved and there is an interesting walking tour that details the history of the specific buildings and the town.

The Union Hotel is very cool and has a great bar! For more info about Benicia go to the website http://www.beniciachamber.com/

We had a great time walking and biking the town and surrounding area on Friday afternoon and all day Saturday.

There is a waterfront bike path that does a big loop around the town and out to the historic military fort and arsenal, it overlooks the Port of Benicia, which is still used as a significant deep water terminal. The bike path also goes back along the river all the way to the Carquinez Bridge.

On Sunday we left Benicia under cloudy skies and headed up the river. When you get to Pittsburg (California) the river splits, to the north it is the Sacramento River and to the south it is the San Joaquin River. The two rivers and multiple islands and tributaries form a massive maze of channels and bays with anchorages, marinas and parks everywhere. You could spend years exploring the area.

The Sacramento River is a deep water channel all the way to Sacramento, the state capital of California, which is a deep water port 80 miles inland from San Francisco Bay! We were headed to Rio Vista, a small town 28 miles from Benicia, halfway to Sacramento from San Francisco Bay, that some cruisers recommended to us as having a great marina and a pretty town.

Once we were about 10 miles up the river we came upon the U.S. Navy graveyard! Dozens of decommissioned warships are rafted together and anchored in an arm of the river, supposedly there to be pressed back into service if needed in the next war. Judging by their condition it would be easier to build new ones than fix these rusting hulks. It was eerie going by all these silent war machines.

By the time we were half-way to Rio Vista the sun was shining and we were motor-sailing along at 8 knots in 10 knots of wind on the beam with flat calm water. It’s a unique sensation to be sailing along within 200 feet of riverbanks on each side, watching ranches, oil rigs and wind farms go by. I think that most of the ranchers make a lot more money farming wind than cattle these days.

We came around one bend and were surrounded by sailboarders and kite-boarders literally flying by all around us doing aerial tricks as the wind compressed to 25 knots around the river bend.

Every bridge between San Pablo Bay and Sacramento lifts to a minimum clearance of 135 feet. All of the bridges from San Pablo Bay to Rio Vista have a minimum clearance of 75 feet when down, we need 65 feet for our mast so we didn’t have to wait for any lift bridges. After Rio Vista the bridges are low and have to lift for sailboats or ships so we decided not to go any further up the river.

We pulled into the Delta Marina http://www.deltamarina.com/ in Rio Vista and it felt like something out of a movie set in the Florida Everglades. Very narrow entrance not even wide enough for 2 boats to pass by each other, palm trees and madronas and willows hanging over the water’s edge, you couldn’t really see the marina until you were right inside. As we went into the entrance we were greeted with a blast of an air horn, thought omigod we’re going to hit someone!

Turned out it was from the bar and restaurant that overlooks the entrance and the river, it is perched right on the water’s edge and this is how they greet all incoming boats.

 

The marina is very pretty, funky and well maintained and has fuel docks, wireless internet, a small chandlery and over 600 feet of transient dock space. The restaurant and bar have a wonderful view of the river and good food and drink. We had appies at the bar on Sunday night and Monday is lobster night so we decided that we would have our Thanksgiving dinner in the restaurant on Monday with the traditional lobster.

During the night on Sunday the storm caught up with us and hit with a vengeance. We had about 20 mm of rain between 2:00 am and noon on Monday with 25 knot winds. Palm fronds littered everywhere, including our deck, and the power got knocked out a couple of times. We were safe and secure at the dock, not even a ripple on the water, just a little wind on deck, all of the action went by above us. By Monday afternoon the storm had passed but it left the power knocked out until Tuesday morning, which meant the restaurant was closed, no lobster dinner and no internet, most inconvenient!

We called our friends who liveaboard in Sausalito to see how they fared. San Francisco Bay had wind gusts over 50 knots, over 6 foot seas in Richardson Bay at the marinas, 4 boats that were anchored out dragged and ended up on the rocks, and anywhere from 75 to 125 mm of rain (3 to 5 inches) depending on where you were. The temperatures were over 10 degrees F colder there than in Rio Vista and the storm lasted over 24 hours, not 10 like we saw. Seems that our decision to run up the river and hide was a good one.

We spent Monday afternoon and Tuesday exploring Rio Vista, mostly by bike as it is more spread out than Benicia. It’s a sleepy little town, the economy is quite depressed as it is off the beaten path for tourists and the other industries are suffering along with most of California’s economy. Rio Vista’s most recent claim to fame is from 1985 when you may recall a gray whale swam all the way up the Sacramento River and got as far as Rio Vista. It was finally coaxed back out to the bay by playing recorded whale sounds from a boat, there was a lot of international media coverage around it. There is a commemorative plaque in the village center overlooking the river where Humphrey the whale visited.

The other unique attraction in Rio Vista is Foster’s Big Horn bar www.fostersbighorn.com. It has to be seen to be believed, inside is a rather macabre collection of over 300 stuffed animal heads from all around the world. The bar was founded by Bill Foster and houses his collection of trophies from 8 big game safaris to Africa and numerous hunting trips all over the rest of the world that took place between 1928 and 1953. Along with the trophies is a collection of 100’s of photographs taken on these trips, we found the pictures and the narratives posted alongside them to be far more interesting than the stuffed animals. Foster was an interesting and colorful character and was an ardent conservationist that firmly believed his trips and trophies helped educate the world about the animals.

On Wednesday morning we left Rio Vista and headed back to Sausalito, the wind was now blowing the opposite way so again we motor-sailed at 8 knots in the sunshine with flat water all the way back, covering 53 miles in 6 1/2 hours. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip up the river and would spend even more time up there and go further if we have the chance to go back again someday.

 

Diving Inside the Golden Gate

Since we hadn’t done any diving since arriving in San Fran, we thought we should check for some charters – maybe something out of Oakland or Berkeley? Wayne’s research found several dive shops in the Bay area and a good one in San Carlos, south of San Fran, called Wallin’s Dive Center www.wallins.com. What they had was an upcoming huge store sale on the Saturday with great bargains. Hey I hear road trip! The incentive was the first 25 customers through the doors by 9:15am could pick up a brand new scuba tank with air for $99.00. Sounds good to us!

So we brewed our coffee, packed a breaky and headed off at 7:30 to arrive by 8:15 to get in the line up for the 9:00 am opening. We arrived and the shop had a tent set up with coffee, muffins, and fruit and we were about #4 in the line. We did purchase our tanks and also picked up 5 ml wet suits along with a few accessories. It was a great morning – load of bargains, so we were happy.

In chatting with one of the instructors he was saying that they teach the open water dives for their courses in Monterey – a mere 2 hour drive away. WOW! He said they have diving there right off the beach, next to the pier and for us he recommended a couple of spots, one along a long 900 foot pipe that extends out from the shore. Lots of good tidbits from Instructor Ned. When we asked about diving in San Fran – he shook his head and said no – the visibility in San Fran Bay is about 1 foot at the best of times and there are major currents so no one dives there, at least not recreationally. The closest is to take a charter boat to the Farallon Islands which are about 26 miles from the Golden Gate Bridge straight out into the Pacific. Anchoring there is sketchy at best and you really need to be diving from a live pick-up boat, also because the area is known for Great White Sharks.

The end result was we didn’t dive Inside the Golden Gate, we waited until we got down to Monterey.

 

Yoga Inside the Golden Gate

Yoga Sausalito

There was not much to choose from in Sausalito, which was surprising to me. I found an excellent studio called Yoga of Sausalito which was about a 10 minute bike ride from Clipper Harbour. It offers mostly Hatha, Anusara and Power classes. It was a warm and inviting studio, with clothes, books, jewelry, and cds, etc for sale. www.yogasausalito.com

I attended mostly Anusara classes and enjoyed them. The Anusara teachers have been taught by John Friend here in California and one gal has been studying with him for about 7 years and just got her certification. A few of the gals have their own web sites and promote retreats in Mexico and Jamaica. The studio has a web site and an e-newsletter they send out and the teachers have their flyers in the newsletter about upcoming workshops and also guests who will be at the studio, so that is very informative. In October Donna De Lory was there one night performing, unfortunately I was in Ontario otherwise I would have attended.

The quality of teaching is very good and what I noticed that was consistent with all the teachers was their impressive anatomy and physiology knowledge and technical knowledge of the postures. The studio charges $17 for a drop in and if you purchase a 5 series card you get the first class free. The 5 series card was $65. A good number of classes were offered during the week and always a noon class which was $10 drop in. So I bought the 5 series card but if I was there for a noon class I would pass the cash and not use my card up.

Yoga Berkeley

In Berkeley, I was fortunate in finding a yoga studio nearby as well and rode my bike. It was about a 15 -20 minute ride, so by the time I got to the studio I was nicely warmed up. The studio is called 7^th Heaven, www.7thheaven.com and they offer a variety of classes in 2 studios. The cost was $14 for drop in and as a new attendee you could get 3 classes for $20. I attended a few Hatha, as well as tried out Forrest yoga. A local California based style which has a focus on holding poses for longer periods of time, a more significant use of core muscles and while the room is kept slightly warm, allows students to generate lots of heat and sweat. A number of the poses have different names and the teachers pay close attention to alignment of students, coming over to do adjustments is the norm.

Another class I attended was Vinyasa with a teacher named Shakti. She had all 30 or so of us state our name and say what, if anything we would like to work on during the practice. She incorporated all the requests and also added a nice spiritual message throughout the class. The studio had a very warm and inviting atmosphere, sold clothes and accessories, had a large change area with shower,  and even had a couple of other rooms dedicated for local practitioners to see clients. The floors were wood inside the studios. Again I found the teachers to be well trained, with very good knowledge of anatomy and physiology and very good descriptions for getting into the poses and what to try to feel during the pose. One gal is a stage performer and sang to us during savasana, so that was cool.

I also attended an Iyengar class at a yoga studio on 4^th Street, called ‘The Studio on 4^th Street’ that had about 6 gals attending all above the age of 50. The teacher was good although I found way too much time was spent with her describing how we were going to be setting up the pose and then she would go to each student and do adjustments or modifications. So I found I was a bit bored as the pace was slow at times, or you were holding the pose forever! Being a 9:30 am class I wanted to move my body and have a warming wake up so I didn’t go back there.

 

Boat Repair Inside the Golden Gate

Berkeley Marine Center

 www.berkeleymarine.com

510-843-8195

I called several riggers once we arrived in Sausalito to get estimates on repairing our broken boom. Two of them came and looked at it and both pronounced it unrepairable and that we would have to purchase a new boom at a cost of $2,500. I questioned why it couldn’t be fixed by inserting a sleeve on the inside and a doubler on the outside with a new vang attachment and they both said they wouldn’t do it because they couldn’t guarantee the work and it would end up being as expensive as a new boom. This didn’t make sense to me and Ian, our resident machinist crew member agreed.

So I started calling boat yards that advertised rigging services. I talked to Cree at Berkeley Marine Center and he said that they could make up a new boom from a broken mast section and then I could take all the fittings off the old boom and transfer them over to the new section myself, that way we would be looking at a cost of about $1,500. However, he didn’t see any reason that the old boom couldn’t be fixed! He suggested that we bring the boom over and they would take a look at it. I talked to our local friends Rob & LaDonna about BMC’s reputation and they said it is very good, so off we went on Zeppelin to Angel Island for the weekend and on to BMC on Monday morning.

Cree and his rigger Jay came and looked the boom and said it could definitely be fixed for about $1,000 and that when they were finished it would be stronger than when it was new. He said that there was no way the boom would break again where they repaired it because they guarantee all their work and they would ensure it was stronger than anywhere else so I wouldn’t be coming back. Now this is my kind of attitude!

I also discussed the keel leak with them and their yard rates for repair work. The haulout was to be $10/ ft roundtrip and included pressure washing the bottom. Their labor rate was $85 per hour and if they are doing work there is no charge for daily yard storage. You are also allowed to do work in the yard yourself. This compares to other yards in the area charging $11/ft for the haulout, separate charge for the pressure wash, up to $105 per hour for labor and up to $94 per day yard fees, and some don’t allow you to do any work yourself! You are also allowed to live on the boat while you are hauled out at BMC, many yards do not allow this. It really pays to shop around in this area. We left the boom there with them, made arrangements to come back in a few weeks and haulout and headed back to Sausalito.

We returned and hauled out on Nov 3^rd and everything went smoothly. The guy doing the pressure washing didn’t do the best job but that seems common to many yards. The lift went great and one of the things I was impressed with was how hands-on the owner Cree was, he personally supervised everything. Turned out this was the pattern throughout our stay there, he stayed on top of all the work and checked each step as it went along.

The next morning they came and ground back the delaminated area of the keel stub to have a look at what was needed. The delamination went right through the fiberglass in one area so we discussed what caused it, what would be necessary to fix it and how long it would take. It seems that the area probably got cracked a few years ago when we hit a rock in Desolation Sound but it didn’t show up right away. As we sailed the boat the stress on the keel stub worked the crack back and forth over time, eventually delaminating enough for water to begin to seep through. Not a big deal but it would take some time to fix as several layers of new glass and carbon fibre cloth would need to be built up over a progressively larger area to spread the load, and each layer had to cure before the next could be applied.

The boom repair had been completed, it just needed fairing and painting but they wanted me to see exactly what they had done before they faired and painted it so they finished the boom while the keel was being done.

When we hauled out in Steveston before we left B.C. we had noticed some cracked filler in the same area, Strait Marine looked at it said it could just be filled back in and supposedly did the repair. It probably made it worse as they didn’t fair in the repair properly and the filler pulled away, allowing even more water penetration than before.

I asked Cree if the problem could be that when the boat is sitting on her keel in the yard the keel is pressed up into the hull, then when you pick it up there is 10,000 lbs hanging down from the hull and the keel pulls away. He agreed that is likely a problem so when everything was ground back & prepped they actually lifted the boat in the slings and took all the weight off the keel.

They have 2 Travelifts so they left Zeppelin in the slings Friday, Saturday and Sunday while the glass repair was done and then set it back down carefully on Monday, checking to see if anything moved or cracked. It all stayed as solid as can be so they finished all the fairing on Monday and Tuesday and we were ready to prep and bottom paint Wednesday and Thursday.

On Friday morning Zeppelin went back in the water after 10 days and then we got a very pleasant surprise. For the first time in my 30 years of boating the bill came in less than expected! The boom work was exactly as quoted and the hull work was almost $1,000 less than I thought it would be. They were scrupulously honest in the labor hours charged by Bill, the fiberglasser, they didn’t charge anything extra for leaving the boat up in the slings for 3 days, and they didn’t charge overtime for working on the weekend. Cree was accessible anytime and personally supervised the entire process, the workmanship is first rate in my opinion, and he told me he has yards in southern California that he works with so if we have any problems to call and he would make arrangements for a haulout at no cost to see if there was anything needed. I highly recommend this yard!

Sal’s Inflatable Services

 www.salsinflatableservices.com

510 522-1824

Before we left Vancouver we purchased a used 10’6” AB Hypalon RIB at a really good price. The boat needed some service work, which we knew when we bought it, but we didn’t have time to get it done before we left and it was in working order.

When we got to San Fran I checked into service places for inflatables and it turned out that the only one was in Oakland, call Sal’s Inflatable Services. Their work was highly recommended to us by several people so I made arrangements to take our boat in. We took the inflatable over to Oakland to a launch ramp next to Grand Marina and Sal came and met us with a trailer and pulled the boat out and took it to his shop. What service!

He agreed to service the valves right away and inflate the boat and let it sit overnight to see if there were any other leaks. We stayed overnight at the Grand Marina and Sal called the next day to say there were a couple of small leaks. He gave us an estimate on repairing all the leaks, adding some extra reinforcing strips on the bottom, and 2 new oars and said the boat would be ready in a week.

One week later he called to say the boat was ready. We went back and he delivered the boat to us at the launch ramp again with everything done and kept to his estimate, he gave us a discount as well as we were paying cash.

It is now over 3 months since the repairs were done, we have used the boat extensively here at Catalina and I have not needed to add air to it once since it was repaired, obviously a job well done! Sal’s is also the service and repair depot for all makes of liferafts, in fact that is his major business. I highly recommend Sal’s to anyone that needs inflatable or liferaft service work.

 

Inside the Golden Gate

Sausalito 

We were very fortunate that our new friends (Rob & LaDonna) had recommended a couple of marinas for us to check out upon arrival in Sausalito. We chose Clipper Yacht Harbour. It was El Grande! Over 700 boats, 4 basins and about ¾ of the way into Richardson Bay. We were offered a spot in Basin 3 at the end of the 400 dock with a side tie.

We had a breakwater 75 feet from the bow consisting of a few logs tied to pilings and a rock breakwater to starboard side about 150 feet away with a visitors’ dock which also served as a breakwater from winds from the south. On the breakwater/logs was a magnificent assortment of birds ranging from small terns, cormorants, herons, and snowy egrets to the gorgeous brown and white pelicans. Plus seals lounging on the logs.

Our deck was facing this sanctuary and we had many breakfasts and happy hours sitting and watching our own local feathered residents. Looking down the bay we had the most incredible view of Angel Island, Alcatraz and the skyline of San Francisco. If we looked the other direction we had the boats moored in Basin 3 and in the distance we could just see the floating homes community. In front of us we had the view of the side of Tiburon and its point. We had a few boats anchored out in the Bay on the other side of the breakwater, but most of them were further down and more in the centre of the Bay so we were fortunate in that way.

The Bay has many many old, rundown, derelict boats anchored, which does detract from the incredible views and vista offered. To our stern we had the hills of Sausalito which housed some awesome condos and houses in and amongst the valleys. On the other side of the hills is the Pacific Ocean. When the fog rolled in it came up over the hilltop and rolled down like a cauldron of dry ice being poured. Someone told me it was coming from Steven Spielberg’s place and he was playing around with some of his special effects stuff.

As I mentioned we were able to get moorage at Clipper Yacht Harbour, for a month they charged us $647, which was such a great rate as the other marinas were charging $1500 a month. We were thrilled with that and did I mention the view… that was a worth a million every day. www.clipperyacht.com

Clipper Harbour was very pleasant, from the gal in the office Eva Kanemoto, to the laundry facilities, to the stone tiled showers, to the dock buggies. It was a great place to stay. Close by we frequented Fish, the local seafood restaurant, West Marine was 2 blocks away and the ATM bank was 3 blocks along with the post office, grocery store and Kinko’s, all in the same area. So it was great for provisioning and getting the fix up stuff.

Having bicycles in Sausalito is a must. Clipper Harbor was a 10 minute ride into Sausalito, we cycled each day and the town is set up for cyclists on the roadside plus many bike paths to use. Wayne found a great coffee shop to use as his remote office. My yoga classes were just up the street from his coffee shop, so it worked out perfectly for us to have our morning routine. I would meet him after class for my morning cappucino and treat.

Surprisingly internet was not available to the docks in any of the marinas in Sausalito so it meant going somewhere to find it. THE place to go was Café Roma in town and on the main drag. The coffee was superb as was their tasty treats and lunches. They did not charge for the internet, just expected you to buy their goodies, which was not a problem at all. Many of the locals and cruisers used this café and many people held their meetings or client discussions in the café.

We came across a great bike shop called Mike’s Bikes www.mikesbikes.com  and decided it was time to toss the 20 year old helmets and treat ourselves to new ones. We picked up a bike map and it showed terrific pathways all around Sausalito and over to Tiburon and the peninsula. It was on our list to do – but we ran out of time unfortunately. Most of the cyclists in Sausalito are in Italian spandex colourful racing outfits. Mostly men and mostly in great shape, however there is the odd chubby person wearing brightly coloured spandex which is not a pretty sight! The good news is that he is out riding….. the bad news is that he looks like a giant bumble bee coming down the road!

The town is full of wonderful restaurants and shops that love seeing the tourists. We found a nice spot for happy hour called Paradise Bay which offered appies at a super reduced rate from 5pm to 7pm. We also had croissants to die for at Le Garage, an old garage converted to a French bistro, with our friends Rob & LaDonna.

The Sausalito Yacht Club www.syconline.org was also a favourite as the club was relaxed in atmosphere and the members super friendly, they welcome everyone. While were in having a drink one night we saw Blue Water Cruising fleet members Julius & Margaret from SV Zeeba, and from time to time saw other Canadian boats come through. They don’t have any docks but offer mooring cans, however the location is not pleasant to stay at for any length of time… way too bouncy and windy as it comes around the corner from the Golden Gate bridge. Stunning views as it overlooks Alcatraz and the city … and much closer than our view!

Angel Island 

We had heard from others that taking the boat over to Angel Island and mooring there was a “must do”, so one weekend off we went. Coming from Clipper Harbour it took us about 45 minutes to reach Angel Island. We motored out of Richardson Bay and once we were clear of the anchored area, we put up the sails and enjoyed a great breeze that was coming under the Golden Gate.

Coming up along the north side of Angel Island we had the tip of Tiburon on our port side, the beautiful San Francisco Yacht Club along with Corinthian Yacht Club standing along the seashore. Folks had told us to take a trip to Tiburon and explore the village area there, which we did fit into another trip by car.

Angel Island was the first place I have seen moorings for both bow and stern. A great idea as you can fit in many more boats, everyone is secure and won’t swing into their neighbour and larger boats are usually at the front and smaller boats closer to shore. Good news for us as we would get front row and a vista.

We were rather surprised that to tie up to the can for the night was $30. Seemed a bit steep, but what can you do. They had dock space but mostly for smaller boats to tie up and you’re only allowed to stay during the daylight hours, not overnight, as well as space for dinghies.

We arrived later in the afternoon and did not have time before sunset to take the bikes to shore for a look around, so we decided to enjoy the afternoon sun, relaxed and took the dinghy into shore to register and pick up the island map.  In the anchorage with us were Brian and Dorothy from “Tagish” from Spruce Harbour Marina and Blue Water Cruising. We had been in touch with them upon their arrival into Sausalito and so it was nice to see them again.

The majority of the island is now a big day-use park, open only during daylight hours and accessible by private boat or by passenger ferry from Tiburon. There are various tours available, either walking or by tram and a couple of restaurants and little souvenir shops.

In the morning we took our bikes ashore and began our tour of the island. It was the usual uphill grind right at the start but after that a superb ride around the island. Lots of uphill areas, but with that comes the great down hill rides too! Terrific views of the entire Bay area, as you circumnavigate the island you see every side of San Fran Bay.

 

The island is now covered with hiking and biking trails but it used to be a very busy place. It is full of history, it was a major native living site, followed by a Spanish fort, then a U.S. military outpost. It was once the Ellis Island of the Pacific, incoming immigrants from Asia were housed there and processed before being released to the mainland. After that it became the staging and training ground for the U.S. military forces fighting in the Pacific during WW II, every U.S. serviceman in the Pacific was processed out of Angel Island and back in on their return, up to 10,000 lived there at once! It is still a major Coast Guard location with a large base and numerous vessels based there.

We really enjoyed looking at the old buildings, almost all of them have been preserved as historical landmarks, and seeing the sights from the hilltops. We could see the entire panoramic view from the various viewing areas. They do rent bikes there but they looked a little inadequate for the terrain, while the ride is almost all on paved roads and trails you really need a mountain bike with multiple gearing and good brakes. It is definitely not a ride for novice riders unless you don’t mind walking your bike. For more info go to www.angelisland.com .

After our ride we headed over to Berkeley to see the folks at Berkeley Marine Center about our boom repair, more on that to follow.

Oakland 

We left BMC after talking to them about the boom and headed to Oakland to see about our dinghy repair. The trip from Berkeley to Oakland is a very interesting tour of the working harbor. You go under the Bay Bridge past Treasure Island, the site of the 1939 World’s Fair and up a channel past the Port of Oakland, a major container port. All along the channel were various commercial marine shipyards, docks and businesses along with tourist areas like Jack London Square, it was a real hodge-podge and quite fascinating.

We were surprised that we could not get reciprocal moorage at the Oakland Yacht Club, they were booked. We realized afterwards that many of the boats heading for the Baja Ha Ha were in and around San Fran at this time. The Oakland Yacht Club is based at Marina Village Marina, which is a very nice place to stay and you can stay in the transient slips there if you are not a reciprocal yacht club member so it’s really open to anyone, it was just full.

Rob and LaDonna had mentioned to us about Grand Marina, so we traveled along a bit further and came to this marina. It is on the Alameda side of the Inner Harbour (the safe side, no shootings!) across from Oakland. The marina gave us a nice slip on the channel so we tied bow out which gave us the opportunity to watch the activities pass us by.  Directly across from us was a large Coast Guard ship docked at Coast Guard Island, and the local university rowing and sailing teams went back and forth all day in the channel. It was a nice spot, protected from the winds and once again sun and more sun. We met the neighbours who were liveaboards and super nice folks.

Just down from us was the Alameda boat ramp and here we were able to drop off the dinghy to Sal who was the local guy for fixing inflatables. Wayne will fill you in on how that process went.

We were going to take the bikes ashore and ride around, but after trying the internet and not being able to connect, we thought it best to cut the trip short and head back to Sausalito for internet on Tuesday so Wayne could work.

Berkeley 

If it weren’t for the broken boom that happened to us coming down the coast, I doubt we would have spent any time in Berkeley (silver lining anyone?). After doing our research for a place to repair the boom and also a haulout facility to look at the keel (water seeping into the bilge) we decided to head to Berkeley Marine Center. Wayne had spoken to Cree Partridge the owner a few times about the boom and liked his approach, plus his yard rates were reasonable and haul out fees were less than other yards. Wayne will talk more about the yard and the boom/keel in another post.

Our plan was to do a number of jobs on the boat while in the yard. I was going to sand and paint the toe rails and Wayne was going to work on getting the boom re-installed. Once they took a look at the keel it was decided they needed to tarp the entire boat from the lifelines down to the pavement, so that ruled me out for sanding and the boom was not ready as they wanted to paint the new areas of repair, so we were out of luck all around. (pity) The next few days Bill, our fiberglass guy, spent with heavy sanders taking off the layers of fiberglass from the keel to see the extent of our damage. The tarps did help somewhat to keep the dust level down, but there was no way I could do any painting.

Gee… what to do? We had the Benz with us so we decided to do some exploring. We went up to the University of Berkeley and took in the magnificent view from up on the hill, found great shops and coffee spots along 4^th Street, and found a great place to get provisions, Berkeley Bowl. Once again Wayne found a great coffee shop with free internet within biking distance and set up his remote office, check out www.cafeleila.com to see Café Leila.

Since passing Point Reyes lighthouse from the water a month earlier we had wanted to see this landmark from the land side and did a day trip there. It is truly spectacular as you can see from the photos. Incredible waves coming in over the rocks, the colours of the ocean from light blue in areas to a deep blue that is so rich in colour and all mixed with the white foam after the waves crash over the rocks or up against the cliff.

The shoreline which has beaches that go on for as far as you can see as you are standing out on this rocky cliff with incredible sculptures formed in the rocks, and here and there small plants are clasping on trying to survive.

Getting down to the lighthouse involves a mere 325 steps down and the same coming back. Someone was nice enough to number each step so you know exactly how many more to go. As if reminding us makes it any easier to climb up each step.

After another ‘planning meeting’ discussing our departure from Berkeley and San Fran, I suggested that we take a day and drive to the next ports of call. Why not? Drive down the gorgeous coast line and pop into the places we were about to come into by boat and get the lay of the land, so to speak. So the next Sunday we packed up the Benz once again with coffee thermos and goodies and headed out for our road trip to Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz, and Monterey – traveling down “once again the most incredible coastline” and then coming back on the interstate.

Our plan was to see the sights and be back on the highway by 4:00ish and home around 6:00ish. We had a spectacular day, and even had time to pop into the Harbour Master’s office in Monterey and chatted with him about moorage, availability, etc. More about that coming up in our Monterey post.

We rode our bikes all over the town of Berkeley. Great bike paths along the water and we rode all around the marina and adjoining parks. The weather was great while we were in Berkeley which made it even more enjoyable riding around. We found a few spots that offered half price appies and drink specials for happy hour and one place called Skates was overlooking the Bay so we could see the 2 bridges, sail boats all around and lights of the city as the sun set. Being on the east side of the Bay we had the sun longer than we did in Sausalito so that was a big bonus and as well we saw the sunsets each night.

After our 10 days in the boat yard we decided to move the boat to Berkeley Municipal Marina instead of going back to Sausalito. www.cityofberkeley.info. The contact info for the marina is marina@ci.berkeley.ca.us or phone 510 981-6740. The rates were very reasonable, if you stay longer than 10 days then they give you the prorated monthly rate, which worked out to $21 per day for a 50 foot slip. The marina is in a big park with a small resort on one side of the basin and several restaurants scattered around the outside with views. It is a 10 minute bike ride from the heart of downtown  Berkeley and the Berkeley Yacht Club is located there as well.

We tried to go to the yacht club on a Thursday evening but it was all locked up, we talked to someone from the club a few days later, turns out they do not have any staff, all the members have keys and the bar etc is on the honor system. The restaurant and bar are only open and staffed for special events. Not a very useful club for reciprocal purposes.

We liked being in Berkeley and enjoyed having the sun shine longer and seeing the sunsets. We are sun bugs! There were other liveaboards all around us and very friendly folks. Having the Canadian flag attracts attention. During our 2 week stay at Berkeley Marina I was able to do a small amount of sanding and painting so that was great. The slips in the marina have docks on both sides of the boat which makes painting things like stripes and sides of toe rails really easy, time saving and super convenient not having to turn the boat around in the slip.

All in all I would highly recommend this marina and a visit to Berkeley on your travels. It was less expensive than Sausalito, had a very different feel to it, partly because of being a University town, many diverse cultures and tons of history with lots of newly modern areas – so it gave it a real uniqueness and bohemian feel.

We left Berkeley on Thursday Oct 26 and headed for Clipper Cove on Treasure Island to participate in Thanksgiving with Rob, LaDonna and their friends in the anchorage there. We were looking forward to being on the hook as it had been awhile, and to meeting new sailing folks.

We had a super weekend along with huge winds and crazy anchoring during 20 knot gusts into the anchorage. All worked out fine, not a lot of sleep, but great food and company so what the heck. Take a look at this link to Latitude 38, we’re famous!

http://www.latitude38.com/lectronic/lectronicday.lasso?date=2009-11-30&dayid=357  

From this anchorage we departed San Fran on Sunday Oct 29^th bound for Santa Cruz and the start of Leg 2 began!

 

First Leg

Victoria BC to San Francisco California

September 7 – 15

On Monday September 7  afternoon we left Royal Victoria Yacht Club and headed towards Port Angeles. We had a mix of rain, sun and wind which also gave us a superb sail topping 8.1 knots taking us only 3.5 hours to do the crossing.

We arrived in Port Angeles late afternoon and called into Customs and Immigration on our way in to give them our information over the phone. This allows them to handle the paperwork in advance and then bring our cruising permit to the boat upon our arrival. The customs fellow came down to Zeppelin, spoke with Wayne for a few minutes and gave us our cruising permit, which is good for one year. No inspection, no visual head count of the crew, nothing. Short and sweet. Just a few hours prior we were tossing limes and fruit overboard in the Strait of Juan de Fuca in anticipation of being boarded and searched! Port Angeles is a great place to clear in, they are very friendly and understand about cruising sailboats and the provisions you have on board, their attitude was as long as it’s for personal consumption they are not concerned.

Tuesday Sept 8 the plans were to head off to Costco and Safeway to do the final provisions. The Costco is not close by as we were told and in fact we needed to rent a car and drive to Sequim which was about 25 minute drive. All went well provisioning and while Linda and I were doing that the fellows were lashing down the inflatable on deck, securing the life raft and finishing up some last minute jobs to be ready for the passage.

Day 1

Wednesday September 9^th we were fueled and heading out of Port Angeles at 8:30 am on our way out the Strait of Juan de Fuca enroute to Cape Flattery. Our new motoring speed is now 6 knots (1300 RPM) to conserve fuel. Conditions were overcast skies, light fog and no wind.

6:50pm we rounded Cape Flattery in fairly calm seas, lovely skies and the views were spectacular as you can see from the photos. The sun was shining the seas were a 4 – 5 foot swell with Zeppelin riding up and down. Pinnacle rocks jutting up and with the sun shining on the rocks it reminded me of the rugged Oregon coastline with waves crashing over the big rocks. Just a glorious sight. The lighthouse on Tatoosh Rock looks so majestic standing there. Scott was preparing his first pressure cooker meal of roast with veggies. All was perking away down below.

 

After dinner we set up the watches for our first night. We decided on 2 teams, Elly and Linda on one and Wayne and Ian on the other, each team doing 4 hour watches during the night and 6 hours during the day. This causes the night watches to rotate so each team alternates doing the dog watch (midnight to 4:00 am) from night to night. Scott did 4 hour watches at night that were staggered from the other watch times so he spent 2 hours with each team. This system worked out very well.

Day 2

Thursday September 10

Sunshine and motor sailing at 6.2 knots , swells had subsided and all is comfortable. So comfy in fact that we got out the hot dogs, turned on the BBQ and enjoyed a BBQ lunch underway. Winds moving behind us so we put the spinnaker up just after 2:00pm and we turned the engine off – yippee! We had been motoring non stop 29 hours since leaving Port Angeles. Had a great sail and decided to take down the spinnaker just before dinner. We hit a top speed of 10.4 knots while we had it up, so lots of fun for the afternoon.

 

 

Our dinner was deluxe with BBQ ham steaks, scalloped potatoes and veggies. Enjoying the last of our meal, sailing with main only and then BANG! Caught a wave and a gust of wind causing an accidental jibe and broke the boom in half at the vang attachment point. Yikes! The guys lashed the boom together and the mainsail came down with no rips, which was fortunate. No other damage. Motored through the night, amazing clear skies, stars, could see the milky way, constellations and tons of phosphorescence in the water. Water looked like it was on fire all around the boat.

Day 3

Friday September 11

Thought we would try our hand at fishing today. Assembled Steve Tremblay’s fishing gear that he gave us. It was a great sunny day and we were motoring along at 6.2 knots. Within the first 30 minutes we had our first piece of kelp on the line.  Wayne and Ian were looking around for something to rig up and use as a gaff. Using some of the hardware from the BBQ rotisserie, the pole from the boat scubber and screws and thin rope they assembled their state of the art gaff. Everyone sitting around in shorts and short sleeves enjoying the sunshine – outside air was 29 degrees – just superb. We decided to have pizza for lunch using the BBQ once again. Who says you can’t BBQ while being offshore? Scott maybe? Pizza cooking away and then the shouts came TUNA!

Brought the tuna alongside, using the handy gaff and then what! No bucket or anything else ready. It was a panic – guys yelling for stuff as nothing was handy. When asked why it was not prepared ahead of time – the response – “we did not think we would catch anything”! Ian hanging over the side of the boat holding the tuna by the gaff, Wayne holding it by the mouth and gills and I trying to find a container big enough, (all the buckets were in the transom locker and the row boat was hanging off the stern in the way!). Then I remembered what Liza Copeland told me about subduing the fish – squirt it with Gin. Jumped down below – got the Gin bottle – did not have it in the proper squirtie container – so poured some Gin into the Tuna. Lucky thing! With all the commotion going on – Wayne could no longer hold onto his gills and upon lifting him up the side of the boat, the Tuna managed to squiggle off the gaff and got away. One intoxicated Tuna in the ocean now!

We hosed off the deck, discussed what items we would need post gaffing and ready on the deck, who would do what roles, and got it all ready. Sat down and enjoyed our pizza. About 45 minutes later here we go again! Scott brought in the line (with gloves on), Ian on gaff duty, Wayne was down below doing the watermaker! The timing! Lots of yelling again – this time the Tuna was bigger – about 30 – 35 pounds. Wayne thinks it is an albacore tuna, Ian thinks it is Atlantic tuna and Scott figures it is a ‘great white’ tuna. Tuna successfully on deck this time, yuckie stuff happening and then Ian takes it down to cut steaks and roasts I packed them into zip locks for the freezer. Check out the photos. Thanks Steve and Dionne! Remainder of the day had the sail up, 10 knots of wind, making about 5 knots. Big rollers but gentle motion. Spotted a shark at the surface swimming near the boat. Dinner was…. You guessed it – BBQ tuna!

Day 4

Saturday September 12

Motored all day, uneventful other than lots of porpoises and dolphins. Popped into Crescent City to get fuel and we had a super nice gal give us a ride into town to pick up a few things at Safeway. She got a package of tuna! (there are so many in the freezer!).

Day 5

Sunday September 13

Clawed our way around Cape Mendocino from midnight Saturday to 4:00am. Seas got worse over the next 12 hours – only making about 3 knots. Current and waves against us. Raining, bow is getting buried in the waves – just kinda yuckie conditions. If you weren’t on watch duty you were in your bunk as the motion was not pleasant. Everything was wet. Rough seas ended around 9pm. Evening watch we saw porpoises swimming up to the boat in the dark looking like torpedoes through the water with the phosphorescence. Millions of stars in the sky.

Day 6

Monday September 14

Sunny with a few clouds so nice to dry things out. Seas rolly but not rough. Seeing sea lions around us. We have travelled 825 miles since leaving Vancouver with 53 miles to go. Deciding if we can make to San Francisco before dark.

At 3:30 we were round Point Reyes lighthouse and headedinto Drakes Anchorage for the evening, we would see San Fran in the morning. Had a great BBQ dinner (yes more tuna) with corn on the cob and Linda made a giant salad and best of all we had WINE! Finally! The anchorage was calm and everyone had a great sleep.

 

 

 

  

  

 

 Day 7

Tuesday September 15

Underway at 8:00am in the fog and enroute to San Fran – so exciting! We were almost there! 5 knots of wind on the nose and of course we are motoring once again. Fairly calm waters – so I was able to cook up a big round of scrambled eggs, diced peppers and toast to celebrate! Our eta to Golden Gate bridge was 11:45am and our final destination was Clipper Harbour Marina – arriving there just before 1:00pm. Fog all the way in and under the Golden Gate and as soon as we came through the other side – SUN! Great photos looking back at the bridge. WE MADE IT! Out came the champagne and we all toasted to each other and to our captain Wayne for a successful first leg down the coast. Whew!

Here were are in the Bay, looking at Alcatraz, Angel Island, sail boats all around us, and total sunshine everywhere. We were all peeling off our layers of fleecy and getting into the shorts! We are in California…. we are in beautiful Sausalito! Our next post will tell you all about our experience Inside the Golden Gate.