SD Update

So, it has been awhile for me to do the update because I didn’t have a connection or time (either one in sufficient quantities anyway) to get this done. We are here in San Diego for the next ten days and then off to the south and a likely big gap before anything else will be put into here.

Let’s see, what has happened in the interim time period to be filled in on? Since last we met… the trip south from Monterey has been interesting. We did manage to sail for a time out of Monterey Bay with a course that eventually would have led us to Hawaii. I was out voted so we had to turn on the iron gennaker (a very special 50 horse power “sail”) and point the boat more toward the south. From Point Sur to Point Conception we were surfing in some larger waves with a great wind on our stern (either and/or both quarters from time to time). The great thing was that I said that it would be all different as soon as we rounded Point Conception and it truly was!! We went from rough to flat seas in a matter of a half an hour or so. The temptation was to enjoy the new kind of seas and a fresh warmth that we have not seen before in the northern parts of this trip. We caved into the temptation. The smoothness of the ride into Marina Del Rey is to be marveled at. The night sped away and we ended up exactly on track coming into port. Sunshine and palm trees are the most notable of the changes. Marina Del Rey has a great guest dock and facilities and with very wide fairways is also something new… to say that the skipper liked this would be a grand understatement. In MDR we had a fantastic walk to Venice beach and more than a few instantaneous parties with new and previous friends. This was a great break in traveling and seems to mark a real beginning to the cruising part of the adventure because it has not now been about making the next port. Instead we are enjoying staying in each place (as you will see in a minute). We did have a small concern or two about the Santa Ana winds predicted for our next “passage” out to Catalina Island but when we set out there wasn’t that much wind. We did, however, have a wind plan, just in case. We activated the first part of the plan when we hove to and reefed the mainsail at 15 knots of wind but as soon as we deployed sail and proceeded the wind went back down to 5 knots and had us rolling out the iron gennaker again.

The really good news about all this is that we went to Catalina Harbor (Cat Harbor, as it is more often called) around the “back side” of the island. This a place I have been several times before and much prefer over Avalon Harbor. As it turns out the Santa Ana winds did finally arrive and ripped through Avalon and overturned a power boat in the harbor at its mooring. Yikes!! We on the other hand were quite happy in our comfortable natural bay and had no trouble playing for a couple of days. The straight shot from there to San Diego meant that we had a day sail after leaving a little before dawn into Mission Bay’s Mariner Cove. Happy and sad defines all this at the moment because the first thousand miles is now behind us and only another 800 miles separate us from Cabo San Lucas. The even warmer waters that await after that are calling too so maybe this idyllic place that I have always enjoyed will awaken the crew to the new possibilities when we leave. Call me silly to think this but it won’t be long before we are out of San Diego and moving again.

More on all this later.

Right now I am back to having a slew of boat projects that MUST be completed before the starting gun goes off for the Baja Ha-Ha rally starts. There are many things to be done but the good news is that S.D. is loaded with chandleries and resources to help make this as easy as it can be. Not to mention the fun of exploring new chandleries and marine related stores. One of the plagues that has beset us for the last 400 miles has involved the inverter/charger… that’s the device that changes DC electrical power to AC electrical power (among other duties) and has been misbehaving for us. Personally I am less grumpy when I have had lights on demand or good coffee in the morning.

Another side note too; you may remember my cousin Steven giving us copies of his latest CD’s in San Francisco. Well, this has become an instant hit on the boat. He did not disappoint in any way with his new selection of music. I mean, damn, he and Jackie really put together some tasty stuff!! Get the iPod fired up… it’s time to put the new stuff in there and weave it into the playlists!!

Okay, enough for now. We will be here long enough to have a shot at adding more while we are here.

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A few side notes are appropriate at this point. It’s a safe bet that our days of sailing will increase from here on out going south… the arrival of the spinnaker has seen to that!!!

Another thing to come along has been the correction of the circuits for powering the various devices aboard. Oh happy day!!

I went to an all day seminar for Sailmail (and Winlink) and hope to have that completed and running soon. The issue is that it doesn’t allow attachments, mass address joke files or much more than simple text messages.