Mild and Wild

Denver, CO - As reported by Captain Steve: the trip from Coos Bay, OR to San Francisco, CA started very mild. Steve, Dave Melin, and his son, Mike, left Coos Bay Sept. 17 with light wind, so they motor-sailed the first day or so.

The wild part came as they crossed the shipping lane north of the entrance to San Francisco Bay. It was night, foggy, and the wind had increased, so they were sailing. But, as we've discovered often happens in fog, the wind picked up to 25 knots. As luck would have it, not one but two aircraft carriers were heading north in their direction. The rule is to NEVER cross in front of a freighter or other large ship due to its speed. So, they crossed behind the first one, bounced in its wake, and the second one veered its course to give them some room.

They anchored in Drake's Bay for the night, safe and sound. The next morning, Sept. 21, Litha passed under the Golden Gate Bridge and anchored off Sausalito.

Steve is enjoying the view of sunsets over San Francisco from the cockpit. He's met the couple who'll join us on the next leg of the journey to San Diego. I will be joining him Oct. 10.

Coo Coos Bay

Coos Bay, OR - Our crew had to leave, so Steve and I spent six days in Newport listening to the wind howl 20-30 knots and the sea lions bark. We left Sept. 10 for Crescent City, CA when the forecast called for 10-20 knot north winds and seas 4-7 feet.

The forecast was accurate, but that night the mainsail was sheeted in a little too tight and anyway, it ripped. We headed for Coos Bay which was closer and where there is access to services, such as a sail maker.

After nine hours rolling in the swells and tacking to and fro and basically killing time for daylight to enter the Coos Bay channel, we made it through the fog and into the marina.

We removed the sail, rented a car, and drove the sail to North Sails in Portland, OR. Since I don't want to spend another night like that one, I bought a one-way ticket to Denver. The sail was mended the next day and Steve is sailing south with a couple friends -- better sailors than me -- and we'll rendezvous somewhere in southern California next month. Good luck guys. I'm taking the princess clause.

Detour

Newport, OR - The weather determines everything in sailing. We left Anacortes when the weather forecast called for northwest winds 10-15 knots for the next three days. We motored into the Strait of Juan de Fuca and sailed across in the afternoon when the wind picked up. We got in to Neah Bay at the tip of Cape Flattery at 9pm and had a calm night.

The next morning, the forecast called for light and variable winds in the morning, so we left at a leisurely 9 am and motored around the cape and until 3pm when the wind picked up and we could sail. We were visited by humpback whales breaching and spouting. One came right next to the boat. The seas were so calm we grilled chicken on the stern of the boat and ate in the cockpit. The swells picked up at night and we had rolly night filled the sound of the sails flapping and the boom banging around.

The next morning, Wednesday, the wind picked up to 15-20 and kept going. The swells were coming from northwest and southwest, creating a washing machine effect. We started looking at possible harbors for going ashore, especially when we heard the forecast was now calling for 20-30 knots with gusts higher.

No one felt much like eating that night. It was a rocky, rolly night and the guys put two reefs in the main and pulled in the jib and we were still going 8 knots. We headed toward Newport and saw the outter channel buoy just after dawn. Ah, the protection of the north jetty. Safe harbor. That was a bad night.

The forecast calls for 25-30 knots from the north for the next few days. We're staying put. We have some repairs to make and Richard and Bruce had to leave to get back to work. The adventure continues.

Heading South

Anacortes, WA - We arrived in Anacortes on Aug. 24 in the rain, after checking into the U.S. at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island the day before. The plan is to sail to Mexico this fall where it's warmer and cheaper. The U.S. dollar is at par with the Canadian dollar for the first time in a long time (ever?) and that makes Canada expensive for us.

The first leg of our trip south will be from here to San Francisco. We have found two sailors to help us make that trip and after their arrival on Aug. 31, we will leave out of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. If necessary, we'll wait at Cape Flattery for a weather window before turning south and heading down the coast. The trip should take 7-10 days.

While we were in Anacortes, BMW/Oracle's next America's Cup entry was launched.

The weather has turned cold suddenly and it's time to get outta here!

Ocean: A body of water occupying two-thirds of a world made for man - who has no gills. ~Ambrose Bierce

Back in the Saddle Again

LUND - Steve and I rendezvoued in Vancouver on Tuesday, August 5, and arrived back in Lund two days later. Our adventures while we were in the states consisted of: forgotten passports, speeding ticket, stolen laptop computer, recovered laptop computer, filing a police report and fraud alert, cutting the grass, renting a U-Haul truck and storage locker and moving stuff from one place to another, attending my nephew's (gorgeous, romantic) wedding, visiting with family at their new houses, seeing my new 6 month old great nephew, but that's not what this blog is about. So, on to bigger and better tales....

Steve brought back a shiny new windlass which he has installed and it is now working properly. We'll be heading south for Nanaimo today to pick up a package of boat stuff, then to Anacortes, WA for more stuff. Then to points further south. Stay tuned!

Intermission

LUND - We are leaving the boat in Lund a few weeks while Steve drives the truck home after dispensing with stuff in the storage locker in Sidney. He'll leave the truck in Denver and fly back.

I have family matters in Atlanta: a nephew's wedding to attend and another new nephew to meet. We'll rendezvous in about three weeks here and ... to be continued....

There is nothing so desperately monotonous as the sea, and I no longer wonder at the cruelty of pirates. ~James Russell Lowell

North by Northwest

LUND, BC - We spent ten days anchored at Rebecca Spit Marine Park on Quadra Island.


We had big campfires at night in the picnic area and walked the forested paths. Steve repainted a boat detail and started varnishing the toerail. This boat had little brightwork and Steve would like to change that. "It makes it pop," a designer would say. It sure looks a lot better than it did nine months ago. I caught a fish that looked like a baby shark. It got away, thankfully.

We left Rebecca Spit July 1, set the prawn trap, and anchored back at Savary to get some crabs. A tall ship was also anchored there. It turned out to be a "sail and life training" ship for young people.

A Bad Day
Our second night at Savary, the wind came up about midnight. I heard a noise, looked out and saw that the tall ship was close to us and was retrieving its anchor. We went out to look and they yelled over that they were moving to "avoid collision." Our anchor had dragged and we were adrift. Steve went to pull up the anchor and the windlass breaker tripped -- no windlass. It would lower the chain, but not pull it up. We motored to another spot (the wind had stopped and the sea was calm), dropped more chain, and kept a close eye on the depth gage and GPS.

We made it through the night, rigged a way to hoist the chain with a winch, then with the electric winch, and got the heck outta there. We couldn't find our float for the prawn trap, so there goes about $300. It was a bad day. But we made it to Lund and are docked in a protected spot in this small, crowded, and busy marina. The windlass motor will have to be removed and taken to a shop for assessment and mending.

Boat Widow

Steve has now gone to fetch the truck in Nanaimo and left me alone on the boat for 4-5 days where I can become an expert at assisting boats who want to raft alongside us. Lund is a busy place because it is the only harbor and market for miles around; it is close to Desolation Sound, destination for many boaters from Vancouver; and this is high season on the water. I also get to visit with my new friend, Fran, eat lots of goodies from Nancy's Bakery, and watch basset hound videos on YouTube since there is a good Internet connection here.

"The sea pronounces something, over and over, in a hoarse whisper; I cannot quite make it out." ~Annie Dillard