Sailing south towards warm water, gentle breezes and a new horizons remain prime motivators for sailors everywhere.  After leaving Santa Barbara we set our course for Avalon on Santa Catalina Island.  Proximity to Los Angeles has created an eclectic mixture of “California”, Europe and “boatyism” (my word) in a compact and remarkably charming anchorage.  Opening the hatch on to a tropical nouveau European fishing village architecture and environment enveloped in warm air where people move about, at least on land, using electric golf carts, created a Hollywood moment on the water.  Good for one night or so but likely to wear thin on a long term basis.  However, seeing palm trees through the hatch is a good thing!

Bonds between friends are often based on shared interests and experience.  When travelling by small boat it is frequently the case that we meet many like-minded people either on the dock or in an anchorage and our recent very pleasant  stay in Santa Barbara generated a number of new acquaintenances.  We were tied up on the main spine of the dock only a few boat lengths from the gate which meant that pretty much everybody in this large marina walked past Marathon either on their way to or from their boat.  The Canadian flag, the Hydrovane, the nifty canvas covers on the fuel jerry cans and the “currently cruising” ambience generated by all the other stuff hanging off of  the boat, prompted many people to stop and talk.

We were particularly lucky when the owner of “Ma’s Grappa” stopped to enquire about our trip.  Georgio, and his delightful wife, Gloria are now our new best friends in Santa Barbara.  Giorgio’s enthusiasm for sailing and boats along with a generous and warm heart for fellow sailors made our stay that much better.  He is also a distingquished linquist at UC Santa Barbara so our shared academic professional background, enthusiasm for sailing and cooking also contributed to the many hours of engaging conversation that we were able to share.  An invitation to a well prepared and delicious dinner in someone’s home always makes a visit to new city that much more memorable.  We remain very grateful to Giorgio and Gloria for their exceptionally warm and generous hospitality.

Our first morning in Santa Barbara revealed a major issue with the propane system – it had ceased working.  Discovering a major equipment failure on a boat,  is always discouraging,  but when the system is intimately connected to the production of coffee, it is a crisis.  An inexperienced sailor would immediately suspect that the propane tank was empty but experienced salts will of course know that boat problems are never, ever, that simple.  With all hands on deck we were able to bang and smack the propane tank solenoid with various implements until gas was again flowing. After coffee and breakfast the  propane solenoid, sporting screw connections as corroded as a crooked politician, was rewired and bathed in WD40.  All is now well and a once again dependable supply of morning coffee has kept a nearly mutinous crew on the straight and narrow.

An itemized list of broken and otherwise disappointing equipment will soon be published in this space.  A similar list of outstanding equipment will also be published.

We arrived in Santa Barbara on 26 October, roughly two days after leaving Monterey.  The first night out provided some strong winds and very big seas, with peak wind speeds occuring in the 35 kt range with 12 ft seas, just before and after midnight.  Lou’s midnight watch started with the addition of a third reef in the main.  Working at the mast on a gyrating boat is not easy at the best of times and the process is much complicated by darkness. Fortunately the development of small, light and red-lens equipped headlamps (along with good harnesses and tethers) reduces the risk associated with the arduous task of reefing after dark in big winds and seas.  Lou managed to put a really excellent reef in the main, in the dark, in big seas, and big gusty winds, despite flinging his precious headlamp over the side of the boat early on in the process,  thus requiring completion in the dark as the moon had gone down by this time.  A skilled sailor – but that’s what sailors do!

Approaching the “horn of the north”, just before midnight on the second night out started quite dramatically when we encountered a tug pulling a barge, with shore lights and oil rig lights contributing to a difficult working environment. We managed to miss the tug and its barge and then started paying a lot more attention to the oil rigs but fortunately they don’t move.

We rounded Pt Arguello just before midnight and just before the wind died down to nothing.  Starting the engine on a clear, windless night on what is allegedly the most difficult area for sailors on the central California coast, because of big wind, big seas and maximum fog, was somewhat anti-climatic after reading all of the helpful literature telling us that we could rest up from the ordeal just around the corner in Cojo.  We opted to keep going with the motor on and arrived in Santa Barbara at around noon.  People were swimming on the beaches and we were able to ditch our fleece and exchange it for short pants and t-shirts.  Just like the book said we could.

Now there is a gale blowing and we are likely stuck here until Thursday.  Very sad.

The following weather report for the stretch between Pt Piedras Blancas and Pt Arguello has us stuck in Monterey for at least another day – the prospect of bumping along in the dark has negative appeal:

 THU

 NW WINDS 20 TO 25 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO 35 KT. COMBINED

 SEAS 9 TO 11 FT DOMINANT PERIOD 17 SECONDS. PATCHY FOG IN THE

 MORNING.

  THU NIGHT

 N WINDS 20 TO 25 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO 35 KT.

 COMBINED SEAS 11 TO 13 FT.

If we leave Thursday or Friday we should be able to avoid the worst.

Two videos have been added in the “Links” section on the right hand side of the page.  In that same location is a “Position Report” which links to a Google map showing where we last transmitted a position report via HAM/Winlink.

Sailing plans are largely driven by wind and waves and one’s attitude towards life.  Planning and preparation are major factors contributing to how this trio of factors interact in favourable ways.  So the photo depicts a generally desirable following sea which we experienced for nearly the entire trip from Juan de Fuca to San Francisco, except for one night and early morning.  The wind built to 30 with gusts to 40+ and the seas built to 7 metres or more.  Wanda did her very best under these conditions and was mostly successful with the occasional broach.

Eventually we decided to hand steer and during the skipper’s spell at the wheel, “the wave” washed over the side of the boat.  Peter was swept across the cockpit but as per normal was tethered so did not exit the cockpit as 3 of the 4 cushions did (if anybody sees these please pick them up for us).  The worst outcome of this event however was the large amount of the wave that found its way through the dorade vents into the cabin.  The perversity of nature caused the water to exit into the cabin in locations that could cause the most damage, most notably over the radios and other electronics at the nav table.

The most negative component of this event was that the influx of water was preventable.  On the skipper’s two year old “to do” list is a notation – “find way to block dorades”.  Regrettably this was not done and the consequences are mostly chagrin regarding the perversity of nature; irritation (particularly just after the event while watching large amounts of sea water slosh around inside the cabin) and discouragement while cleaning up the mess and finding new areas hit by sea water over a several day period after the event.

Somehow the skipper did not adhere to the rules of boat preparation when prioritizing the “to do” list. These are, in order of priority: 1. keep the water out; 2. make the boat go; and 3. make the boat pretty.  Fortunately, experience is the best teacher and the “to do” list has been re-prioritized!

October 10, 2009.  A surprise fleet inspection was enjoyed by the crew of Marathon when Admiral Sheridan pitched up in San Francisco for the Thanksgiving weekend.  While the crew dealt with a boat surrounded by sea lions and buffeted by surge and storm force winds, the Admiral enjoyed some of San Francisco’s iconic landmarks which are also very tasty to eat.

We started the engine off of the Sausalito Yacht Club at 2:30 on Saturday, picked up some fuel (we burned 12 US gallons between Neah Bay (mouth of Juan de Fuca) and San Francisco – pretty good mileage thanks to excellent wind conditions pushing us south) at Anderson’s Boatyard and then headed back to the bridge.  The strong breeze prompted us to raise the sails and within a few minutes we decided that a first reef was in order.  We tacked out under the bridge making 7 knots with a single reef in the main and a full jib assisted by a very strong ebb tide. Shortly after Peter and Lou finished taking another several dozen photos of the bridge the wind started to die.  Peter volunteered to shake out the reef while Lou and I basked in the very warm sunshine in our shirt sleeves.  Peter was just about finished taking out the reef when the wind gathered significant strength, accelerating both the boat and large quantities of water over the top of the boat.  Within a few minutes we were doing more than 9.6 knots over ground, Peter was soaking wet and we were all putting on our foulies.  This was a fine beginning for the next 24 hours of sailing which included several hours just after midnight of slatting sails and a very, very bumpy, sleep depriving- ride with Lou at the helm, commenting that there was not enough wind – a stark contrast to previous midnight watches when the comments were mostly about too much wind.  By Sunday morning Wanda was doing a terrific job of steering in nearly perfect downwind sailing conditions and we were doing a comfortable 5 knots in moderate seas.  The wind instrument decided to wake up from the coma induced by the gale we went through just prior to San Francisco but the sun chose to disappear into cloud and the forecast indicated that we should expect south to southwest winds on Monday until midnight.  A quick decision was made to pull into Monterey which was conveniently located only 5 or so miles off our port side.  So here we are in picturesque Monterey!

The wind will shift back to the NW sometime this evening so we will try again for Santa Barbara tomorrow which should be about 2 days away if Point Conception treats us well.

We departed Pier 39 for Sausalito on Thursday afternoon.  Surge plus sealions plus cost motivated us to find a more comfortable spot to complete remaining repairs.  We were able to buy a new AIS and dorade vent plugs (more on the latter later) in addition to having the Pactor modem checked out by the company that distributes them throughout North America.  We are now tied to a mooring bouy at the Sausalito Yacht Club.  Sausalito is terrific – very picturesque and very warm.  We plan to leave Sausalito on Saturday, 17 Oct for Santa Barbara.

The new AIS is installed and working, the SSB/HAM radio is fully functional, the nifty new steering wheel lock invented by Peter has been installed and we have a full load of food on board.  The weather reports are predicting winds from a very favourable direction and strengths that will get us to Santa Barbara sooner rather than later. All is well.