09-17-08 Pier 32 Marina, San Diego
We've Arrived!

In the last blog I was mentioning how vessel assist was asking quite a few questions that may seemingly slow down a rescue. The next morning Jeff and I left beautiful Santa Barbara to deliver our life raft to a company at the Los Angeles Harbor.
We immediately were hearing vessel assist calls, one which was a few miles away in our path. A 53' yacht was taking on water fast with 8 people aboard. We watched through our binoculars as 6 - 7 boats drove over to help. The VA folks asked someone to fire a flare as they could not locate the boat. I guess no one had a flare. By the time we arrived it was like a car wreck, everyone just standing around watching. 2 VA boats showed up but by then the stern was under water and their pumps could not keep up. The bow went up in the air and that was the end of it. Sad day for Meester Big boat owner. In another case a woman called in from a 26' power boat. She had run out of fuel. Usually not a big problem except she was 22 miles off the coast. 22 miles! In a 26' boat! Was she on her way in from Cuba? They were sending a helicopter her way and wanted to know what insurance she had. That was gonna hurt.
I know I am going on and on but hey, it's my blog and I'll rant if I want to.
I have to admit, if I would have seen Bob Bitchin from Latitudes and Attitudes Magazine one week ago, whom I blame completely for my interest in cruising and me getting my boat south due to his great magazine and picts, I would have looked him square in the chest (the guy is like 6'9") and stomped on his foot. This was not what I had expected. It was uncomfortable and noisy, and I was drooling at the motor homes on land.
Then we rounded Point Conception north of Santa Barbara.
The water turned deep blue, we started seeing hundreds of dolphins and porpoises, whales and sea life. The wind was behind us and we were sailing, and it was absolutely fantastic. We stayed at Dana Point after delivering the life raft and then motor sailed to San Diego.
Coming towards Point Loma we caught 2 tuna about 3 miles offshore. We then were watching a power boat come towards us but he must have been a new boat owner. He would power up and take a wave head on, the bow going up in the air, then slam down as he let off power. He was coming toward us and driving erratically, and we changed course twice to get out of his way. As he came by us, I could see a female in the back of the boat with no top on. I waved but she just stared. I believe the NBA endorsed her chest. Those couldn't be real. Yeah baby, I'm a kinda liken' Southern Cal. OK Bob Bitchin, you were right. This is great. I will keep subscribing to your mag.
We rounded Point Loma and were amazed at all of the Navy ships, helicopters, jets, etc. A Huge military complex here. We got out of the channel for a Navy ship and then a Carnival Cruise ship. Man, this was spectacular. Sailboats of all sizes, shapes, etc. were everywhere.
I lifted my shirt like I might get flashed at the Carnival Cruise ship, but the whole side of the ship booed me. I guess I shouldn't have eaten that extra pancake this morning. It was the feeling you would get if you were running toward the wrong goal post at the super bowl. Pretty impressive though. I guess you would have had to be there. No worries, I was on top of the world.
We pulled into our new slip at Pier 32 marina, and it sure felt good. 3+ weeks and we finally made it. This place is beautiful. It opened in July. Everything from the Putting Green to the staff is first class.
I met our next door neighbors, Randy, Sandy (with hair like candy - bright pink), and their 2 big brown dogs, Me-humpa-u-leg, and the other one that was eyeing my kneecap like a dog bisquit. Why anyone living on a 34' boat would have 2 large dogs is beyond me. I also met another cruiser who arrived the same day from Washington on his way to Mexico.
Our plans have changed slightly and I am flying back to Portland in a few days to finish up some business. Then next month Cheryl, Pheobe, and I will drive down and leave one of our cars here. I am really looking forward to Cheryl seeing this place. She is gonna love it. There is a large park next door, bike trails, and a tram about � mile away to take us into San Diego.
I could not have accomplished this without some help from some great people. Charlie Arkebauer (Mr. Howell) was not only a great guy to have aboard, but also kept our spirits up with his humor, and always made sure he pulled his weight and then some. The guy knows his way around a sailboat. Jeff Gerritsen (the Professor) ran our electronics and charted our course. Cheryl not only handled everything at home and with our business but took care of everything we needed. I hope I can make this up to her.
Some of the other people we met along the way like Charlie and Sharon Tedrow on S/V Cast Away who drove us all over looking for parts and supplies in Coos Bay really were great. They were headed for Mexico and I hope they made it.
We met quite a few people heading to Mexico, and it will be interesting to know if we will run into them there next year.
Well it is time to go clean up the boat and get ready to fly home.
With dreams there is hope and aspirations. Throw in some drive and you can do anything you set out to do.
Dream it, Believe it, Do it, Live it.
Chris

September 13, 2008 1740 hours
Sailing (kinda) in So Cal

Well, I feel like we made it, but we still have 200 miles to go. I think we are in clear weather. We woke up in Santa Barbara where a slip for a 42' boat will run a measly $175,000K plus a monthly fee. The housing market looks pretty good if you are looking in the $8 to $24 million, or want to spend $5 to $20 THOUSAND a month for a rental.

We are 2 hours out of Redondo Beach. Originally we were headed for Marina del Rey, but the winds favored Redondo and it will knock off 1 � hrs tomorrow. Other than dealing with business on the phone all day (good business), Jeff and I have been listening to vessel assist in LA. I now believe that boat maintenance is something that does not occur in the So Cal area as the calls for assistance are non stop on channel 16. By the way, I must preface this that Jeff and I have a tremendous respect for the Coast Guard.


A typical call goes like this:
Vessel Assist: We are responding to a call for assistance on channel 16. Please repeat.
Unfortunate Boater: We have lost power and smoke is coming out of our engine compartment. We have 6" of water in the boat and are heading for the sea wall.
VA: Please switch to channel 68. (everyone within ear shot does so. This is exciting)
UB: We are here.
VA: What is the make and model of your vessel and how many people are on board?
UB: It is a 38' Tolleycraft flybridge. 6 people on board and a Chihuahua.
VA: Is everyone wearing a life vest including the dog? What is the dogs name?
UB: Yeah. Chester the Chihuahua.
VA: How old and what color?
UB: The boat?
VA: No. The Dog.
UB: 5 years and fawn colored.
VA: Is there fire or just smoke?
UB: Just smoke.
VA: Are you sinking?
UB: Yes. The water is now 1 �' deep.
VA: What is the document # of your boat?
UB: Uh... Let me dig it out.... 123XYZCA.
VA: Do you have Vessel Assist insurance?
UB: I think so. We are very close to the sea wall and waves are starting to break over the boat. The smoke is very thick. Please send help.
VA: We will need your VA Assist insurance information. We think a boat is on the way. Can you hold?
UB: The water is 4' deep and the ink ran on my Assist Card. I can't read the #.
VA: Is there someone we can call that may have that information?
UB: Yeah, call my blug blub ugh blub blub........

And so it goes. Anyway we are having a much more relaxed time and things are going well.
We should be in King Harbor at Redondo Beach in an hour.

Sept 11th, 2008 Day 19
Making a run for it

We were in Brookings watching the Gale warning flags every day at the Coast Guard station and were getting very frustrated. We would then walk to the beach across the way and the locals would be hanging out in the surf. Even the large fishing boats were staying put. The weather reports did show one small break on September 7th and so at 1500 hrs we scrambled and headed out.
The wind was down and the wind waves weren't over 2' - 4' but the seas were 8' - 10'. We headed south with the intent to keep motoring until absolutely necessary to head in to port. We needed to get 20 miles south to get around Point St George where we kept getting better weather reports. We motored for 2 days and refilled with the 20 gallons on deck without stopping other than to check the oil. We made it to Bodega Bay, where the movie "the Birds" by Alfred Hitchcock was shot and stayed just long enough to refuel. We had been hearing a knock on the rudder for hours and tried slowing down and reversing but nothing helped. Fearing the worse (a prop shaft bushing?) we were just about to call a mechanic/diver ($$) when I got down on the dock and saw something hanging from the prop. Using a boat pole, I fished out a 3' long piece of kelp that was about 3/4" in diameter and bent in a U shape. It had some how got hung up above the prop on the cutlass bearing shaft and was beating what sounded like Ziggy Marley against the rudder. What a relief.

The weather and waves have been getting better every day. We have not had much wind and it has been quite rolly, making it difficult to sleep. The noise of the engine is also hard to deal with and we all are wearing ear plugs to sleep but it is not helping much.

I am declaring September 30th this boats birthday and it is getting sound deadening for the engine compartment.

About an hour out of Bodega Bay the engine slowed down and we had a plugged fuel filter. The last thing I enjoy is working upside down on an engine in large seas. After an hour of throwing up in the garbage can and over the sides while replacing 2 filters and siphoning a � qt of diesel by mouth into a jar to refill the filter, we were off. Charlie tried to keep the boat straight while Jeff kept handing me tools and paper towels to clean myself up. I was sick the rest of the day.

Last nite on my watch we were going through thick phosphorescence and had 6 porpoises swimming around the boat. It was eerie as they would shoot by and leave a 30' trail of glimmering phosphorescence and they were lit up under water as though a light was shining on them. They looked like torpedoes going by. This lasted for over an hour and was the neatest thing I've seen on this trip. We have seen dozens of porpoises and many whales the last few days. The Dahl Porpoises are around us almost continually.

Whenever I mention the porpoises to Charlie, who has yet to see them, he counters by asking if I've seen the big whale with 2 dolphins pirouetting on its back; one in a tutu.



Charlie hasn't slept for days and is delirious with this goofy grin. He hasn't even been drinking and is eating very little.

Both he and Jeff aren't able to get WIFI on their phones and are getting cranky. They both itch a lot and just stare at their Iphone and blackberry with this puzzled confused look. Therapy is next.


WHAT NO IPHONE !

It should be better tonite as we are trying to get to Santa Barbara where Charlie will fly out to another obligation. Jeff will then be tied into electronics and WIFI once more and it may be hard to get him back on the boat. After a few days Charlie will start eating again and quit talking about the whale and Helga the sea lion.

We are going to get around Point Conception today, "the Cape Horn of the Pacific" as it is referred to as there have been so many gales encountered there. The weather doesn't look too bad with wind up to 25 knots, but we will see when we get there.
If all goes well we can make it to Santa Barbara tonite and park the boat for a day after 4 1/2 days straight of motoring 24 hrs each day.
Update - 4 hours later



Wow! The clouds went away and the warm California sun is shining. The wind is 18 - 22 knots on our stern and we are motor sailing in 3 - 5' waves. We sped up from 6 -6.1/2 knots to 7 � to 8 1/2 knots. Perfect.

We saw 25 - 30 seals swimming toward us and jumping like dolphins. They swam/jumped right past our boat. Then a large group of big dolphins swam with us for a while. We rounded Point Conception and are moving fast. This is really what we came here for. We should be in Santa Barbara before 9 pm.

This is turning into an exceptional day.

9-16-08 Day 14
Mingling with local natives
Usually when we think of meeting the locals while cruising we picture dropping anchor in a lagoon with beautiful palm trees and tropical plants while watching a young gorgeous scantily clad man/woman (pick one) paddling their dugout canoe toward us with stalks of bananas and local fruit.

We on the other hand are going stir crazy while stuck between 2 68' smelly fishing boats and overran by flies, watching the waves offshore that look like Buicks standing on end. Steep 20' waves and 30+ knots of wind. The reports are talking of up to 50 knots.

Next door are neighbors Mike and Tammy, and crew member Ike. Ike is actually a Mike but since he went to work for Mike, now he's Ike. Not unlike getting neutered. Great people, though and very friendly.

They offered to take us to the liquor store on the California border yesterday and after looking around the cabin and seeing Charlie sitting in the corner with a nervous twitch in his eye while gnawing on his leg I felt I had better get him out soon.

We piled in the back seat with the dog and headed out. After loading up on tequila and enjoying the drive, Mike stopped in at a friends, Harland's, for a visit on the way back. Four of Harland's friends stopped by. We ended up staying for a few hours and it turns out we had quite a bit in common. All of us other than Charlie, Mike, and Ike are/were in the lumber business and fly small planes.
They invited us to a BBQ today at a large Ranch and want us to meet their Bull, who likes to have his head scratched. Go Figure.

It seems also that Tammy worked with a friend of mine at Rusts Flying service in Anchorage.
We ended up back at our boat with neighbors Mike, Ike, and Tammy and some guy we met on the docks and after consuming copious amounts of our daily purchases we crawled in the sack sometime after midnite.

It blew so hard last nite that I was up 3 times to add a dock line and douse the wind sock. Jeff and I walked quite a bit yesterday and so are taking it easy today. It was suppose to be 68 degrees today but is in the eighties here. I love this weather except for the wind.

We are fighting over the fly swatter that I purchased yesterday and this seems to be the new entertainment. We are now hoping to leave Sunday nite - tomorrow.

Chris

9-4-08 Brookings, Day 400, or so it seems...
No Planes, Trains, Or Automobiles, and the weather still blows.
Each day we awaken with great hope that the gale force winds and 20' seas will be a thing of the past and we can be merrily on our way south to the land of sugar plums.
It is getting to be a hobby to see how long we can sleep so the frustration will not last. But it is not to be. The first guy up looks across to the Coast Guard station, but there are always 2 flags flying (Gale force). Our other hobby is killing flies, since we are parked between 2 huge fishing boats that if run up, could turn us into pretzels. Charlie has checked into rental cars (none), trains (none), and buses (none).
The excitement today was watching the yard lift a sailboat and put it on a trailer, and then I borrowed a saw and made a backup tiller. Can you say "when is talk like a pirate day"?
The weather always looks good for the day after tomorrow, until the next day when it changes for the worst. Friday looked great until today, Thursday, and now it looks like Sunday or Monday looks great. Four days in a small town would be great if you weren't 2 miles from town.
Enough complaining, at least it is 90 out and blue skies, and we are eating well, one of our new favorite hobbies. Zola's Pizza was fantastic last nite and must not be missed if Brookings is on your agenda. Charlie, our Pie connoisseur will attest.
There are more pelicans here than I've seen anywhere outside of Mexico and they are a riot to watch. The Seagulls terrorize them and the cormorants when either of them catch a fish.
We finished the last of our Tequila yesterday so I may have to thumb a ride to California, since our afternoon shot each day gives us a lift.
Jeff is currently trying to find something wrong with the wiring so he will have an excuse to rewire the boat.
Well, I think I have to go study how to operate the new SSB. I should be asleep within minutes.....

9-1-08
The forecast called for 15 - 25 knots of wind, and 5 - 9' seas, so we left port at 0700 hrs in fog and headed for Bodega Bay. It was great to be sailing with one reef and partial head sail and skipping along at 7.5 to 9 knots. At 1500 hrs I turned over the helm to Charlie and crawled into the sack.

Ten minutes later I was on deck and we were fighting to put a 2nd reef in the sail. The boom caught me behind the ear and Charlie caught me as I was going over. The wind rose to 39 knots with seas to 15 - 20'.


We were hand steering along at 7.5 - 8 knots (at times reaching 10kts) under double reefed main alone. Two waves crashed over the boat, one which I thought would take Charlie with it. We had a few accidental jibes due to the wave height, which grenaded a boom block and sent parts through 2 windows in the dodger, just missing us.

This also broke the vang free from the boom. Charlie and I hand steered while Jeff handled the plotter and navigated, picking up whatever was flying around the cabin. It was wild steering the boat in the pitch dark by feel alone not knowing what was going to hit you next.


Charlie Working on the traveler block


Broken dodger plastic

With gale warnings tonight and a broken boat, at 2230 hrs we made it into Brookings. The Coast Guard met us at the docks, going through our paperwork and boat.

We had a drink, surveyed the damage and crawled into bed at midnight.




Comments by Jeff.

Ol Lonesome Charley

You know Charley has never been the same since we left Coos Bay. I really think he misses "Helga". I even herd him say today "... Well if we were back in Coos Bay at least we would have some basic amenities of life." Do you think he was missing Helga? I don't know.

My first real wind blow - oh crap!

The sail down to Brookings was just fine. I mean what could be better - 4 to 5 foot seas a nice 20 kt NW wind, I mean we were cruising down the old coast line at 8 to 9 kts. Then Charley took the helm. It wasn't 10 min and the wind went from 18 - 20 kts to 30 - 38 kts and we were scrambling. Within 15 min we had the jib in, the main double reefed, and still doing 8 to 10 kts in following seas with wind waves coming from our starboard stern. At first I was hoping we would head into the Rogue Rive (Gold beach) but when I relayed to Chris that the depths were only 4 to 9 feet and entry should only be attempted with local knowledge - I thought sh*# !

Next the wind started really blowing. By this time Chris and Charley were working the tiller with their eyes glued to the wind dex indicator and steering the boat somewhat by feel as we were thrown around by 10 - 15 feet seas with breaking wind waves on top of swells. Now mind you, I feel pretty comfortable on the Columbia river in demanding conditions - 20 - 25 kts with 3-4 foot wind waves. What I was seeing on the ocean was nothing I've ever seen before. To make matters worse, I was looking out the companion way to 15 (now 20) foot seas. There wasn't an anti anxiety medication made that was going to help now!

I wanted to help out in the cockpit, but that would have made things worse, plus there was nothing I could really do. Both Chris and Charley had their hands full just steering the boat, while I relayed navigational, and harbor entry information, to them. Not to mention anything that wasn't tied down inside was flying.

All of a sudden Charley had an accidental gybe, I head a bang as the traveler car slammed into the starboard block and I saw "pieces" of stuff flying by the windows and the boom was at a beam reach I flat panicked. Within about 15 min a rouge wave crashed against the starboard deck / hull and I wondered if Charley was washed overboard? Let's just say he didn't need a shower that night.

For me it was nail biting time. Being inside, I would look out the port windows and see the boat slide down a wave and put water over the toe rail. There was a couple of times I thought I needed to change my underwear. All the time I knew we had to go another three hours to Chetco River (Brookings). It seem to be one of the longest three hours of my life.

Now Charley, on the other hand, was in hog heaven! The more the waves crashed, the faster the boat went (as if 10 kts with a double reefed main only wasn't enough), the more excited he got. Boy when I grow up I want what Charley's got - even if I have to put up with Helga!

Three hours passed and we pulled into Chetco River. By this time Chris was pretty much "spent" - we all were. Chetco river entrance is a narrow channel between two jetties. In addition to nighttime conditions, Chris was concerned about the rocks and shoal areas. I took a look at the river approach chart and relayed instructions. We followed the range marker right down the middle of the channel made a right turn in to the transient parking area. Chris and Charley were too exhausted to eat, however I was starving. After a quick candy bar and some jiffy pop popcorn we turned into bed.

One never gains real respect for the seas until ones been in a real blow. This was a real experience teacher. I don't know if I'll ever feel as excited as Charley gets when things really come alive, but now I have a little more confidence in a good boat design, and steady hands that guide her.

Jeff