Aug 7, 2010

Summer in San Francisco for Sea Story

 Before we got to California, we caught a nice tuna near Magdalenna Bay, off the Mexican coast of Baja. We estimated his weight between 15 and 20 pounds.  Good eating, but the hard part was having to clean him with a sharp knife on this pitching deck. (Photo by Connie LaBounty)

The trip up the California coast was tough this year.  Rough weather persisted longer than usual, and it took a long time to get from San Diego to San Francisco.  As usual, we had some great folks for crew members, so the boat was well manned.  But, a stubborn high pressure area off the north coast, kept sending us those short, steep waves that make progress difficult when you're sailing into them.  Net result was a trip that took 15 days instead of the usual 6, and featured layovers in Santa Barbara, Morro Bay and Santa Cruz. 
The up side of all this was the chance to spend time in these delightful ports that we usually leave too early or bypass entirely.  The down side is that I needed some time off after completing the trip and working on the things that typically need fixing after a month of bashing northward up the Pacific coastline.
So, right now, I'm cooling my heels in wonderful, summertime, Wisconsin, and Sea Story is resting easy in a berth at Richmond's Marina Bay.  At the end of September, I'll be back aboard and getting ready for a return trip down the coast to Mexico.  This time, it will be mostly downwind and riding the waves instead of bashing into them.  After nearly a month on dry land, I'm already starting to look forward to the trip.
Sea Otters are making a comback in the Monterey Bay, and here is one taking a snooze in the Santa Cruz harbor.  When they are off the coast, the wrap themselves in kelp to keep from drifting off while they're taking a nap.  Here in the harbor, they just pick a quiet fairway.

1 comment:

Drifters Travels said...

Happy sailing in September. Jan and Doug