Finally - Were Sailing Again!!!



Chris is proudly representing in his Nautilus Sailing Shirt
 

  After  5 long months back at work, we finally were able to plan a day sail in San Diego, California. We spent many days over the last few months deciding who to charter a boat from so we could get back out sailing and get some much needed practice time to work on our skills.


We settled on joining  http://www.marinasailing.com/  which charters out of 6 southern California locations to it's members.

Chris motoring out of the slip
 

We decided to start small chartering a Catalina 27 Mark II named "Fury" for our first sailing since we got our ASA 104 back in June. After a quick briefing on the boats systems, local chart's and a docking test we were off sailing.



  We couldn't have asked for better weather. It was a perfect clear day with temp's in the low 70's and forecast for 15 to 20 kts of wind. We motored out from Shelter Island and into the main San Diego harbor channel and began to put up the sails. 

A photo to remind us were to turn back in.

View of Pt Loma as we pull out of Shelter Island.
 

 

  

 We viewed Sea Lions sunning themselves on the channel markers and although we were aware that the Marines were doing exercises up the coast were not really prepared for all the Navy ship activity we would encounter.



 

 

After some tense moment's trying to remember our brief instruction on the in mast furling main sail system on this boat we were able to figure out the lines and get the sails up. We shut off the engine and were sailing!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Not long after we made our course for the open sea we were surrounded by small Navy patrol boats keeping tabs on our position as a Nuclear Submarine was entering the harbor. This was a sight you don't see every day.

 

                                                      

 

So once clear of the bay and the tip of Point Loma we made a turn west to get out of the  main shipping channel but recognised there were kelp beds and fishing nets which were hazards the first couple miles off shore in our direction so we kept a good watch. We gained speed as we took on more wind but a wind shift from off shore to onshore from a Santa Ana condition would prove challenging later as we would head back into the harbor.

 

 

Chris sailing offshore 

 

Amanda had it heeled over and loving it.

 

We did see winds pick up off shore from 12 to 19 kts as we practiced different points of sail. We realized rather quickly that we were out of practice and were not getting the full efficiency out of our sails that we would have liked and would need more practice.  

 

 

 

 

 

We continued to sail offshore for about three hours and then decided to go back into the harbor and sail the bay looking for somewhere to stop for lunch.

 

 

 

After entering the main harbor getting ready to pass North Island NAS on a port tack we were quickly approached by a small military craft with a 60 cal gun aboard yelling at us over the P A to sail off from another approaching Nuclear Submarine we hadn't seen. As we looked ahead of us under the sail, sure enough the sub was headed right for us. The patrol boat pulled along side us and forced us over towards the shore as the sub took the full main channel as it passed us. This put us on a course directly into a forbidden military zone shown on our chart and told to us by the charter company as a military nuclear loading dock. We figure we must be allowed since the military themselves put us on the course towards the dock. After the Submarine passed us the military boat sped off  towards the sub leaving us where we were. Unable now to change course sailing into the wind to get away from the approaching ship docked we made the decision to start the engine and motor back into the channel. This was awkward as we had full sail up and no time to douse them. So into the channel we went with a back winded Jib.

 

 

 

 

As we passed Harbor Island, and rounded Coronado Island headed to downtown San Diego to get lunch we were passed by a cruising boat just adding insult to how inefficient we were sailing in the now light winds inside the bay. But after a few more tacks we furled in the Main and Jib, turned on the motor and headed for a dock at Anthony's for some world famous Fish and Chips for our lunch. Getting a fair amount of docking practice as the winds did not cooperate and after several trys we did make it to the restaurant's dock.

 

 

After lunch, we undocked and headed back across the bay to Shelter Island to our slip.

 

 

 

 

Figuring after 7 hours of successful sailing and docking back at our slip for the night we patted ourselves on the back, had a celebratory glass of wine and realized once again how much fun sailing was vowing to do it again soon.

 

Driving passed the harbor on the way to the airport to fly home the next day we gazed into the harbor were the transient boats were moored taking a photo of the dingy dock and vowing to return for another day sail in a couple weeks time.