JOURNAL02

DREAMCATCHER VOYAGE
Journal 2 - San Francisco to San Diego along the California Coast
“CRUISIN’…”

“CRUISIN’…”

FROM S/V DREAMCATCHER:

So, we finally made it off the dock. “ya just gotta go, you’ll never be

ready…” they

say. And we weren’t… entirely, but we slipped the dock-lines

and took off out of the

Golden Gate on September 28th. It was a cold, grey,

windless San Francisco

morning and as we made the “left turn” to migrate

south. An emotional time for both of

us and we both had our hands on the

helm as DREAMCATCHER slipped quietly

under the Gate…. It’s been a

long time coming.

Our passage – all 12 hours of it – baby steps, first, right?..... was uneventful.

From 3

miles offshore I felt we were in one of those dull 18th century

paintings – the ocean and

coastline were simply different shades of grey,

and didn’t change till mid afternoon

when the sun appeared, bringing a little

wind with it. Essentially, we motor-sailed all

the way to Santa Cruz, and

entered the harbour at sundown. A positive day with

“Jack”(our autopilot)

doing the driving, giving us a chance to put all our autopilot and

navigational

systems and processes through their paces. A quick meal at the local

pub,

then the start of 4 days “down time” in Santa Cruz. We had both been

working

hard, 14 hour days to ready the boat for departure: more on that

later – I believe

getting ready to go cruising is one of the hardest things one

can possibly do. You’ll

read in Cruising World and other journals of the joys

of cruising – and they’re right. But

there’s not too many chronicles on the

months of daily grind, the two steps forward

one step back (or sometimes 1

forward 2 back) back- breaking, frustrating work to

prepare for a world

cruise. We’re both managers, and thankfully that combined 5

decades of

process, operational management and delegation came to the fore and

were able to pull this off in less time than many, with a little help from our

friends.

But we both realized we were about an ‘11’ on the richter scale of

“tired” when we

arrived at Santa Cruz. So, day one was simply about being

here, and the major

achievement chalked up was getting the laundry done….

on foot. Working towards

being low achievers!! At least for the time

being…..

Santa Cruz harbour is a buzz! It’s exciting to be in a working harbour rather

than a

residential marina – and on the end of the dock, we see plenty of

action in the comings

and goings of the fishing boats, kayaks, outrigger

canoes, sailing races and of course,

the wildlife. I allowed myself the luxury

of spending nearly half an hour just watching a

beautiful blue heron elegantly

picking his way along the dock, and was an unwitting

spectator to the death

of a big salmon in the jaws of a 200lb seal just 10 feet from the

boat: it was

brutal: blood & guts flying everywhere – watching the food chain

dynamics up

close and personal.

Our boat neighbours are cordial: 30 seconds into our initial conversation one

of them

offered to give us her car to use. Another loaned us his boat steps,

and yet another

drove me to the supermarket, picked me up and helped

carry the groceries to the

boat: you could live for years in any city and never

experience the helpfulness of the

cruiser community – oh that the rest of

society could be this way.

We finally prised DREAMCATCHER off the dock after 4 days of visits from

friends

and family, and launched ourselves back out into the Pacific with

intent to anchor at

idyllic San Simeon with an estimated arrival time of mid

morning – well

DREAMCATCHER got the bit in her teeth and powered down

the coast with the aid of

following winds & seas and a nippy 2 knot current,

at a surprising speed, blowing past

said idyllic anchorage about 1.00am.

We decided to be prudent and not approach it

at night, so continued on

down the coast, staying about 3 miles offshore, to arrive in

San Luis Harbour

at dawn – the boat put in a 160 mile day – what a gal !!!! It was a

lively ride,

and we incurred just a little damage to a couple of ties on the mainsail, but

nothing too harrowing. We took off the sail and enjoyed a couple of days

swinging on

a mooring ball in the Harbour, watching the seals and getting

some small jobs done

aboard. San Luis wouldn’t get the award for the

prettiest harbour on the west coast,

but it was a welcome respite and the

locals who approached the boat were friendly.

We embarked upon our third leg at sunset. This was infamous west coast

leg,

rounding Point Conception. For the folks who don’t live in California, this

point has

been sometimes referred to as the “Horn of the Pacific”. It’s known

for rough seas and

high winds, and something all passaging sailors

approach with not a little trepidation.

We prepared well with a good dinner

and all necessary precautions. We needn’t have

worried.

Cost of a mooring ball in San Luis : $10 a night (which they never collected!)

Cost of sail repairs in Santa Barbara – not much.

Cost of rounding Point Conception at midnight in a light breeze, escorted by

dolphins

under a clear starry sky? Priceless !

Thus we transitted into the magic kingdom of Southern California – the home

“Arnie”, cosmetic surgery, Hollywood and other fun foibles.

More later………………..

Glen & Henry, aboard DREAMCATCHER in stylish Santa Barbara.

hotos are the same for journal 2 and 3

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VIEW PHOTOS FOR JOURNAL 2 and 3