Raven’s Adventure

We are on day 7 here in Monterey and we have enjoyed this little gem on the central coast. We have visited the famous Monterey aquarium which was awe inspiring with the floor to ceiling windows exhibiting all the creatures this portion of the Pacific has to offer. We especially enjoyed the jellyfish exhibit offering  varieties we never new existed. On Thursday we took public transportation up to the posh community of Carmel by the sea. The walk along the beach Avenue is amazing on both sides with the glassy waves breaking inside the continuous kelp beds and on the opposing side the architecturally stunning homes with their manicured landscapes. Aside from sightseeing we’re trying to get our 12K steps a day. So for the last 3 days it’s been trips to Home Depot and Trader Joe’s.  The Kramer’s on Gypsy from Rose City Yacht Club arrived yesterday morning early. They had been holed up in Newport Oregon and Sausalito inside SF Bay waiting out inclement weather. ...

Tuesday 9/24 Kevin found a Goodwill in walking distance and we set out to find a something to wear to a costume party the HaHa puts on. Trying to get in at least 10 thousand steps a day when we are docked. Back at the boat we had a HH, or as our new friends call them, sundowners. Jennifer/Campbell from Australia, Sue/ Andy from the U.K., Paul/Sharon from Alaska (who just so happens is doing the HaHa) and Matt/Karen from Monterey. Everything we’ve wanted is in walking distance. A tourist town with a home town feeling.

Sunday 9/22 Puttered on the boat most of the day. Took the dangerous path to the town again. This time it was early afternoon and wasn’t so scary. Checked out the few stores they had. Population of 204. Not even a small convenient store. A run down PO/new one too. A bed and breakfast, The famous American Shakespeare store which housed thousands of memorabilia; costumes, books, cards, props from plays and more. A funny place for it. The gentleman who ran the place said they get thousands of visitors a year. Two Mexican restaurants and a store selling Mexican wares for 10 times the amount we pay in Melaque. Stopped at the yacht club for a drink. Met a variety of nice people. The yacht club is filled with derelict boats. One gentleman told us that it was a social club with a sailing problem. We had a good time non the less. There is a beautiful estuary where many kayakers were exploring. Dinner on the boat and our nightly game of scrabble. Monday 9/23 Departed Moss Bay at 10:15. As m...

Saturday 9/21 We left Pilar Point at 7am. Put up the main and headed west for 4 hours. The weather was simply gorgeous. Had a bit of a NW wind and calm seas. Turned south and headed for Moss Landing. Along the way, we heard a loud thump at our bow. Turned to look and it was a Great White shark. No damage to us, but I’ll bet he got a bit of a headache. 🦈 Pulled into Moss Landing around 4:30. A sweet little place. Elk horn Yacht Club. Boy are they friendly. We walked up to the bar, met the harbor master who also is their cook and jack of all trades.  He told us as we were talking, drinking, that “you’re checked in”. Our Rose City Yacht Club membership sure pays off. The folks at the yacht club invited us to a progressive dinner. We appreciated it, but were too tired after a long day on the ocean. Walked into the “town” of 204 and had a nice Mexican dinner.

Thursday 9/19 We decided we needed to continue our exercise routine and walked into Half Moon Bay. 4.6 miles along the beach. A sweet  and quiet little town. Had a beer and took an Uber back to the boat.  LLots of fishing boats around us. Not many going out yet as salmon fishing is in 3 weeks here.  Kevin’s cousin Denny Oliver came over had a drink with us and drove us to his home in San Mateo. A few of Denny’s friends we’re down from Portland to see the U of O game. Kit/Lisa Kryger, Don/Linda DeMarco, Kim/Chris Corrado and Denny’s  wife Alice. We all had connections. DeMarco’sand Corrado’s daughters went to school with Valerie, Kryger’s are my best bud Kris’s brother/sister in law. Kevin worked w/Don when the  were kids. Linda’s sister is a friend of my sister. Crazy! Kevin hasn’t seen his cousin in 20 years but you’d think they’d hung out for years. We had drinks and dinner. What a lovely group of people. This cruising thing sure...

9/16 Spent the day cleaning the boat and getting ready to leave after 7 days in Alameda. We really enjoyed the town. All the old “Painted Lady” houses, fine restaurants and wonderful people. 9/17 Moved the boat to Aquatic Park which is right in front of Gharadelli Square. Dropped the anchor and took the dinghy into SF. Walked all the way up to Nob Hill. What a beautiful view. A trip through China Town then the Italian section. Stopped into Mario’s Cigar Bar, a 45 year old place where the local police walking the beat stop in for a cold one. (Not alcohol) We sure enjoyed talking w/then. They’ve been working together for 24 years. Went to pick up the dinghy and head for the boat. Had a head wind blowing at us. One of the oars broke in the process. Needless to say, we had a tough time getting back. 9/18 Left San Francisco at 7am. Hit the tide just right. Quite a bit of fog while we were heading for the ocean. Sure glad we have AIS to let us know about any traffic around...

Our friend Marlon Warren flew down from home to spend the day/night with us. We rented bicycles on the waterfront and rode out to the Golden Gate Bridge to Fort Point which was built during the civil war. 8 million bricks and granite slabs cut in China. The circular stairwell was amazing. Hard to believe they could build a structure like that so long ago. Continued to ride up into the Marina area where we had lunch. The Rolex sailboat race was happening and we enjoyed watching about 100 boats participate. It was a windy day so, it was a great race.  Back to the boat for a tuna dinner.

Saturday 9/14 Another beautiful day at Oakland Yacht Club. We could get use to this lifestyle. We had a visit today from kevin’s dear friend Brent VonDross and his wife Jennifer who live in Benicia. After lots of reminiscing, they were on there way. Not before offering Monte a trip to the airport. Monte leaves only to return when we head out for the Baja Haha in November. He was a joy to have on board and a big help. I think he and I learned a lot this first leg of our journey. Later Kevin and I went to dinner at a lovely Italian restaurant in town to celebrate our 6th anniversary. The chef and owner had opened Infornio in PDX. A small world. A great day all around.

Friday 9/13 Awoke to the sounds of the city all round us. Commuter trains sounding their horns at every crossing, pile driving across the channel, crew coaches barking out orders as the sleek shells glide by. Gina and I power walked the 6 mile round trip the Svendsons Marine for some hardware. On the return home Gina stopped in the Verizon store and was convinced her battery was at the end of its life and she needed to purchase a new phone The clerk likened it to a car battery stating they don’t last forever. My thought was when a car battery goes bad you don’t buy a new car. Anyway we were a little shocked to discover we paid over 100.00 for California state tax. Oh well! In the late afternoon it was so hot on the boat we decided to go up to the club and sit in the shade and have happy hour. Shortly thereafter we met Michelle one of the members and she convinced us to head up to the bar on the 2nd floor. This was our first trip aloft to the club bar and we were all very impressed wit...

Wednesday 9/11 Docked at Oakland Yacht Club. Reciprocal privileges. It’s such a nice perk. We all got a good nights rest. We are situated so that we can watch all the local crew teams pass by. It’s a beautiful sight. Walked along the waterfront to the local grocery store. Kevin went to the local marine store, Monty did laundry and I treated myself to a pedicure. Cheaper than at home! Met a nice couple Moored next to us and had HH. Nice to be on land. Thursday 9/12 Took an Uber to the ferry and went into San Francisco. Walked along the waterfront and enjoyed people watching. Had a look at the Balclutha. A large sailing vessel from the late 1800’s. It made many voyages to Europe taking wheat, fruit and fish. 260 feet. With 145’ to the top of the mast. An amazing history lesson.

Sunday, 9/8 Eager to get on our way. Left Eureka at 6:15 am. Weather was beautiful. Motor sailed out 25 miles to avoid Cape Mendocino. Kevin put out lines for tuna. First bite we caught two. I went down for a nap and he had two more. As the day went on the water got very choppy. Left the main up to help stabilize and got up to 8.5k. Had a lovely moon glow, but the seas never calmed down. We were all taking one hour shifts at the helm. A long, long night. Monday, 9/9 The water is still choppy. Kept the main up and used the motor. Swells at 4-5 feet. Lots of whales today along with dolphins playing at our bow. an albatross flew by as well. Pulled in for a break at Drakes Bay. Anchored after 34 hours straight. Had a drink, ate some of that fresh tuna and called it a night. 25-30 mile an hour winds during the night so wasn’t the best sleep. Tuesday 9/10 Left the bay at 9;00 am and put up the sails. Very breezy for about 10 minutes. Wind completely died. Shocking cons...

Day 7 After a long enduring night, we all slept like babies. Woke up to calm waters. Coffee, breakfast and a walk around the docks. Kevin and Monte spent the day cleaning the boat and tying down everything that moved during our last voyage. I did laundry and cleaned the inside. Eureka was having a vintage car show downtown which we all enjoyed. Strolled around the downtown area with beautiful old homes. This is definitely a place we will come back to. Lots to see with not enough time to explore. Had a salmon dinner and enjoyed some good French wine.

Days 5 Had a decent night sleep. 4 hours on and off take a little getting use to. We hung out on the boat today and Kevin and I took a walk around Charleston Harbor. Quaint little town. Met a lot of nice locals. Monte, our crew had a bit of Vertigo so he was laying low. Had dinner at the local brew pub. Very relaxing day. Day 6 Left Coos Bay at 10:15. Got a late start as the fuel dock is getting a makeover and they had to bring fuel in on a tanker. Needless to say, by the time we left, we hit the bar at ebb tide. Very lumpy and not to my liking. Kevin was very calm at the helm. Monte and I, not so much. Kevin put out lines for tuna and again we snagged a salmon. He was a happy camper. Most of the day we had the wind at our nose. By about 5pm the seas calmed down and we had smooth sailing. Lots of fog. Had an intense entry into Eureka where we decided to spend the next two days.  31 hours later,  we had a nice hot shower, dinner and to bed early.

Day 3 Crossing the bar was a piece of cake. Beautiful weather. Calm as ever. Put the main and Genoa up but still had the motor going. Evening it got a bit choppy, but not a problem. We were able to eat in the cockpit and have a normal dinner. Saw 2 orcas, blue shark and a pod of porpoise. Day4 Again, today the ocean was calm. It was as smooth as a lake. Motor sailed all day. Kevin put out lines to do some tuna fishing. All we came up with was a coho. No complaints though. We saw a large Humpback, a couple orcas that put on a show and a group of porpoises following along our bow. The weather forecast for tonight is rough seas and heavy winds so decided to pull into Coos Bay and wait it out. Salmon was on the barbecue.

Left PDX at 8:00am on Saturday. A calm and easy motor down the Columbia. The current was running fast so we hit 8.5 knots most of the way. Tide changed around 3 so we found a beautiful little outlet off Pierce Island and anchored for the night. Got into Astoria at 10:15 on Sunday. Cleaned up got the boat ready and went to dinner with our friends Kelley and Roger. Early to bed so we can tackle the bar Monday am.