WEB LOG OF OUR TRIP
SAN FRANCISCO TO SAN DIEGO
Day 26
2009
Sunrise over the SE end of Santa Cruz Island
A "real" captain wears Harry's cap
Entrance to Channel Islands Harbor (Oxnard)
A very busy little harbor
Sue found the best table in the YC with a view of the Wed. race fleet
A BIG milestone, changing headsail to bigger for lighter southern winds
Brian said this is the way to do it,
but it looks like sitting around on the job to me
Oct 7
This morning started early since none of us were sleeping in the swell and wind off Santa Cruz. We got the anchor lifted with no problem and began motoring out of the harbor. There was a loud clunk and the engine began to noticeably slow. As luck would have it, we had wind all the way across, so we ran the engine slow and thought of all the horrible things that could be wrong: broken prop, crab pot stuck in the prop, crab pot line stuck in the prop, missing prop blade, etc. When we finally pulled into Santa Barbara, we were met at the dock by a local diver (quite by luck) and he quickly determined that our only problem was a large wad of sea kelp that was lodged in our folding prop.
Along the way Brian and Craig sighted the largest pod of dolphins that either had ever seen. There had to be more than 50 individuals, all going in the same direction. They were on a mission because they weren't in the least distracted as they crossed our path. Just dived under the boat and continued on to the south. [Brian has a theory that some dolphins are A.D.D. and they get temporarily distracted by the fun of running the wake of passing boats and ships, and frequently the theory appears to be correct, but not this time.]
Except for the stress of wondering what was wrong with the propeller, this was an enjoyable crossing in sunshine and enough wind to sail over half the distance.
Our dock in Santa Barbara was across from the Coast Guard Cutter Blackfin / fuel dock, and an easy walk to the Santa Barbara Yacht Club. The club was very nice and we enjoyed a BBQ Southern California style. We didn't exchange burgees since they already had one, but Brian determined that it was upside down, so they promptly corrected that. This YC had ALL of their burgees displayed on the beams in the ceiling of the bar. Every burgee had a plaque with a number and the name of the YC; on the wall there is a list of all the Yacht Clubs for which they have burgees, very organized.