8/31/09
Jake and Juliet of Pisces are coming for a visit! Tidy up the boat a bit (looks like a dorm room); inflate the dinghy and Marcus rows off to pick them up. We have never met, yet we greet each other like old friends; it feels like we have known them for years. Through their blog I have been following them on their journey down the coast for over a year. The talk immediately turns to boats, rigging, amps, food storage, engines, weather, and showing off the boat. It is amazing how much of a kinship you can feel with people that are a generation apart.
We could have talked all day, but we needed to leave with the tide and all too soon; time and tide wait for no man. Determined to meet again, a date is set. Tacos in Mazatlan, our first Mexico date! Of course, the odds of it ACTUALLY being in Mazatlan are slim, but their plan is to travel North from Acapulco, and we will be heading south from Cabo San Lucas, so we will meet somewhere in the middle.
The warmth and generosity of cruisers is wonderful. From the “high end” to the econo cruisers, all are friendly and freely share.
The clock is ticking but we purposefully slow ourselves to make sure we are diligent in performing the anchor up checklist, dinghy stowed, water valves closed, and nothing loose to fly across the cabin.
We head out for Raccoon Straights, between Tiburon and Angel Island. Soon, we are cruising along; our first sail in the bay with our own boat! Winds are light and on the beam, perfect for sailing with the Jib, Mizzen and Main up. I know we look pretty, where is a photographer when you need one? Just past Richmond Bridge, in San Pablo Bay, we ghost along at 2 knots (about 2.2 mph slow even by sailboat standards) and begin to think about starting the motor when the wind pipes up, shortly, we are flying!! Now, overpowered (too much sail up) we start dropping sails, wow, wild ride! We have a “lively” sail across San Pablo Bay, and drop the sails just past the Carquinez Bridge right about sunset.
It has been a long and tiring 3 days, and we treat ourselves to a night at Glen Cove Marina. It is a really beautiful marina with a large Victorian type home as the centerpiece; you can almost see the retired sea captain on the deck. I am at the helm and Marcus is forward with the dock lines at the ready. The tricky berth we have at Owl Harbor and all the close quarter docking practice will come in handy here. A narrow entrance and a dogleg turn lead us past the local sailors and to the visitors dock. We work great as a team, and I pilot Quiet Moon gently to her dock for the night.
Jake and Juliet of Pisces are coming for a visit! Tidy up the boat a bit (looks like a dorm room); inflate the dinghy and Marcus rows off to pick them up. We have never met, yet we greet each other like old friends; it feels like we have known them for years. Through their blog I have been following them on their journey down the coast for over a year. The talk immediately turns to boats, rigging, amps, food storage, engines, weather, and showing off the boat. It is amazing how much of a kinship you can feel with people that are a generation apart.
We could have talked all day, but we needed to leave with the tide and all too soon; time and tide wait for no man. Determined to meet again, a date is set. Tacos in Mazatlan, our first Mexico date! Of course, the odds of it ACTUALLY being in Mazatlan are slim, but their plan is to travel North from Acapulco, and we will be heading south from Cabo San Lucas, so we will meet somewhere in the middle.
The warmth and generosity of cruisers is wonderful. From the “high end” to the econo cruisers, all are friendly and freely share.
The clock is ticking but we purposefully slow ourselves to make sure we are diligent in performing the anchor up checklist, dinghy stowed, water valves closed, and nothing loose to fly across the cabin.
We head out for Raccoon Straights, between Tiburon and Angel Island. Soon, we are cruising along; our first sail in the bay with our own boat! Winds are light and on the beam, perfect for sailing with the Jib, Mizzen and Main up. I know we look pretty, where is a photographer when you need one? Just past Richmond Bridge, in San Pablo Bay, we ghost along at 2 knots (about 2.2 mph slow even by sailboat standards) and begin to think about starting the motor when the wind pipes up, shortly, we are flying!! Now, overpowered (too much sail up) we start dropping sails, wow, wild ride! We have a “lively” sail across San Pablo Bay, and drop the sails just past the Carquinez Bridge right about sunset.
It has been a long and tiring 3 days, and we treat ourselves to a night at Glen Cove Marina. It is a really beautiful marina with a large Victorian type home as the centerpiece; you can almost see the retired sea captain on the deck. I am at the helm and Marcus is forward with the dock lines at the ready. The tricky berth we have at Owl Harbor and all the close quarter docking practice will come in handy here. A narrow entrance and a dogleg turn lead us past the local sailors and to the visitors dock. We work great as a team, and I pilot Quiet Moon gently to her dock for the night.
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