Pic's I should have posted earlier

I want to thank everyone that followed us on the blog, given us encouragement and support along the way, left comments on the blog and on facebook.
My recomendation to anyone that would like to undertake a trip like this is, volunteer to crew on a FUBAR or Baja Ha Ha trip south and if you still want to do it then go for it. It was a great experience, would I do it again? NO! Would I crew for someone? YES for a couple of weeks at a time, as I said in an earlier blog full time crusing is a full time job, planning, plotting courses, making reservations, watching weather, checking tides and currents, doing maintenance, running the boat. I learned a lot this last year as well as learning a lot about myself and my abilities, thank you everyone and thanks for the friendship and support.
AS before start at the bottom and scroll thru the pictures from the bottom up to follow the trip in order. One thing I didn't learn is how to organize the blog, I'm just an anolog guy trying to fumble thru this digital world.


. Tucked away in our boathouse. THE END of a long trip, 1 year and about 5,000 miles. The boat preformed great through the entire trip.
. Docked at St. Helens Memorial Day 1 year to the day of when we left.
. The Astoria Bridge as we pass Astoria on our way to anchor at Tounge Point behind Lois Island, we got in and anchored about 11PM.
. I think this is Mt. St. Helens in the background over the Astoria Bridge, a great sight!
. Bouy 12 I'M IN THE RIVER!
. BOUY 10--crossing the "BAR" on the Columbia River against a 5kt to 6kt current, at times I was only going 2.5kt to 3.5kts across the "BAR".
. Tillamook Head Lighthouse on my way from Newport to Astoria.
. Heading out of San Francisco Bay on my way to Eureka (a 32hr trip).
. My "ride" to lunch my last day at Pittsburg Yacht Club.
. Friends at a dinner at Pittsburg Yacht Club.
. The start of a speedsking race at Pittsburg Ca.
. The Mothball Fleet.
. C&H plant near Vallejo Ca. heading out of San Pablo Bay up into the Sacramento River.
. Anchored off of a park at entrance to San Pablo Bay.
. Coast Guard station at entrance to San Pablo Bay N.E. out of S.F. Bay
. Over the bar and inside San Francisco Bay.
. Bumpy water coming into San Francisco Bay, incoming tid brought me in at over 9kts.
. Coming around Seal Rocks into entrance to San Francisco Bay.
. The Cliffhouse Restaurant and Seal Rocks at the south entrance to San Francisco Bay.
. My first view of the Golden Gate Bridge coming north from Santa Cruz.
. Hearst Castle
. Hearst Castle
. Coming into anchorage at San Simion- Hearst Castle is on top of the hill just to the left of the pilings.
. Behind me at Coho 2 boats had been washed ashore.
. Anchored at Coho anchorage looking at Point Conception waiting for the weather to go around the Point and head north.

Made it to Newport Or.

As most of you know by now I made it to Newport Or. I made a 32hr overnight run from Sausalito to Eureka, after I tied up some people we had met on the way down came over to say Hi. After letting them know I was hoping to get up to Cresent City and Coos Bay in the next 2 days Tracy ask how far could I get if I had help, we sat down and figured I could get to Newport so he offered to go as far as Coos Bay and his wife would drive up and pick him up, so at 7AM we took off on a 36hr run to Newport.
I pulled in to Coos Bay pulled up to the dock, Tracy jumped off and I headed back out, 45 min in and out and back on course for Newport. I arrived in Newport Sunday evening and collapsed, Monday was going to be the end of the good weather to get up to the Columbia River but I couldn't face a 15hr run after a 32 and a 36hr run back to back that I had just done so I called LaVon to come down and pick me up and I'm leaving the boat in Newport until there is another break in the weather. It doesn't look like I will get the boat back before Memorial Day weekend but oh well we will have lots of time this summer to go out on the river, I just want the boat back in Portland by the 4th of July for the Blues Festival.
See you all soon.

Sitting in Sausalito

Well I came down to Sausalito Sunday planing to go out Wed. and hoping that the weather may clear enough to get out Tues.
Tues. came and the conditions were not good and Wed. did not look good either, 25 to 35kt wind, gale warnings, 7' to 10' swell at 8 to 9 seconds while north of Point Arena there are 4' to 5' swells at 10 seconds diminishing to 4' to 5' at 15 to 16 seconds and it is good all the way up the Oregon coast thru next Monday, I just can't get out of San Francisco and the 20 hrs. up to Point Arena to get the good weather up into Oregon. Maybe tomarrow, it looks a lot better, but then I hope that the weather window up north doesn't close down later in the week.
The weather this time of year is so frustrating that sometimes I feel like saying screw the world and just stay in the Delta but I miss my friends and family and want to get back to Oregon.
I did all of my engine checks last night in preperation to leave this morning and I noticed an odd smell and a brown stain on one of the stringers where the fuel lines are strapped down and some brown muck in the bilge (Mexican diesel is amber not red and it smells different)I didn't think much about it and put an absorb pad in the bilge and went to bed, at 4:30 this morning I sat up in bed and realized that the brown is fuel! If the strap had rubbed a hole in the fuel line and it is leaking, it will suck air when the engine is running and the engine will shut down and I will be on one engine and down to about 6kts speed with no place to get it fixed, so I ran down into the engine room and started to investigate the leak.
I have been having some problems starting the generator but it has always started and run fine, well I traced the leak back to the generator, it is leaking fuel some where around the fuel pump or injector pump when it runs. OK I can live without a generator if I have to so I shut the fuel supply off and I will turn it on if I run the generator and shut the fuel off when I shut down the generator, if it quits running then I just live without the generator until I get back to Portland and get it fixed.
Extended crusing is not for the meek, I have a tremendos respect for, or maybe disgust for the stupidity of anyone who will go out on the Ocean singlehanded, it is not only DANGEROUS but it is a full time job plotting courses, checking weather, planning times and tides for arrivel and departures, sitting and waiting, leaving or arriving at all hours of the day or night, and thats just in your free time, out at sea you have to be constantly alert for crab pots, floting kelp that can foul your props or plug your water intakes, any other floting debries like logs, lumber or trash, being aware of swell direction as well as maintaining course and speed and knowing where you are at all times so you know when to change course and when you should be arriving at your destination, being aware of how the wind and current are affecting you, if your not in the right place then figuring out why and where are you. This is a lot more than this old fart ever wants to do alone again.
Cell phone service is spotty along the Northern California coast so I don't know when I will be able to update again but I will try to update this weekend when I should be in Eureka

In Pittsburg Ca.

I finally got out of Oxnard and as I said I got to head north, had a bumpy ride from Coho Anchorage to San Simon after the Coasties ran me off at midnight, San Simon to Santa Cruz was a pretty good trip up to Point Sur then it was a little bumpy into Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz to Half Moon Bay was a great trip, I had a following current pushing me to 8.5kts to 8.8kts so when I got to Half Moon bay it was only 12:30 so I decided to go on to San Francisco I could go in 1/2 hr after slack hi tide so I continued on and the following current kept pushing me.
When I came up on the Cliff House and Seal Rocks at the entrance to San Francisco Bay I was running at 8.8kts and as soon as I rounded the corner into the channel I was pushed up to 9.5kts and sometimes as fast as 9.9kts. I went under the Golden Gate Bridge at 9.7kts and rode the incoming current past Angel Island, up thru the San Rafel channel, under the San Rafel Bridge and up into San Pablo Bay where I anchored for the night. I'm just sorry that Carl didn't get to enjoy this part of the trip.
The next morning I caught the tide and ran up to Pittsburg at over 8kts at only 1650 RPM.
I won't say I'm stuck in Pittsburg because I choose to be here at a good Club among good friends until the weather clears in a week or two, They want me to stay longer but I would like to head home. They have a Wed. night dinners and on Sat. they are having a Calamari feed so I know I won't go hungry. Good food, good friends, good weather up here (85 degrees predicted for Sat.) who could ask for more!-------- BUT WAIT THERES MORE! Last weekend they had a cruise in and I met some great people from Solarno Y.C. I was invited for munchies in the afternoon and for drinks aboard one of the boats in the evening where I exchanged e-mails.-------- BUT WAIT THERES MORE! They are also hosting a cruise in for another club this next weekend, so I have more people to meet and more friends to make.
I don't think that I'll have any updates until I leave unless something earth shattering happens like California falling into the Pacific Ocean or I decide I like it here and I decide I'M NOT COMING BACK, but I don't think that will happen so I hope to see everyone soon.



Beach Vollyball is a big deal out here.
The sand also blows up to the back of the houses and will bury the patios and back doors so when they clean the streets and dump the sand back on the beach they use a large tractor to pull the sand away from the houses and groom the beach pulling the sand back out to the ocean.
This is the sand blown up onto the street and the city comes by about once a week and scoops it up into a dump truck and dumps it back on the beach.
This is a common sight, shoveling or sweeping your driveway along the street nearest the beach because the wind blows the sand up onto the street and in the driveways.
I was told that Esquire Magazine had rated Mrs. Olsens near the marina, as one of the best places in the USA to have breakfast, so I had to try it out. There is a waiting list to get in and everyone leaving is carrying a take out container. The food was excellent and very large portions.
This is the Pacific Corinthian Marina at Oxnard.
After getting in the slip I pushed the boat as hard as I could to the starboard side and dropped a fender down on the port side. This is a 14'8" boat in a 16' wide slip.
After a few days wait we realized that we were not going to get to head north for a week or two so Carl flew home and I got a slip for a month. There are not many places that can accomadate boats much over 40', they put me in a 42' slip and several people at the marina ask how I got the boat in the slip, as you can see it was a tight fit.
More Dolphins accompany us as we head to Oxnard, again I can't thank Carl enough for the company and a familar face, it has been a nice trip, but it will be nice to get home to friends too.
Leaving LA Harbor entrance
Carl on the bow taking pictures as we make an early AM departure from LA Harbor.
My friend Carl relaxing in San Pedro harbor while Norm is in the next slip hard at work. I thank Carl so much for coming down to help me, I'm just sorry we couldn't get farther than Oxnard before Carl had to go back to Portland.
Our friend Norm hard at work on his 38' Bayliner, I look forward to Norm and Sherri coming to Oregon to go boating on the Columbia River with us and our Club.
The other tall ship
In Dana Point we had two tall ships across from our slip at Dana Point Y.C.
We had a great trip from San Diego to Dana Point flat seas and Dolphins following our boat.
At San Diego saying goodby to friends Frank & Nora when we left.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Hopefuly not everyone has given up on my blog, I am now on the move again. Monday I left Oxnard and anchored at Coho anchorage right at Point Conception, weather didn't let me leave Tuesday but I did get out Wednesday, not as good weather as predicted, spent 12 1/2hrs getting bounced around but that was because I left 6 hrs before I planned to. The Coasties kicked me out because they thought I was too close to their mooring ball when they got there at 11:30 at night, soooo at midnight I didn't want to reanchor in the dark by myself so I just headed out 6 hrs early. I anchored at San Simon, got a good nights sleep to make up for the 1 1/2 hrs sleep I got the night before. I arrived in Santa Cruz today after another 12 1/2 hr run, a lot better day on the water today, Half Moon Bay tomarrow about 7 hrs and on into SF Bay Saturday, then I wait for a weather window of 4 days to get to Euerka.
I'll post some pictures of Carl and I going from San Diego to Oxnard and some pictures of my trip to San Francisco after I get into the Bay and have some time.
Thanks to those of you that have been patient with my lack of posting on the blog while I was stuck in Oxnard, there wasn't much to say about setting in a marina for 6 weeks.

Stuck in Oxnard

Carl came down and we had a nice trip up to Oxnard and then we got stuck, he waited for a couple of days then flew home.
I've been here for ten days waiting for a weather window to go north and I can't get one, I need one day (8hrs) to go anchor at Coho anchorage near Pt. Conception then a day (13hrs) to run up to San Simion to anchor and another day (12hrs) to get to Montery and I can't seem to get more than two days between storms that are less than 10' swells and some days heve had as much as 30'+ swells.
Sattilite images of the Pacific show one storm after another for the next two weeks so I just rented a slip for a month.
I did survive the Tsunami, we had a tidal surge in the harbor here. It was really strange, we had about a 4 to 5kt current running out of the harbor and the depth at Pacific Corinthian YC dock went down to 6.9ft before it started to come back in, 10 minutes later the depth had come up to 9.3ft. That is almost a 2 1/2' change in 10 minutes. That was the biggie then we had a couple small tidal changes where you could see the current change direction. In Long Beach harbor the news showed pictures of some boats that were aground at the low point of the surge and the Coast Guard closed LA harbor to ship traffic because the water got so low.
Well so much for all of my excitement, back to sitting here and hurry up and wait!
To quote Bugs Bunny th-th-th-thats all folks!
Irv

San Pedro

I had a good trip up to San Diego, picked up some kelp on a prop and had a diver in San Diego clear it off after I had checked in at Customs. Customs was no big deal but they did go thru EVERYTHING, they looked thru the engine room, lifted all the floor hatches, took my lettuce, carrots, celery, green onions, I knew that they would take anything with seeds like the limes and tomatoes but they took all fresh agricultural products.
The weather has been nice and Carl Dalton from Tyee Yacht Club offered to come down to San Diego and spend a week to ten days or so with me to help head north. We got as far as San Pedro and the weather around Pt. Conception is going to get nasty in a few days so we holed up here for a few days and we'll go up to Oxnard for a few days then on up to Ventura and maybe Santa Barbara as we wait for the weather to settle down before we head up around Pt. Conception to Monterey or Santa Cruz.
Monterey and Santa Cruz are not very protected harbors so I need 4 good days to make it to San Francisco from Pt Conception with just day stops along the way, so I want at least a 5 or 6 day weather window in case the weather prediction is off a day or two. Right now they are predicting 12 to 15 ft seas and I don't want to be out in more than 5 to 7 ft seas so we just hurry up and wait in So. Cal. it's tough in the 75 to 80 degree weather here.
Until I have something new I'll just be sitting here waiting. LaVons at home cleaning, painting and puttering 'til I get home.
IRV

Up the Coast of Baja

Again scroll from bottom to top.
We left San Jose del Cabo at 4:30 AM and headed out around the end of Baja at Cabo and the long overnight run to Magdalena Bay, we arrived about 3:30 PM and I didn't want to waste the daylight so I continued on to San Juanico for the night then on to Bahia Asuncion the next night, the plan was to go to Bahia Santa Maria near Turtle Bay but we passed Turtle Bay at 2:00PM so me not being one to waste daylight I decided to go on up to Isla Cedros for the night, when we got there the weather had deteroiated and the anchorage had been swept clean of sand bottom by the last hurricane, we were not in 50' of water dropping to 12' like the chart said, we were in 176' of water and no place to anchor so rather than back track in the dark for 4 to 5 hours we continued on thru the night----well boy howdey the weather got worse, we were running in 6' to 7' seas at 6 to 7 seconds and 20 to 25kt winds at sundown and I don't know how big the seas got because we couldn't see them in the dark but we kept dropping off of waves and hitting hard, twice we took green water over the bow and it washed up the windshield and down the decks, it took our electric cord overboard and good thing it was screwed onto the socket on the boat because about 14 hrs later after sunrise and the seas settled down we spotted it draging alongside and we pulled it back in, we also picked up all of the broken dishes and cleaned up the mess from stuff that fell out of the cupboards and fell off of the walls. We pulled into Bahia San Quintin a little after 3PM and went to anchor and the chain would not come out, it took 1/2 an hour to pull the anchor chain out of the locker below and straighten it out because the rough seas had tossed 1000lbs of chain around like flipping pancakes in the locker and tangled it up.
After the rough night last night we decided to make this a short night, get up early and see if it was good enough weather in the morning to go on to Ensanada or go back to bed. The seas were good and we headed to Ensanada, when we got in Seth (my crew) got on the internet and found out that his parents were still in LA so he caught the bus in the morning to the border and then took Amtrak to LA so he could hitch a ride home to northren Calif. with his parents.
I had the boat hauled that morning and it should be back in the water Wed. so I can head back to the land of the living with good internet, cell phones, good grocery stores, good coffee, and I speak the language, LAND HO --- I CAN HEAR SAN DIEGO CALLING!!!

Looks pretty good after just pressure washing it.

Almost ready to paint

Almost three years since last bottom paint.

Blocking boat to put it on stands.

OOPS

Getting hauled out

Coming into Ensanada

Tuna---all told we caught 1 Darado and 3 Bonita for two days of fishing.

THIS does NOT look good! Just past Turtle bay we had bumpy seas, rain and the sun was setting, we were going to anchor at Cedros Island just ahead but we found out that the last hurricane had washed the sand out of the bay so we had to continue on thru the night, the seas got bigger and the wind picked up to 30 to 40+ knots for the next 10 to 12 hours.

Waves crashing off of the rocks almost 3 miles off shore as we pass Punta Abreojos

Moon rise as we ran all night

And then a Darado -- we lost the other Darado when it broke the 30# test line

Hard to see in this small picture but it is a whale, saw lots of whales and dolphins

Our 1st Tuna


Arches as we round the cape at Cabo San Lucas

Sunrise leaving San Jose del Cabo