An Emerald Bay Welcome

August 1, 2009

Catalina Island

Emerald Bay Cove

This is a fantastic weekend - My first time setting foot on land at Emerald Bay Cove. I've been diving here countless times, and have crawled through the caves at low tide on my hands and knees with two tanks on my back, but I've never stepped foot on the sandy beach.

Even better, it's our first weekend testing out the new davit system for the dink. No more strapping it up in the lower cockpit. So excited.

It was an incredible day and we left on Saturday morning just for a 24 hour turnaround. There are no facilities except for mooring lines at Emerald Bay, so it helps to have a generator and plenty of sand toys. First we decided to pump out and fuel up. The Shoreline Fuel Dock - so close by- is undergoing repairs (until 2010 at least!) so we had to putt putt over to Cabrillo on the way out. Shea made fast friends with the fuel dock guys, primarily because they gave her donuts. OH NO. We'll head that one off at the pass next time. Quinn was having difficulties accepting her life vest this trip and made for a (loud) squirmy worm. I'm sure the fuel dock folks were very glad to have us on our way. One item of note: Shea did tell them :

"I LOVE MY MOMMY!"

And I got it on film. Some day, when she's 16 and threatening to move out, I'll remind her that she does in fact love me, and I have the movie to prove it.

We arrived without incident - the girls slept the entire way over - and were surprised that the Harbormaster sent us to Delta 1 mooring but didn't come around for hours to collect payment. I guess that's just the friendly lazy way of Emerald Bay. The water was incredible- crystal blue - and reminded me of the Caribbean. There were no boats to the North of us, and we were in the first row closest to the sandy beach, with a private view of the gorgeous cliffs and kelp below. We decided within 10 minutes that we had the best mooring for our very first visit.

We hopped in the dinghy and went ashore. No dinghy dock either! We beached it, the Larry hauled Little Mon up a bit and we made fast to a huge boulder that Larry found a short walk up the beach. We met another couple there with their large dog and three sons - all on one dinghy. Shea had a blast throwing the ball for the dog and playing with the older kids. Quinn just wanted to eat sand.

Shea later took a dip in the ocean and came back with a tasty snack of kelp. Blech, salty! But it didn't stop her from going back for seconds, at which time I swooped in and got rid of that.

We had a long fun day in the sun, and headed back to the boat to clean up for dinner. No beach showers to clean off the girls, so they both got their first transom showers using the shower head on the swim step. Slow but effective! That night we had chicken piccata with penne pasta and an Alfredo sauce. The girls had mac & cheese and pasta pickups. Larry and I sat in the lower cockpit at night and lit up the transom lights. They were beautiful in the shallow clear water. Another boat - maybe the water taxi from the Isthmus - shined a spotlight a few mooring rows behind us and the entire cliff lit up with gigantic silhouettes of masts and hulls. It was gorgeous and felt like we were at the largest drive-in theater ever.

I stayed up late reading a good book and all slept well. The next morning, tragedy strikes. The generator shut itself off immediately upon start up.

ARGH.

This means no coffee for mama. This also means TIME TO GO HOME. It was perfect timing, because Quinn was crying again about her life vest, Shea was defiant and whiny, and our "Check Engine" alarm was continuously sounding off. They were loud, and it was loud. Sorry neighbors.

Shea kept saying she just wanted to go ride the carousel. She wanted a horse for her, and a dragon for Q.

For some reason, the Check Engine alarm sounds until our batteries charge to 12 volts. Doesn't seem normal. Will get it looked at. Just off the coast, Larry stopped and checked the engine - which couldn't have been done without the new dinghy davit system. We got that just in time. The engies seemed fine, but best of all, while we were at idle, I saw a small pod of dolphin at the bow. They gave us quite a show, jumping completely out of the water, tail and all, then diving back in head first. We got back underway at 10:20.

Maybe they were saying come again soon. And we certainly will.

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Stats Log Emerald Bay bound @ 11:30

Heading of 224 from Cabrillo Angels Gate

Fuel: Port 75 gallons @ $3.95, Starboard 80 gallons for 155.7 total

Head: Pumped out

Hours: Port 695.4 - Starboard 696.9

Stats Log Homeward bound @ 10:20, arrived 11:45 am

Hours d/a: Port 696.8 / 698.4 - Starboard 698.3 / 699.9

Second Go-Round

We had an incredible 4th of July week in North Carolina with the Miles Fam East. After only a few days of being home, we wanted to get back on the boat and head to Catalina Island again. Now that I had my list of items to outfit the boat better, it would be more comfortable living. I packed only half of what I packed the first time, and we were all anxious & set to go.

On Friday the 10th, the doc said I had bronchitis, so we decided to get one definitely good nights' sleep at home, and leave early on Saturday the 11th. That was the first of many setbacks, and maybe we should've taken it as a sign.

Once at the dock, we discovered that the new GPS and radar had been installed. Fantastic! We took awhile getting the dinghy back up on the lower cockpit (davits, davits!) and set sail. Er...motor. It was a gorgeous day, and I slathered Trader Joes' SPF 30 all over the girls and myself. Quinn had a mild facial sunburn from the crossing last time and it broke my heart. I wasn't going to let that happen again.

It was a very windy day, and we were going against it. Just as we were heading out of the breakwater, the snaps on the bimini canvas started releasing where it attaches to the radar arch. Was it because of the work installing the radar? We stopped mid-way and tried to climb around the dinghy to get them re-attached. Underway again.

Whoa, stop! Now we're losing an oar, because it snapped out of its holder. Idle again, fix it, get underway again.

It really is a beautiful day, but now Larry is feeling a little bit of my ailment- head is full, headache, congestion and some coughing. Should we go back? No, press on.

And then the canvas starts coming off completely. Stop again.

We look at each other. Maybe this is just not the time to go? Nah...we're going ahead. It's probably the most beautiful day on the water that we had seen, and the kids are happy & asleep!

We decided to tie down the bimini completely and run under the sun. I had hats, coats & blankets covering every centimeter of skin on the girls. I had a much better hold on the girls- Quinn decided to fall asleep facing out, sitting in my lap, which gave my right arm a huge rest. Shea had her legs up on the couch and was leaning against me. There really isn't a better feeling than that. My girls were snoozing, and cuddling up. The sun was out, and the breeze was perfectly comfortable. To boot, we were moving at a much faster clip and we would get there even faster. Not that I minded. I was in heaven.

A Saturday arrival in the summer is being a bit hopeful at the first-come-first-serve moorings. It took a long time for the Harbormaster to get back to us to assign us a spot. We saw a sailboat heading out - Lionheart- about 35 feet. Excellent! We were almost able to grab his spot when they told us they'd rather us head to 4th of July Cove. No problem...it's beautiful there and we could still take the dinghy to shore. We had promised Shea a lot of time in the sand and a stint at Tucker Playground.

The wind was crazy strong. The current was travelling fast. We crept up on our mooring and BOOM. There goes the port engine. Larry runs back: "Did you turn it off!?" Unfortunately no, I didn't. Nor did Shea, who loves to fiddle with keys of all sorts. With the current, the hauser was floating near the surface and got tangled up in kelp (so we couldn't see it floating there.) We fouled the prop. Really? Took a better look: Nope. We fouled both props.

Argh. This is just after we completely overhauled them, including replacing the interior shaft of one of the screws. Please no. At least the head works great. Isn't that the most important thing (besides no hole in the hull?) It *should* work great, since we had just replaced all freshwater pumps & motors prior to our maiden voyage a couple of weeks ago.

Good news: We're technically being held in place, which is nice when you have zero motor power (and no sail.) And we also dropped anchor for added security. Bad news: The windlass is not working, so Larry hand-over-hand dropped (and raised) the anchor. Also, my dive gear is not on the boat so we had to hire a diver to release the lines. Good thing he came because the tension on the lines was so strong, I wouldn't have been able to do a thing. Half an hour's work is $83. Hmm...The $28 mooring is not looking so cheap anymore. The guys arrive, they're great,- -we're their 10th boat of the day- and they strangely refuse a Stella Artois. What? I determined they weren't human.

We took a little boat ride into the Isthmus. Shea screamed "I LOVE MY BOAT!" We had plenty of sand toys, plenty of swim diaps, and couldn't wait to get our toes in. Q spent most of her beach time crawling up the rental shop ramp over & over again. It was wearing her out, which made me very happy. Shea had sand e v e r y w h e r e. Forget wipes. I took her to the showers and held her up high until she was declared fit for clothes again.

We met a nice couple from Manhattan Beach- Jim & Julie Mays. They had a cute little tank of a son named Palmer. Turns out Palmer was born only three days earlier than Q...in the same hospital! They gave us a great tip to help Q get used to her life vest: really crank up the crotch strap tight so that it brings the vest away from the chin. Guess what- ever since then, Q does not mind her jacket at all. I wish I got their contact info so I could personally thank them. It makes life on the boat much for pleasant for everyone. Hopefully we'll see them at the Isthmus again and we can buy them a Buffalo Milk.

We had dinner at the snack shack on the Reef patio, and the kids headed to bed early. We never made it to Tucker Playground- SHHHhhhh don't tell Shea. Next time!

We were so glad we didn't turn around- the trip was turning out to be a very good one. Until we realized we couldn't sit at the table in the lower cockpit because of the howling wind. We persevered, and both of us huddled into the corner with a blanket and gave each other shelter. I poured a little Charisma into Larry's glass and the wind took it from the starboard side, clear across to the boat and hit the cockpit fridge. Now THAT is strong wind, and a complete waste of Charisma. Next on the must-get list: New camper canvas. Pronto.

Our mooring had us separate from everyone, and our view was of a gorgeous cliff with little caves and a teeny beach at the base. Kayakers would rest there for a perfect view of Ship Rock and Bird Rock. We felt nearly isolated at that mooring- Echo 10- and you didn't see other boats until you peeked around the radar arch. At night the stars were out like crazy and it made the peek around the arch feel like I was looking out at a European coastal town, full of ships, good food, lights & sounds. We turned on the fish lights (newly installed a month ago) and it was a great view of bright blue shining up through the kelp.

We slept so soundly that night, and had planned for a 10am departure. It was simply gorgeous in the morning, and the wind had died down. What a great morning. Larry uses the head and when he flushes I hear a terrible WHIR WHIRR WHIRRRRR, sort of like you get when you run the garbage disposal with a spoon in it. Uh-oh. Some coins fell out of his pocket and jammed the motor. TIME TO GO HOME!! I made Anna Coffee, and Larry went to shore for omelets. We soon pulled anchor and headed back.

We had an incredible crossing back, probably the best one I have ever had in my 10 years of going to the island. It was vibrant blue, warm, slightly breezy, super-flat, and we made it back in record time. We saw some mola sunning, and a sea lion just hanging out in the middle of the channel, belly up. Probably getting some sun on him to kill the algae. Coming back in, The Long Beach Sea Festival was in full swing and the bay was full of competitors and spectators. It was a busy beautiful day on the water.

Later, Dave & Barbara came down and Barbara actually went out on the bay with us. Cooper came too.

Now we can't wait to go again. After the head is fixed.

Ahoy Capt'n, first mate & scoundrels

It's official: The boating season has begun. Most notably, Larry and I made the maiden voyage to Catalina Island with our entire family of four.

We had put it off for so long, mostly because I was a little hesitant to have both kids on the water. After having the boat out of the water for ten days, overhauling the engines, cleaning all the carpets, getting new bottom paint, installing a new radio, putting on new lines and having a few practice sleepovers, I had run out of excuses.

We chose to stay just one night, even though I had packed enough food and clothing for the girls to stay for five days. We gave Cooper to Camp Wilcox for the evening and meant to outfit the boat the night before to make for a quicker & smoother departure. That didn't happen, so we chose to leave early to get a good start with calm seas. That didn't happen either. Such is life with two kids two years old and under.

The boat ran beautifully, and the seas were slightly choppy. Quinn fell asleep on my lap almost immediately, but Shea held her hands over her ears and let us know that it was "Too loud!" and "Too fast!" Larry slowed down to 21 knots or so, and we took the slow, comfortable crossing. After all, we wanted her to want to come again.

For this voyage, we tied the Achilles dinghy up on the lower cockpit. Not the easiest, quickest or most comfortable option, but it worked great. Next on the wishlist: Davits. After that, we need to change the boat name, because it doesn't really suit us. I digress...

The radio worked great. The new GPS & radar hadn't been installed yet, so we used my handheld GPS combined with the Navionics program on my iPhone. The Navionics program was the easiest to view & use, and worked like a charm!

Upon our arrival at the isthmus, Larry single-handedly brought in the mooring can because I was holding two sleeping kids. The nightly fee is $28- not too bad.

We had a great time playing on the beach, and Shea discovered Tucker Playground. That was the ticket. After that, she was hooked on Catalina.

In the evening we ate at the Reef restaurant, which we quickly determined was a terrible idea with the two little ones that day. They were too hungry, loud and impatient for us to enjoy ordering a meal that would take a while to prepare. We let the girls finish their meals, and ended up getting the rest of our food to go and enjoyed a nice time on the boat. We did see our catamaran friends from our dock dining in the restaurant. Also, it was the annual Yacht Dog show, and Shea was thrilled beyond thrilled with all the dogs to pet. "May I pet your dog?" then: "I love him." Onto the next dog. "May I pet your dog?" "I love him." Over and over again.

The kids went to bed a little late, but Larry and I were able to open up a very nice bottle of Liquid Love and look out at the stars and all of the boats for a little Transom Talk. That's what I call our semi-date night, when the kids are down and we're able to enjoy a little quiet adult time in the lower cockpit. Transom Talk.

Larry fell asleep sitting upright while I finished up watching the water taxi and dinghies laze around the harbor in the evening. Below decks, we found out the safest way to sleep is with Q & me in the midship cabin because it's lower to the ground. If (when) Quinn crawls over me to get out, she won't have far to tumble. Larry and Shea sleep in the V-berth. Some day Q & Shea will be able to sleep together in their berth, but that day has not yet come. We tried switching it around, with me sleeping next to Q in the tent in the V-berth, but once again, she is not her sister. She refused the tent. When I woke up once in Shoreline Village and caught her trying to climb over me, I realized the chance of a three foot fall isn't worth it. So we switched.

The sleep was fantastic, and there's nothing like waking up on the water. We skipped the elaborate breakfast in the galley I had planned for us and opted for Cheerios instead. We dropped the hauser around ten a.m. and headed back home for a gorgeous day in Shoreline Village.

All in all, it was a fantastic maiden voyage to the island with the entire family of four.

Shea put it perfectly: "I miss Kaweeena."