Leg 7, Santa Barbara to Ventura

After the crew from Leg 6 departed, Mark had a brief stay (1 day) in Santa Barbara before arrival of Phillip and Nicole Laby, along with their twins Tess and Jackson.  Phillip grew up in Ventura, Mark and Phillip were roommates at UCSB, and Mark has raced with Phillip in the very competitive J105 fleet on San Francisco bay.  This was the first time Phillip and the rest of his family had been on Bluewater, and Mark was happy to have all of Phillip's knowledge of the area (and his sailing expertise) available for a quick trip to Santa Cruz Island.

Friday June 19, 2015

We stayed on the boat in Santa Barbara Marina for Friday night, with Tess and Jackson being great sports during a trip around the marina in the dink.  The kids learned their way around Bluewater while Nicole cooked up a fabulous meal.

Tess and Jackson in Santa Barbara before departure

Saturday June 20, 2015

Departure Day:  Saturday June 20, 2015
Departure Time:  7:40am
Crew:  Mark, Phillip, Nicole, Tess, Jackson

The following is a map of the 70 nm journey from Santa Barbara to Santa Cruz Island (including overnight anchoring in Fry's Harbor and Smuggler's Cove) before heading to Ventura:  Bluewater's Route for Leg 7

From Mark:  "We departed at 7:40am under blue skies and 2 knots of wind."

There was very little wind as we departed Santa Barbara Marina on Saturday morning, so we motored toward the central anchorages along the North Shore of Santa Cruz Island.  See a cool interactive map here:  Santa Cruz Island Anchorages

Enroute from Santa Barbara

The line-up:  Jackson, Phillip, Tess, Nicole

Before we were halfway to the Island we saw our first group of dolphins.  They were followed by several other groups of various sizes, with a few of them swimming in formation under the trampolines on Bluewater's bow.  The crew moved forward to look down on the show, and was also happy to see whales spouting ahead, and eventually, whale flukes coming up out of the water.

While we saw some groups of birds working and lots of encouraging life in the sea, and despite Tess and Jackson helping to pick lures and watching the boatlines like a pair of hawks, we had no action on the fishing gear we trolled throughout this trip.

Lunch underway: Tess, Nicole, Jackson

We arrived at Santa Cruz Island and cruised east along the coast till we arrived at Fry's Harbor.  The one boat anchored in the harbor offered some suggestions regarding where we might want to drop a hook; and while it took a couple of tries, we eventually had two anchors down with plenty of scope and a healthy offset from both the cliffs and our neighbor.

Phillip, Nicole, and the kids took the dingy over to explore one of the nearby caves while the fish in the area had a good laugh at Mark's attempts to bring them aboard.

While they ended up rowing back toward the boat for a while (as even brand new small outboard motors need lots of rests between those tiring runs), they had a great adventure.

Cave near Fry's Harbor

We had another great dinner and headed to bed relatively early.

Sunday June 21, 2015

The sunrise was beautiful on Sunday.

After a pancake breakfast (and after our neighbor managed to pull his bow anchor up from somewhat near our port ama), we cruised the cliffs along the shore to the east.  We eventually raised our sails and sailed toward and around San Pedro Point, admiring the boats tucked in to Scorpion's and the rest of the picturesque coves along the Northeast shore.

We had our choice of spots at Smuggler's Cove, and dropped a single anchor just north of the point that separates Smuggler's from Yellowbanks.  The third boat to arrive in the wide-open anchorage seemed to admire our thinking, and eventually dropped his anchor (on short scope) just between us and the point.  The wind stayed calm but did shift to the north so that I had a nice view of our new neighbor directly off our stern during the night, but we were never really close enough to get to know them well.

We all dinghy'd to the rocky shore, with Phillip driving the dink till the kids and Nicole could scramble over the bow.  Mark and Phillip dragged the boat over the rocks, away from the small waves, and to the base of the cliff.

Mark ran up the ridge to try (unsuccessfully) to call Amanda and Liz for Father's Day.  We all met up at Smuggler's Cove Park and walked back along the beach to the dinghy, where the kids did a great job jumping onto the boat despite the splashing waves.

After Nicole had prep'd yet another feast to throw on the barbecue, the pressure regulator on the propane seemed to decide it was time to retire.  Cold tacos were substituted and washed down with cold beer, and we called it a night (with Phillip and Nicole sleeping out on the foredeck and watching a surprise meteor shower).

Monday June 22, 2015

We slept in a bit on Monday, and headed out toward Ventura (and the closest Peet's Coffee, as the propane system was still not cooperating).  We started out motoring away from Smugglers and toward Anacapa with calm seas and no winds.

Daughter and Dad discussion with Anacapa Island in the distance

As we left the lee of the shore the breeze picked up, allowing us to raise the sails (with a reef in--the fitting to a lower batten car having let go earlier).  We were just downwind of a beam reach, and Phillip had some really helpful suggestions for both our sail trim and rigging.  As the wind built we were able to touch double digits (just over 10 knots), making great time all the way to Ventura.

We cruised Ventura harbor and then brought the boat to the dock behind the house of Phillip's parents in the Ventura Keys.  Jordan and Sandra Laby were very gracious, helping take care of the kids and Phillip and Mark headed to the store to get some parts for the propane system.

The boat remained at the Laby's dock, awaiting Leg 8 on the 4th of July.

Leg 6, Morro Bay to Santa Barbara

George

Lawrence

Roland

Mark

Kelly & Mike

Crew:  George, Roland, Lawrence, Mark, Kelly, Mike
Leg 6:  Morro Bay to Santa Barbara with a stop at Cojo Anchorage and 2 stops at Santa Cruz Island:  Forney's Cove and Lady's Harbor.
Departure:  Saturday June 13, 2015

Pre-departure Notes:  This Leg is the longest yet (approx 160 nm) on Bluewater's current voyage from San Francisco Bay to Southern California. The plan is to depart in the early evening on a double birthday Saturday (Kelly & Mark share a June 13th birthday). They are planning to sail (or motor-sail or motor) around Point Conception (75 nm from Morro Bay). Arrival by early afternoon on Sunday June 14th is anticipated where they'll duck into Cojo Anchorage (read more here:  A Good Anchorage). They are also hoping to find surf in a hidden surf spot only reachable by sea (read more here:  Government Point Surf Spot) before continuing on to Santa Cruz Island.

Happy Birthday Kelly and Mark!

George

 Saturday June 13, 2015

Actual Departure:  7:52pm, 6/13/2015 from Morro Bay Yacht Club (MBYC) dock

Roland

This from Mark:  "The wind died early, which kept us from even trying to get an early start. The bay is glassy calm and we got a great dinner of Thai food, got the boat packed and the crew is loaded (har har). Sky is broken overcast, winds at less than 2 knots.  We are just getting underway at 7:52pm."

Roland on the dock

Bluewater at Morro Bay Yacht Club dock

Departure Time: 7:52pm Sat 6/13/15

Three brothers:  Lawrence, Roland, George

Departing Morro Bay Harbor, Water Co. towers in distance

Kelly on the bow with the surfboards strapped down for the journey

Mark

Lawrence at the helm heading out past Morro Rock

Morro Rock

The water was glassy with no wind at departure time from Morro Bay (7:52pm 6/13/15).

1st Watch - Lawrence and George till 11:30pm.
George stayed up for a chunk of time with Lawrence.
There was very little wind and a small swell; the swell was a combination of a NW and some SW.

2nd Watch - Mark 11:30pm to 2:30am
Mark slept well till 11:30pm and then relieved Lawrence (George had hit the bunk at some point).  "Lo offered coffee but I copied him and just drank hot water--the pot stayed warm and helped keep me warm too. We passed a single fishing boat going north and I watched the lights from Diablo Canyon fade till Lo relieved me at 2:30am, motoring the entire time." There was very little going on; calm seas, very few other boats. Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power plant was lit up and visible for dozens of miles past Point Sal. The lights of Santa Maria were also visible.

3rd Watch - Lawrence 2:30am - 5:15am
Mike got up at 3am to share the watch.

Sunday June 14, 2015

Mark was back on duty at 5:15am. George was already up with Lawrence. It was starting to get light and they saw the first of a few oil derricks in view. There was a little fog and a little more swell but it was still calm at 4-5 knots tailwind so not enough to sail. From Mark, "When I woke at 5:15am, Point Arguello was in sight. Ron and George helped me raise the sails but the wind shifted and weakened (and the autopilot cut out a couple of times) before we decided we had to motor a while longer. The wind finally steadied as we approached Point Conception, allowing us to shut down the motors." Lawrence went back to sleep. George stayed up and made coffee. Kelly got up next.

As the sun came up, the wind came up too but it was fluky, shifting from behind port to starboard; very jiby conditions. They left the mainsail up but centered. As they came around Point Conception, though, the wind picked up to 12 knots so they altered their course for a steady downwind run at 5-7 knots boat speed.

From Roland, "First night out of Morro Bay (we) sailed all night 'with the wind' and several teams of hearty crew helped keep the captains awake."

From Mark, soon after the motors were shut down "I saw the first whale breach of the trip. We saw several more and one held his tail high in the air, slapping it down onto the water 20+ times. We rounded Government point to look at the main Cojo anchorage just about 9:10am but continued on for a surf check."

From Roland, "We awoke to whale sightings, and one particularly entertaining whale who popped his tail out of the water and slapped the surface at least 30 times in a row. There were several sightings of huge giant sunfish, with one passing directly between our 'ama's' or hulls."

From Wikipedia, the term ama is a word in the Polynesian and Micronesian languages. In modern sailing, the term is sometimes used to refer to the two sections of a catamaran.

View the link here to see a map of the major points along the route:  Coastal Landmarks

Bluewater's Route from Morro Bay to Cojo Anchorage

Sunday June 14, 2015 at 9:10am
Arrival at Cojo Anchorage
Total Distance:  Morro Bay to Cojo Anchorage:  72 nm
Elapsed Time:  13-1/4 hours

Bluewater in Cojo Anchorage

Roland on Bluewater in Cojo Anchorage

An early morning arrival allowed time for exploration so they did a surf cruise in Bluewater, scoping out surfing and fishing spots. They are in the lee of the point so they are safe and mellow. Mike had previously surfed this area so they scouted out areas he knew. "We surf-check-cruised the coast to little Cojo where we anchored in 20 feet. Mike and Lo headed toward the surf and I tried to nap while Ron got a line in the water. Ron caught the first fish of the trip from the back of the boat before heading off in the dink with Geo to fish the kelp beds."

In the end, Mike Mark and Lawrence all went surfing. From Mark, "I eventually joined Mike and Lo for some surf when Mike came back to get his inflatable surf mat, leaving Kelly to her knitting. The winds grew stronger through the day till it was blowing 20 at our temporary anchorage so we pulled up and headed to Cojo. We dropped the anchor and set the bridle, and all of us watched as Mike put on his wetsuit again and paddled up wind for more surf."

"George and Ron heading to the kelp bed for some fishing. They had to row back
when the motor decided they had enough fish. Lo seems to have gotten it working again."

Lawrence cleaning a fish

George and Roland caught 5 or 6 fish, and Kelly and Mike made an awesome salad and ceviche (including from Roland's Calico Bass).

Roland's Calico Bass

From Roland, "We sailed past Point Conception down to Little Cojo anchorage. Our only company were the seals and sea lions on buoys. The boyz surfed among the rocks, while George and I ventured out in the dinghy and caught dinner:  calico bass, rockfish, sea trout, and a lingcod type fish among the kelp.

Then ceviche for dinner. Outstanding food the entire trip. We motored back up the coast (in Bluewater) to anchor on the leeward side of Government Point. There was quite a party going on at the beach where we anchored. They had a HUGE beach fire well into the night. We actually enjoyed a bit of Lo's 22 year old scotch, but in moderation."



I (Liz) talked to Mark several times by cell phone but they had trouble texting me photos. I am thrilled to see some fish because we were skunked on Legs 1 thru 5. FISH!!!! Hallelujah!!!

Roland Fishing

Mighty Lawrence

Mike getting rigged for fishing

Kelly at sea

Roland

George

Bluewater

George and a lingcod?

George fishing

George

Mike and Kelly and their gourmet salad and ceviche

GPS location of Bluewater at anchor in Cojo Anchorage

Monday June 15, 2015

 From Roland, "Got up the next morning and I tried surfing on a softer beach. It seemed like the harbor seals were just laughing at me as they sailed by body surfing all the way. We saw a coyote trotting along the beach with his meal waggling in his mouth, and a group of vultures perched high above the rocks, sunning themselves with wings spread out."

The Monday sunrise is gorgeous at Cojo anchorage

From Roland:  "This a.m. is why they
named it the Pacific. It's just like glass."

 Lots of fun was had by all in Cojo anchorage. The morning was spectacularly calm after high winds the previous afternoon. A good day to continue on to more ports!

Stack of pancakes for breakfast

Mike and Lawrence

Lookin good Roland

George and Lawrence in a dinghy towing Ro on a surfboard

Roland waiting for a wave

George at the helm, Mike on lookout, Government Point to Starboard

Kelly and Mike departing Cojo anchorage

Mark, George, Lawrence

Mike looks comfy

Bluewater's route from Cojo anchorage to Forney cove, Santa Cruz Island

Departure from Cojo anchorage:  (must have been) early afternoon Monday 6/15/15
Route:  Cojo anchorage to Forney cove, Santa Cruz Island
Arrival Time:  Just after 6pm on Monday 6/15/15
Approx distance:  45nm
Approx time enroute:  4-5 hours

From Roland, "We set sail for Santa Cruz Island out over the open ocean. The wind was perfect and we did not have to tack once as we sailed across the great expanse."

My phone call from Mark was garbled so I missed a lot of the conversation. Years ago, though, our friend Kevin Mulholland was hired to build cell towers on the Channel Islands, a job he enjoyed and told lots of stories about. So Bluewater crew did not miss the opportunity to call Kevin up (in the hospital) to complain about their cell service. Kevin, in turn, gave them lots of fishing tips...

Bluewater crew checked in safe and sound just after 6pm on Monday 6/15/15 from Forney's cove. They are anchored on the south side of the west end of Santa Cruz Island. Lawrence already dove the anchor (snorkled down the anchor chain and rode to assess its security) and gave it a thumbs up. See the conditions here:  Lawrence's view  Also, there is one other boat anchored nearby.

Forney's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

George, Mark, Mike, Kelly, Roland from Lawrence's view

They had good wind today, 17-24 knots. They were triple-reefed and enjoyed the sailing. After motoring so much previously, they were happy to quiet the engines after all of 45 seconds at departure from Cojo anchorage. Enroute, they crossed a shipping channel and altered course to give way to one ship.

Based on a more favorable anchorage location (based on wind strength and location), they changed their planned destination (of Santa Rosa Island) to Santa Cruz Island whilst underway.

From Roland, "We sailed past Santa Rosa Island, dodging around the ever increasing crab pots scattered around the island. Mark and Lawrence assiduously checked the maps as we wound past the island in confused seas and documented area to be avoided. We came upon our anchorage for the night at Forney's Cove. There was one other sailing vessel, an Islander 36, a 1980's sloop, who set up in the cove about 30 minutes before we pulled in. We were greeted by curious seals and a huge whitewashed rock covered with cormorants and anahingas. The birds flew in waves over the calm bay, and along with groups of Pelicans, they circled the area. Dinner was grilled fish and veggies on the Bluewater grill."

From Mark, "There is a kelp bed off our stern and Lawrence is spear-fishing for dinner. Everyone is having fun. Forney's has rocks and a reef to the west, the island to the north and east, and kelp to the south. We saw no movement on the one other sailboat anchored in the same harbor that day, and a lobster boat pulled in at dinner time. Lawrence cooked fresh caught fish on the grill and Roland and George did dishes. The breeze did flow through Monday evening but dropped during the night so it was calm and we slept well."

General location on Santa Cruz Island, south of Santa Barbara

More specific location, Forney Cove, Santa Cruz Island

Mike with a fish

Lawrence, diving the anchor, then spear-fishing

Roland with another fish

Roland

Lawrence up on the spreaders

Lawrence's view of George and Mark from above

Lawrence's view of Mike and Mark from above

Coastal view with kelp on calm water

Tuesday June 16, 2015

From Roland, " We awoke to a great hiking day on Santa Cruz Island. The dinghy motor was still working at that time, and we ferried everyone but Kelly to the island. Mark and I went for a run, and climbed as high as 840 feet elevation with occasional cactus, while Lo, Geo and Mike explored the tide pools and rock walls down by the beach. They found abalone shells and other cool beach items."

"After a morning of blueberry/banana pancakes...we departed in Bluewater."

12 Noon Pacific Time Tuesday 6/16/2015
Bluewater crew checked in safe and sound.

They are still anchored in Forney's Cove but are preparing to depart soon to the north side of of Santa Cruz Island (possibly to a place called Lady's Anchorage). I have not had a GPS signal from Mark's iPhone all day and he was unable to send photos or contact me (until he reached me by phone at noon). They hiked the ridge on Santa Cruz Island and still can't figure out where Kevin built a cell tower.

Here is a link to a map of anchorages on Santa Cruz Island:  Santa Cruz Island Anchorages

They are happy and having fun. Unknown whether we'll hear from them until they check in from Santa Barbara tomorrow (Wednesday) night 6/17/2015.

More fishing in Forney's Cove

Per Mark, the crew was up (and Ron and George were fishing) by 6:30 am on Tuesday morning. The fishing was enhanced by the boat swinging slightly around the anchor so that the stern was resting in a kelp paddy. George, Ron and Mark motored to shore with George making a successful dinghy landing in small waves. Then George drove back for Mike and Lawrence leaving Kelly to her knitting on the boat. Roland and Mark hiked to the top of the ridge trying to get cell service to make a call and/or send a message to no avail. Beautiful views but couldn't get thru on the phone.

George at sunset

View from the ridge atop Santa Cruz island.  Bluewater is the boat furthest from the rocks on the left in Forney's Cove.

Santa Cruz Island

View of Bluewater in Forney's Cove from Santa Cruz Island

Hiking on Santa Cruz Island

Trail on Santa Cruz Island

Mark on a hike with Roland

Mike - beautiful spot on Santa Cruz Island

Ro and Mark met back up with Lo and George who had checked out the cliffs to the north and had been chatting with the 3 folks from the nearby sailboat that had also dinghy'd to shore. Afterward, Bluewater's crew returned to the boat for lox and bagels.

Mark says, "A light breeze came up by 8am and by 9am it was blowing 15-20 knots outside our snug harbor.  We pulled anchor and quickly set sails, with Lawrence directing traffic, Kelly driving, and Ron/George/Mike crewing for our brief and windy upwind sail to the slot between the islands and around the west end of Santa Cruz island. See the action here:  Kelly's Tack  We turned gradually downwind to cruise along the north shore with Ron taking over the skippering."

"We angled toward the cliffs that form the north shore to admire the caves that seem to surround the island. We dropped sails and Lo kept us in position to lower the dinghy (despite the waves and wind).  Mike and I rowed into painted cave--fun but a little rough, and hard to believe that we neglected to bring both a flashlight and a camera."

As Roland described, "We dumped Mark and Mike in angry seas in the dinghy to explore caves."

Check out the route here:    Cruise from Forney's to Lady's  The Motion X track was discontinuous but this is a recreation of Bluewater's route.

George, Roland, Kelly, Mike, Mark

From Mark, "We continued motoring east and checked out a few harbors before motoring into the narrow gap that opens into two small anchorages called Lady's and Baby's. We anchored in Lady's harbor on the north side of Santa Cruz island. This is a snug, gorgeous little anchorage tucked between cliffs with a beach in the back. There is no wind though the boat does move a bit with the surge. George and Lawrence went for a snorkel and Mike/Ron started fishing for dinner. Mike prepared a beet/avocado salad and grilled veggies before cooking awesome burgers."

From Roland, "We anchored in the very narrow 'Lady's' Cove, visited by elephant seal mom and baby who swam by our boat scaring away the fish."

George in Lady's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

George, Roland, Lawrence, Kelly in Lady's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

Lady's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

Mark, Roland, George, Kelly, Mike on Bluewater in Lady's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

George in wetsuit

Lawrence in wetsuit

Lady's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

Lady's Cove, Santa Cruz Island

Octopus

Wednesday June 17, 2015

By Wednesday at 1:45pm, Bluewater crew had cell service again. By this time, they had already departed Lady's anchorage and were an hour to destination Santa Barbara.  Roland first texted some dolphin photos and said, "Unreal! This was magical." See his video here:  Dolphins enroute! He later wrote, "We sailed 25nm away from the Channel Islands to Santa Barbara. Used screecher sail and were flying across the channel when 4 dolphins came up and played with us for 5 minutes right under the trampolines of the boat."

Roland texted another photo and said, "We are approaching Santa Barbara through the fog. Mark calls it June gloom. Tons of sea birds and sailboats."

June gloom enroute to Santa Barbara

Lawrence at the helm, approaching Santa Barbar

Bluewater's route from Lady's anchorage to Santa Barbara

George in Santa Barbara

Destination made:  Santa Barbara

 Distance from Lady's anchorage to Santa Barbara:  approx 25 nm
Arrival time:  3:20pm 6/17/2015

Santa Barbara

Bluewater in Santa Barbara

Fearsome foursome: Roland, Mark, Mike, Kelly

Sunset in Santa Barbara

"A sign of a successful trip!"

Waiting for the train in Santa Barbara

From Roland, "On the train from Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo, we saw thousands of cleanup crew tending to the oil spill."