We left Half Moon Bay early in the morning, our destination of Santa Cruz was 50 kn (nautical miles). The winds are typically light in the morning and pickup in the afternoon. The forecast was for 10 to 20 knot winds for the day. They were almost right. As we thought, the winds were light when we left and about 11, just off Pigeon Point, we raised the spinnaker and enjoyed a nice downwind cruise for about an hour and a half, then the winds started to pick up. By pick up, I mean gusting to 30 knots. We ran with a reefed main sail and triple reefed genoa and had a “lively” sail the rest of the way down to Santa Cruz, arriving at 3 pm and taking space at the municipal dock.
Our friends on Sedna were sailing with us and so were our new friends on board Blossom. We were all happy to have made it without incident and enjoyed a well-deserved “happy hour” onboard Sedna that evening.
We spent a couple of days exploring Santa Cruz, its beach and famous boardwalk close after the Labour Day weekend, so we did not get to ride the roller coaster. Not that any of us really wanted to after our sail down.
We left Santa Cruz and made the short hop (20kn) across Monterey Bay to Monterey. We have spent 4 days here exploring Monterey. We checked out Cannery Row, rented a car and did the 17 Mile Scenic Drive around Carmel and several of the scenic stops along the way. We looked at the golf courses, the mansions, and stopped to take in the views of the ocean. (Huh did we really stop the car to look at the ocean? Yah, we did)
Carmel was cool. A short walk will take you through its trendy shops and galleries and of course there is a beautiful sandy beach.
We caught up with our friends on Salish Dragon in Monterey as well. We are all looking at weather and hoping to leave early Thursday morning for the long (85 kn) run to San Simeon Bay. San Simeon will be our staging area for the transit around Point Conception and on to the Channel Islands. Point Conception has a bit of a reputation so picking a good weather window is important.
Till Next Time
Hi: Like to visit your boat if you stop in San Diego. Interested in the mods and your experiences with the 380.
Hi guys. This sounds wonderful. There is defiantly something to be said about preparing for safe and fun sailing. I must get back to work and dream about retirement and road trips. Xo