Out the Gate: San Francisco to Santa Cruz
It has now been 6 months since I have left the San Francisco Bay after the total refit of my 1982 Wharram Narai Catamaran, KIKAPU. While designed and built in the UK with a track record for navigating chilly waters, it is definitely not where she thrives as a Polynesian inspired vessel. This fact alone, made the first leg down the California Coast infinitely more difficult than any other sail that I have ever done.. Since those first sails, I have become much more comfortable aboard and regained the confidence that was stripped away by all of the naysayers. She has proven to be an incredibly capable and seaworthy vessel. Keeping that in mind, these are the accounts from my first experiences sailing KIKAPU offshore after her year and a half refit:
Brisbane, CA to Treasure Island
We left Brisbane Marina on Wednesday, November 8, to head to Clipper Cove on Treasure Island in the heart of the San Francisco Bay. It was unusually gentle for the Bay and we left at night to motor up to the anchorage to stage for our offshore departure the next morning. We tucked in late at night and my anxieties were high since this was my first time anchoring the boat. We settled in as close as we felt comfortable right as we passed under the Bay Bridge. The hook set beautifully, but I was unsure of how to use the anchor alarm app which led to little sleep as alarms kept sounding all night. (It turns out it’s an Android problem.)
We woke early the next morning and fixed coffee, tea, and breakfast before raising the anchor. As we motored out from around Treasure Island, the Golden Gate Bridge finally came into view. It’s hard to tell exactly how far away you are as you approach. It reminded me of the first time I saw the Grand Canyon. It’s so magnificent that it almost looks fake, like a slightly hazed painting. All around though, it was the perfect way to jump off my voyage after so much hard work.
San Francisco Bay to Santa Cruz
Soon enough the bridge became more clear as we were grabbed by the currents and spit out the gate. We planned out our departure at slack tide and took the ebb out. Once out the gate, we followed just south of the channel markers before hooking a left to head south. Unfortunately, there was a fishing vessel without any markers or AIS with their nets out that quickly approached. While we were under sail and under most circumstances would have the right of way, it was difficult to identify the vessel without markers or their AIS until it was incredibly close. This left us with the option of jibbing into the shipping channel with cargo vessels lined up or dropping the motor to push past them, we chose the latter which ended in choice words being yelled between boats. I still view it as the less bad option.
All three of us aboard were pretty ornery between little sleep, floppy sails, and inconsiderate fisherman who weren’t displaying what they should have been. I took the first 3 hour watch. The three very close whale encounters we had during the day had me very much on edge. In every white capped wave, I saw a whale breaching. The cold had set in and my hands numbly gripped the helm wheel as the swell built through my shift. I called for assistance multiple times throughout the night. We needed to reef, parachute flares went off in the distance, and even when I was relieved I couldn’t sleep. All the negative thoughts whirled in my head leaving me feeling alert and scared.
I woke in the morning to the sound of the motor running. It had sent an alarm the day before and we had turned it off to wait until daylight to figure out what it meant. Now, we learned that it was to signify the need for an oil change, which meant I had finally hit my 20 hour break in period. We reset the alarm and motored the rest of the way to Santa Cruz. We stopped only to retrieve a yellow skimboard that was floating offshore.
Santa Cruz
We weighed anchor just West of the wharf hoping that we could utilize the dinghy dock. It was unfortunately out of commission due to Sea Lions. Instead, we soon learned about the powerful swell as we motored the dinghy to shore. Our electric motor ran low just as we entered the jetties to drop a crew member off at the fuel dock. The thing with electric motors is that the harder you push them, the quicker the battery depletes. So, in fighting the swell, by the time we reached the dock we had just hit 1%. If I had planned on this dockside visit, I would have definitely anchored closer, but alas we were a mile away from KIKAPU with no dinghy motor. Andrew, the crew member we were dropping off, offered to row the dinghy back while Alicia and I grabbed his ride over to the beach in front of KIKAPU where we could swap.
My short car ride through Santa Cruz was all I got to experience of this beachside city. Soon, we arrived at the wharf area, and Andrew and my little red dinghy were nowhere in sight. He wasn’t answering his phone and he didn’t have a handheld VHF with him. As the swell continued to build, he peeked out from behind the wharf. Giving thanks that he was only out of view, Alicia and I made our way down to the beach to meet him. As he approached, all I could see was disaster. The shoreline that once looked calm from the decks of KIKAPU had now turned into large surf. Without a motor, this was NOT going to be an easy landing.
My attempts to direct Andrew to a calmer area of the shoreline were futile. He had made his decision. Alicia and I held our breaths as he turned the boat around to slide backwards down the wave. Just as he reached his position, the bow lifted and tossed him out of the dinghy. As he planted his feet into the sand, the fall only continued. His face planted into the sediment tossed waters, and he arose from the tumble dripping in saltwater and blood.
Our goodbyes were quick as Alicia, Aussie, and I ran through the surf to hop in the half filled dinghy to start our row back to KIKAPU. The row was difficult as we fought the waves coming into shore. Exhausted, we were looking at another long offshore sail the next day if we were to outrun weather. While the wind died overnight, the swell in the anchorage was no fun. If I ever visit Santa Cruz again, it will be in a marina or just as a land trip.
