It is hard to believe it has been almost a year since I last
posted to this blog. It has been a busy time.
My job at Agilent has been a good one. It will end September
20. I am feeling conflicted about it. On one hand, I would like to finish the
project I am working on. On the other hand, I want to get the boat ready to go
and get offshore ASAP. Agilent has a policy of not allowing contractors to work
beyond 18 months so I WILL be done in September.
When I last posted, I was living at Pete’s Harbor in Redwood
City. The owner thought she had a deal to sell the place so she told everyone
to move out – 90 days notice. That upset a lot of people who had been living
there for years – some as long as 15 years. Pete’s Harbor management gave all
the tenants until January 15, 2013, to move out. Some have resisted and the
sale is tied up in lawsuits. There are still four boats in the marina.
I moved to Westpoint Harbor just three miles away, still in
Redwood City. It is a new marina with an emphasis on environmental friendliness
– closely monitored by SF Bay area environmental agencies. The rules are so
stringent that this is the first new marina to open on SF Bay in 25 years. You
can get a good idea what the place is like by viewing their web site at http://www.westpointharbor.com.
I haven’t been able to do a lot of sailing between the work
situation and spending some time in Placerville helping Judy get the house
ready to sell. A typical work day for me starts when I leave the boat a little
after 8 AM and return around 8 PM. I usually have no energy for anything except
a glass of wine, some munchies, a shower and bedtime.
A daily feature is the 9 PM phone call to Judy. It is nowhere
near as good as spending time together but it is better than nothing. We seem to
have fallen into a three week cycle in the way we spend our weekends. I spend
one weekend in Placerville, Judy spends one weekend on the boat and the third
weekend we are apart – I work on the boat. Again, it is a less than perfect way
to carry on our relationship, but it is way better than nothing. We very much
enjoy our time together – I just wish there was more of it!
Work on the boat is progressing slowly. Most of the work
gets done on weekends. I do have some beautiful new sails (see picture to the
right). I have updated my VHF radio and added an AIS unit that will help me
know where the big ships are in my vicinity and will tell them where I am. I
have replaced all of the running rigging (the ropes). I have a new
rowing/sailing dinghy – an 8’ Fatty Knees. I have been out once to row and sail
it. It is a quite different from sailing a 36’ boat. I am looking forward to
having more time to get comfortable with it.
At the moment, the engine is out of commission. There is a
hole in the exhaust system – a very old part finally broke. Unfortunately, this
is the busy season for the area boat maintenance people. I first contacted them
about three weeks ago and they have yet to start work!
I will have to say that my winter aboard was not a lot of
fun. Even though the nights never got much below freezing, it got pretty
chilly. There were a few mornings of ice on the floating docks. Coming home
after dark when it is cold, blowing and raining is not a wonderful experience.
I am happy that next winter will be spent farther south in San Diego and,
possibly, in Mexico.
The plan for departure is to leave the SF Bay area around
the full moon in mid-December. One of my long-time friends will be crewing – a much
needed second set of hands and eyes for the busy shipping lanes between here
and San Diego. I will spend some time in San Diego doing final fix-up items and
visiting with daughter Alana. I may or may not spend some time in Mexico before
heading off to the South Pacific in early March. It is not advisable to go
earlier – it is the southern summer and typhoon season.
So, that’s the update. Stay tuned…
