November 18, 2014 - San Diego Part 2

Hi everyone!  We are having a blast here in San Diego.  I know some have emailed us worried about no movement of us southbound, but no worries.  We are here provisioning and preparing for entry into Mexico.  We have been purchasing goods and getting ready, but at the same time having a lot of fun.  Below are some pictures of what we have been up to this past week.  We bought a couple of used beginner "long boards" so we can learn to surf during our trip.  The trouble is, the kids won't give us adults any time on them!

We purchased a San Diego pass that has many attractions which hasn't left much time to post anything.  We are using the pass this week, Monday through Thursday.  The kids fell asleep tonight by 7:45 soon after a dinghy ride back to the boat in the dark, and a quick dinner.  Another two days on this pass for us and turning in our rental car.  We are attempting to get to as many attractions/museums as possible!  Lucky kids;  no time for home school this week.

Here are some photos of what we were up to prior to having the attractions pass....

Rock hopping in a local park.  Line up for the next rock.....

A local playground that is new and awesome!

Spider-man would be jealous!

1 adult = 2 kids.  Hmmm....  Steve thought he had more "power" over the kids.

Why do the kids always want to go faster?!

We are anchored next to the Coast Guard station.  It makes for some very
interesting viewing as they practice hovering and deploying people from choppers.

Cindy, Stylin' in San Diego

Leaving our boat for the day in the "cruiser's anchorage" in San Diego Bay.

Cindy, trying out the new long surfboard from the boat.  Balance, um... acquired!

Surfboards and kids, ready for the waves.  Steve can't get any time on either board.

Cindy, an easy one......

Kevin, he's already mastered looking good on a board.  Surf's up DUDE!

We will post pictures from some of the attractions we have been visiting, like LegoLand, SeaWorld, and more in a few days.  We expect to be leaving San Diego for Mexico in about a week.

November 10, 2014 - San Diego Part 1

We left Oceanside on November 7th at about 6:30am and headed south on extremely smooth seas.   In 4 short hours we were at Mission Bay where we pulled in to refuel.  We are set now getting to Cabo and beyond (we won't be visiting a fuel dock again likely until spring).  In Mission Bay we had to pass under a bridge and we watched closely to make sure our antennas did not hit the bridge.  We made it with a couple of feet to spare.  An hour later, boat considerably heavier, wallet noticably lighter, and we were on our way south to San Diego Bay.

There were many marinas to choose from here and only a few anchoring spots that you need to register for.  We decided to head to the police dock that had a perfect side tie for us since we had company coming the next morning.  It is also one of the cheaper options for overnight that we could find.  The dock was nice and clean and we have had very nice quiet nights here.  A sea lion comes each day and sleeps on the dock but then disappears at night, we assume to hunt.

John, girlfriend Sunny and daughter Haley came for the weekend.  This was our first for having three people overnight and all went well.  The kids slept in our stateroom (along with us), John and Sunny in the V-berth and Haley on the salon settee.  Haley is a freshman in college here in San Diego and it was great to see her.  We had not seen her in a few years.  We were sorry to miss John's other daughter Kaitlyn but she had plans for a Vegas weekend.

Feeling humbled. Adagio to the left and a mega yacht on the right.
Dorothea III, only 150 ft long. 

We noticed many sailboats heading out Saturday morning but already had plans to tour the bay with our guests, and go close by downtown.  Leaving our cove was interesting especially since sailboats under sail have the right of way, and there were at least 100 of them filling the channel we wanted to transit.

Sailboat race right outside our marina

Sunny, John and Haley with San Diego in background

On our city tour, Steve turned around by the big aircraft carriers.
Yes, there was a guy on the end of one holding a machine gun, watching us closely!

A very unique Navy ship.  Not sure what it's purpose even is.  

John and Steve, San Diego tourist attractions in the
background.

 Well, of course we came back in right at the end of that sailboat race and those sailors do not mess around.  They finish, get drinks out, and head right back into the marina, still under sail.  We had them all around us, and they were sometimes uncomfortably close, so it was a bit stressful.

Sailors coming in for the finish

He's laughing because Steve told the sea lion that John tastes like Chicken on a stick!

Kathy, Haley, and Steve.  She was able to open her eyes looking at the sun for this one.

 It was fun to have visitors again.  We played games and chatted.  They had to leave Sunday afternoon/evening to head back to reality and their lives.

Today we got the bikes down and after home school went out for a ride from Shelter Island where we are moored, over to Harbor Island and back.

The anchors are getting smaller or the kids bigger.

Our bike ride today.  From Harbor Island looking at the city
Sailboats; not many on a Monday at 1:00pm!!!!

 Going over one of the bridges we saw these pens below and many dolphins, porpoises, and seals that appeared to be being fed. John had just told us of how they train them here to be able to find submarines or mines in the seas.  We watched for a while and did see some training with the dolphin where the dolphin is learning to jump into a sling which then rides in the boat.  I guess they do take them out into the open water for training.  Now, that would be great to see.  At the lower left of this photo you can see a dolphin going into a sling toward the boat.

Military training dolphins, porpoises, and sea lions.
at the Naval Mine and Anti-Submarine Warfare Command Center

We will probably post again after our time in the city is over, which will be next week.  Tomorrow we are headed to an anchor field where we will stay for a week or so.  It is free of charge to anchor there.  Costco sells a multi-day pass that includes museums, parks, and random attractions, so we will do that as well as rent a car for a week to get some final provisioning done.  We have lists and preparations to complete before the transit into Mexico.  We have to get all of our paperwork in order, restock those items that are hard to find in Mexico, figure out the weather forecasting, perform maintenance, finish up a few electronics projects, and more.  It will be a busy stop in San Diego.

Next stop Ensenada Mexico!

November 6, 2014 - Oceanside CA

Oceanside is a beautiful town.  The main marina did not have a slip for us so they placed us on the periphery at the Coast Guard dock.  It was nice since that is on the side with the beach across the way.  It only takes a minute or two to get to the beach from here.  On the downside, the facilities (like restrooms and showers) are about a 10 minute walk away.  The several nice restaurants here are also about a 10 minute walk away.

One interesting thing to note about Oceanside is that it right next to Camp Pendleton (Marine Corps).  They apparently do live fire training here because as we were motoring over from Catalina Island we could hear loud booms that sounded like artillery.  It went on for hours.  Once here in the marina everything was silent for a day or so.  Then while playing on the beach one afternoon it suddenly sounded like a war zone.  Helicopters in the air,  Machine gun fire.  And the previously mentioned BOOMS.  We almost expected to see some landing craft headed for the beach and tanks rolling our way.  It was strange and something we are not used to.  

Kevin turned 10 years old on the 4th of November.  Not like regular school, we just took the day off and headed out in a rental car for some fun.  We presented Kevin with a bunch of options for birthday activities and he got to choose what we did.  We went to a mini golf place, then to lunch for pizza, and finally go kart racing.    Of course we did go and do some errands since we had the rental car.  Kevin received quite a few DVD's for his birthday so the evening was spent watching some of them.  

Kevin turned 10 on November 4th

Mini Golf.  One of the nicest mini golf courses we've seen.

Mini Golf Shark cage

Go Kart race

Go Kart racing

Once they graduate from go carts, I think this is next.  Looks expensive!

Opening presents in the (stark!) salon.  With blinds down it looks very beige!

Kevin decorating cupcakes for his birthday

 Steve's buddy John, who he has known since high school, was still with us from our time on Avalon on Catalina Island.  John's girlfriend Sunny lives in Oceanside so one evening she came over after work and we spent the evening together having fun on the boat.  They came back the next morning for a little breakfast with us, and they brought Kevin a wonderful birthday cake.  What an awesome surprise, Thanks John and Sunny!

John, Sunny, Steve and Kathy. 

Finished home school fairly early one day so we went out for a bike ride and toured the town.  Once again there is a nice bike/walking trail.  It went for several miles along the shoreline.  Very pretty.

Oceanside Marina Guest dock across the bay.  Adagio across the water on the
other side tied up to the Coast Guard Pier.

Oceanside Anchor.  That is the entrance to the harbor from the ocean behind the kids.

Biking along the waterfront.  Our bikes have been very useful on the trip so far.

More Boogie boarding.  First time the kids wore shorty wetsuits this trip.  Water is 65F

During the bike ride, Steve got a flat front tire.  That is the third flat time on the trip so far for Steve.  Nobody else has had a flat.  Fortunately, after pushing the bike through a several block long farmer's market Kathy spotted a shop that sold high-end road bikes.  We walked over and they replaced the tube for us in and we were back in business in just a few minutes, and for just over $10.  It's time to pack a spare tube and a pump with us when we go riding!  While there we asked if there were any good restaurants nearby and they recommended a burger place a few blocks away.  They had exotic burgers like Kangaroo and Buffalo.  We stuck with traditional beef, but they were excellent burgers.

We have witnessed several beautiful sunsets here in Seaside.  The weather has been perfect with temps in the low to mid seventies.  We keep commenting to each other what wonderful weather we have had since we left.  We think there have only been 3 days with rain (and they just a few sprinkles at that) in the 70 days we have been on this trip.  It's an endless summer!

Another perfect end to a perfect day in Oceanside CA.
Or is this Tahiti?  :-)

Cindy has been trying to get Zappa used to a collar and leash so she can go out walking with him, as if he were a dog.  Zappa is getting better, but he really doesn't like the open spaces we are seeing on the beaches around here.  I think he is so accustomed to hiding under bushes, shrubs, and trees back home so the eagles and hawks don't get him, that he feels vulnerable in these wide open spaces.

Tomorrow morning we leave for San Diego, which will be our last port in the US.  Wow, big changes are just around the corner.....

The kids take our cat Zappa for a walk on the great sand beach.

November 5, 2014 - End of an Era

By Steve Elston....

I am feeling quite sad today, after spending a good part of the day yesterday in Carlsbad California.  You see, Carlsbad California was at the epicenter of motocross during the 70’s and 80’s which is when I was growing up.  I didn’t care much about the usual sports like football, basketball, or baseball.  My favorite sport was motocross.  Unfortunately for me, my parent’s hated motorcycles and basically prevented me from owning a dirt bike.  I managed to sneak away and do some riding with friends who had dirtbikes when I was in elementary school, and junior high, but I could only learn the most basic of skills like how to work a clutch, shift, control front and rear brakes.  I got a few bikes airborn, learned to spin donuts, and even pulled a few wheelies.   My bedroom walls were plastered with pictures from “Dirt Bike” magazine showing pro-riders blasting around berms, soaring through the air, or fighting it out handle bar to handle bar with another rider during a race (at 70mph, no less). 

I can vividly remember (when I was a child) waking up early on Sunday mornings, grabbing the newspaper and searching for the TV guide section, yellow highlighter in hand.  I would scour the entire weeks listing looking for anything related to dirtbikes that would be airing on our 3 or 4 Seattle TV channels (we didn't have cable TV).  Fortunately, Wide World of Sports had some decent coverage of US motocross when I was a kid, so I could usually catch a race every month or so on TV.  VCR’s hadn’t been invented yet so if you missed it, you’d never see it again.  So, I made sure I was at home whenever the race was aired.  I never missed a race!

At that time, every year the US hosted one event on the world championship circuit.  Prior to the late 70’s, this event was almost always won by a European.  But by the late 70’s the young southern CA boys were getting really good and started winning the US event in the world championship series.  Where was the annual world championship event held in America you ask?  Carlsbad California of course.  It hosted the event for about 15 years in a row.   Most of the great American riders of the 70’s and 80’s came out of southern California and several of the best came from Carlsbad, and neighboring towns like El Cajon, and Mission Viejo.  I was a young boy and these guys were my heros.  I knew all their names, what bikes they rode, where they were in the national standings, etc.  I also knew the name of every turn and treacherous section on the Carlsbad track.  Places like “the Carlsbad freeway” where riders would 70+mph during a 14-story drop down into a canyon, OR "Devil’s Drop", and "Rattlesnake Gulch" at the bottom where they had to clamp on the brakes to slow to 10mph in order to make a banked hairpin turn so they could then rocket back up the canyon to the top, ripping through all 6 gears skipping across the tops of some significant "whoops".  It was an exciting track, and it was scary looking.

But, being a young kid from Washington State, with parent’s that hated motorcycles, I never had a chance to pursue my interest, or even go see a race in person.  I did eventually buy a brand new Yamaha dual-sport motorcycle when I was 16, after saving every penny of my paper route money for years.  Then in my early 20’s I bought a real dirt bike and started riding every weekend.  I entered some races and had good events, and bad events.  I do remember how shocked my parents were when after riding for just a few months, and entering my first race, I came home with a 2^nd place trophy.  An impressive result for a novice with just a few months of time on a dirt bike.  But, getting started in your 20’s is pretty late in motocross where most of the champs started out at age 6 and were already turning pro before graduating high school.   So, dirt biking became my primary interest and hobby, but not something I could ever realistically pursue.  I simple started way too late in life (most pro's are wrapping up their racing career by their mid to late 20's).   Eventually I began to lose interest as my riding buddies dropped out of the scene.  So, I sold my bikes and started following my other childhood passion, which was boating.  I did have a brief return to dirtbiking in the late 90’s until about 2002.  I entered a few more races including the Dessert 100 twice, but I was getting too old, and too out of shape to be competitive.  But it was great fun.  Interestingly, Kathy (my wife) got into dirt bike riding and would go riding with me most of the time.  She even had her own dirt bike.  At that time, before moving to La Conner, we had several neighbors that also rode, including one of the wives.  We spent a lot of weekends out trail riding with our neighbors.  It was great fun, and great exercise.  But once again, the boating bug returned and we sold our dirtbikes and bought a 28’ boat and have never looked back.

So, what am I sad about here in Carlsbad?  I found out that back in 2005 the track was bulldozed to make room for the “Carlsbad Raceway Office Park”.  I was such a significant track for me as a child (and also as a young adult) that even though I never set foot on the grounds, or rode any part of it, it was a place that I spent hours dreaming about as a youth.  I dreamt that I was blasting down the Carlsbad Freeway battling it out with Bob Hannah, David Bailey, Broc Glover, or Roger DeCoster.  So, when I found out we were going to be in Carlsbad I wanted to go see my favorite track, but sadly it is gone.  I suppose it would be like a golf fanatic finding out that Pebble Beach had been leveled and replaced with condos.  Or a baseball fan finding out that Fenway Park was now a parking lot.  For me, Carlsbad WAS motocross.  And motocross was the most important thing to me for a good part of my childhood.  How sad it now gone.  I wish I could have seen it….

Wild motocross action at Carlsbad Raceway  Late 70's

Large crowds in Carlsbad.

Even larger crowd.  Carlsbad WAS motocross!

A youtube video of a race I remember watching on Wide World of Sports when I was a kid:
http://youtu.be/7BPe6sPELxE

November 3, 2014 - Channel Islands - Santa Cruz and Catalina

We left Santa Barbara a little before the noon check-out time in the marina and had a very smooth crossing to Santa Cruz Island in the Channel Islands.  We anchored in Smuggler's Cove with the intention of going to shore. But the beach near us had some large breaking waves that looked like they would surely swamp the dinghy if we attempted a landing.  We we decided to wait until later in the day, or even the next day.  Unfortunately the winds grew stronger and the waves bigger.  We never did make it to shore on either day.  Nor did the people on the other couple of boats anchored nearby.

Removing kelp from the stabilizer fins, Smuggler Cove, Santa Cruz Island

Sunrise from Smuggler Cove Santa Cruz Island looking at Anacapa Island

 We pulled anchor at first light on the third day and enjoyed a very calm trip south to Santa Catalina Island.  It was an 8 or 9 hour trip and we arrived at Isthmus Cove (twin harbors) a few hours before sunset.  We looked around the anchorage and mooring ball field, talked to the harbormaster via VHF, and decided to anchor out in some pretty deep water, about 85 feet.  That's pretty deep water and require a lot of chain to be deployed to ensure the anchor is well set.  We got a good grip on the bottom.  There was a large swell rolling into the bay however, and we spent most of the evening rocking and rolling.  It was uncomfortable but we really had no options as it was now dark and trying to grab a mooring ball would be difficult and wouldn't help the rocking and rolling at all.  We were a a bit concerned with our proximity to a very large "tall-ship" like sailboat that was near us.  It was probably at least 150' long.  At times it looked very close to us, mostly because it was so large.  We have a laser range finder and with that we were able to accurately monitor our distance which relieved us enough to get some sleep.

Isthmus Cove sunset, Catalina Island

We got out of our rough anchorage early the next morning and motored over to Avalon Harbor, the largest port in the channel islands.  It is a beautiful place that looks like something you might find in the French Riviera.  Their mooring system is very interesting.  You call the harbor patrol when you arrive and they come out to your boat to arrange your moorage.  You pay out there and receive a slip assignment.  Then you have to find your pair of mooring balls in a huge field of moorings.  Once there, you pull a floating pole out of the water which is attached to a leader line that you pull onboard until you get to the mooring line.  That is attached to a cleat on your bow and then you pull another leader line up out of the water which leads you to the stern mooring line which you attach to the stern of your boat.  Then you drop the leader line back into the water.  Once attached at boat ends you are pretty secure, although you need to adjust the tension of the mooring lines with the rising and falling tides,  Leaving the mooring is pretty easy, you just untie and drop the lines in the water.  We had one empty mooring on each side of us.  I can't imagine summer when this is full, it would be tight.  The harbor patrol people were very nice and helpful in any way they can.  They did board our boat and drop a dye tablet in the head toilets and made the statement that if they see any green there will be a fine and we would have to leave right away.  They do cruise the harbor nonstop during daylight hours.  When the tide was low we were swinging quite a bit, I would imagine summer and being full, you need the additional note to make sure you are around to adjust your lines when needed.

Dolphins passing by flying out of the water!

View from walking up hill out at Avalon Cove, Catalina.  Can you see our boat?

Our boat is to the left of Cindy, above her shoulder and near her ear

Golf cart tour, looking at Avalon

Most vehicles on the island were golf carts so we had to take a drive.  It was fun!

View of Avalon Harbor from our golf cart tour.

 On Sunday, Steve's high school buddy John came out for a visit on the Catalina Express passenger ferry.  We walked around town for a while, had a drink in a sports bar, had a bit to eat, then spent the evening on our boat.  John spent the night and rode back with us to the mainland on Monday.  He's our first overnight guest on the trip so far.

Steve's old buddy John came out on the ferry and stayed overnight with us.

Halloween in Avalon.  Just like home;  the elementary kids did a parade through town and the merchants then gave out candy at the entrance to their shops.

Zappa playing with one of the nighttime fish we caught

We were in Avalon for 3 days, and could have spent another day or two there.  But, Kevin's birthday is Tuesday and he wants to do something fun (more fun than he could find on Avalon, that is) and he didn't want to spend his birthday motoring all day back to the mainland.  So, on Monday morning we dropped the mooring lines and headed for Oceanside.  John's girlfriend lives in Oceanside and his car is there.  They have a great beach there, and it is close to many attractions.  So many attractions that Kevin may have a tough choice deciding exactly what he wants to do on Tuesday.  We called the Oceanside Marina first thing Monday morning and confirmed they had a space for us for a few days.

Next stop - Oceanside CA.

November 3, 2014 -BF - The Southern Sea Otter

Cindy Elston

10-23-2014

Compositional Essay

Southern Sea Otter

                Have you ever laid on your back in a swimming pool, just floating on the water? Well, the Southern Sea Otter does the very same thing just like us. Sea otters are fascinating creatures that breathes air but live in water. They eat many sea creatures and they look like a slick brown ball of fur.

                Sea otters are brown and are covered in a thick, rough, waterproof layer of fur that covers up soft, short fur. A sea otter’s fur hits the world record with up to 1,000,000 hairs per square inch, having the most "Densest fur on Earth"! A sea otter has a very long body and very powerful flipper-like back paws. They have front paws that are very grip-like and strong and have very powerful jaws that can bite into food. An otter has pockets made out of fur folds that are under each front paw. An otter's whiskers can sense moving prey as its paws search the ocean floor.

                Sea otters eat a lot of sea creatures and have to eat 25% of their body weight daily to keep warm in the cold waters of the Pacific. Sea otters have favorite foods just like humans and eat a variety of foods, from sea urchins to squid. They also eat small octopus and small sea snails. The otters use rocks to crack open mussels, clams, and abalone. Shrimp, crab and sea stars are some foods that otters like to eat. Their bodies can process salt water and turn it into fresh water.

                Many other interesting things to know is that a sea otter can hold its breath for up to 7 minutes but normally they can get a hold of prey and come back up to the surface in about 30 seconds. The sea otter’s closest cousins are ferrets, badgers, and weasels. Many are helping are rescue and release otters for they are facing huge threats: shark attacks and habitat wreckage. Now there are about two thousand eight hundred southern sea otters left. Lots of people are tagging and tracking sea otters so they can try to help them.

                A rock can be a useful tool. The way an otter uses it, it cracks shells and crabs open to get the food inside. An otter catches its food under water but always eats its food above water. You may think that an otter always stays in the water but they climb onto beaches and rocks to rest. It grooms itself just like a cat. The sea otter can float on its back because of the air in the otters fur which helps keep the otter warm. As an otter grabs its prey, it stashes the prey into its pocket and then shoots up to the surface to get air and eat.

                The southern sea otter is a very exciting creature. It can hold its breath for a long time and can move to many different places fast. A mother would wrap its baby up in kelp so it won’t float away. They are very intelligent and interesting to study.