Homeward Bound - October 1, 2009

We didn't expect, when we crawled out of the sack this morning, that we would end the day all snug in our slip (not exactly "our" slip, but I'll explain later) in beautiful Ilwaco, WA. But that's just how the day had ended. After watching several boats head out towards the jetty, while sipping our morning coffee, Dave turned on the radio to listen to the weather/bar reports. Sure enough, the bar restriction had been lifted and the winds had changed (coming out of the SW and to become westerly by afternoon). Once again the winds were in our favor.

We hurriedly readied the Sea Crest for departure (checking and warming up the engines, stowing our belongings, locking down cupboards and doors, and then untying her from the dock), and 1/2 hour later set off for the bar. A much more leisurely passing this time around!

The seas pushed us home, and we made very good time. Altho the swells were increasing as we neared the Columbia River, we just rode the current.

Tillamook Head and the lighthouse was an awesome site...seeing it from tte vantage point of the sea gave a clear perspective of how isolated the light was from the Head's craggy cliffs looming in the background.

As we passed Seaside we could see the Long Beach Penninsula in the distance, looking like an island. Ilwaco, WA is on the south end of that point. By 1 pm we were at the "Red Line" (the bouys leading into the Columbia River. Dave radioed the Cape Disappointment Coast Guard for a bar report. This time they did not disappoint! The bar was unrestricted, altho by the look of the seas, if those conditions were unrestricted, I would hate to cross it when there were any restrictions on it! YIKES!!!

At this point, the winds had shifted from the West, carrying us safely, and without incident through the Columbia River bar. It was not long after and we were entering the "A" Jetty leading to the Port of Ilwaco. The Cape Disappointment Lighthouse is a prominent feature as one enters the "A" Jetty. I look forward to hikes in the area to further explore it, once we are more permanently settled in.

When we arrived in port, one of our neighbors on the "J" dock assisted us in docking. Whaat a wonderful welcom at the end of a long journey. Because of the strong afternoon winds, we had found it easiest (and safest) to park in another neighbors slip, as they are gone for the season.

It was an amazing journey, and I would do it again in a heartbeat! Fortunately, the adventures of the Sea Crest are only just begining. We will be upgrading and remodeling her over the winter months in preparation for Spring 2010 when we plan to take her to Alaska for the Summer.

I will continue to make posts, as our work on the Sea Crest continues...please check in on our latest happenings. Knowing her Captain as I do, this is bound to be an impromptu voyage (or two) on the horizon before the head her north in the Spring...

Garibaldi - Sept 22 - Oct 1, 2009

Garibaldi has been a wonderful port to call "home" during our stay. The folks at the Coast Guard & Port had been more than helpful. Marine services and supplies were nearby the harbor, and for the few items that we needed that could not be found in the local shops, the locals had been most helpful to pick them up for us on their errands. Thank you Tom & Holly at Big Tuna Marine. Small town living at it's best.

We bought a fresh salmon from "Deep Water Dave" at a local fish market & cannery. We used the head, bones and tail for crab bait, which supplied us with several very tasty meals. We were able to crab right off of the aft deck of the our boat while tied at the dock. The salmon was delicious, as well.

If we would have stayed in the area any longer, I think that we may have been issued library cards! We made several trips to the library which was a short walk from the marina. Dave enjoyed their free wifi service, and I picked up a few paperback books that they were giving away.

Part of our daily routine was to listen to the NOAA weather channel for an updated weather report looking for an encouraging forcast. A novice soon learns that winds and swells "increasing" are bad, and that "decreasing" or "diminishing" winds and swells are good. The larger the number in feet or knots is typically NOT a positive sign (i.e. one would prefer wind waves of 1 -2 feet over those that are 5 - 6 feet). You also learn that "Max Ebb" is not your friend! Our dilemma in Tillamook Bay was that, on average, it would take us approximately 10 hours to reach our destination (and the next available port). We had to cross two bars, both of which are well known for being inhospitable, at times. When there was an opening to cross the Tillamook Bay bar, the Columbia River bar would be at max ebb (and rough) by the time we would reach it to cross. So we waited...

We enjoyed the town while we were there. Dave had taken the bus system up to Astoria towards the end of our visit, hoping to make connections to Washington to bring a vehicle down for us to use. Fortunately, he didn't make his connection, since two days later we were able to make a run for it. The day after he had journeyed to Astoria, we took the bus into Tillamook to go shopping...a fun little excursion.

On the morning of October 1st we were in the salon of the Sea Crest, drinking our coffee, watching boats head out to the bar. We turned on the weather radio, and found (to our surprise) that the bar restrictions had been lifted and it would be safe for us to cross. With that, we quickly got the boat ready to travel, and headed for home.

Brookings North - Sept 21 - 22, 2009

We departed Brookings Harbor, OR at approximately 7 am Monday morning. Seas were calm with little to no wind. We had originally had it in mind to make a short day of it and anchor in Port Orford, but the NOAA weather report anticipated a storm front moving our way by mid-week, so we took advantage of the agreeable weather.

I took the helm that afternoon to give Dave a break. Seas were out of the SW, pushing us northward and increasing our normally "pedestrian" speeds up a few notches. At top speed we typically travel 8 - 8 1/2 knots, in landlubber terms it takes us about 3 hours to travel 20 miles!

Dave took over the helm that evening. We passed by Florence (Siuslaw River) at around midnight. I would have loved to see all of the Oregon Coast in the daylight, but will have to do so at another time. It's amazing to see the coastal locales of my youth from this vantage point. Thomas Creek Bridge, Pistol River and Cape Sebastian were icons of my early childhood. It was a thrill to see them from the oceans view and use them as navigational points. As we came closer to Port Orford, memories of picnics at Humbug Mtn and driving that curvy stretch of road along the stream was another reminder of my childhood.

I resumed the helm at 6:30 am on the 22nd.I was enjoying my time at the wheel. The seas were like glass, making her a breeze to run. We had decided to bring her straight in to Ilwaco, WA that evening, when our plans suddenly changed.

We had filled all of our fuel tanks before we left Brookings, so had plenty of diesel to make it home. However, the fuel line configuration was continuing to put air into the system, cutting out the engines.

We were 20 miles south of Tillamook Bay when the port engine went out. Dave worked in the engine room for several hours while I ran the boat on our starboard engine. Then, as we had to switch fuel tanks for the starboard engine, air got into it's lines as well, and it cut out. Dave was able to get the starboard engine up and running again, but all of the repeated attempts at starting the engines had drained the batteries...such is life! A radio call to the Coast Guard, and help was on its way. The Cape Disappointment CG (Ilwaco, WA) had responded to our hail, so at first it looked like we'd get a tow all the way to Ilwaco! But the Tillamook Bay Coast Guard were eager to come to our rescue (perhaps why they are called the Cape "Disappointment" CG), and within an hour or so they were tossing lines across our bow. The 3 hours into Tillamook Bay bar were relaxing. We just sat back and enjoyed the view.

Crossing the bar is a different story...It's one thing to cross a rough bar when you are under your own power; it is quite another to cross it when you are "in tow". To say it was exciting would be an understatement. We were crossing 12 - 14 foot seas with 6 foot breaks. I recall seeing the jetties - rocks looming at either side of us. Waves crashing all around us. The boat lurching this way and that. At one moment our tow line was taunt , then slack...would of made for some interesting photos, but wasn't thinking of photography at the tme...sorry.

What they don't tell you before you get hauled back to safety is the success ratio of such an endeavor. 1 in 3 boats towed over a bar are capsized. We got to see the Coast Guard haul someone's capsized vessel past us the following morning. Kind of gets you in the gut, watching that. A reminder to count your blessing.

Looks like Garibaldi will be home for several days now...we're awfully glad to be here!

Brookings Harbor, OR Sept 16 - 21, 2009

After settling in at the dock in Brookings, I phoned my Uncle Curt & Grandma who lived nearby in Gold Beach to let them know of our arrival. Uncle Curt dropped what he was doing at his motel (The Oregon Trail Lodge, Gold Beach) and drove down to Brookings to see us. Dave was eager to show off his boat, so gave Curt the grand tour, then I went to run errands with my uncle and head to Gold Beach, leaving Dave to catch up on his sleep (which was much needed after an all-night run to reach Oregon).

My uncle graciously loaned us a vehicle while we stayed in Brookings, which allowed us the great opportunity to make frequent visits to Gold Beach to visit family and to run errands to supply the boat for the remainder of our journey.

The afternoon following our arrival, Dave and Curt worked together on a remodel project at the motel, while Grandma and I got a good visit in (Thursday). Friday night we all met at the motel for a scrumptious family dinner, even Grandma ventured out for the occassion!

Dave and I worked on the boat on Saturday. The weather would have permitted us to venture further north, but we had planned to spend Sunday with my family and really weren't eager to leave just yet.

Dave and Curt continued working on their project on their chores at the Oregon Trail Lodge on Sunday. Grandma and I stayed closer to home to work on our chores. At the end of the day, both Uncle Curt and Grandma drove us back to the Sea Crest. I was tickled that Grandma was able to join us. She wasn't able to tour the boat, but was able to see it below where the car was parked above the dock. Sometimes life is just about "being there"...

We both had a wonderful visit, but were longing to hit the "high seas" once again. We hoped that the seas would be forgiving and allow us to travel the next morning to resume our journey home.

Ft. Bragg - Noya Anchor, Sept 13 - 16, 2009

We left Santa Cruz on Sunday, making a big run north. The winds were slight, altho the swells were fairly good sized (10 feet at times). We had the seas in our favor, since they werre coming from the SW, virtually pushing us home. We made good time.

Dave pushed her all night, passed the San Francisco Bay channel opening and Bodega Bay. Steering has been running smoothly and both engines, too, however the RPM meter for the Starboard engine went out in the night.

Throughout the day we looked for small anchorages between Pt. Reyes and Pt. Cabrillo (Ft. Bragg). There not being much of anything available, we settled on Noya Anchorage. A small bay nestled between a natural rock jetty of the Mendocino Headlands. A beautiful spot to anchor, but left little protection from the movement of the seas. Needless to say, cooking supper was a bit of a challenge!

Dave spent the a.m. in the engine room, working his magic, while I collected bullwhip kelp from the bay. I enjoy being "creative" in the kitchen with wild ingredients. I would use my collection for a stuffed kelp dish at our next stop. By 9 am on the 15th, Dave had rewired the tachometer and had our engines ready to go. We pulled anchor, and heading north once again.

Seas were calm with 1 - 3 foot swells. In the late morning, Dave put me at the helm, so that he could take a much needed break. This lasted about an hour when we hit a fog bank. We found that we had taken aboard a stowaway, a sparrow. She sat at the bow of the boat for several hours. Occassionally she would make an attempt to fly towards land, but would soon circle and make it back to the safety of our boat.

I was at the helm again for several hours in the late afternoon. Most of my time was as we rounded Cape Mendocino. There was a light fog cover, the beautiful thing about fog is that there is no wind, making the seas like glass. In the early evening, Dave regained the helm and ran her all night. We planned to make it to Brookings, OR by morning.

We saw the most beautiful sunrise as we neared the Brookings Harbor. The skies all around were dark and ominous. Swells from the south were pushing us towards our destination. I got to bring the Sea Crest in towards the first bouy of the harbor entrance (good practice for me). The Coast Guard hailed us as we came through the bar. We tied up to the fuel dock and awaited our first Coast Guard inspection which is a common occurence (especially when crossing state lines).

Brookings Harbor was to be home for the next 6 days and proved to be a memorably, enjoyable visit.

Santa Cruz - Sept 9 - 12, 2009

Santa Cruz has been another nice respite. The first thing that I did once the boat was secured to the dock was head up to the dock to the marina facilities showers. The best damn shower I have ever had! We have made several trip into town to West Marine and for groceries. Lots of walking.

Dave found a hydraulic repair specialist in the area, and we put him to work on repairing our hydraulic steering arm. Rick, at Bay Power Equipment, has been a life saver. He was able to replace worn out gaskets on our hydraulic arm. The picture below is of Rick and Dave at the stern deck of the Sea Crest.

Our Sea Crest has been run longer and harder in the past 2 weeks than she has her entire life, minor repairs and upgrades are to be expected, since she is a 30 year old vessel.

My first full day spent in Santa Cruz was to be doing laundry...pioneer style! An old-fashioned bar of laundry soap, a sink, and lots of scrubbing. Once we reach our home port we plan to install a combo washer/dryer unit, but for the time being this will do the trick.

Today we are working on our steering and hoping to leave the harbor by this afternoon...

Until our next port...

San Simeon to Santa Cruz - Sept. 9, 09

Today we made the big run! The seas were agreeable, and the weather perfect. Hoisted anchor at 5 am. Traveled in the dark for several hours. Visibility was good. We spotted grey whales as they were making their southern migration. Two came very near the boat. I attempted to photograph them, but am afraid that my attempts didn't do the event any justice. It was a thrill to see them so close.

Lots of porpoises about. At one point in the day around 100 of them crossed our path. Hard to capture the "spirit" of the moment while bobbing at sea...but I tried! They love to dance and play with the bow of the boat, so is an experience to behold.

As we trudged along past Pt. Sur, 2 orcas were spotted off our Starboard (right) side. They followed us for a time and indulged me in a few photographs. Big Sur was cloud covered as we passed, but as we rounded the corner into Carmel, we were able to get a clear view of Pebble Beach. The closest Dave will get to golfing on this trip!

This leg of the journey's mishap was losing steering at the flybridge helm. This made entering the Santa Cruz Harbor quite challenging for Dave. It was also "Regatta Wednesday" for the sailing crowd here in Santa Cruz. Hard to negotiate the small harbor entrance when sailboat after sailboat was exiting the marina as if there were a fire on the docks! We were able to get assistance from the Harbor Patrol (we sure do love the Harbor Patrol folks we've met!). They tied unto us and found us an end mooring to tie on to. Very nice facilities here.

San Simeon - September 8, 2009

We pulled anchor at approximately 1:30 pm in Morro Bay. The winds had died down considerably and the seas had calmed somewhat. We tentatively planned on making a run for Monterey Bay, but the winds picked up, making the seas choppy.

We anchored in the San Simeon Bay, below the Hearst Castle at around 5:30 pm. Several sailboats and a few fishing boats which we had seen in the Morro Bay harbor were also anchored in the bay.

We hit the hay early, so as to get a good jump on things the next morning. The photo above is of our view of the Hearst Castle (high atop the hill) from the Sea Crest. It was a great place to anchor, quuiet and peaceful.

Morro Bay - Sept 4 - 7, 2009

We made an attempt to head around Pt. Piedres Blancas today, but found that the winds were not in our favor, so we turned back to Morro Bay. This would be our home for several days. The winds outside of the bay were high as well as the seas.

We dropped our tender into the water and would make frequent visits into port for supplies and such. There was a good fish market on the pier called Giovanni's that we visited several times. Bringing home fish for dinner. WiFi connection in the harbor wasn't that strong, but found a funky coffee shop 3 blocks from our tender mooring dock that had good service; The Rock.

We enjoyed our stay in Morro Bay, but were eager to make some headway. The stretch from Pt. Piedres Blancas to Pt. Sur was a long one with no resting stops or anchorages inbetween. A 16 PLUS hour day on the ocean! We rested up for the next part of our voyage.

Pt. Conception to Morro Bay - Sept. 3, 2009

We tied off from our bouy at approx. 4:30 am. It was a beautiful, calm morning. We planned to make it around Pt. Conception and head for San Luis Obispo Bay or Morro Bay. The winds picked up by afternoon with greater than 6 ft swells and whitecaps. Suffice it to say, it was a bumpy ride.

I am overjoyed to report that I have now acquired my "sea legs", and was in tip-top shape for the entire 12 hours into Esterro Bay leading into Morro Bay. Morro Bay is an eclectic little fishing village. We noticed on our sea charts that they had a Coast Guard Station and Harbor Master, so we assumed that we could moore at their guest/fuel dock for the night and be off the next morning. Boy, were we wrong! Along the building pilings there were boats "stacked" next to each other 3 deep to even reach the "so called" dock. Quite a few boats were anchored in the bay, so we did the same.

After a nice meal of spaghetti and green salad, we watched pelicans dive for fish before retiring for the night. Our next door neighbors were a bunch of California Sea Lions, they were a bunch of party animals, but finally quieted down a bit once it got dark out.

Leaving Santa Barbara - September 2, 2009

I woke up feeling a bit green under the gills, mostly, in retrospect, it was my reluctance to head out to open water again. I took a FULL dose of dramamine prior to my breakfast, which made me feel somewhat worse, but this was only a momentary set-back. After my breakfast I felt much better. We pushed off around noon. As we passed the Santa Barbara pier our port engine went out on us again (still air bubbles in the fuel line). This ended up being a good thing. It gave us an opportunity to practice "dropping anchor" in the bay, so that Dave could work his magic on the engine. In no time, we were up and running. The seas were calm, the weather beautiful. And I had NO sea sickness issues! It was a great day. The winds picked up as we neared Pt. Conception, so we ducked into a small bay that had anchoring bouys available. We tied up to a bouy and enjoyed a simple supper and a beautifully serene view.

Santa Barbara - Tues, September 1, 2009

After several hours of a good, hard sleep, Dave and I slowly came back to life. We had been unable to plug into shore power provided at our moorage, since the 2 plugs we had on the boat were not compatible adaptors. Fortunately, there was a West Marine store next to the Harbor Masters office, so were able to get supplies (plugs and sea charts).

Dave found a good marine mechanic and in 1 minute was able to fix the "issue", and in the process was able to point out a few handy tid-bits to Dave regarding our engine system. All in all, time and $$$ well spent. The rest of our day was spent relaxing on the boat, planning the next leg of the trip. We stayed overnight and planned to leave the following afternoon.

August 31, 2009 - Our Departure

Departed Newport Beach, CA at 6:30 am. The cruise through the harbor was wonderful. We watched the sunrise over the harbor. Photographed Nicholas Cage's former residence, as well as, John Wayne's (which is presently being remodeled). Once we hit the jetty a light fog began to form. The fog was not very thick, so visibility was good. Unfortunately, it didn't take my stomach long to find the trip disagreeable. By afternoon, the only thing that I was good for was...well...nothing! I curled up in the salon on the sofa, while Dave captained the ship.

The trip became quite rough. We soon realized the the prior owners had not utilized the Sea Crest as a blue water vessel. Flybridge furniture was not secured, and the wind and waves did some "rearranging" for us. We decided it best to come into the nearest port when we lost our "port" engine off of Santa Barbara. Dave gave the Coast Guard a call on the radio. They sent the Santa Barbara Harbor Patrol out to assist us into the harbor. It was now 5 am Tues., Sept. 1st.

We survived the first leg of our journey! However, at this point I wasn't so sure that I wished it to continue...

Departure Date Set

We are getting closer to D-day (our Departure Day) to pick up the Sea Crest. On August 29, 2009 we fly to Long Beach, California to meet up with our boat. We intend to spend that afternoon, and the next, provisioning for the journey. If all is in our favor, we will leave the Newport Beach harbor on the morning of Monday, August 31st. If the communication gods permit, I will try to update the blog with further information (and photos) before our departure, otherwise it may not be until we reach Brookings, Oregon.

Until then....

Future Home of the Sea Crest

The time is fast approaching for us to journey down to Newport Beach, CA to pick up the Sea Crest. We have been busily packing and planning for our trip down. Before we head south we needed to check out our future moorage at the Port of Ilwaco, WA.

We took a drive to Ilwaco this week to check on our arrangements for moorage of the Sea Crest. Ilwaco is a wonderful little fishing village with cafes and quaint shops lining the boardwalk along the docks. The downtown is just a few blocks from the boardwalk, so will be convenient for picking up life’s little necessities once we come into port. There is even local bus service across from the Port offices that can take us into Aberdeen.

Our slip number is J33, conveniently located on the first row off of the boardwalk. It will be a great little town to use as our “home-base” once we are back in Washington.

Until then…

Preparing for the Journey

The time for us to embark on our sea-going adventure is fast approaching. Dave, Matilda and I have purchased a 45 foot trawler that is presently located in Newport Beach, CA. We will be flying down (once all the preparations are made) to bring her home to the Pacific Northwest, Summer 2009.



We estimate our journey at sea to take approximately 2 - 3 weeks to travel over 1000 nautical miles to our destination, the Port of Ilwaco, WA. This is my first sea voyage, but my captain is an old salt! Dave is an experienced commercial fishing captain (Oregon/Washington coast), and has extensive navigation experience as a bush pilot in Alaska. As ships First Mate, I will be learning from the best!



Once the SeaCrest is "home" we will be living aboard her as we make preparations for our next adventure...



I will update this blog with tales and photos of our voyage as we experience them, so please visit regularly to join in on our journey.