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Cruising the
California C Cruising on the California coast in the long, lazy days of late summer was extremely satisfying. The bays and harbors are well located for comfortable day sailing and slow-paced mornings segue into exhilarating afternoons galloping ahead of the sea breeze to reach the next anchorage by sundown. As we sailed southwards aboard our Liberty 458 sloop, Distant Drummer, we sought out attractions to amuse even the most seasoned cruiser; nature and history provide a wealth of interesting places to explore, the cities are teeming with
52 Latitudes & Attitudes
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Suzy Carmody, s/v Distant Drummer
shopping, and there is a plethora of sights to see from fun parks to film studios. While cruising in California, I was captivated by the tales of R.H. Dana who spent two years aboard a Boston brig loading hides between San Francisco and San Diego. His memoir “Two Years Before the Mast” provided an intriguing cruising guide and it was interesting to compare the passage of today with his voyage nearly two hundred years ago.
MONTEREY BAY AND POINT CONCEPTION We had been in the San Francisco Bay area for six weeks and had explored most of its nooks and crannies. We had cruised up the delta, hung out around the Bay, and sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge enough times to finally catch it naked without its habitual foggy shroud. As we passed under the Gate for the final time, we were graced by a pair of humpback whales. It was fantastic to watch them surfacing and breaching so close to the entrance to the bay. The passage from San Francisco to Monterey was a leisurely three day cruise, motor-sailing in the gentle w w w . L at s A t t s . c o m