Sailing Encore

We are back in our San Pedro slip and we are staying warm and enjoying the holiday season. Taking 3 mile walks and doing push-ups and squats, etc. almost every day to keep active. At the beginning of the month we enjoyed the LA Harbor Boat Parade from our slip. Kaylyn and Drew and even Mac watched the beautifully decorated boats cruise up and down the main canal. Great way to start off the season.

On one of our walks we went to the LA Harbor Maritime Museum and learned of the early history of San Pedro and the growth of the fishing industry here. Sardines and Mackerel, then Tuna being the drive for the early canning factories at the San Pedro docks.

Over the years they fished out the tuna and the canning companies including Starkist and Chicken of the Sea moved out.

Then the shipping industry built up, making LA/Long Beach the busiest US port. It is a crazy, busy place that I never really paid attention to until I lived right in it.

Then we sailed down to Newport Beach and anchored out for several days. We took advantage of the warm December weather and had our picnic dinghy ride among the beautiful homes. Even had a toast to our friends hard a work at Hoag as we motored by.

Then in the evening we dressed up warm and motored out to see the homes lit up in their Christmas glory. The Santa Ana winds were whipping through the back bay with heavy gusts that were fueling the awful fires up in Ventura. We just hunkered down and waited them out then headed up to Long Beach where we anchored out off Cabrillo Beach.

It is a General Anchorage by the charts and legal to do so, but apparently you need a “permit”. Who knew? Just at dusk, as I was starting to prep dinner, the LA Harbor Police boat came along side our boat to inspect us.

We sat up top while they searched below. Once we passed inspection (‘safety’ they said), they gave us a permit to spend the night and were on their way. Very nice young men. In all our months in Mexico we expected to be, but were NEVER boarded by their police and here we got boarded just outside our marina. The last time we were boarded by Police/Coastguard was in 1996 off Martinique.

Then, off we went, north to Marina Del Rey, to get our new instruments put in. The sail up was very nice but up in the distance you could see the Ventura fires billowing into the sky. Our thoughts and prayers went out to families and firefighters involved.

We stayed at the Boatyard Marina along with some locals.

Once the instruments were in and working great, we headed back south to our slip, locked up the boat and drove north to Paso Robles Wine Country to visit with friends and taste the grapes. Good times. We traveled Interstate 5 since the coast highway was still under siege with the Ventura/Santa Barbara fires. Our thoughts and prayers continued for the people involved.

Firefighters battle a Santa Ana wind-driven brush fire called the Thomas Fire on Dec.4, 2017 in the Santa Paula area of Ventura County. The fire exploded to 31,000 acres with zero percent containment overnight Monday into early Tuesday morning, according to Ventura County fire officials. December 4, 2017. (Photo by Gene Blevins for the Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG))

This past week I have been battling the flu with aches, chills and coughing. Makes me grateful for my health all year. But I finally have strength and spirit to bake, shop, pack, shop, and wrap and shop some more. I strung some lights on the boat and am enjoying the electric heater and blanket I get to use via dock shore power.

Christmas is coming and we will be so happy to have our children, their spouses and our little granddaughters here to visit soon.

May you be surrounded by love and warmth and as much peace as families can bring together! It has truly been an amazing 2017 for Vernon and me.

Joy to you, from us! Cheers!