Category: paddling

Too Windy for the Gate

BASK Thursday Paddle April 25, 2019

Thursday, April 25, 9:45 am. I’m the first one to arrive at our intended launch site, Horseshoe Cove, just inside the North end of the Golden Gate Bridge. The weather prediction was for light winds and light current. When I step out of the car though, there’s a stiff wind blowing with the prediction for gusts to 25.

Our plan was to meet at Horseshoe Cove and paddle out the Golden Gate to Black Sand Beach near the Point Bonita Lighthouse for lunch. At 10:30 with several of us huddled discussing the weather we decide to go to “plan B,” which is to drive to Sausalito and launch from the public boat ramp next to Salito’s Crab House. We’re on the water by 11:30, six of us in five boats, one double and four singles.

We paddle along the shore, staying out of the wind with a little beach in mind just beyond the town of Sausalito, paddling in the direction of our original launch site. We paddle past the yacht harbor in relatively calm water, then along the Sausalito waterfront with diners on the decks of restaurants, past the ferry where we wave to the tourists and kids, and past multi-million dollar homes.

Sausalito is a popular tourist destination with many fine restaurants , shops and quaint inns. There’s also an annual Art fair which happens on the Labor Day weekend, also a number of houseboats. Richardson’s Bay has been a popular place for “anchor-outs,” but today we see few of the run-down looking boats. Tourists are out in shorts and t-shirts, many on rental bikes. I’m wearing a dry suit which is appropriate for wind and choppy water.

We find our lunch spot, but before landing several of us decide to go out to Point Cavallo to take a peek at the Golden Gate Bridge. As expected as we rounded Point Cavallo the wind hit us and we all agreed that we made the right decision to avoid going out the Golden Gate.

After lunch we paddled back to our launch point, having covered 5.6 miles. You can view more photos here and view a track of our paddle here.

Martinez Paddle

Paddling on the Carquinez Straights

On Saturday April 13 I managed to join two paddling buddies, Don and Jackie for a paddle on the Carquinez Straights, a tidal straight that connects the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers with San Francisco Bay. Being tidal one needs to pay attention to the tides and currents. We launched in the morning and rode the flood current up the straights and turned around about the time the current was changing, so that we were riding the current back down the river also. Our launch point was the Martinez Marina, and from there we paddled east, under the Benicia-Martinez bridges and past several oil refineries with their piers for tankers, keeping our eyes open for shipping traffic, since ships can travel up the river to Stockton and Sacramento. A number of sea lions were holding court in some of the piers and making their presence know with their barking. We also saw a few Osprey, Canadian Geese and numerous shore birds. We stopped at a couple of small beaches, one of which was covered with shards of glass and pottery.

Our paddle covered about 9.5 miles. You can view a track of our course here.

Up the Creek

Jumping into the middle of the thread of posts about our desert trip, here’s an on-the-water adventure from yesterday’s paddle with my fellow BASK members.

February 21. We gathered at Buck’s Landing in San Rafael for a paddle up Gallinas Creek. With the prediction of wind and a very high tide, exploring one of the sloughs around the Bay made sense. Many of the tidal sloughs are only accessible by kayak with high tides.

Six of us were ready to launch at 10:45 AM, and after a brief safety talk and a radio check we were on the water. Radios weren’t really called for on this paddle, but since we have them it’s good to make sure they are working. As we paddled up the creek we were entertained by shore birds; avocets, herons, egrets and a variety of other shore birds. At one point we decided to explore a side channel that headed off in the direction of the Marin Civic Center and that took us as far as a culvert under a bridge that was not navigable. Returning to the main channel we continued up the creek to Highway 101. There the creek disappears in dark tunnel under the road. Pitch Black. One of our intrepid paddlers disappeared into the darkness, followed by another. Half-way though the tunnel it makes a turn, and once around the bend, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Soon the six of us were on the west side of the highway, looking up at a road sign that read “Marin Co. Civic Center Next Exit.”

Somehow, with the narrow creek we managed to get our boats turned around to head back through the tunnel. Then it was back down the creek to Santa Margarita Island Preserve where we stopped for lunch and took a short walk around the island. Our adventure covered a little over seven miles. You can view more photos here and a map of our route here

Elkhorn Slough

BASK Elkhorn Slough Paddle

On Monday January 21 I joined my fellow BASK members for a paddle on Elkhorn Slough. Elkhorn Slough is one of the largest tidal estuaries in California. It’s about 90 miles south of San Francisco and a popular spot for hiking, bird watching and kayaking. Tidal marshes make up a significant part of the slough, and more often than not the marshes are off limits because they are too shallow to paddle or exposed. We had an extremely high tide on Monday, with a high of 6.4 feet at 9:44 AM. We launched from Moss Landing North Harbor. Just off the launch site we saw dozens of Sea Otters. We then paddled south and under the highway bridge, past harbor seals and more sea otters. With the incoming current we had a bit of a boost paddling up the slough. We took a detour up a creek that’s normally not accessible. Paddling under oak trees and through fences, looking out for the occasional barbed wire. We saw plenty of Harbor seals as well as sea otters, and towards out lunch site at Kirby Park we saw Osprey. We paddled 10 miles over the course of the day. You can view a track of our route here

Lost in the Fog

On Thursday January 10, I joined my BASK paddling buddies for the weekly Thursday Lunch Paddle. We congregated at the northeast end Loch Lomond Marina where there’s a small beach that provides a serviceable launch site when the tide isn’t too high.


Paddling in the fog. BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle on 1/10/19.

When I arrived at 9:15 everybody was in a huddle discussing the fog. Boats were still on car tops and it looked doubtful whether we would get on the water. Our original plan was to paddle across the bay from our launch site. Given we would be crossing shipping lanes and ferry traffic, and with the challenge of navigating in the fog, we opted to paddle along the coast keeping the land in sight. We paddled along the shore, paddling under the Richmond San Rafael Bridge and then past San Quentin State Prison to a little beach that is a frequent launch site for windsurfers. After lunch we retraced our route, but for the last mile or so we decided to follow a compass course that would take us directly back to the marina. There was a point in the last leg where we were out of site of any landmarks, surrounded by fog. It was an eerie feeling to be paddling in the fog without any visual reference point. It wasn’t too long though when out of the fog loomed the entrance to Loch Lomond Marina. We were back on the beach by 3 pm having paddled 9.5 miles. You can view the track of our paddle here.

Lunch at the Albany Bulb

On Thursday, December 6, I managed to sneak away from my usual work routine for a paddle with some of my BASK buddies. We launched from Ferry Point in Richmond and paddled inside the breakwater of Brooks Island. 

  • Launching from Ferry Point

Then after letting some shipping traffic pass we crossed the channel and paddled through a break in the breakwater.

  • Richmond Waterfont
  • Richmond Shipping Channel
  • Paddling through a break in the breakwater

It’s only possible to paddle through the break on a very high tide.  High tide was 6.5 feet at 10:30 am, perfect for us to take a short cut. Once we were through the breakwater we paddled on the inside of Bird Island, where we were entertained by harbor seals and birds.

  • Rich and Bird Island

Once we were passed Brooks Island we set a course for the tip of the Albany Bulb landing at the end of the bulb under the watchful eye of the dragon, a public art sculpture. One of our members managed to stumble on a rock in the shallow water and banged his head on his boat. 

  • Landing on the Albany Bulb
  • Steve gets a bump on his head

After lunch we explored the artwork on the bulb. 

  • David finds a Friend
  • Public Art

  • Public Art

  • Public Art

  • Public Art

When we got ready to launch our boats again, what had been a sandy beach was now rocks. Our boats were left high and dry with the receding tide. We ended up carrying our boats a short distance to a better launch point and paddled back by way of the Richmond Inner Harbor to check out the new ferry terminal.

  • The New Ferry Terminal 
  • Under the Pier

Thursday Paddle

In the midst of a very busy work schedule I manged to carve out Thursday, November 1 as a day off to go paddling with a few of my BASK buddies. We gathered at the public boat launch in Sausalito and had our boats on the water at 10:30; six of us.

Houseboat. Sausalito.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle.

Being wary of the ebb current in Raccoon Straight we paddled across Richardson Bay well east of Peninsula Point. Then hugging the shore we rounded the point and paddled close to shore to take advantage of any eddies and slack current close to shore. When we felt we had paddled far enough east to compensate for the current we headed across the straight making our way to Ayala Cove.  Lunch included trying to dispose of left over Halloween candy. Then it was back on the water for the return trip. We had calm water in both directions, with no wind.

Taking photos from a kayak is always a challenge. Where to put the paddle when I’m holding the camera. Trying to compose while my paddling buddies are in constant motion. I’m always looking for something that involves a sense of design and interesting lighting. And once I pick the paddle up after taking a photo, I have to work to catch up with the rest of the group, Not to mention the rather limited point of view with an eye level 30 inches off the water. When the water is rough, it’s all about paddling and bracing, so I focus on the paddle and staying upright. On a quiet day like this I can put the paddle down briefly. Quite a contrast to spring and summer weather when the afternoon sea breeze can kick up a chop and lead to a bumpy ride, not to mention the challenge of paddling in wind.

We covered 7.2 miles on the paddle. Here’s a link to the track.

Lunch on Angel Island 8/23

On Thursday August 23 with my work docket managed, I strapped my kayak on the top of my truck and headed to Sausalito to join fellow Bay Area Sea Kayakers (BASK) for a jaunt to Angel Island. We had a cool “Fogust” day with favorable currents and wind. We launched from the public boat ramp next to Salitos Crab House. You wouldn’t know there is a public boat ramp here without some local knowledge; and while it’s a convenient spot to launch on a weekday morning, I can imagine it would be a challenge on the weekend with the town full of tourists.

BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle. August 23, 2018.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle. August 23, 2018.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle. August 23, 2018.
BASK Thursday Lunch Paddle. August 23, 2018.

We launched at 10:30, Paddled down Richardson Bay to Peninsula Point where we poked our heads out into Raccoon Straight to see what was in store for us. Conditions looked promising, so we headed across the straight towards the West Garrison. As we crossed Raccoon Straight it became apparent that the current was carrying us east so we altered our course for Ayala Cove where we landed and had lunch.

After lunch we were back in our boats and we made a course for the Corinthian Yacht Club. Once we were across the straight and close to the Yacht Club we paddled along the shore admiring the houses clinging to the cliffs. We had an easy paddle out and back, on what can be a bit of a challenge if the wind and currents are contrary. We were back at our launch site at 2:30 in the afternoon having covered not quite seven miles.  You can view more photos here and you can view the track of our route here

Hunt for Sunken Treasure

The word was, that if we were lucky we might find the propeller of a World War II fighter plane that went down in Drakes Estero. The tide has to be just right. If the tide is high the propeller is underwater. If the tide is too low, there’s not enough water to float a kayak. As it turns out our timing was perfect. We launched from the location of the old Oyster Farm and paddled about 2 1/2 miles down the Estero and into Home Bay. The propeller is not far from the eastern shore of the bay.

Propeller of a P-39 Airacobra in Home Bay. Drakes Estero. Point Reyes National Seashore.
Propeller of a P-39 Airacobra in Home Bay. Drakes Estero. Point Reyes National Seashore.
BASK Skills Clinic paddle on Drakes Estero.

During WWII Drakes Estero was used as a practice bombing range. It seems hard to imagine P-39 Airacobras flying dive bombing missions over the bay, given it’s current peaceful state.

The usual paddle on Drakes Estero is to launch from the beach at the parking area, the previous location of the oyster farm, and paddle down the bay to the sand spit at the entrance for lunch and return. Here’s a link to a Youtube video I put together a couple of years ago of a paddle on the estero. We were paddling as part of the 2018 BASK Skills Clinic. Our group decided on an alternative plan. We decided to poke into Home Bay and look for sunken treasure, the treasure being the propeller of the P-39. We were lucky enough to find the propeller and then, with a nice beach close by we landed and had lunch. With a rising tide, the propeller was just about all under water when we finished lunch and our boats were just about to float off the rapidly diminishing beach.

Back in our boats we were amazed to watch several schools of bat rays and a few leopard sharks gliding under our boats in the shallow water. With the hopes of capturing one in a photo I stuck my waterproof camera in the water, over the side of my kayak, and snapped away.

BASK Skills Clinic paddle on Drakes Estero.
BASK Skills Clinic paddle on Drakes Estero.

Amazingly enough, I actually captured one, although not something to brag about as far as quality of the photo is concerned. When we returned to our launch point the wind was picking up and the fog was moving in. Perfect timing for a pleasant day on the water.

 

Building the Pygmy Ronan

After paddling a Pygmy Coho for close to 20 years I decided I wanted a boat that was a little more playful on the water. The Pygmy Ronan caught my attention and after paddling one at the Pygmy facility in Port Townsend Washington, I decided this would be my next boat. This boat is intended to serve two purposes, when I’m paddling with my wife it will be her boat, and when I’m paddling with others, it will be my boat. I started building in May of 2017 and during the course of the build I kept several time lapse cameras going to document the process. I launched the boat in October. Over the course of the build I accumulated over 40 hours of time lapse video, so it’s taken me some time to edit it down to two minutes.  The boat took about 75 hours to assemble, working in chunks of time from an hour or so up to three hours.

I’m happy to say the boat performs beyond my expectations. Light weight and easy to get on an off my the top of my pop-up camper,  playful on the water and easier to manage in rough water than the 17 foot Coho.