Tag Archives: santa cruz island

Live Fire Operations in Pacific Missle Range — closer than you think!

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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA-PACIFIC MISSILE TEST RANGE HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS-PT MUGU
 
range
 
So, just where do I have to start worrying?

The answer is – just the other side of the coastwise traffic lane and just south of Channel Islands Harbor. I called Plead control last week and asked if I’d be in the range if I transited from a point just south of Anacapa Light to Santa Barbara Island.

Yes, indeedy, they replied. How about in harbor at Santa Cruz. AFFIRMATIVE.

And, if you look very closely at the chart, you can see that there’s a triangle shaped area that starts at Pt. Mugu and extends through the traffic lane.

Here’s a link to a bigger graphic: Pt. Mugu Sea Range

So, while they don’t intentionally target our favorite sailing areas, it is possible that they intend to overfly Santa Cruz or Santa Rosa and – frequently – San Miguel. If in doubt, give them a call. And if you intend to sail south from CI harbor, make doubly sure that your VHF is on and tuned to #16. You really don’t want the Securite announcement delivered by helicopter.

For information regarding the current HAZARDOUS OPERATIONS status updates contact “PLEAD CONTROL” on VHF MARINE Bridge to Bridge
CH-11 or CH-16, or at 805-989-8841 (0600-1800), 805-816-0792 (after hours). Request all Vessels transiting the PACIFIC MISSILE TEST RANGE
submit PLEAD CONTROL request, including vessel information, voyage destination, est. time of entry and departure of PACIFIC MISSILE TEST
RANGE, fax to 805-989-0102.

 

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Twin Harbors – a beautiful Santa Cruz north shore anchorage in the Santa Barbara Channel Islands in Southern California

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As predicted, Memorial Day weekend found an enormous flotilla heading to Santa Cruz. From a distance of 2 miles or so we counted 30+ boats in Prisoners and saw masts so thick in Pelican that it looked like a toothpick box. This was midafternoon on Saturday. By Sunday, we were told, there were more than 125 boats on the eastern end of the island, spilling out of Yellowbanks-Smugglers from Hungryman almost to Sandstone Point.

Even though we’d waited too long to look for a refuge on Saturday – we’d been side-tracked by a pair of Humpbacks in the vicinity of Cavern Point (above) – we got lucky and found that Twin Harbors only harbored one small runabout.

I wouldn’t want to squeeze more than two boats in here. Truthfully, I’d prefer to be solo unless it’s flat calm.

In addition to the video, take a look-up at our cruising guide for Twin Harbors and if you have anything to add or dispute, please comment below.

Santa Ana tales – what to do when the “Devil Wind” kicks in here in Southern California

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Randy ChapmanThough Randy Chapman is a newly minted captain, he’s got more experience sailing the Channel Islands than anyone other than Brian Fagan, Mike Pyzel and a few of the crustiest urchin fishermen.

Randy recently posted a comment to my Santa Ana tale from last week. He’s given us some excellent pointers, which I think need a better position than simply being appended to my article. So here is his sage advice -

Last Fall, Mick and I were on Sailtime’s Varekai, double anchored in Alberts on Santa Cruz Island.

We arose to a beautiful warm morning without a hint of breeze. I always listen to VHF Channel 3 first thing in the morning and there was no mention of any serious weather moving into the area. While cooking breakfast, I noticed white caps driven by an east wind developing about a mile east of the anchorage. Within 15 minutes a small SE swell started rolling into the anchorage followed by an increase in wind speed from the east. Mick & I immediately began getting the stern anchor up, but halfway into the process the winds picked up to 20 to 30 kts. It was touch and go for awhile, but we were able to get both anchors up without hitting the rocks and motored west into Coaches.

Lessons I’ve Learned:
1. Do everything Dan said to do.
2. Just like reefing, if you think you need to move the boat – it’s probably too late. At the first sign of changing wind or swell conditions – LEAVE – you can always come back.
3. Trust your instincts and don’t depend on accurate weather forecasts – they are wrong at least 50% of the time.
4. Have a “bail-out” anchorage planned – especially in the fall months. There are very few suitable anchorages for Santa Ana wind conditions out at the islands. The best choices on SCI are:
– Chinese Hbr: Get as close as you can against the cliffs located at the NE end of the bay.
– Potato Anch: Very protected spot in a Santa Ana.
– Coches Anch: OK but not great – get as close as you can against the high cliffs on the east side of the anchorage.
– Fraser Pt. : Anchor in the small inlet on the north side of the point as close as you can get to the cliffs.
– Christy Valley Anch: Anchor north of the canyon for the best protection.
Remember, these anchorages are good spots in a NE blow, but are lousy under the normal NW conditions. Be prepared to up-anchor as soon as the NE stops blowing.
5. Always carry an extra days worth of rations. I’ve been stuck out there more than once due to weather and it always good to have something to eat while you are waiting for the wind to stop.
6. Hunker down – In my opinion, it’s always better to find a safe anchorage and hunker down rather than to trying to get back to the harbor. Besides, there will be less wind out at the islands than on the mainland.
7. Head west young man- Like Tom said, you can always head west up to San Miguel. It’s a great way to get away from the wind.

More Tales of the Southern California Santa Ana

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Sean

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Twenty years ago, Captain Sean Quine set out for the first overnighter on his new yacht. He sailed to Smugglers Cove on an idyllic afternoon.

Conditions changed.

Radically.

People – though not in Sean’s crew – died.

Log entry: 28 October 1988

Maiden overnight voyage on Down Under, a 54-foot Hunter cutter-rigged sloop.

Aboard: my girlfriend Nicki, my soon to be step-daughter Brittany, a friend of Brittany’s and me.

Weather: Skies clear, a steady 10 – 15 knot wind out of the NW.

Passage to Smugglers: Uneventful and entirely enjoyable. We arrived at Smugglers to join about 9 other boats. We chose to anchor approximately 200 feet from the point which separates Smugglers and Yellowbanks.

At anchor: The afternoon was glorious, an inflatable zoomed around the cove pulling a water skier; the cove was sunny and the water flat. That evening, as I swayed in the hammock I’d strung between the staysail and the mast, I remarked to my girlfriend on how bright the stars were that night.

We called it a night at around 10pm, and fell asleep.

Anchor watch: At 2am the wind started howling. Within an hour it was over 30 knots with gusts to 50 knots. A bit of the roller-furling staysail came loose, exposing it to the full force of the wind. This eventually caused the furling line to part and the sail unfurled explosively. I raced to the deck to lower the sail, however not before the sail was shredded.

Fortunately, we had set two anchors at approximately 45 degrees relative to port and starboard bow. One was a 44lb Bruce and the other a Northhill.

The wind was now heading directly towards the southern end of Smugglers; the boat had spun around and was no more that 10 feet from the rocky point at the southern edge of Smugglers.

Wind and sea continued to build over the early morning hours. Wind waves of more than 6 feet crashed into the anchorage. Pictures I took of the neighboring sport fisher show waves breaking over the bow of the anchored boat.

For now, my anchors held tight and kept me off the rocks. The boat was equipped with a dated manual windlass that we were not sure could handle the load. We realized that unless we were to cut the anchor lines we would be unable to move to a safer anchorage.

We decided to wait it out, as the anchors appeared to be holding fine. Right next door in Yellowbanks, drama was unfolding as a Coast Guard cutter had washed ashore in an attempt to rescue another boater. Later, I heard that another boat with a family aboard had died as their boat slammed into Anacapa.

Escape: The winds persisted for nearly 5 days as we sat aboard Down Under hoping for a break. On the fifth day the winds had decreased to 25-30 knots and we decided to take our chances. With Nicki at the helm, we motored at full throttle against the wind and waves. In the process of pulling up the first anchor, the line parted, leaving the anchor firmly secured to the seafloor. During this attempt the dinghy painter got wrapped around the prop and sucked the dinghy (a hard fiberglass with wood trim dink) under the boat and crunched it into many pieces.

Having now only a single anchor we contemplated our next move. Since our engine was out of commission we decided to attempt to pull the anchor and sail out of the anchorage. Fortunately the second anchor did come up with the manual windlass and we were able to reach out of the anchorage under sail.

Homeward bound: The passage home was windy and bumpy, however we made it to the Ventura harbor entrance just in time for the wind to die completely! We were towed back into our slip.

The Bill: Down Under had damage to the hull, sails, and lost the dinghy. Total damage – as they say – $15k. The insurance company was grateful; grateful that it wasn’t a total loss.

I learned a valuable lesson about sailing and carefully selecting an anchorage at this time of year. And to keep a watchful eye even if the weather seems perfect.