underway1A.html

August 9: Under the Golden Gate at Moonrise
The final leg down the coast was in calmer seas---sailing in 10 to 15 knots of wind under blue skies, with the California
headlands on the horizon. We rounded Point Reyes around 8pm. Charles and Jan witnessed the most incredible moon
rise---gigantic, very orange, with a clear impression of the "Man in the Moon." At 2am, Casteele slid under the Golden Gate
Bridge, the massive art deco arches looming above us and the lights of San Francisco shimmering in the background.
Excitement, relief, and exhilaration overcame exhaustion. We made it!! We arrived at the slip at 3:30 AM---quite ready for
sleep.

August 10-14: Celebrating Our Arrival in San Fran
Berthed in South Beach Marina, we are catching up on sleep and play. We have two fold-up bikes and are pedaling through
the streets of San Francisco. Our good friends Charles and Barb took us out for a celebration dinner at the St. Francis
Yacht Club. A marvelous seafood buffet and dead-on views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay. A perfect way to
celebrate the completion of the first leg of our journey.

August 15-21: Omaha to Celebrate Jan's Parents' 65th
Joan and I hopped on a plane to the great metropolis of Omaha, Nebraska, to join my parents in celebrating their 65th
wedding anniversary and my mom's 85th birthday. This was a very special occasion because only last January my mother
was diagnosed with lymphoma and was not expected to live. She surprised everyone, especially the doctors, by facing
down the cancer and battling her way through chemo--pretty good for an 85-year-old woman. She is truly a miracle and we
all have great admiration for the way that she, Dad, and the rest of family walked through that difficult time. This was a very
special family time.

August 22-Sept 10: Life As Live-Aboards in San Francisco
Back in San Francisco after our trip to Omaha and settling into life on the boat in an urban setting. Also, time to confront the
myriad projects we didn't complete before leaving Seattle. We have an ideal location here in South Beach—quiet, secure
marina, right on The Embarcadero, a short bike ride from friends Charles and Barb, Whole PayCheck, West Marine, REI,
Staples, and other basics of urban living. Almost every morning Jan rides her little fold-up bike down to Golden Gate and
back. Sometimes Joan joins her, other times Joan takes a nice, slow run.
Getting accustomed to our new way of life has been a personal challenge for me (Jan). First of all, my phones don’t work—
Yikes!! Secondly, I have to search for mochas! Then there is the problem of getting online while living on a steel boat—
wireless will not go through steel! Which means a lot of schlepping to Starbucks for WiFi--at least I can get mochas while
I'm there. Barb and Chuck have also been great about providing access to internet, printers, and even laundry facilities!I
have discovered that living on a boat is not unlike living in a house--THINGS BREAK AND MALFUNCTION. I have to
learn all new systems. I can’t seem to get the wrench and screw driver out of my hand. But believe it or not--I love it. This
adventure has helped me to be present in every moment--something I have to do because everything is new. I no longer am
on autopilot. I love not having a car--biking everywhere. Going to the market everyday because we don’t have the
refrigerator space for a lot of groceries.

July 29, 2006: A Wonderful Farewell
Our hearts are still full from all the warmth and good wishes we
received at our "Fair Winds" dock party at Elliott Bay Marina.
What a send-off all of you gave us. We will carry the memories
with us. Heartfelt thanks to friends and family for taking the time to
wish us fair winds and calm seas.

July 30: Casting Off Our Lines!
great ocean sailors (trans-Pac racers) Chuck Cunningham and
great ocean sailors (trans-Pac racers) Chuck Cunningham and
Barbara O'Leary. We arrived in Port Townsend with many
projects still to complete--the first being test-riding a fold-up
bicycle! Wonderful dinner party with close friends and sailing
buddies. Another memorable evening.buddies. Another
memorable evening.

July 31: Bashing Our Way to Neah Bay
Out into the Straits by 5 am, heading for Neah Bay. Rounded Point Wilson
to encounter 25 knots of wind--on our nose. Instead of tacking back and
forth out the Straits, we decided to put our new engine to a test. Not long
after passing Port Angeles we were hit by a blast of wind and wave action
that had Casteele nose-diving into the short, steep troughs. Lots of water
over the bow! Entered the protected calm of Neah Bay about 7:30 and
settled in for the first of many "Amazing Meals by Barb." (Barb pre-made
ALL the meals for this trip! No weight loss happening on this passage.)

August 1: Into the Pacific
Left Neah Bay after much-needed rest and headed west into the Pacific.
Looked both ways and decided to turn left. Picked up a nice wind and
sailed with our new self-steering vane under clear skies, with the rugged
coast of the Olympic Peninsula on one horizon, open ocean on the other.
We are staying closer to shore than we initially planned (we're about 20
miles off) so we can duck into Newport, Oregon, if we have to in order to
avoid some forecasted high winds off southern Oregon / northern California.

August 2-3: Sailing Down the Washington & Oregon Coasts
Ghosted south along the Washington coast under blue skies,coasting
gently over nearly flat seas. The Pacific Ocean was living up to its
name. Eventually lost wind and had to motor, but off Gray's Harbor
finally started picking up some wind. Both winds and waves steadily
increased from that point on, and we sailed the rest of the way to
Newport, Oregon, with great following winds and building seas.
Visited by a pod of Pacific white dolphins, jetting back and forth at
our bow. Tucked into Newport early Thursday to avoid storm
brewing off southern Oregon/northern Calif coast.

August 4-5: Waiting Out the Storm
In Newport, Oregon, for a couple days, waiting out a storm and
doing chores and errands. Most of all, catching up on sleep!

August 8: Big Winds Off Mendocino
Motored into Humboldt Bay / Eureka at 4am, playing connect the lights to navigate
up the channel. Once the fuel dock opened, had the interesting experience of tying
up to slimy pilings and having the fuel line handed down to us from 8 feet above. Off
into the open seas again, and OH JOY, found both sunshine and a whale. As we
rounded Cape Mendocino, the once gentle winds and seas began a slow
transformation. A little late in the game, we realized it was [past] time to reef. Oops.
All hands on deck to turn into the wind and reef the main. Green water over the
bow, dousing Jan and Joan as they worked. Absolutely exhilerating-and very wet!
Casteele's flush decks and steady motion make a solid, safe, working platform,
though. As the night progressed, the winds increased and the seas became ever
more steep and confused. We rotated time at the helm, trading off every 20 minutes
(about the max time one could maintain the energy and concentration). At one point,
Charles clocked our boat speed at 14.5 knots and estimated wave height at 9 to 10
feet. Whee! ( 14.5 knots in at boat in confused seas is much like going 120 miles
per hour in a Volkswagon in a 60 mile per hour wind—both exciting and terrifying.)
Added to all this was a spectacular full moon. It felt as though we were kayaking
down a river of light, over full blown rapids-a sight we'll not soon forget. The winds
started to abate around 3am. We hooked up Monty and tried to get some rest.

San Fran is a wonderful place--very urban and quaint. We do
believe this city is the sailing capital of the world. You can sail in the
bay and get every wind and weather condition possible---every 10
minutes. Can be challenging and a whole lot of fun. The only
problem is that we were hoping for sun and warmth--instead, we
got fog and cold.
One of the highlights of our time here has been the art. We saw the
"Monet in Normandy" exhibit--worth it despite the
crowds--attended the outstanding American Craft Show, and sailed
to Sausalito for its annual arts festival, where we admired the
incredible artwork and had a real nostaligia moment listening to
"Blood, Sweat, and Tears."
We have biked the villages of Marin County with Barb, sailed to the
birthplace of our self-steering vane, Monsieur Monitor (Monitor
factory near Richmond, where the kind folks checked our
installment and pronounced it good), did a weekend sail in the Bay
with Barb and Chuck (during which Barb literally buried Casteele's
stainless steel toe rail), and had another lovely daysail with friend
Judy Fawcett and her friend Wendy Soles, followed by a fine dinner
at St. Francis Club.
Will start heading down the coast again September 11, after helping
Charles celebrate his birthday. Will be just the two of us from San
Fran to Morro Bay. Looking forward to being in open waters again.

August 6: Southern Oregon Coast
Left Newport early under foggy skies. Rounded the outer buoy and headed south, eventually picking up enough wind to
sail. The world continues to be painted in damp shades of gray. Where are the sunny blue skies we long for?!

August 7: Monty at the Helm and Water in the Bilge(!!!)
Sailed through the night until early morning. Our elegant self-steering vane, "Monsieur Monitor" ("Monty" for short) has
been performing beautifully. A little excitement when we discovered water flooding into our bilge. Jan donned her
plumber's hat and quickly repaired the cause: a busted water hose. Concerned about the accuracy of our fuel gauge, we
decided to detour into Eureka to refuel. The gray skies are laden with moisture, with everything wet and chilly.