Gung Hey Fot Choy! It’s 4710 on the Chinese lunar calendar and the year of the Dragon!
The frantic call came in at 06:30 on Saturday morning. “Did I wake you?” It was Mrs. Harper, my good neighbor who was in the process of bringing her boat, La Tortuga, home from Tower Park. The good folks at West Coast Canvas had replaced all of her tattered canvas in a little under four days and it was time for her to head back home.
Sharron had arranged for friends from her yacht club to act as crew to help her bring the boat down the river as far as Pittsburg. After a pleasant and uneventful journey, that crew left her safely tied to the guest dock at Pittsburg Marina. I was committed to attend a holiday boutique, but I had volunteered my Sweetie to help Sharron bring the boat from Pittsburg all the way home to Oyster Cove.
During the night, a sly north wind reared its boisterous head and really bounced La Tortuga around at the dock. The lines creaked and groaned and Mrs. Harper claimed she only got about two hours of fitful sleep. She was calling at that hour to see if she should postpone the last leg of the journey and wait for a better weather window.
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Our dear Mrs. Harper is a prudent lady who tends to worry. Sweetie, on the other hand, tends to throw caution to the wind. A little breeze would never prevent him from performing his manly duty. “Tell her it will be fine” was his reply when I told him of her concern.
Since we were already up, and everybody knows that an early start is the best kind, I drove Sweetie over to the South City BART station where he could pick up a swift train to Pittsburg.
The wind was really blowing up a Hooligan. I could see the tops of the waves being blown off as I drove back toward Oyster Cove. Sweetie, if not prudent, is at least cautious and I knew he would not chance the trip if he felt it was going to be dangerous. I expected a phone call informing me of a delay. No such call ever arrived.
By the time Sweetie arrived in Pittsburg, the wind was snarling and fierce. The entrance of the marina looked as if a giant washing machine agitator was at work. The furious north wind was howling through the narrow opening and causing the water to roil and boil and blowing the boat off the guest dock.
Sweetie had never driven the single-engine CHB prior to this encounter and it was a feet-in-the-fire initiation. He hit the throttle hard and swung the helm all the way over to port. Thankfully, Pittsburg Marina has plenty of wiggle room because La Tortuga responded to the helm and was on her way! Sweetie said that Sharron was looking as white as pie dough as the boat gradually swung around, threaded her way through the narrow entrance and bounded into New York Slough with a splash.
If you are familiar with this part of the world, you know that Suisun Bay is famous for being unpleasant, especially when the wind is blowing more than a few knots. Sweetie said that the little CHB bounced and bucked, but finally found her groove and settled in. The magnificent new bimini top and side curtains kept the crew of two warm and dry.
Luckily, the current was with them so the trip from Pittsburg, although bouncy, took only a little over six hours. The tide changed to flood just as they passed Alcatraz. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than smart.
When La Tortuga and her ruffled crew arrived home at Oyster Cove, there was an entourage of neighbors waiting on the dock to greet the tired team and hear the tales of the harrowing journey. La Tortuga was salty but safe.
Good News For Coho Salmon
Field biologists, funded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, have counted a record number of Coho salmon in the downstream portions of the Russian River in western Sonoma County, offering a glimmer of hope that recovery of the endangered silver salmon is possible.
Based on official surveys, there were 5,375 wild “young-of-the-year” Coho in 18 of 23 tributaries surveyed. This compares with 715 wild fish counted on the streams in 2010, and a total of only 637 wild juveniles counted collectively during the five years prior.
Adult Coho also appear to be reproducing in some of their historical tributaries for the first time since biologists began visually counting, tagging and trapping the fish in 2005, and the fish appear to be occupying more tributaries of the river system, including some unstocked creeks.
California Sea Grant’s Mariska Obedzinski, manager of the monitoring program, said, “It is especially exciting to see adults returning to streams that were not stocked as part of the brood stock program,”
“The take home message is that we have a successful program,” Peter LaCivita, regional fisheries biologist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Pacific Division, said.
The Russian River Coho Salmon Captive Brood Stock Program is a coalition of government agencies, scientists and private landowners dedicated to bringing back productive salmon runs. Its members include the California Department of Fish and Game, which manages the hatchery component at the Don Clausen Warm Springs Hatchery, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Sonoma County Water Agency, the University of California Sea Grant Extension, U.C. Cooperative Extension, and U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, along with hundreds of cooperating landowners. To my way of thinking, this is government at its best.
Congratulations to all parties involved in bringing back the Coho. Long may they swim!
Crab, Crab, Crab!
The beginning of the crab season has been an outstanding success. Oodles of giant 2- to 3-pound crabs are coming off the bottom to fill even the largest dinner plate. Yacht clubs all around the Bay are scheduling crab dinners to the delight of the members.
My neighbors Divine Esther, Mrs. Harper and my personal hero, Dean Altschuler, accompanied Sweetie and me to the Bay View Boat Club where member Baretta planned and produced a magnificent crab feast.
As soon as the e-mail announcement came out, I reserved four places for Sharron, Esther, Sweetie and me. I remembered how much fun Dean is to eat with and how much he loves crab, almost as much as I do, so I sent another message to Baretta letting her know that I needed to reserve one more crab for a total of five.
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Cabo Bob came by and I mentioned that perhaps he might like to join us. He couldn’t commit because he is a busy fellow. The morning of the feast I received a message from Baretta that all the crabs had been spoken for – 65 of them! I called Cabo and told him he was too late. Too bad because he is always fun at a party.
The jolly coalition from Oyster Cove squeezed into Dean’s big car and headed up to the Bay View. We arrived at the club an hour or so before dinner was to be served. Another of our excellent neighbors, Steve Wurm, also a member of the Bay View, was on hand to watch the 49ers get trounced and eat a crab.
Oyster Cove resident and Bay View member Mary Buckman was behind the bar making sure that everybody had enough libation to carry them through the afternoon. Eating crab is thirsty work. Mary is an efficient bartender and loves to dazzle her customers with fun jewelry and wacky hats.
Baretta rang the dinner bell and quick as a splash, a line was formed. Desperate diners grabbed platter-sized plates and filled them with creamy scalloped potatoes, fresh cole slaw, a heavenly salad made from ripe, tasty tomatoes, fresh basil and little balls of mozzarella cheese, a rotelli pasta salad with tiny Greek olives, quarts of clarified butter and a very tasty tartar sauce.
The cooked crabs were stacked in warming trays with more arriving every few minutes. Baretta said that she could get about 13 live crabs into each of the two huge pots she kept boiling on the stove.
Diners found their seats and settled in to crack and slurp the succulent crab from the shells. The room was quiet as the diners fell to their serious work.
Baretta wanted to keep the now-empty shells to make a crab bisque for another feast on another day. She kept having to remind everybody not to put the gills or lungs (or whatever those horrible gut-things were) into the pile of now-empty shells.
The entire party sported buttery fingers, smelly napkins and satisfied smiles. Thank you Baretta and the entire galley crew of the Bay View for organizing this wonderful party. Let’s have a moment of silence for the 65 crabs who gave their lives in the line of duty…
Oyster Cove really is an amazing little community. Often you will find a group of neighbors clustered on the dock sharing a few minutes in the sun. Divine Esther, Cabo Bob and Dean are members of Oyster Point Yacht Club. Sharron Harper belongs to Treasure Island Yacht Club and Steve Wurm, Mary Buckman and I belong to the Bay View.
I spend time at all three clubs when we are not hanging on the hook somewhere. Oyster Point YC is in walking distance and there is always someone at the bar to talk to. We also have a really good watering hole nearby at Dominic’s Restaurant. Plenty of Oyster Cove residents can be found there at happy hour enjoying a libation and one or more of the happy hour half-price hors d’oeuvres.
We have a new neighbor in the slip directly beside us. Her name is Lucia and she has a very friendly pit bull dog named Ginger. Her boat is a wooden trawler named Singapore Rose. I was at my art class and our lesson for the week was portraits. I painted a quick study of Singapore Rose, who is a famous Chinese courtesan during WWII.
I presented the painting to Lucia as a gift. I hope that she is as happy living in Oyster Cove as the rest of us are. It really is a unique community filled with only the very best kind of people. I like to tell folks that I live in a “gated community.”
The Cove wouldn’t be what it is without a maestro. Tim Christopher is our handsome harbormaster who runs a very tight ship. I don’t envy him his position of responsibility. Boats and people can be problematic occasionally, but Tim keeps everything running smoothly, bless his little heart. I only wish he could do something about the prevailing spring and summer wind that will arrive very shortly.
Although Cabo Bob and Miss Muff don’t live onboard, they are very much part of our active community. Sweetie and I recently accompanied the cruising fleet from Oyster Point on an overnight trip to Coyote Point Yacht Club. Here is Cabo Bob’s report of that cruise:
Occupy Coyote Point Yacht Club By Fleet Captain Cabo Bob
That was the decision of our leaderless group. Occupy somewhere. Stand up and make a statement. Be heard!
There were nine boats heading to Coyote Point to occupy the guest docks. Anarchy broke out on our arrival. Some boats took slips, others sterned in and two side tied – no order to this group. This disorder was an expression of solidarity with our brother and sister occupiers around the world.
This “occupy” group included What a Wake, Truant, Destiny, Bad Fish, Moonglow, Sonamara, Jolé Blon and the debut of Bounty Hunter. Kimmie and Bob Haworth from the BVBC also joined us. Kimmie wanted to witness firsthand the “sure to happen” police brutality we were going to experience and expose it in her column in Bay & Delta Yachtsman magazine.
Bill “People’s Park” Ferrera was first to arrive. He radioed me to say it all looked calm, too calm. Yours truly was next. We went straight to the fuel dock where we were confronted by Christie. “Looks like a trap,” I said. Christie replied, “gas or diesel?” After pumping 140 gallons I announced we were heading to the guest dock. “I know” she replied. “We are expecting you.” Expecting? Expecting what?
We docked and rallied with Bill and Karen to help the rest of our “occupiers” take their places in our encampment. Once all were settled, we spontaneously (very important to our movement not to recognize leaders, anarchy has its rules you know) sat on the dock, locked arms and chanted slogans like “We shall not be moved,” “On Strike,” “Shut it Down,” “The whole world is watching,” etc., etc.
Then, from the corner of my eye, I spotted Christie marching toward us. Will it be batons, dogs or pepper spray? Sure, she was friendly, but was it part of the trap?
We drank our share of communal liquor and then our Commodore led our protest to the second floor of the Coyote Point Yacht Club where we occupied tables and bar stools. We began chanting in unison: “We want food!” They complied…
After lots of good food and music, we retired to our camp fully expecting to see the police had removed our boats, but they were still there so we slept uneasily until morning.
Sunday morning we set sail to return to wherever the movement needed support. Yours truly went on to occupy a bar stool at Oyster Point Yacht Club. With raised clenched fists we “grabbed our rights with our own bleeding hands” and said farewell, promising to keep the spirit of the “Occupy” movement.
Your friend,
Cabo “Fleeta Drumgo” Bob
Hi there, me again. So now you can see why Cabo Bob is usually the life of any party…
Trawler School
I want you to know that I could drive the hell out of our sailboat. Single-handing was no problem. I could maneuver that boat into a parallel parking place if I had to and often did. The furious winds at Oyster Cove posed no problem to my boat-handling skills. I was confident and comfortable behind the helm.
Of course, the sailboat had a rudder like a barn door and the fin keel kept her on track. She was light in weight and would glide like a swan. I understood, and used, the fact that the boat always backed to port.
So then why have I murdered two, count them, two, teak swim steps with the trawler? Aren’t dual engines supposed to be easier to handle? I have never felt comfortable behind the helm of the trawler.
Oh sure, I can drive her in open water, but when it comes to maneuvering in tight spaces, such as docking, it just shivers my timbers. I have no confidence because I don’t know what the boat will do when I put the port shifter in forward and the starboard shifter in reverse. I just can’t seem to grasp the concept, so…
I signed up for the Trawler School (www.trawerschool.com). Lenard Lee is the brain behind this unique learning concept. There are several instructors, who are all U.S. Coast Guard certified and most with captain’s licenses. The two-day course in basic powerboat handling includes safety issues such as man overboard drills and basic engine monitoring, something I need desperately because the engine room might just as well be on an alien planet so far as I’m concerned.
I drove over to Alameda on a frosty December morning to meet with my personal instructor, and owner of Ballena Bay Yacht Sales, Lenard Lee. Lenard introduced himself and gave me a quick rundown of his qualifications, which are many and impressive.
We stayed in the cozy office while he explained the course and what I could expect to learn. If I could get my big giant brain around what was being offered, my swim step might have a secure future.
Next, we went down to the dock and stepped aboard Lenard’s magnificent Krogen 39, Brut (as in the champagne, not the tough guy). Lenard says that the first place to begin any outing on the water is in the engine room where you should ALWAYS check the oil and transmission fluid levels before starting the engine, or engines in my case.
His engine room was a testimony to the Engine Room Gods. Sparkle and gleam were the operating words for this temple of machinery. Even the Divine Esther would be envious.
After checking the fluids and securing the engine room compartment, we stepped into the pilothouse of the Krogen 39. Lenard has the boat set up to run totally on 12 volts because he likes to cruise up and down the coast, spending months at a time in Mexico. The diesel stove put out ample heat to keep the salon cozy and warm while at the same time kept the kettle simmering for warming beverages.
First, Lenard showed me what he expected me to do, which was to take the boat out of her slip, turn around and then return to the slip. Next, it was my turn to take her out, turn her around and BACK her into a side tie. Brut has a swim step too, although not made of teak.
I was in white-knuckle mode when I backed that big beauty up to the dock, but with Lenard there to instill confidence and guidance, I did a fair job. We did it again and again until I had the concept down.
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Marine surveyor Brendan Schmidt stopped by to do some work on one of the trawlers for sale at Ballena Bay Yacht Sales. Brendan is the marine surveyor who did the survey for the insurance company after our engine room fire last year.
I learned that rudder angle is very important. Lenard has a rudder angle indicator right above the helm that is very helpful in determining where that important piece of equipment is positioned.
I decided then and there that my Captain Sweetie was going to get a rudder angle indicator for his Christmas gift – that is until I found out how much they cost… Perhaps later.
Lenard taught me how to spin his single-engine boat on her own axis. The trick is to turn the rudder all the way to port, and then use the shifter to maneuver the boat. Every boat will turn naturally to port or starboard, depending on if it has a right-turning or left-turning propeller shaft. Using the natural spin of the shaft will help tremendously in maneuvering.
Lenard encouraged me to try to turn the boat the other way using the same technique. I found that it was a completely different experience and much more difficult.
How will all this newfound knowledge and experience be put to use with twin engines? We scheduled a lesson, on my own boat, for the following week…
America’s Cup Update
Mayor Edwin M. Lee joined with executives from the America’s Cup Event Authority to announce details of the Project Agreement for the 34th America’s Cup to be held in San Francisco in 2013.
“This agreement represents an unprecedented investment into our waterfront, generating thousands of jobs and allowing for a major international sporting event to be held in our Bay’s natural amphitheater,” Mayor Lee said. “The agreement also accelerates key infrastructure improvements such as the James R. Herman Cruise Terminal and protects open water views from Rincon Park for the public.”
“We thank Mayor Lee for his great vision of how the America’s Cup can leave a lasting legacy for the City and residents of San Francisco,” said America’s Cup Event Authority Board Member Stephen Barclay. “We are very proud to not only bring the oldest trophy in international sport back to the United States after a decade’s absence, but also bring it specifically to San Francisco, one of the finest cities in the world.”
The agreement outlines as much as $100 million to be invested into port property and includes significant upgrades to both facilities and infrastructure including Pier 54 in Mission Bay and the James R. Herman Cruise Terminal (at Pier 27 to replace the existing terminal at Pier 35). The agreement also realizes the goals of the waterfront land use plan by providing greater short- and long-term public access to the waterfront.
The agreement sets forth the obligations of the America’s Cup Event Authority to improve port property for the event, governs port review and approval of scope of work for improvement to port property performed by the Event Authority, governs the conditions for delivery of the venue leases to the Authority, and sets forth the means to reimburse the Authority for its improvements on port property. The San Francisco Port Commission is expected to vote on the agreement, too.
“The Port and City have taken a monumental step forward today in fulfilling their commitments under the America’s Cup Host and Venue Agreement and did so under intense time constraints,” said America’s Cup Organizing Committee Chairman Mark Buell. “On behalf of the Organizing Committee, I commend the City’s America’s Cup project team as well as the Event Authority in coming together to finalize the deal that will bring the world’s attention and significant economic benefits to San Francisco.”
FYI: Both the Bay View and Mariposa yacht/boat clubs reside on port property. We are sitting on a potential time bomb and hope that the Port of San Francisco will be lenient when it comes time to bring in the wrecking balls. A supporting attitude of the boating community and the surrounding neighborhood will be essential to the survival of both clubs.
Ah, Nuts
My piloting class with Lenard Lee of the Trawler School was going just fine, until…
The final portion of the class was meant to be on my own boat. I am still intimidated by the two-engine concept and was very nervous. Lenard arrived at Oyster Cove early, and luckily there was no breeze on this day. We chatted for awhile in the salon.
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Len told me that Bob Gorman had passed away a few days earlier. Bob was the gentleman behind the success of the Northern California Marine Association (NCMA). Bob was only 65 years old and his passing is a sad event for the Northern California boating community. Please read the excellent tribute to Mr. Gorman on page 14 of this issue.
After Lenard and I talked about Bob and the sad news, I started up the engines and we both headed up to the flying bridge for my lesson. Len moved the shifters back and forth to get a feel for them, and then proceeded to back the boat out of the slip. He used only the shift levers, no throttle whatsoever. The boat responded nicely. We went out, turned around and came right back into the slip. Now it was my turn.
I did fairly well, with Lenard at my side. He has a good coaching style and is very calming. After taking the boat in and out of the slip a few times we took a little break and discussed what we were going to try next. Len told me that we were going to back the boat in this time. He went first.
When it was my turn I was thinking, “Oh gosh, here goes my swim platform.” That was not to be the case, however…
I pulled the boat out of the slip, went up the narrow fairway, turned around, came back down and backed in. I didn’t do such a good job, because I didn’t have the boat lined up just right. Len said, “It’s ok, we’ll try it again.”
Honestly, I was sweating by this time although the day was chilly. There was still no wind, so all was well. I pulled the boat out of the slip, again, headed up the fairway and proceeded to make my turn to come back and try the backing maneuver again. I put the shifters in reverse and the boat didn’t respond. “It won’t seem to back up,” I told Lenard. “It’s ok, it will,” was his reply.
Well, it didn’t. We were still moving forward and headed toward the dock. I tried giving some throttle with the shifters in reverse, but the dock came closer, only faster now.
The bow was turning to port and the stern was following, rapidly. CRASH! I hit my good neighbor Craig’s lovely little sloop, my anchor digging into his new awning, my bow crunching through his tiller and my hull bending his stanchions into a horizontal position.
Many neighbors came to help including Mary Buckman, Norm and Nemo, Rich and finally our harbormaster Tim.
The damage was done. Lenard instructed me to kill the engines while he dove into the engine room. I had to search around for a flashlight and could only find a ridiculous hand-cranking, no-batteries-needed excuse for one.
Lenard went down into the vile engine room and quickly determined that a cotter pin had sheared off the shift cable, which meant that the boat was stuck in forward.
Lenard said we will resume the lessons another day. The cotter pin failure was something that couldn’t be anticipated, but it sure ruined my confidence, not to mention put a hole in my already moth-eaten pocketbook.
I wrote a note to Craig and left it in his cockpit saying that I would take full responsibility for the damage to his boat. I don’t dare turn it into the insurance company.
So there it is. I know how to take my boat in and out of the slip, even how to back her in. All I need to learn now is how to make enough money to cover the cost of the damage.
If you don’t use them, it never happens. The year of the Dragon is off to a flaming start.
Anyway, if you would like to learn to handle your own boat, contact Lenard Lee at the Trawler School in Alameda (www.trawler school.com).
I get so tickled when I “put a column to bed,” which is the editorial term for filing a column to meet a deadline. For some strange reason it never occurs to me I’ll have to start the whole process all over again the very next day. Just because one column has been filed doesn’t mean I’m done. It’s a Sisyphusian task that never ends, like laundry. So, forgive me if I blather on or repeat myself, at least now you know the reason.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me at kim@yachtsman magazine.com or via snail mail at P.O. Box 2293, Brisbane, CA 94005. Until next month, keep your Charlie Noble warm!
