Back on Track

We've done it. We've finally left San Francisco after a 3 week unplanned pit stop. Brenda will tell you that we had some fun while we were there, but other than a short amount of time catching up with some friends, I don't really remember there being much in the way of fun. It was mostly work.

I take part of that back. It was definitely mostly work, but in our constant need to chase down boat parts, stock the boat with more groceries, and attempt to find wifi, we did have some fun. We took a whole bunch of Uber rides, and what do you know, each one of them was pretty fun. Mostly because I didn't have to walk 5 miles to the grocery store and back with 50 pounds of food strapped to my back, but also, because it was pretty fun to get a ride from a complete stranger and chat with someone new about the world.

Taking a ride with Uber was almost like visiting the United Nations. I had a ride with a guy from Afghanistan who escaped the Taliban after working as a translator for the US army, a retired Brazilian gentleman who was taking some classes at UC Berkeley in his golden years and liked to have company on his way home from school, and a guy from the Philippines who drove in his spare time to earn a few extra bucks for his kids' college fund. We rode with an up and coming rap artist who drove to fund his new album and a different retiree who extolled the virtues of fishing for catfish. One lady drove us across town to pick up some boat parts and when she heard about our adventure, she decided to drive us around some more and she wouldn't accept a payment. She just thought what we were doing was pretty cool and wanted to do what she could to help us out. Pretty amazing really.

Each driver had a different story and each driver had a different point of view. It was like we checked the pulse of the world during each and every ride, and I have to say, it was not only extremely interesting talking to these people, it was pretty fun. I love Uber.

But alas, the Uber rides had to end. It was time for us to get back to our adventure. If we want to really see the world, we couldn't stay in San Francisco forever. So we untied our dock lines, made our way underneath the Golden Gate Bridge, and pointed our boat south towards a new destination.

Untying the lines had us buzzing with excitement. We were both ready to get moving again. Since we had no plan to stop in San Francisco, being there for 3 weeks seemed like an awfully long time. We were antsy.

The next logical stop for us was in Half Moon Bay, California. It was only a short 6 ½ hour sail away from the bay area and it has one of the few protected anchorages on the West Coast. Most anchorages on the Coast are just a nook in the shoreline where you can duck into if the weather is settled. There are lot's of marinas to stop at, but really, not many anchorages. So, getting to a place where we can drop the anchor, get away from the noise and the smell of a dock and a city, and be in our own little space is quite a treat.

We are quickly learning that cruising in California is much different than cruising in the Northwest. Up north, basically from Seattle through Canada and into Alaska, there are anchorages everywhere. And most of them are in a nice, snug little bay, with a bottom where your anchor sticks like glue, and plenty of room for your boat to swing with the tide. There is generally a beautiful bay within just a few hours of the last one, so you can travel as far or as short of a distance as you want in a day and be to the next spot to drop the hook before dinner. The Northwest is truly heavenly from a cruiser's perspective.

We've sailed over a thousand miles from our home waters before we got to a place where we have dropped our anchor. I'm sure there were some places along the way where it could have happened, but not many. The last place it happened was in Neah Bay over a month ago. And even though it has been just over a month since we were in our home turf, it seems like much longer than that. I'm not sure why, but feels like it's been years.

We've often talk about our distorted time frame in our life as adventurers. We've been wandering for almost 2 ½ years, but our old life feels like a lifetime away. For some reason the days seem longer and time can feel like it's standing still. And yes I mean that in a good way. Not like the days when we were watching the clock and praying for our work day to end. It just seems like we have less distractions and can focus more energy on what it is we are doing, we can pay more attention to each other, and we have more time to appreciate the amazing things we are seeing. More than anything, we don't have to rush anymore (other than to avoid weather).

On our trip down the coast, we each took roughly 3 hour shifts. 3 hours on and 3 hours off...wash, rinse, repeat. In our 3 hours on, we took care of the boat. That meant we drove, adjusted the sails, stared at the radar screen, and watched for traffic on the high seas. In our 3 hours off, we mainly slept. Or at least we tried to sleep. Sometimes it was impossible with the violent motion of the boat, and sometimes it was the best 3 hours of sleep you could ever imagine. But since we took about 100 three hour naps in the roughly 7 days at sea it took us to get to San Francisco, every time we would wake up, it seemed like a new day. So, even though we spent only 7 days at sea, it felt like 100.

The 3 weeks we spent in San Francisco seemed to last forever as well. Those 3 weeks were more like the days of old when we stared at the clock hoping for the work day to end. The fact that we were there to work on the boat, as well as the hustle and bustle of the city, didn't make things feel like we were on much of a vacation. We were in the mode of just get it done so we can get on our merry way.

But now that we are in a new spot that we've never been to before, with sunshine and sandy beaches, all of the sudden we feel like we are on a big adventure again. The buzzing excitement we felt as we left San Fracisco, as we sailed underneath the Golden Gate Bridge for quite possibly our last time ever, was even more present this morning when we woke up. We had a new town to explore, new friends to make, and some serious walking that was going to happen.

When we put our toes in the warm white sand of Half Moon Bay with waves crashing on the shore, Brenda said with a huge smile on her face, “this is what we worked our butts off for!” And even though we aren't in a foreign country with warm tropical water yet, I couldn't agree more. The fact that we are in this place, together, with our little floating home that brought us all the way here, is pretty amazing.