Angel Island Report  by Bill Lewis

Up until a week before the cruise, I had no idea who was coming and I was wondering if there would even be a cruise. I had positive responses from the Blackburns and the Haggarts, neither of whom had a boat at the time and they desired to take the ferry over and get a lift back to Tiburon after the meal. At the last moment, I received responses from Quamens, Demushkins, Johnsons and Brian Lewis. We were going to have a cruise after all! Unfortunately, the Blackburns were unable to attend. 

It was a typical June overcast morning as Ericka left the dock at Ballena Bay. It was not chilly, however and there was no chop. The wind was building, but I could see the boats in the slot were not heeled over as one might expect this time of year. The usual dead spot under the Bay Bridge was not there. There was enough of a Southern component to the wind that it was not necessary to tack and, riding an ebb, we were carried right into Raccoon Strait. The overcast had discouraged many sailors and there was a nice slip waiting for us. Docking was no problem. 

As I moved up the dock. I noticed an E27 Fleet burgee and found Czechmate with members Dimitri and Radka Demushkin and their guests Anna and Lubor on board, having lunch. I paid my $2.00 docking fee (what a bargain) and wandered around, VHF radio on my belt. Shortly thereafter, I spotted Josephine II coming into the cove. Since J2 was spending the night and the moorings were mostly full, they went around a few times, finally settling on a cross-tie close to the beach, but…you’ll hear about that later. 

“Calling Ericka”, my VHF blared…”this is Freedom”. I answered and heard Cap’n Dave (Johnson) announcing that he was 15 minutes from Ayala Cove. I told him there were several empty slips, but moorings were tight. Soon, he appeared at the mouth of the cove and started circling the tied-up boats, looking for a candidate mooring. I could only sympathize at the process of getting the mooring, inflating the dinghy and making it over to shore. It looked like he had found one-good. I relaxed on Ericka until 16:30 when it was time to head to the picnic area and start the coals. 

At 1700, the coals were glowing, but nobody had joined us on the green. Freedom had left it’s initial tie-up and was re-mooring. Soon, the crew from the J2 arrived via Avon. I went back to get some plates off Ericka when here’s Craig Haggart, Becky and two friends strolling up the strand - they had missed the last ferry due to traffic, but the last ferry was late and they got on it. It was a cheerful reunion as Dave and Roberta arrived on the green with famous “pain killer” ingredients. Dave had opted not to bring his Makita stirring rod, so we all made drill noises whike he stirred the concoction with a spoon. Then the group from Czechmate showed up. By now the coals were dying down, but we heaped more on and snacked and drank away.

Too soon, the sun was getting low in the sky and Ericka needed to depart for Ballena Bay. Since we were the only way for Craig and group to get back to Tiburon, they bid farewell, boarded Ericka and we motored over to Sam’s to let them off. Then, we were on our way. 

Ericka’s crew was not used to sailing at night, but it was non-problematic. The moon was out and the sunset set everything glowing. There was no fog and the flood carried us back swiftly. We found the harbor entrance fine and docked around 22:00-tired, but contented. 

We were sorry we couldn’t have stayed the night, but glad to have seen everyone-Craig & Becky especially. Since Eric Quamen spent the night, he will continue the Angel Island report in the next column...

(Part 2... by Eric Quamen)

The Caribbean themed barbeque was very enjoyable. After Bill left (me taking his BBQ tongs hostage) we chatted away until we were confronted by the Ranger. Being the longest day, we were entrenched and drinking painkillers,so the Ranger gave up on kicking us off the island to take photos of the deer with the fawn. Later, the party finally broke up, Dimitri and his gang departed, Dave and Roberta went to their (giant and luxurious) Ericson 32, and I went back to the J2 for another drink.

Remember the rule of “point at Red Rock” when in the mooring field? Well, I wasn’t able to do that due to the crowd already out there. This became a real issue at about 0630, as the combination of fishing boat wakes and a four alarm hangover synergised into a real misery fest. Soon afterwards, I dropped the mooring for the relative stability of the docks. A march around the island did wonders for the blood chemistry, and the island is simply wonderful on a sunny morning before the ferry boats arrive. Just about the only other pedestrians I encountered on the whole circumnavigation of the park were Dave and Roberta jogging past, both healthy and rested due to a) not nearly enough Skyy Vodka and b) pointing their (spacious and deluxe) boat at Red Rock! 

Once back at the docks, we bounced around, drank coffee, and watched the carnage of those circling for dockage. About noonish we made a dash for the slot, which was rocking and a-rolling in a typical summertime ebbing chop with about 20 mph winds. We flew the 90% with a full main and were overpowered all the way across. Then the wind died right under the bridge. The rest of the ride down the Estuary was very pleasant, perfect for a beer if I could ever drink again. 

This is one of my favorite Fleet One cruises. Maybe next year my liver will enjoy it too. 

Tides and Currents...

No new members this month, however, we are pleased to report that Wilkes and Ann Joy have elected to rejoin our Fleet. They were longstanding members and recently sold their boat, but they want to stay in touch. Wilkes and Ann are hosting the August 3 cruise to Oakland Yacht Club - another of our favorites. 

Membership has dropped substantially this season. I know because I can get all the address labels on one sheet. New owners are not joining the Fleet when they purchase the boat. Still, we are one of the most active Fleets on the Bay not affiliated with a Yacht club. 

So spread the word. If nothing else, give people the website address and let them see how active we are.

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Come "Round the Rock" With Us July 20

Our next cruise is also a race. Last year, for the first time, we joined the Ballena Bay Yacht Club for their annual "Round the Rock" regatta. Although we only furnished two boats (Bonnie Breeze and Ericka), we did very well. Bonnie Breeze, sailed by Hugh and JoAnn Linn came in 2nd on corrected time and Ericka (Bill Lewis) finished 7th out of 11 boats - not too shabby! 

The race is from Ballena Bay - around Alcatraz (in either direction) and back. It's about a 3-4 hour race and you don't need a chart and compass to find the marks. After racing, there will be a cocktail hour and dinner at the club. If you spend the night, there's breakfast at Tillie's - a Fleet tradition. 

Maybe racing isn't what you bought the boat for, but our boats are decent racers and it's for fun (of course it's always nice to win). 

Of course, you can just cruise in for dinner and the overnight. Or maybe you can catch part of the race from the water. 

In either case, you will need to fill out the enclosed form and get it back to me by July 12 with your dinner deposit. PLEASE don't wait until the last minute as getting slips then is a pain. Hope you'll make

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