city of the Angeles

Next Port-of-Call, Marina Del Rey which is located just north of the Los Angeles Airport. It is the largest marina on the west coast of the United States. Sunny and warm and yes, smoggy.

The trip down from Channel Islands Marina took 8 hours. We motored the first 6 hours and as we got closer to the coast we picked up wind and raised the sails.













A little excitement on our way down here. We saw a large boat approaching from the south as we were headed south. Nothing to be alarmed about. We see many boats coming and going, most of which are commercial vessels. As it became closer we saw that it was the Coast Guard. Again nothing to concern ourselves with, until it changed course and headed towards us. Then we hear on our radio; "Sailboat off of our port bow, do you copy?" Rats, I think we are going to be boarded. The next question from the Coast Guard was; " Have you ever been boarded before?". Since I have not, I answered that I have never had the privilege of being boarded before. The captain responds that this is then is my lucky day.








This is the area off of the coast where they boarded us, Point Mugu. I responded on the radio that I am going to maintain my speed and coarse unless they tell me different. We then saw a small rubber boat with a big engine and five Coast Guard men with guns on their hip headed our way. They maneuvered the boat beside us as three of them jumped onto our boat. They announced that they were there for a safety check and asked for my ships papers. We passes the inspection and thank God, Bob left his drugs at home. They were very polite and courteous and made the experience a good one. They told us we were good to go and to not expect to be boarded again while we head for Mexico. I told one of the Guardsmen that I would offer him a beer but it wasn't noon yet. He smiled and said thanks.



Here is a photo one the one of many oil rigs you see between Point Conception and LA. They are lit up like a city at night and I always give them a lot of space which in today's world since 911 is required.

We stayed in Marina Del Rey for a few days as I waited for a friend from Pleasanton to arrive on Friday. Kurt Petersen is sailing with us to Catalina Island, Dana Point and San Diego. I had planned to leave on Saturday but I am going to wait until Sunday so we are assured to get a mooring when we arrive. I will have some good photos to share from our stay on the island.

By the way. My friend Wilson that shares the boat with me, thanks to my friends at CSAA, is a coward and he has been busted from First Mate to Bilge Rat. Lindsay and Andreas can tell you why.

Take care and be safe out there.