As shorter days and cooler nights approached, the warm breezes and sunny days of Mexico began tugging at our sails. So, on October 18th we departed Marina Bay in San Francisco bound for San Diego.
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Sailing under the Golden Gate was exciting! I was surprised to find that the underside of the Golden Gate is actually RED!! |
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| Looking back at the Golden Gate.... and that little island in the distance....? That's Alcatraz!! Over the next three weeks we visited many marinas, including Half Moon Bay where we found some interesting residents in the marina...  A floating beauty salon...!  ....and a beautiful catamaran named "Morrigan". Can you read its "home port" on the stern under the rubber dinghy? Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin!! A five day stay in the marina at Monterey gave us the opportunity to spend a few hours at the marvelous Monterey Aquarium!  That's a diver feeding the fish in one of the major exhibits. This tank holds millions of gallons of sea water, constantly refreshed with the tide. He answered questions from the audience using a microphone in his mask.  I know...just your average seahorse, right? But...  How about these two beauties sitting on coral? Or these....  Do you even believe these two? Snouts to the left, tails to the right, swimming in tandem. Some might consider them to be a tad overdressed... We sailed on to the charming town of Morro Bay, where we hung out for a few days with some great folks at Morro Bay Yacht Club.  This very unique sunset featuring a pink cloud hovering over Morro Rock was real, not an illusion brought on by Two Buck Chuck...! I love this photo...delicate color, good composition, interesting clouds... the bird in flight...the masts... and.... (the best part) I ACTUALLY TOOK THIS PHOTO!! Lucky us...a week in beautiful Santa Barbara while Jerry recovered from a rib injury (no, I didn't do it...!). But, what a lovely place to recuperate!! Then, on to San Diego!!!  Sailing under the Coronado Bridge with Navy ships in the background! Since November 8th we have been happily docked in our slip at Chula Vista Marina at the south end of San Diego Bay. We have great neighbors, fine marina accommodations, and a wonderful restaurant/bar, "The Galley", within crawling distance (literally!) that features fine bands playing four nights a week. On December 15th we will fly back home to celebrate Betsy's graduation from UW-Stout (December 18th) and Christmas with family and friends. The entire Huber Family will be together at the farm, a scheduling coup of major proportions. On December 30th Jerry and I will return to San Diego to celebrate New Year's with our Chula Vista friends and prepare for our departure January 3rd for La Paz.  This is my view this evening from the bow of "Sea Story". Beautiful lights around the marina, outlining the docks, up and down boat masts, around boat decks, twisting around palm trees... a Southern California Christmas. It IS possible to have Christmas without snow. However....  ....the beauty of winter has already descended on the Huber Farm....  ...and believe it or not, I'm looking forward to this view out my kitchen window. Who can resist a White Christmas?? Best Wishes for a MERRY CHRISTMAS & A HAPPY, HEALTHY NEW YEAR from Captain Jerry & First Mate Mary Lee on s/v SEA STORY |
