Winter sailing season has arrived in Bodega Bay. Although we haven't had a sailable southwesterly yet, the affects the winter storms on mind and body have made for some memorable experiences.
I've been skunked twice in as many weeks chasing fickle storm winds. In both cases missing the peak winds in the early morning darkness. With only 8hrs daylight, 2/3 of he storms will pass in the darkness. Sat morning Nov 7 looked promising. I awoke to the sound of the rain pulsing against the bedroom window with each gust. The tree tops were swaying. A quick check with the computer show the most intense part of the front had already passed but the system looked big. Another frontal section would be on us soon. Worth the drive I thought, I could be on the water by 7:30am. I fired off a quick email letting my buddies know my destination. They'd be checking in shortly. We all think alike, right? I didn't want make the same mistake as before, waking everbody up and then getting skunked. Oh its not my buddies I care about. I'll rip them out of bed at the drop of hat. Its the spouses and children who give me a hard time, "Oh, its you again."
I've been looking at Salmon Creek lately as an alternative to Doran Beach for storm sailing. On really big days the shelter provided by the jetty at the west end of Doran provides the only way out. This morning though the swell is only 10ft. The southerly storm winds will be side-off at Salmon. A launch from Boardwalk should give winds filled in by the same gap that feeds Bodega Harbor in a northwesterly. Boardwalk is the nickname given to the southern end of Salmon Creek beach, accessed from the boardwalk of course, at Bodega Dunes camground.
I arrived at Boardwalk and the storm was in full swing. The van rocked comfortably and the tell tale dune grass indicated sailing time had arrived. A quick hike over the dunes to check the conditions revealed wind blowing straight down the beach. Head high waves, peaking, tops ripped off by the wind into long veils. Now, some phone calls were in order ...
9/27/02 Guess I didn't finish this one. Below some notes indicate where I was headed. To date I haven't had a succesful storm sail Salmon.
Rock sailing in storm risky.
Salmon crk yeah!
squalls at doran with the "kit"
1998 11 6 1900 bodega_buoy s 6 30.05 10 14 1998 11 6 2200 bodega_buoy s 4 30.04 10 13 1998 11 7 0100 bodega_buoy s 12 29.99 10 13 1998 11 7 0400 bodega_buoy sse 20 26 29.89 10 13 1998 11 7 0700 bodega_buoy s 22 29.80 11 14 1998 11 7 1000 bodega_buoy w 26 32 29.83 15 13 1998 11 7 1300 bodega_buoy wnw 14 29.95 17 11 1998 11 7 1600 bodega_buoy nw 10 29.98 13 10 1998 11 7 1900 bodega_buoy wnw 6 30.02 10 10 1998 11 7 2200 bodega_buoy w 4 30.06 8 13 1998 11 7 0555 BodegaBay SSE 9 17 0.00 1998 11 7 0625 BodegaBay S 9 18 0.00 1998 11 7 0626 BodegaBay S 8 18 0.00 1998 11 7 0710 BodegaBay S 9 20 0.00 1998 11 7 0740 BodegaBay SSW 9 22 0.00 1998 11 7 0810 BodegaBay S 9 17 0.00 1998 11 7 0839 BodegaBay SSW 9 20 0.00 1998 11 7 0909 BodegaBay SW 14 26 0.00 1998 11 7 0939 BodegaBay W 15 24 0.00 1998 11 7 1010 BodegaBay W 11 18 0.00 1998 11 7 1040 BodegaBay W 16 28 0.00 1998 11 7 1110 BodegaBay W 10 17 0.00 1998 11 7 1139 BodegaBay W 11 16 0.00 1998 11 7 1209 BodegaBay W 11 18 0.00 1998 11 7 1238 BodegaBay WNW 14 22 0.00 1998 11 7 1310 BodegaBay WNW 13 18 0.00 1998 11 7 1324 BodegaBay W 12 18 0.00 1998 11 7 1521 BodegaBay W 9 13 0.00