Dream Sail to Avalon

                                      Crystalline waters beckon under the Avalon pier


     Since we're suffering through a dry, snowless winter up at Green Valley Lake, we were thrilled when Chris' Uncle Brad invited us to sail to Catalina Island aboard his Catalina 36 "Uff Da."

                         

                                           
                                          "Uff da" is a Norwegian curse word (or something).

                                            Catalina Island is about 25 miles from the SoCal coast,
                                                 making it the dream destination for local sailors
                                                 

   Despite the pall over Dana Point, 

    we were happy to be at sea again

Off with the shoes!

I enjoyed my time at the helm,

but my shoes stayed on... :-)

Captain Brad clowning around

After an easy 5 hour crossing, we arrived at Avalon Harbor.

Did this battered fishing boat motor here all the way from Vietnam?

It would appear so... (yikes)

We hooked up to Brad's personalized "Uff Da" mooring.

You don't even want to know how long the waiting list

is for this, or how much it costs. 

            Brad's wife Lisa took the cattle boat over and booked 

             2 nights at the Pavilion Hotel (she's not a sailing-type gal). 

            She asked me if I'd like to join her there for a girls weekend,

 to which I happily said "Yes!" 

The lovely grounds of The Pavilion

It was best, anyway, to leave the boys

to sleep aboard Uff Da. They would be

talking generators, batteries, alternators

and genoas for hours on end...

...leaving Lisa and I free to discuss other, 

more pressing subjects...   ;-) 

The boys talk solar panels while Lisa and I check in

After a tasty seafood dinner, we poked around Avalon looking for a bit of adventure.

What? A bowling alley in Avalon? Yes. It's true!

Well, it's mini-bowling -- sort of a cross between Skee-ball and the real thing.

I beat the topsiders off of everyone with the earth-shattering score of 121.

The next morning we awoke to a clear, warm, sunny Avalon

The gifts of off season sailing: a nearly deserted beach and lots of open moorings

Welcome to mid-winter in Southern California...  :-) 

Chris getting to know his island again

Fun fact: when the iconic Avalon casino was built in the 

1920's it was the tallest building in Southern California

Lisa and I met the boys at the dock 

as they dinghied in from Uff Da

So happy to be on a dinghy again

More Avalon beach scenes

Brad and Lisa rented a golf cart and we took off exploring the island

The view from the top (note the red helicopter in the foreground at left)

Pet cemetery

Pastoral island scene

How could we say no to this roadside lemonade stand?

This is a first: they also sold moustaches (!) and bracelets for a dollar

I passed on the moustache but I love my new bracelet

Avalon from the west side

This view hasn't changed since the 1920's

             Since Brad is a member, we spent an evening at 

    the Catalina Island Yacht Club

I'm sworn to secrecy as to what we did that evening...

            Naww, just kidding. It's a lovely club and we felt very welcome. 

Although Brad DID go to Harvard...

    I suppose I should ask him if he was a member of 

the Skull and Bones fraternity... ;-) 

The next morning, we awoke to a very foggy Avalon

Soon enough, the fog cleared enough for us to 

make a safe passage back to Dana Point

    I mostly shivered in the cabin while 

the boys happily worked the sails

My husband's happy place

    And just like that, we were back in Dana Point. Many thanks to Brad 

   and Lisa for their amazing generosity. XOXOXOXOXO 

Last shot: The "honesty in boat naming" award 

goes to "Seamy Barrister" in Dana Point.    

      

Missing At Sea?

We received this Coast Guard message on facebook this morning:

THE U.S. COAST GUARD RECEIVED A REPORT OF AN OVERDUE [Vagabond] 47 FT BLACK HULLED [stripe] WITH WHITE SUPER STRUCTURE SAILING VESSEL SUNDANCER (CFK9731, MMSI 316018203)ON A VOYAGE FROM ECUADOR TO EITHER CONTADORA OR MOGO MOGO ISLAND, PANAMA. SAILING VESSEL IS DESCRIBED AS 47FT IN LENGTH WITH 2 PERSONS ON BOARD. THE VESSEL HAS VHF, HF AND SSB RADIO. THE TRIP WAS GOING TO BE CONDUCTED WITHIN 100 NM OF THE COAST NORTH TO PANAMA. ANYONE KNOWING THE WHEREABOUTS OF MS. HEATHER REIMER (CANADA) AND HER PASSENGER RON QUIRE (US) ARE REQUESTED TO NOTIFY U.S. COAST GUARD. REQUEST CALLOUTS TO THE VESSEL ON SSB AND IF POSSIBLE THEIR POSITION AND SPEED PLEASE. PHONE 510-437-3701.

                                            Ron and Heather are at top, helping Hugh and Ann
                                        deliver their boat Serendipity through the Panama canal



   We met Heather and Ron in El Salvador in 2012. They are a fun, spirited couple from Canada, although Heather spent a large part of her life right here in Running Springs, CA.

                                  Ron with Aaron of BellaStar in Panama's Las Perlas Islands


     According to their blog, they were planning on sailing north from Ecuador on approximately          December 8th, to arrive at Panama's Las Perlas Islands in less than a week.

                                                                   Heather in El Salvador


                                The last anyone has heard from them is on December 7th.
                        They maintain a pretty active blog and are frequent posters on facebook.

                                                        Really getting out there in Peru


     Ron and Heather really impressed us "regular" cruisers because they sailed farther and deeper into outlying areas than the rest of us. I admired their brave ventures into the remote Darien Gap of Panama and the netherlands of South America.

                            Clowning around with Ben of Knee Deep at a boat show in Panama


                          It is quite unlike them to simply not find a place to check in online.
                                        Which means we're all pretty concerned.

                                                Waiting, somewhere in South America

                                                                      Fun times in Mexico

                                                              Sundancer, a Vagabond 47


   Please, if you are sailing in the area, keep an eye out for Ron and Heather, and please contact the Coast Guard with any information you may have.

UPDATE: We're now hearing that Heather's sister is stating that contact has been made with Sundancer via SSB radio. Awaiting confirmation/more details and also their current location. Will update as more information becomes available...

NEWEST UPDATE: Heather posted on facebook so all is well. They're in the Las Perlas Islands in Panama...whew!  :-)