# Ayala Cove SF



## GySgt (Jun 11, 2007)

Ok at the end of Sept I will be able to check out the 29 footers from my club and sail to Angel Island. What is the best time to get there to get a slip, and how hard is it to dock there for a newbie. I heard there are some wild currents there.


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## bestfriend (Sep 26, 2006)

I believe that you will be using a mooring. I have heard that you can dock during the day, but overnights you need to moor. The moorings have been redone this year. I would say its best to check your currents and tides and approach from the appropriate direction. Remember that in the Bay, tides can be going in opposite directions close to shore. As for wind, leeward will be safer if the shore allows it. Its a fairly well protected cove. In September and October, the wind should be residing and it will be calmer. Indian summer in October. They have a website under the natl. parks. Give them a call and they should be able to tell you everything you need to know. Thats about all I know. Have fun!


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## Chuteman (May 23, 2006)

*It Depends*

GS: Depends = relates to availability of docks........with a 29' boat You have more options as some slips have max lengths ie; m/b <30.
It seems to flucuate like the weather......really sunny, warmer weekend & you will find it tougher. More overcast & cooler, no problem. I was over there on a recent Sun (7/29) and got a slip around 1:30pm with no problem.....and others were still open. It was a cooler & windy day
Don't forget to look on back side (closer to land) but just watch depth/traffic and if still no slip avail, just hang out for awhile. You will find sailboats tend to turnover their slips faster than powerboats who seem to hang out longer...........PLUS keep an eye out on/for Ferry traffic.
Currents - not that bad especially the deeper you go into the cove 
Winds - Depending on the time of day, strength thru the slot, direction, etc...there can be some downdrafts......easy to see once you get in there but again no that bad.
I've come to appreciate the place more & more ......


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## GySgt (Jun 11, 2007)

Very cool thx Gents


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## Chuteman (May 23, 2006)

*Forgot*

GS:
Since You are targeting the end of Sept, I forgot to mention the "congestion" is seasonal.............after labor day it should be much easier unless it's a warm holiday / weekend. The "off season" is still a great time to enjoy the beauty & views.
Took the tour around the island on one trip...........worth it just for the views.
Enjoy!


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## Gazzza (Jun 28, 2016)

I just got back from a trip to Angel Island, and after having done some research into what to expect, I found the available information to be somewhat lacking. Here's a bit more that I hope will help others with their Ayala Cove experiences.

- As mentioned above, docking at Angel is allowed only during the day. Boats need to vacate by sunset. Day use is $15. The ranger station is located directly at the top of the ramp.

- Docks can get crowded, especially during the warmer months (kids out of school, etc). We had people competing with us for slip spaces, and some folks can be less than polite or fair. Same goes for the moorings. Best thing to do is get there early. We arrived around 11am on a Saturday, and it was already completely full. It's possible to get spaces later as people leave, but you're taking a chance on not getting one, and should have a plan B ready.

- I'd encourage going slow and being safe. There are kids & adults swimming in the cove, and quite a few boats go charging through there really fast. The rangers are rarely in their boat, and when they are, they just have a little skiff and can't catch the offenders.

- Check-in and check-out for moorings is noon, and is only loosely enforced by the rangers.

- The mooring balls are indeed new (2015), and are color coded. You connect your bow and stern to a single color, and there's no way you can mess it up. We saw 2-3 boats connected only on one mooring, and were swinging around, banging into other boats, etc. The rangers chased them away. Anchoring is not allowed.

- The mooring balls have a large ring standing vertical on top that's easy to connect to if you can get close enough, or have a Happy Hooker. We watched a number of people try to lift the mooring ball with a boat hook, and it's far too heavy, especially with the huge chain beneath. I strongly recommend investing in a Happy Hooker, as you will probably not be able to reach the mooring ring from your bow unless you have a really small or low boat, or can get to it from a swim platform.

- Your bow needs to be pointing North, out of the cove. There are occasionally times in which large wakes come through there.

- Connecting both the bow and stern to mooring balls can be tricky. Use your own judgement about whether to tie the bow or stern first, just keep in mind if that rope gets caught in your prop while you're maneuvering, you've got a major problem. We used floating polypropylene rope, which worked great.

- Wear your PFDs. There are plenty of stories of people falling into the water, and I can easily see why.

- Boats can be fairly close together if the mooring field is full. We pulled in and watched how the boat drifted before attempting to connect to the buoys, which worked very well. Despite it being a somewhat sheltered cove, there are definitely currents and winds through there. Slack tide is ideal. Be prepared, so you don't drift into other boats; we saw that happen several times.

- The buoys appear to be evenly spaced without boats tied to them. However when a boat ties up, especially the larger ones, they pull both buoys toward their boat, leaving a big gap where the buoy was initially floating. So if you are heading for a space between a boat off your bow, and a boat off your stern, you have a large gap to fill, and need a lot of mooring line.

- The recommended method for connecting to the mooring is to attach one end to a cleat (lets say port), run the line through the mooring ring, and tie it off at your other (starboard) cleat. This allows you to easily run a line through it using a Happy Hooker, adjust the length, and quickly release when you leave. It also means you need a lot of line, at least twice the length between your boat and the mooring ball, without having any slack to maneuver.

- Tying two lines together means you have a knot to potentially fail, or get stuck on the ring when pulling it through.

- You need a LOT of mooring line, especially if you have to fill one of those gaps I just mentioned. Each one should be 100' as the minimum, 150' may be overkill, but better too much than not enough. In the 8+ hours we observed other boats mooring, almost all of them underestimated line length. This was a major problem for them. One boat spent over an hour trying to moor because of this. Another collided with his neighbor. Another had to deploy his anchor rode. Another simply gave up and left after 30 mins of struggling. Another got blown over a mooring ball, and I'm amazed he didn't get the chain wrapped in his prop or rudder.

- Even though Ayala is relatively sheltered, we experienced some pretty strong winds and currents, even at night. Under conditions like that, your mooring lines will be stressed. Ours was so tight it felt like a guitar string! If you have wimpy mooring lines, you will probably not sleep well. Get some relatively beefy lines and have peace of mind.

- Beefy rope, that is anything thicker than 1/2", will not feed through the ring on a Happy Hooker. You need to add a split ring, or something that will allow you to connect the larger rope.

- A dinghy is not essential, but extremely handy. It can help with mooring yourself or others. It gives you the ability to go to the dock or beach without untying everything. Basically just more options.

- One of the cool things at Angel are the seals. At night there are at least 20 sleeping on the docks. During the day they are curious, and will come right up to your boat and check you out. There are also deer and raccoons on the island that can bee seen in the morning and dusk.

I've been to Angel Island 3-4 times previously, and made plenty of mistakes, some of which were quite embarrassing. We definitely had an audience, and people clapped when we got it done!  If you've listened to what I've written here, and what other people have written, you'll have a relatively smooth mooring experience. You can sit back, have a glass of wine, and be entertained by all the people floundering around.

Hope this helps!


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## gamayun (Aug 20, 2009)

Gazzza said:


> ....I've been to Angel Island 3-4 times previously, and made plenty of mistakes, some of which were quite embarrassing. We definitely had an audience, and people clapped when we got it done!  If you've listened to what I've written here, and what other people have written, you'll have a relatively smooth mooring experience. You can sit back, have a glass of wine, and be entertained by all the people floundering around.
> 
> Hope this helps!


That was super great detailed info by Gazzza! Nicely done. I'd only reiterate the above point if you choose to dock also. There can be huge swells that ripple through there and if you don't wait for them to subside, it can get a little ugly (or entertaining, if you're on one of those other boats). Also, if the docks are full, at most I've had to idle and spin in circles for about 10 min before something opened up. It is well worth it to get a good pair of shoes and hike to the top of Mt Livermore. I think it's the only place where you can get a 360 degree view of the whole of San Francisco Bay


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## svHyLyte (Nov 13, 2008)

As an alternative to Ayala (formerly Hospital) Cove, consider Quarry Beach, 180º out from Ayala Cove (37°51.601'N, 122°25.134'W). Great spot, good holding, nice beach to land on and not a lot (often not any) traffic. Ayala Cove today is a "Beggars' Banquet" by comparison.

FWIW...


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