# Sailing to Catalina Island



## dangerdrew (Jul 14, 2009)

Hi everyone,

My buddies and I just got our 1977 Ericson 27' up and running, now we're getting a little ambitious and want to try to go to Catalina Island this weekend. We are all fairly new to sailing but do have some experience. We'd be leaving King Harbor (Redondo Beach) saturday AM and probably power our way up there and moor at Two Harbors. We'd need a shoreboat as we don't have a dinghy yet, but I have a campsite reserved for us to stay the night at. The next morning we'd get up and sail back.

One of the guys is getting nervous that we aren't ready for this, but I think we are... We have the Boat U.S. towing thing, so we can always get dragged back by them if we need to! We also have life jackets, vhf radio, and all that jazz just in case. 

What do you think, is this doable? There's a microbrew fest so hopefully we can get there! 

Thanks in advance,
--Andrew


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## MikeinLA (Jul 25, 2006)

I would make sure that you had appropriate ground tackle (the anchor thing) just in case a whole bunch of people get the same idea as you do and there are no moorings available. Also some sort of chart would be nice as I recall there a few things to run into on the way if you're not careful. (Also since you mentioned going "*up* there"). Due to your admitted lack of experience, it might also be wise to let someone at home know where you are going and when you should get there so that if you don't check in (did I remind you to take your cell phone?) they can call authorities to look for you. Otherwise, fortune favors the bold....Have Fun.

Mike


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## windward54 (Apr 12, 2000)

Sounds like fun and I was hoping to go but no luck this weekend. 

Just a couple of words of caution. There is an active shipping lane about 4 nm from Rocky Point. Those container vessels haul behind and will come up fast if you aren't paying attention, especially from the north. So look both ways as you cross and keep a sharp lookout. The Harbor Patrol is really good about helping. When you get to Two Harbors, give a holler on channel 9 if you don't see a harbor partol vessel, and let them know you are new at this. They are always glad to help walk you through the steps on how to pull up a mooring and get secured for the night. Shore boat also monitors channel 9, so just give them a call and they will come out and pick you up. 

After a few trips, you will be an old hat at this. Have fun at the Microfest.


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## n0w0rries (May 17, 2009)

When you get to two harbors, you'll see 2 rocks. Ship rock is the pointy one that looks like a ship (the rock is covered with bird droppings making it white--looks like a sail). The much bigger rock is bird rock, equally covered in u-know-what. There's a reef inside bird rock, it's clearly marked.

When you approach the harbor look for the red harbor patrol boats, and check in with them for a mooring. You can hail them on 9, but usually they'll either say "sorry we're full" or "wait for the boat at the harbor entrance" I think the shore boat is on 9 as well.

If you've never picked up a mooring before, check this link out:
Mooring Information, Boating - Visit Two Harbors, Catalina Island

Bring quarters for the shower if you want one. Be sure to get a buffalo milk if you've never had one.

If you end up having to anchor ask the harbor patrol for advise. If you can anchor bow & stern you can get in close by the beach in front of the camp ground if it's not too crowded already. Otherwise you will have to anchor pretty deep or too far away (out of shore boat range)

Wish I was going, but I'll be working on my atomic 4 this weekend. I'll be curious how crowded it is--wondering what to expect for Bucco Days.


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## bobmcgov (Jul 19, 2007)

Is good time. Weather is still pretty benign, tho you are entering the period when it can start cutting up a bit. Keep your VHF on 16, maintain GOOD lookouts -- the shipping lanes can make you feel like a turtle crossing an interstate -- and have a blast. We took a 1500 lb, 21-footer out there in July with no real motor, so it isn't exactly rounding the Horn, tho there are still interesting ways to die en route.

I wouldn't want to rely on a shoreboat, tho. We got a large (880 lb capacity) Intex inflatable for $65. With a second pair of oars, we rowed that sucker all over the place. No one stole it, either. It was the cost of two shoreboat rides, and you come and go on your own schedule. And think of the entertainment value of four beered-up dudes in a rubber rowboat. Cheers!


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## casioqv (Jun 15, 2009)

I'm preparing to do this also with my '74 Catalina 22- probably in early November. I crewed a few months ago with someone else.

Always be prepared for the possibility of Santa Ana winds- which can blow as hard as 70 knots and turn the otherwise protected harbor into a lee shore! Prepare for them, and cancel your trip if you think there's much possibility of them. I've heard that boats often break free from their moorings and blow ashore when these come into two harbors.

Some extra gear/prep to consider:
-A GPS with waypoints for your destination and home port
-Nautical chart and compass
-Jacklines, tethers, and harnesses
-Radar reflector
-All hatches properly sealed and solidly closed
-A refuge and anchoring plan for high winds
-A strong running engine with plenty of fuel for beating hard into the wind
-Inflatable dinghy/liferaft
-Manual bilge pump

Any advise from people whom have done this about how else to prepare for the Santa Ana winds?


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## imagine2frolic (Aug 7, 2008)

Take the ferry over until you get some equipment, and some skills. It's the ocean, and not a park lake. Do you know there's variation in a compass? Do you know how to read a chart, or GPS? Can you reef if the Santa Annas come into play. Can you reduce the headsail size, hove to, or handle a VHF? Are there working running lights, and what if the motor dies, can you fix it? One of the guys is getting nervous, because he realises most likely many of your answers are no. If you answered yes to them all, then by all means have a good time..:laugher  ........*i2f*


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## windward54 (Apr 12, 2000)

casioqv said:


> Any advise from people whom have done this about how else to prepare for the Santa Ana winds?


Hang on for a wild ride...

The only safe harbor in Santa Ana winds is Cat Harbor around the back side. This will add a couple of hours each way. If you happen to be caught in Ithsmus Cove and the winds pick up, stay. Try to get placed on a mooring as far to the west side as possible and hang on. You will be tossed around all night, but the boats are spaced and if it is going to get really bad, the Harbor Patrol will use two mooring balls to tie up boats.

Good news is Santa Ana winds are usually predictable, so keep an eye on the weather reports on the TV. If high pressure parks itself over Nevada, it is a good indication that Santa Ana winds might be coming. Bad news is the winds don't always make it down to the coastal areas and you end up passing on a great weekend, thinking that you will play it safe. Better safe than sorry, and you can always do a daysail.

Been going over for 15 years now; been caught over on Catalina only twice. And so far, the weatherman is not predicting Santa Ana winds for the weekend.


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## casioqv (Jun 15, 2009)

windward54 said:


> Try to get placed on a mooring as far to the west side as possible and hang on. You will be tossed around all night, but the boats are spaced and if it is going to get really bad, the Harbor Patrol will use two mooring balls to tie up boats.


Thanks for the advice, but why the west side of Ithsmus Cove? If the Santa Ana winds come from the east, wouldn't the west side be a lee shore, but the south and east sides, including the area by the USC Wrigley Institute be protected somewhat by the point on the SW of the cove?

Here's a satellite map of the cove which I was looking at when considering this:
Two Harbors, CA - Google Maps


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## windward54 (Apr 12, 2000)

casioqv said:


> Thanks for the advice, but why the west side of Ithsmus Cove? If the Santa Ana winds come from the east, wouldn't the west side be a lee shore, but the south and east sides, including the area by the USC Wrigley Institute be protected somewhat by the point on the SW of the cove?
> 
> Here's a satellite map of the cove which I was looking at when considering this:
> Two Harbors, CA - Google Maps


It turns out that the harbor mouth and the gap through the hills will funnel the wind through and straight down the east side of the harbor, roughly west to east. The land mass area serves to block. The west side has more coverage around it and tends to assist in blocking some of the wind and a lot of the wave/surge which come rolling into the harbor east to west. Even in good weather, the west side is less rolly than the east side, so if you look at the webcam on a winter day, you will see that most of the visiting boats will be on the west side. Up against the cliff area on charlie, delta and echo rows tend to be where it is calmest in winds.

Visit Catalina Island, California

Sorry about that. My computer freaked out and posted the message three times. I deleted the duplicates.


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## dangerdrew (Jul 14, 2009)

Thanks for the advice everyone! 
To respond to imagine2frolic's questions:
Do you know there's variation in a compass? Yes
Do you know how to read a chart, or GPS? Yes (thanks boy scouts!). Can triangulate too!
Can you reef if the Santa Annas come into play. Yes
Can you reduce the headsail size, hove to, or handle a VHF? no, yes, yes
Are there working running lights? yes
what if the motor dies, can you fix it? After having a few mechanic guys look at it, engine should be good to go. We have the boatUS towing thing, so I figure if it dies, we call them and get towed back. But if it's a basic problem, then yeah, we can fix it.

We've actually had the boat a couple months now and have been working on getting her ready for sailing, so we actually know her pretty well. I'm going to be watching the weather like hawk and if it looks like there's a chance of anything coming in, I'm going to scrap the trip. I'm also studying the charts and figuring out some emergency strategies just in case.


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## windward54 (Apr 12, 2000)

The weather is looking good for the weekend, so you should be in for a good time. The weatherman is predicting onshore winds so the weather should be great this weekend. Have fun.


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## n0w0rries (May 17, 2009)

Jeez I can't believe what I'm reading. I've been to two harbors more times then you can shake a stick at. I've never been there during santa ana conditions, but I've never had santa ana conditions pop-up out of nowhere either. I've also crossed the shipping lanes and never had an issue. If you're a competent boater then go and have a good time. Some of these replies act like you're trying to cross an ocean during hurricane season.

As long as the weather is good, and you're confident your boat can make the journey--GO! Have a good time!

I wonder if some of you ever leave the dock!


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## imagine2frolic (Aug 7, 2008)

I wasn't trying to stop you. I just get tired of reading about those getting out in the ocean with absolutely no skills. You are suppose to keep taking steps, and improving your skills by taking on bigger task. I sailed SF Bay for 18 months, and then single-handed to Cabo, and back. Have a great time, and enjoy the brew fest..  ..........*i2f*


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## windward54 (Apr 12, 2000)

n0w0rries said:


> Jeez I can't believe what I'm reading. I've been to two harbors more times then you can shake a stick at. I've never been there during santa ana conditions, but I've never had santa ana conditions pop-up out of nowhere either. I've also crossed the shipping lanes and never had an issue. If you're a competent boater then go and have a good time. Some of these replies act like you're trying to cross an ocean during hurricane season.
> 
> As long as the weather is good, and you're confident your boat can make the journey--GO! Have a good time!
> 
> I wonder if some of you ever leave the dock!


And do you remember your first trip? I do! Boy was I nervous being a new boater and it was nice to have someone to ask the ins and outs of going over. Nowdays I think nothing of hopping over. It is a nice and easy trip, but it is not without it issues to keep in mind.

Yes, Santa Ana's usually are predictable, but I've been caught at Two Harbors when the forecast changed. I left the dock with wind predictions of 15 knots. The weather changed when I was out there and we got 70 overnight and through the next day. They missed the mark on that one. Then there was running into mid channel fog. Never fun when you are in an active shipping lane.


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## Sailnakked (Feb 25, 2009)

This was my Catalina experience from San Diego. This trip was to Avalon in April of this year, my next will be to Two Harbors...

I departed NTC Marina San Diego Bay single hand motor sailing under a mainsail @ 0400 on Wednesday morning enroute Avalon Harbor, Catalina Island. Visibility was clear under a 1000ft overcast. Winds were from the south at 6-8kts. By the time I passed buoys 9 and 10 making 6 knots I was taking spray over the bow in a 2-4ft wind swell. I remember thinking 20 minutes into the trip in the pitch black darkness “what the Hell am I getting myself into”. As with flying, on this trip I always made sure I had an “out”, I had a GPS, a fixed and a handheld radio and my dinghy secured onboard. Orion is a solid and reasonably well maintained 1973 Catalina 27. Rounding buoy 3 and falling off to west for a mile or so to round the kelp bed eased the ride. 0520 when I set my heading to Northwest the sea and weather settled in nicely on the port quarter, shortly afterwards my engine quit. This is a known problem with the mighty Atomic 4 engine. Enjoying the silence and solitude of an early morning quartering breeze I realized this would be a really long trip without the engine. After about 20 minutes, a restart was successful. I was always told the best fuel to speed setting for this engine was 1800RPM. I however found out on this trip that 1800 will overheat the engine and kept the power back to 1600RPM which solved the problem, a difference of less than half a knot.
As the sun was coming up I noticed the bail connecting the main sheet assembly to the boom was literally hanging on by a thread. The bolt had sheered off and the bail had bent straight. I headed up into the wind and replaced the bottom bail with the one used for the topping lift and secured it with parts from my anchor bracket. 20 minutes later, back in business, I set the jib and steady as she goes.
About an hour later I noticed a sailboat drifting with the mast down lying on the deck. I thought, if it was me, and I had lost a mast, I would definitely want somebody to at least make a “flyby” to see if I were still alive. As I approached all I could think about was the movie “Dead Calm”, Pirates, being held-up by illegal’s at gunpoint or worse, evil, blood thirsty zombies. The boat was abandoned (thank God…), gutted and adrift about 10 miles off Point Loma. I called the Coast Guard, reported it and was once again on my way. What next??? 4 hours into the trip and already the learning curve was very steep. In the immortal words of Capt. Ron, “If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen out there…” 
The next few hours were pleasant. The sky cleared, the winds shifted around to WNW and under full sail life was good. Dolphins and little yellow furry hitchhiking birds checked in on me from time to time to make sure everything was O.K. About 4 hours out of Avalon I noticed an overcast layer developing again and the wind starting to pick-up. I shortened sail to main only. Within an hour the weather peaked at winds 20 gusts to 30 and the best way I can describe the seas is very CHOPPY, 4-6 feet, close intervals and very steep and all dead on the bow. I fell off to Starboard to use the wind as an advantage instead of beating directly into it. For about 3 hours I was single reefed, closed in below, occasionally peeking out and over checking for traffic, heeled over 15-20degs, hanging on, hoping the rigging would hold and loving every second of it. As soon as I got to lee of Catalina, the weather eased significantly and I was able to motor the last hour directly into Avalon Bay. I assume the weather was result of a venturi effect between Clemente and Catalina Islands?
I arrived in Avalon Harbor @ 1900. Pulling into Avalon was very easy. The Harbor Patrol was right where everybody said they would be, they were very friendly, patient and accommodating. Even single handing onto a mooring was uneventful, which was fortunate because I was in the “Rock Star” first row parking right up front in front of restaurants and walkways full of Spring Breakers watching and critiquing if I can pull it off in grand style. HA!!! Nicely done… AN EXTRA RATION OF GROG FOR THE CREW!!! A shot of Mt. Gay’s finest for the skipper was well deserved…

I slept well that night on the boat with a few learning points. Keep the pick-up buoy on the boat lest ye be wakened all night by a gentle “tap, tap, tap” on the bow pulpit. Additionally, in a 30ft mooring in a 27ft boat, tie off aft about 6 ft. down the sand-line. During the very high tide all the slack played out and I was “sling shotted” around quite a bit on a tight mooring.

The family came out on the Newport Beach ferry Thursday for a great day on the island. Landlubbers...

I departed Avalon on Friday @ 0430. Skies clear, moon at 75% and seas calm. The wind stayed from the south longer than I anticipated. It lazily shifted around noon and it was a sleigh ride home from there. The last 4 hours I was making 7+ knot hour legs under full sail. I must have shaken everything lose on the way over. The trip home was uneventful, other than the absolute thrill of some BITCHIN sailing… I arrived @ 1800. Another shot of Mt. Gay’s finest for the skipper was again well deserved…


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## dangerdrew (Jul 14, 2009)

Thanks for the story Sailnakked, I enjoyed reading it and it was a good confidence booster! We still have a few last minute items to take care of, but looks like we're going for it! I'll keep everyone updated and will hopefully have a story of my own to post on monday!


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## Sailnakked (Feb 25, 2009)

'Look forward to hearing about it... HAVE FUN!!!


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## windward54 (Apr 12, 2000)

And a friend of mine just left Long Beach bound for Cat Harbor. Of course he had to call and rub it in as I'm stuck to a desk and can't get away. No wind and the seas are flat. Be ready to motor!


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## n0w0rries (May 17, 2009)

My first boating trip was in a 25' 1968 Albright. Old boat with a chevy 350. I did as much research as I could on the internet. I launched from Huntington Harbor with my dad and a friend. We had a VHF, no GPS (over 10 years ago... gps was not common yet). We caught some yellowtail off san onofre and pulled in to mission bay as the sun was setting. Had some friends meet us in the harbor and partied it up. Goal was to head to those islands in Mexico (the coronados, and no we didnt have a mexican boat permit or fishing license). Passed point loma and it started getting rough, so I decided to head home. Between Oceanside and Dana Point the transmission died. The only thing I didn't research was to have vessel assist or sea tow. Called the coast guard, they passed us on to sea tow. We waited 5 hours while sea tow trailered a dinghy with a big outboard down to dana and launched it to come get us. Got us back to the harbor 2 hours and $575 later. The vessel assist guy was pissed because he could have saved us 5 hours, and the harbor patrol wrote the sea tow guy a ticket for towing without proper lighting.

Don't get me started telling boat stories! My dock buddies used to call my boat "one-way".

I remember how painful it was going to catalina in that albright at 12 knots... can't wait to do it in my 27 catalina doing 6!!!


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## EETurner (Oct 15, 2008)

*Picking up this thread 3 months later...*

I'm curious to hear if DangerDrew made the trip. Funny coincidence that my wife/I made our first Catalina sailing trip the same weekend this thread refers to. We sailed from Marina Del Rey and were out for 8 nights on a Hunter 356 bareboat charter. I had prior SF Bay, Galveston Bay, and Tampa Bay experience but this was my first taste of being more than 5 miles off the coast. We moored in Two Harbors, Avalon, and back to Emerald Bay before returning. Each harbor location was unique and entirely worthwhile for us as Catalina newbies. During the week we had some morning motoring, excellent afternoon sailing, and saw lots of dolphin and sea lions. The CA coast, the clear/blue water in the San Pedro channel, and Catalina were all beautiful and we look forward to a second trip. Also, we always appreciate the info on this site from people with local knowlege. God bless!


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