We were looking for some serious beach time and somewhere to go for a shakedown cruise of the boat. So our first sail out of San Diego was 30 nm north from Point Loma to Oceanside.

Toes in the sand in Oceanside

The trip was around 6 hours from Point Loma motor sailing since the wind was on our nose the entire time. We could have driven there in under an hour but that would be missing the point 🙂 And I got to experience my first encounter with a pod of dolphins. They converge on the boat swimming under and beside it. They like to play with the bow of the boat dodging back and forth. Sorry no pictures. I was too excited watching the show!

The shake down trip went well. About 10 miles out of Oceanside we lost our GPS on the chart plotter. Not cool when you are coming in to a harbor for the first time. Our backup is our IPAD and we were able to get that operational. In the meantime Gary pulled off the electrical panel jiggled some wires and the GPS mysteriously came back up. So hunting down a loose wire is on our to-do-list.

Sereno in Oceanside Harbor

We arrived just in time for happy hour!

Sunset

Our neighbor, Jim, let me drive his 35 foot trawler today down our narrow channel. I’m glad no warships were on the move! Interesting fellow. Former Marine who for the last 40 years has worked for Hollywood flying his C123 airplane for movies like Air Force One and Terminal Velocity to name a few. His real business though is doing parachute payload research for NASA and the military.

One week ago Gary and our friend Richard sailed Sereno from Oxnard to our temporary home port of San Diego. I had to drive the car and stay the night in a hotel. I’m not usually a lucky person however upon check-in I received an upgrade to a junior suite overlooking the bay. So at 7:00 am the next morning I was able to watch Sereno II sail past the balcony of my hotel. Unfortunately my iPhone camera did not capture a good picture, but here they are arriving at Chula Vista Harbor.

They had an uneventful 26 hour sail. They could have arrived 4 hours earlier but slowed down so they could arrive after day break.

On Father’s Day we had our first sail in the bay. Light winds so we motored the entire time but it is always fun to see familiar land from the water. While San Francisco Bay is more picturesque, San Diego is much warmer. Here is the ‘happy Father’ relaxing while the crew (aka me) is at the helm chauffeuring him around to see the sights 🙂

We went from cargo ships to Navy ships. Here is the US Navy Ship Bob Hope. Unlike cargo ships that just appear, the Navy announces their departure so you are forewarned.

I have not thought of work one single minute. Friends yes, work no. We spend our time doing things around the boat, planning, and playing. Today we polished some of the steel, went to the beach and started planning our 1st trip out which will be to Oceanside, CA. It is about 30 miles up the coast and should take 6 hours or so. Not sure if we will come straight back here or head further north. We don’t have to decide until we get to Oceanside since we will have our home and all our stuff with us!

What do I miss from land? The last week we were in Oxnard our heater blanket because it was foggy and freaking cold. My salad spinner because I hate soggy lettuce. Other than that (plus Austin and Oakley), not a thing. Enjoying the new life style.