• Photo by: Carlos GranaDate: May 12
• Time: 08:00-16:00
• Location: SEA Docks
• Cost: Free to Members
• Requirements: ASA 101 or equivalent
• Category: Adventure

The Adventure Sails team organized another Out the Gate sail on May 12, this time bound for the Farallon Islands (Farallones). The group had previously held a Navigation/Planning meeting to present the float plan and go over preparations and precautions.

On sail day, crew met their respective skippers early to prepare the boats, including fastening jacklines to which all hands would be tethered via safety harnesses while out the gate. Wind Seeker (skippered by Mike Brownell), Summer Solstice (John Paul Watts), and Tackful (Frank Lawler) established radio contact in the vicinity of the Golden Gate but would have little visual contact throughout the day.

Near the Pt. Bonita buoy, all three boats elected to tack north up the Bonita Channel, as a more direct course would not be feasible with light westerly breezes of 4-6 knots or less. Summer Solstice sailed past Muir Beach and sighted a few porpoises along the way, but when the winds dropped to 1-3 knots, even our chosen course would not take us to our destination and back in a day. As we returned to the bay, each boat followed its own revised float plan, and the rest of this account pertains to Summer Solstice and crew.

Photo by: Carlos Grana

Back on the bay we found radically different conditions. As we sailed toward the Bay Bridge, the winds were 15-25 knots, but in the wind shadow of the city we were in light air again, such that we had to motor back out from under the bridge to the Embarcadero city front. There and around Alcatraz, the winds were still howling, at 25-30 gusting to 40 knots. “A day of contrasts,” our skipper was heard to remark, and that was even before one of our number got soaked to the bone helping to double-reef the main.

Some things remained constant, though, through wind and calm and fog and sun, including the vigilance and responsiveness of captain and crew, and the high spirit of adventure that weathered the biggest contrast of all, the one between float plan and course made good. Thanks to all, and especially to our intrepid skippers, for a day of unpredictable contrasts but predictable good times. It should come as no surprise that the Adventure Sails team is already planning another attempt to reach the Farallones later this summer.

Lack of Communication Triggers USCG Search and Costs Taxpayer $

A recent story about a massive search by USCG for a sailor who took longer than expected to return.
Broken VHF and no cell range triggered the search (Ex-wife who cares).
This is a challenging situation: If your comms gear fails, there's a lot more to worry about than just your own safety.
SEA takes safety and trip planning seriously.  To learn more and prepare for your own offshore trips, attend our high quality  Navigation Planner sessions to find out more.

Read more in Seattle Times Article

... Ira (Foreman) was reported missing nearly a week after he was due to arrive on Oahu. The Guard unsuccessfully searched more than 200,000 square miles, then suspended the effort Thursday. He was surprised to hear about the massive effort to find him, said Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Leigh Cotterell. Winds apparently pushed his boat out of their search zone ...Ira had enough supplies and food, but his VHF radio wasn't working and he was out of cell phone range, Cotterell said.

Date: November
Time: 10:00-16:00
Cost: Free to Members
Location: SEA Docks
Category: Adventure Sails

Summer Solstice sailed on a sunny Saturday, November 12 to Richmond Inner Harbor with skipper John Paul Watts and a crew of five. Light winds prevailed, but the big genoa captured all the air had to offer, and by early afternoon we had navigated the hook-shaped approach and entered the Turning Basin.

As we had learned at our navigation planner session earlier in the week, the approach has several legs, each with its own name on the chart. Unlike the cargo ships whose draft would prevent such a shortcut, we took advantage of the relatively high tide and sailed directly across the Southampton Shoal Channel over to Point Potrero Reach, without going "up and around" where the deepest water lies.

One can plan, chart and prepare, but the winds have their own ideas, and, in the end, a good sailor just has to ride with it.

The SEA flotilla of Summer Solstice and Fayaway accompanied by The Hard Way and Rigel did just that on their coastal voyage to Half Moon Bay last weekend. All had anticipated a nice leisurely downwind sail. Instead they beat south for nine hours, ending the leg with a night time approach to the Pillar Point Harbor. This rquired gingerly threading along buoys while avoiding Colorado Reef -- an excellent navigation challenge for all the crews.

Dates: Quarterly, See Below
Time: 09:00 - 17:00
Location: Skipper Assignment
Cost: Free
Category: Adventure Sails

Attention Sailors! Get ready and prepare for our upcoming Adventure Sail to Half Moon bay on Oct. 15.  Get your sea legs and practice your skills. Do you need seasickness meds? Find out now before you go farther afield.

All SEA skippers and adventure sail members should check this out and kindly report your findings to us.

When: Wednesday, Sept. 14

Time: 19:30

Location: Oakland Yacht Club

If you're in the east bay Wednesday evening, swing by Oakland Yacht Club. It's the skippers meeting for the SSS Richmond South Beach Race, and David Weiss is giving a presentation on bay traffic from the bar pilot's perspective. Everyone's welcome, whether or not you're entered in the race. Wednesday Sep. 14, 7:30 pm.
Max Crittenden

Date: Sunday, April 29th (note new date)
Time: All Day
Location: Boat Assignments being made Sat 21 April

Cost: Free
Category: Adventure Sails
REGISTRATION CLOSED-Sat 21 April

Spring has sprung. Take a trip to Stinson Beach which is around a headland or two.

Register for our season opening  Adventure Sails series, an off-shore daysail on the Pacific ocean along the beautiful Marin coastline. You may have spent the winter imagining what's beyond the Golden Gate Bridge: now's your chance to find out.

Please join the preparatory Navigation Plan Session or Out The Gate sail when you will get a taste of them thar swells, get some advice on seasickness and take a look at navigating San Francisco entrance.

Date: April 17, 2012
Time: 19-21
Location: Crissy Field, San Francisco
Cost: $15 Members | $20 Public
Category: Adventure Sails

Get ready for offshore sailing in SEA's two hour prep session for all Adventure Sails.
It will be reviewed in our Navigation Planner sessions by skippers with their crew as part of the Trip Planning process.

Spaulding Wooden Boat Center is holding a Polynesian Navigation Lecture in Sausalito this June.

Dr. Mimi George, Director of The Vaka Taumako Project will give a power-point presentation entitled "Sailing with Lata." Dr. George will discuss the traditional knowledge of the Polynesian voyagers of Taumako, Solomon Islands, and the aerodynamically superior designs of their voyaging canoes and their "wind compass” navigation system.

The Vaka Taumako Project seeks to educate young people in the ancient skills and values of building and navigating voyaging canoes. The project seeks to share information on the practical and spiritual nature of ancient sailing knowledge, and promote awareness and revival of authentic Polynesian voyaging. Read more at SWBC.

Space is limited for this no-doubt fantastic and informative lecture, so please sign up ASAP with

Collisions And The Question Of Liability

Finding fault can be tricky at sea. The bottom line is to be conservative; take evasive action, even if you think you’re in the right. Here’s why.

With some collisions, fault is obvious, like the collision that occurred when the skipper of a 45-foot powerboat in Florida slammed into the stern of a 31-foot boat late one night in a narrow waterway. The skipper of the larger boat had been drinking heavily and his boat was traveling at almost 50 mph, over twice the posted speed limit.

But with many collisions, perhaps most collisions, assessing liability isn’t so easy. Last summer, for example, a small fishing boat and a trawler collided on a clear day on the Chesapeake Bay after having each other in sight for almost 10 minutes. Seas were calm and the open stretch of water near the mouth of the Potomac River was remarkably free of other boat traffic. The first boat, a 26-foot center-console, was heading north, off Smith Point Light, and its skipper said later that he thought his boat was moving faster and would pass in front of the trawler. He admitted that his attention was focused elsewhere.

The second boat, the trawler, was headed northwest toward the Potomac River. The trawler’s skipper said that he was well aware of the smaller boat but his boat had the right of way and he held his course until a few seconds before the collision — far too late to move out of harm’s way.

Read More at Boat US.