San Francisco Bay is known for some of the best
sailing in the world. Taking in some of
the many sites in this beautiful northern California region makes for a
fabulous combination. The Bay has a
wide range of sailing conditions, all at the same time, and the Bay Area is
known for its microclimates. Strong
westerly winds through the “slot” under the Golden Gate Bridge are guaranteed
on a daily basis, while you are almost becalmed once you are behind Angel
Island. The sites are nonstop, with an
up-close view of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower on Telegraph
Hill, and much, much more, all in the first day.
The Sailing
Club will again be visiting this
exciting area to experience some of the greatest sailing in the world.
This is a sailing vacation that also takes
in many of the towns of this beautiful Bay Area, with stops in Berkeley and
Sausalito, as well as San Francisco.
Late April is after the rainy season, which is the
only winter San Francisco can claim.
Temperatures are in the mid 60’s during the day and can cool to 50 at
night. Expect the fog to roll in late
through the Gate, but disappear before the sailing begins.
With one stop, you can fly into Oakland,
which is just a few minutes from the boats.
Continental has non-stop flights from Newark to San Francisco, a
30-minute taxi ride away, or a ride on the BART.
Our adventure will look something like this:
Friday,
April 16 we arrive in the afternoon
at Club Nautique on Alameda Island for provisioning and sleep aboard.
Our fleet of three 40-foot Hunters has been
reserved for the trip. We should have
time to explore Jack London Square, or start our wine tasting adventures early at
Rosenblum Cellars, both a few minutes from the marina.
Saturday, our first day of sailing, will have us catching an
ebb tide under the Oakland Bay Bridge and past Treasure Island to sail the
Central Bay. We will cruise by the San
Francisco waterfront, past Alcatraz before heading north to Marin County.
The end of our first day is in Sausalito,
where we have slips reserved for two nights.
Sunday will be a day of sightseeing from Sausalito.
The waterfront is lined with numerous
marinas and the town has many restaurants and shops.
We have vans to take us on a choice of two tours; sightseeing
inland or a tour of Sonoma or Napa wine country.
Please indicate your preference on the sign-up form.
Monday is for sailing the Central Bay, around Alcatraz and
to Angel Island’s Ayala Cove to pick up a mooring for the night.
Ayala Cove is off Raccoon Straight and
across from Tiburon and Belvedere, where the tech billionaires have homes on
the hills overlooking the water. Angel
Island State Park is known as the Ellis Island of the West, where it served as
an immigration center for 100 years.
Tuesday we can head to the North Bay going under the
Richmond/San Rafael Bridge and past the notorious San Quentin State Prison into
the less traveled waters of San Pablo Bay.
We will finish our day in Berkeley in the East Bay area, where we have
slips reserved for the night.
Wednesday is another day of sailing to our hearts content,
with our destination of San Francisco and two nights at a marina along
the City’s waterfront (if we only had more time…).
Thursday is San Francisco.
There are many, many sites to see and things to do, most a short walk or
cable car ride away. Fisherman’s Wharf,
once used by the crab fisherman to sell their wares, is a popular place to get
Dungeness crab, or chowder in a sourdough bread bowl.
Golden Gate Bridge, Telegraph Hill, Fort Point, Presido National
Park, Golden Gate Park offer plenty of hiking and museums.
Tours of Alcatraz leave from near the Pier
39 Shopping Center. Haight/Ashbury is
still home to some unconventional lifestyles.
The cable cars, which are used by visitors and locals to scale the steep
hills, will take you past Lombard Street, the crookedest street, through
Chinatown, to Union Square. Near the
waterfront are the historic shopping centers of Ghirardelli Square, the Cannery
and the renovated Ferry Building.
Shops, museums and eclectic restaurants are everywhere.
Friday is our final day of sailing the bay.
We will head back to Ballena Bay in the
afternoon, where we have the boats until 8:00 AM on Saturday for those that
want to hang on for one more night.
The
cost of the trip is $1,200.00 per
person (Skippers - $695.00). This price covers charter fees, five night’s
slips and the Sausalito excursion.
Food, fuel, airfare, wine tasting fees, and other incidental expenses
are additional and will be handled by each boat’s crew.
A $250.00
deposit is required to hold your position.
Please make your check payable to The Sailing Club, Inc. and mail it,
along with your completed
reservation form, to Jeff Hamer at the address below.
Reservations will be processed beginning October 9th,
with a random draw of those received by that date.
All reservations received after that date are on a first-come,
first-served basis. The balance of $950.00 will be due as follows:
A second payment of $325.00 will be due November 1st, a third payment of
$325.00 will be due December 1st and
the final payment of $300.00 will be
due February 1st, 2010.
A pre-trip
meeting will be held at a time and place to be announced.
All crewmembers should make every effort to
attend in order to meet our crewmates, plan your meals and make travel plans.
