Prisoners harbor was nice! Until bedtime. I don't understand what happened, but the swells came in about bedtime and we got thrashed. The boat was bouncing like a cork and the dishes were clanking and things rolling around all night. We did not sleep. It seemed that Santa Cruz Island was destined to not let us sleep. At 4:00 AM Matt and I were up staring at the sea and wondering what all the clanking noises were. We pulled anchor and decided that it did no good to stay and be observers. We headed for Anacapa Island. Anacapa has no protected coves and we knew that we would be in for another rough night if we attempted to stay there. We decided to do a fly-by and look at Anacapa and then head to Oxnard where we could get some rest.
Dawn as we departed Santa Cruz Island.
Anacapa was a short hop just beyond the dawn.
As usual, the seas calmed during the daylight and it was a delightful cruise. Anacapa is a group of small islands. There are no coves but lots of wild life and many birds. It was great to look at but I did not want to stay. There were divers and fishing boats around. The lighthouse and arch are a beautiful sight.
It was time to find shelter in Oxnard...
so off we headed, back to the mainland. If you remember the Flow State, Richard and Catherine from the Morro Bay post, they had offered to host us on their dock if we were in town, so we decided to put that challenge to the test. We headed to Channel Island Harbor in Oxnard.
We first met with my cousin Tim and his wife Jayne. We had a nice lunch at Mrs. Olson's café (no relation) and I took Tim for a tour of the boat. He had been following the blog so it was nice to see them and get caught up. We headed to Richard and Catherine home. It is a beautiful place on a canal and there was dock space for us. I pulled in and we were warmly greeted.
While doing my standard engine checks I noticed a small fuel leak and it looked like it was coming from the engine fuel filter. It was time to replace it, so I took one from ship stock and discovered it was the wrong part. Luckily I was in a city so I found a Volvo parts dealer and got a couple of new filters and installed one of them. It was not the filter! The leak was from the lift pump, so I started the long search for the replacement part. To make a long story short, Volvo had changed the design, the old part was unavailable, lots of confusion ensued. A week and $1500 later I got it fixed.
We had a great time with Richard and Catherine while waiting for parts. The grocery store had a dinghy dock and there were many fine restaurants to try out. I rode the bike to Ventura twice for parts which was nice and we played with Richard's toys. (eLift board, Jet Ski, one wheel and Tesla model X) Great visit. Richard and Catherine were great hosts and warm friendly people, but it was time to move on.
Technical Details:
Time: 4 h 27 m ( 07:01 to 11:28 ) Distance: 30.69 nm
Fuel: 12.22 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.74 GPH Fuel Economy: 2.51 NM/G
Avg Speed: 7.56 kn Max Speed: 10.65 kn
Engine Runtime Start: 3140.55 Hours Runtime End: 3145.00 Hours Fuel: 12.22 Gallons Fuel Rate: 2.74 GPH Fuel Rate Max: 6.71 GPH Avg RPM: 1175.53 Max RPM: 1570.50 Avg Oil Pressure: 49.24 Low Oil Pressure: 31.33 Avg Temperature: 189.56 Max Temperature: 192.20
Hey Steve. I sure have been enjoying following along your adventures! If you are doing immigration in Ensenada, look up our friends Margie and Sunny on S/V Hoptoad. They just finished their filings and are waiting the few weeks for clearance and can offer you good advice on the process. Audrey (M/V Honu Koloa)
We used to go to that marine for dinner when we lived in Ventura.