Below is the itinerary for our 13th Annual, Delta/Bay Extravaganza, C-Dory event. This event is officially scheduled from Wednesday, March 25th, through Sunday, March 29th.
There are ten (10) C-Dory boats signed up for this event. Below are the ten (10) vessels and the twenty (21) sailors on this voyage:
1. Pounder (Jim and Kath)
2. Dinner Belle II (John and Robbin)
3. Slack Time (John and Laurie)
4. SEA3PO (Joel and Susan)
5. Far C’r (Floyd and Bernie)
6. Blue-Eagle (David, Donald, and Zach)
7. C-Casa (Pedro and Eileen)
8. Dora Jean (Steve, Carmen, and Alex)
9. C-View II (Tony and Diane)
10.Dark Water (Doug and ?)
Question to Doug, is any one coming with you on this trip?
Our schedule will be the same as last years’, and is as follows:
1. Wednesday, March 25th, Delta Marina, Rio Vista
Harbormaster Bill (707) 374-2315
• Launch fee of $10.00 to be paid individually, on check-in
• Vehicle and trailer parked in the gated lot at the end of the marina
• One day free parking, then $5 per day, Thursday to Sunday
• Parking cost of $20 in total, on check-in
• Please pay total $30 ($10+$20) in cash to this Marina on check-in.
Wednesday, March 25th, leave Rio Vista (Delta Marina) at 12:00 Noon, and arrive at Wheeler Island Duck Club, midafternoon. On Wednesday, Kath and I plan to launch our own vessel about 10:00 AM, at Rio Vista. We will then all leave Rio Vista, as a C-Dory Group, at high Noon, and head down river to Wheeler Island.
2. Wednesday, March 25th, Wheeler Island Private Duck Club
Jim’s cell phone (916) 799-0286
• Boats rafted double, boat-to-boat, at Club dock, bigger boats in first
• Bring plenty of boat fenders to raft up
• No shore power or water hookups
• Restrooms and showers in the clubhouse
• No mooring fees.
John and Robbin are hosting a BBQ dinner for everyone on Wednesday night. On Thursday morning, Kath and I are hosting a bacon and egg breakfast for everyone.
3. Thursday, March 26th, City-owned Petaluma River Turning Basin
Petaluma Visitors Center (707) 769-0429
• Cost of $23 per night, per vessel, (paid in cash at dock)
• No rest rooms or showers at dock
• Rest rooms at Visitor’s Center and Starbuck’s, one block away
• Shore power and water hookups
• Everyone docked on 500 foot visitor dock, on South side of Basin.
Thursday, March 26th leave Wheeler Island (private Duck Club) approximately 9:30 AM (on an early incoming tide if possible), and arrive at the City of Petaluma (Petaluma Turning Basin). On Thursday, we will try to leave the Duck Club in the morning after breakfast, in time to safely cross San Pablo Bay, and to make a 2:00 PM scheduled bridge opening at Petaluma. On Thursday night we might go down to Volpi’s Italian Bar (been there since 1918) or some other popular local restaurant for dinner.
4. Friday, March 27th, Sausalito Schoonmaker Point Marina
Harbor Master Mike (415) 331-5550
• Cost of $1.00 per foot, $22, $25, or $26, depending on vessel size
• Cash only, paid individually, at check-in
• Key deposit at check-in, on credit card
• Rest rooms and showers
• Shore power and water hookups
• Everyone together, lined up on “F” dock.
Friday, March 27th, leave Petaluma at 9:00 AM to transverse San Pablo Bay safely, and arrive at the City of Sausalito (Schoonmaker Point Marina). We need to clear the Petaluma “D” Street Bridge by 9:00 AM, Friday morning. Channel 9 is used by the Commodore to communicate with this Petaluma Bridge.
The C-Dory Group will communicate during this trip on Channel 69, but also monitor Channel 16.
At Schoonmaker Point Marina in Sausalito, we will be staying on “F” dock. Remember to line up on Day Marker #6, on the way into, and out of, the Sausalito channel.
“F” dock is not well protected from certain winds. We are making the trip this year in the month of March. We usually make this trip in April. Because of this earlier start date there is some additional uncertainty on the weather. If there are strong Southerly winds when we are at Sausalito we may not be able to get into Schoonmaker because they could close this dock down for unsafe conditions. We are only telling you this for full disclosure. Like most of this entire trip, we will just play it out real time and improvise as need be.
Sausalito is a good place to refill, or top-off, your fuel tanks for the rest of the trip. On Friday night we might go down to the Sausalito Fish restaurant for dinner or some other popular restaurant.
5. Saturday, March 28th, San Francisco South Beach Harbor
Harbor Master Alvin (415) 495-4911
• Cost of $35 per night regardless of boat size (Prepaid)
• Non-refundable deposit, paid in advance, $10 per vessel (Prepaid)
• Rest rooms and showers
• Shore power and water hookups
• Everyone on “A” dock with assigned slip numbers given later on trip.
Saturday, March 25th, leave Sausalito in morning and tour Bay and/or Angel Island, and arrive at the City of San Francisco (South Beach Harbor). On Saturday morning some will go over to Angel Island for a hike and picnic, before we cross the Bay to San Francisco. On Saturday night we usually have dinner at one of the local casual nearby San Francisco neighborhood restaurants.
6. Sunday, March 29th
Leave San Francisco at dawn’s first early light, and return to Rio Vista so as to arrive before Noon. On Sunday, we will leave at Sunrise (sharp), and head non-stop back to Rio Vista. We should pull into the docks at Rio Vista, approximately 11:00 AM, Sunday morning. Per tradition, anyone still standing, able, and willing, is invited to have breakfast at the Strippers Restaurant in Rio Vista, curtesy of Jim and Kath, after we get our boats retrieved and put on their trailers.
xxxxxx
The above itinerary seems like a rigid schedule. In actual fact, anything can happen along the way to throw it off. Sometimes we are not able to meet our plan as scheduled, due to weather conditions.
In the Central/West Delta main channels one wants to avoid together the incoming wind, and the outgoing tides, as they can be nasty enough, in combination, to even put a mighty C-Dory out-of- commission. Once you are West of Pittsburgh, the water channels become wider and bigger, and the wind is usually going to be coming at you from the West, and if the tide is going out, hang on for a rough passage! On a few trips we have had blue water going over the tops of our C-Dory’s crossing San Pablo Bay. One boat even had it’s radar antenna knocked off.
Amazingly, for the last several years, we have lucked out with the weather, and we have been able to finish off the entire trip itinerary, as we originally planned it. However, in some past years we have had to modify our schedule substantially, and stop at interim locations, or stay over at a given location an extra day or so, to “ride out” the passing weather.
For full disclosure, for the new attendees, this Extravaganza covers approximately 200 NM in five (5) days, and there is always unpredictability in weather and water conditions. The more experienced, competent, and generally relaxed Skippers have generally enjoyed this trip the most.
As always, each boat Captain is solely responsible for his/her own boat’s, and passenger’s, ultimate safety and well-being. Each Skipper is not to rely on the judgment (or lack thereof) of the Pack Commodore. It helps the Group to show up with your vessel and engine(s) in good operating condition and with full tanks of fuel when you leave Rio Vista.
There is no need for anyone to bring food for either Wednesday night, or Thursday morning. Please feel free though to host your own dock happy hour at any of our destinations. Everyone is on their own for breakfasts and lunches throughout the trip. Some folks bring their own food with them, and others just go out to eat, as there are plenty of good restaurants to eat breakfast and lunch nearby. Also, some have dinners on their own boats, and others go out to dinner as a group.
xxxxxx
This is our 13th time for this C-Dory cruise, and we have always enjoyed ourselves, and the other attendees, or we would not keep doing it. We again look forward to the trip this year.
This year, like last year, we need to collect some marina reservation fees in advance. The advance marina reservation fees, per vessel, this year are $45.00 for San Francisco ($35 + $10).
You will pay your own launch fees and parking costs at Rio Vista when you check-in there; you will pay your own marina fees at Petaluma when you arrive there; and finally you will pay your own marina fees at Sausalito when we arrive there. The San Francisco marina has to be paid in advance. There are no fees for our stay at Wheeler Island!
Please send a check for $45.00 to confirm your reservation. This fee will be non-refundable, even if you do not show up, for whatever reason, as San Francisco will not refund it. Along with your check, please provide (1) the full first and last names for yourself and crew; (2) your vessel name; and (3) your vessel CF number. This information is used for marina reservations.
Please send your check, payable to Jim Gibson, along with the above requested information, to Jim Gibson, at 15 Noah Court, Sacramento, California, 95831. Please send your check by March 10th (two weeks from now).
Thank you for your interest in this event. Eight of the ten vessels signed up for this event are repeats from prior years, and we believe that this is some testimonial to the overall trip experience.
As always, we look forward to seeing everyone in March. We may have one extra boat wanting to go on this trip and the skipper is waiting in the wings in case someone wants to drop out, or they do not get their deposit check sent back in time!
If there are any questions, please call. Kath and I are looking forward to another fun C-Dory gathering.
Sincerely,
Jim on M/V Pounder
And the C-Tales Continue
