It’s Begun!

Once again it’s been far too long since I posted an update, which is not surprising given that we are still plowing ahead at breakneck speed in preparations for the Baja Ha-ha, which starts in **gulp** 4 days! But I’m taking a break from the preps to blast out an update so y’all have at least some sense of what’s been going on with us here on Juliet. I also need to explain some details about the various methods we’re going to be using to communicate, which is all a bit complex and quirky. 

PART 1: UPDATE

After innumerable delays caused by wild Santa Ana wind conditions and frustrating mechanical issues (mainly the generator, which had to be completely rebuilt), we finally got underway at 4pm on Friday, October 25. After so many years of planning, and the last several months of insane preparations, it was hard to believe that it was really here. We actually…LEFT! Here’s a short video of the very moment we threw the docklines to begin our cruising life. It was quite emotional, and yeah, I got weepy. I apologize for the snorting…I was actually caught by surprise by my tears.

We’d originally planned on picking our way south to San Diego with day sails, stopping at Catalina and possibly Dana Point. But with all the delays we decided to just do a straight shot with a 24-hour sail. So we had our first overnight sail on Juliet. The lingering Santa Anas on land meant no wind out at sea, so we had to motor the whole way, in glassy seas. So it was an easy passage. Bubba was a little confused, but he figured it all out pretty quickly and adapted to using his turf pad on the floor of the cockpit. (We leave it on the deck when we’re in a slip, but at sea we don’t want him running around on deck.)

We arrived in San Diego on Saturday afternoon and pulled into a guest slip at Southwestern Yacht Club on Shelter Island, which is truly a luxurious club! We enjoyed three pleasant days there with all of their amenities, including sparkling clean showers and laundry facilities. But our yacht club reciprocals only granted us 3 days there, so on Tuesday we transferred over to an anchorage at Glorietta Bay off Coronado island, which is where we are now. Yesterday (Wed) I ubered over to the airport and picked up a rental car for a couple of days, which we will use to do some errands.

This afternoon we’re driving up to Escondido to pick up the water-maker, which we’re going to have installed in La Paz. Then tonight we’re spending Halloween at our dear friend Mike Stricklen’s house, where we will help hand out candy to the goblins.

We’re adjusting well to life on the hook. Bubba does miss not getting his early-morning walks, but once we’re up and about we take him ashore on the dinghy, and he LOVES his dinghy rides! Here’s a short video of Charlie and Bubba after dropping me off at shore to pick the rental car.

Tomorrow we transfer back to Shelter Island, to an anchorage there, and then all the FUN begins! There are several pre-Haha events we’ll be attending, and then the huge, traditional day-before-the-Ha-Ha BBQ and costume party at West Marine. Then on Monday…OFF WE GO!

PART 2: COMMUNICATION METHODS

I’ve had a number of questions about the various means we’re using to communicate, and how they all tie together. I’m still figuring it all out myself, and some things aren’t working quite right yet, but I intend to have it all tied together before we leave. So here’s a short primer on how we will be staying in touch

1.  THIS BLOG: If you’re reading this, you already know how to get here. LOL! This is our main website, and you can link to everything else from here. Bookmark this page. This is where I will post longer, essay-type blog posts. I will also always post links to each YouTube video I release. I will NOT be posting short, daily updates – those are going to be on our Following Seas tracker. But you can get to that tracker by clicking the blue button that says “Click here to see Juliet’s current location” on the home page.

I will NOT be able to update this blog when we’re far out to sea.

URL for this blog: https://svjulietsailing.com

2. FOLLOWING SEAS TRACKER: This is a tracking system that will show a map of where we currently are, with a red line behind us showing our path to date.  It will also contain a brief update, which will be just a short blurb on what’s going on today.

I WILL be able to update this tracker, including daily blurbs and our location, no matter where we are – even far out to sea! – using our IridiumGo Satphone. 

NOTE: If you are viewing this on your cellphone, you’ll need to click the “X” on the blog to close it, in order to see the map. On a laptop, the blurb updates will appear on the left but you can still see the map. You can expand the map to get a closer view of our location.

URL for Following Seas: https://followingsea.net/track/Juliet

3. YOUTUBE: I have a YouTube channel where I will be posting episodes about every week or two. It’s kind of sparse right now, as we don’t have a whole lot to show until we really get going. But you will start seeing frequent episodes soon! You can find our channel by going to YouTube and searching on SV Juliet 

I will NOT be able to update YouTube when we’re far out to sea.

URL for YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRK7XMnmEL1mcDg9Q7xPrJA

4. FACEBOOK: I have two Facebook pages – my personal page, and the SV Juliet Sailing page. I use my personal page for keeping in touch with family and friends, and I tend to limit my friends list to people I know personally.

The SV Juliet Sailing page is open to anyone, and is where I will post links to everything – the main blog, Following Seas, and YouTube. If you haven’t yet liked this page, please do so, as it’s a great central point to see all of our updates.

I will NOT have access to Facebook when we’re far out to sea, but I’m working on configuring Following Seas to be able to post my daily blurbs to this page.

URL for our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/svjulietsailing

So that’s everything! We may adjust some things in the future as we work out better ways to keep in touch, but this should be good for now.

Happy Halloween everyone!