Channel Islands Crossing: Day Four – Catalina to San Clemente Island

Posted Feb 09, 2012 in Blog

February 9th, 2011

 

 

We wake up this morning in Cat Harbor on Catalina Island.  It is really quiet.  John and Chris are up on deck getting the boat ready again.  I am doing my breakfast routine and getting my supplies ready for todays paddle.  Ryan’s bed is across from the kitchen and his only privacy is a curtain.  I hear the curtain rip open and his camera is rolling.  Ryan is our comedian on board and he is asking me questions about todays paddle.  He is asking some good questions and some stupid ones to get me laughing.  As I get focused each morning… he is there to lighten the mood.

Today I am paddling from Catalina to San Clemente Island.  San Clemente is the Southernmost of the Channel Islands.  It is owned and operated by the United States Navy.  There is commando training and a U.S. Navy rocket-test facility on the island.  The Navy uses the island as an auxiliary naval airfield.  The United States Coast guards use it as well. The runway on the island is known for it’s high winds and dangerous terrain that surround it.  The airfield is also home to the United States Navy Seals training facilities.  We had to get permission from a General in the Navy to get close to the island.

Todays paddle is supposed to be an easy 17 miles.  I stick my head up on deck from the cabin to see if it’s time to go and I do not like what I see.  It is really windy.  It is a nasty side wind with choppy swells.   John and Chris just look at me and say “sorry”.    Chris tells me it’s time to go and I grab my paddle and climb down the ladder.  I have to be quick jumping on the board. The choppy water is banging the board up against the boat.

I start paddling and I am immediately frustrated.  The conditions are really bad.   The wind is howling and coming over my left shoulder.  The swells are rolling through me sideways and it’s a balancing act to stay on the board.  I try to get into a rhythm but I can’t.  I am upset with myself for letting the conditions get to me.  I have tears in my eyes.  I am questioning if I will be able to do this.  The boat can see I am frustrated but they don’t know about the tears.  I continue to struggle and then a voice in my head told me to stop…” stop struggling, relax, you can do this.”  I tell my kids all the time, “if you are in a stressful situation… don’t panic, it’s the worst thing you can do, use your head, relax, and you will be fine.” I am telling this to myself now.  I pull myself together.  I regain my focus.  I know that I will be fine and I will just have to deal with whatever conditions I am given.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I paddle closer to the boat to ask them a question.    I start laughing.  The crew has their life jackets on because the conditions are so bad. It is dangerous to be on deck without one.   I do not have a pfd.  I start to wonder if there something wrong with this scenario?  I am in the one in the water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am in a rhythm now and trying to zig zag so I can ride a swell.  It works a little but it is also adding more distance.  I see something in the water that scares me. It goes right under my board.  It looks very large and black and white.  I don’t know what it is. I am thinking an Orca whale.  It freaks me out.  I paddle to the boat as quickly as I can.  I can’t get too close because the water is rough.  The boat assures me that it is not an Orca whale.  They will keep a watch from the boat.  I am thinking…”easy for you to say when you are safe on a boat.”  I keep paddling and try to think about other things.

 

There are military planes flying back and forth all day long along San Clemente island. I am not sure what they are doing.  Are they doing practice drills?  Are they checking out sharks or perhaps the Orca whale that I was imagining?  Are they checking us out… wondering what we are doing? Will they shoot at us if we approach past the point that we were given permission? Thoughts like that are running through my head.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I finally reach San Clemente and I am happy to have this crossing done.  My watch says 18.75 miles. I have two crossing done and five to go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We motor back to Cat Harbor because we are not allowed to anchor at San Clemente.  The calm and quiet of the harbor is a nice change after the challenging conditions earlier. We get our spot for the night in the harbor and take our dingy to shore to get supplies and touch our feet on land.  I haven’t been on land for three days.

It feels so good to walk.  We walk up a long dirt road and head into town.  We pass a schoolhouse. The only one room school in California. We go to the little store and get  water and whatever else we need or want. We go to the bar which is about the only other place in Cat Harbor, at least in the Winter.  I have water. The rest of the crew is loving the Blood Mary’s. We head back to the boat for dinner.  Shelly makes us another amazing dinner of pasta and salad.  I head to bed early.  I can hear the rest of the crew watching “Hot Tub Time Machine” on Ryan’s computer.  It is funny to hear them laughing from my bed.  I am happy they are having a good time.

THE CROSSING: VIDEO