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Very soon now we are planning to set sail towards Mexico. A lot of things still need to be done, sometimes we run around like chickens and other times I catch myself frozen, not even knowing where to start. At the end there is probably not enough time for the items you wanted done, but I believe it will feel like all the other times going on a trip, the big relief will take place once you sit in your airplane or car seat and are on your way. Once we pull up that sail, tensions will slowly disappear.

Here I edited a very nice moment captured when we met up with our good friend who will join us on our journey, as well as other preparations. If you go directly to youtube, you can watch this full screen.

We had originally planned to join the boat rally  Baja Haha  . We had attended a very informative meeting in Sausalito and have met some nice folks, who were either sailing the Baja themselves, or were looking to join the boat as crew. It was flattering and almost a bit overwhelming on how much we were approached by people looking to accompany us, or other boat owners. We collected contact info and had received a nice Email shortly after from two sisters, who wanted to join us as there first pick.

Later we saw an advertisement on Latitude 38 and we dearly hope, that they have found there boat.

The Yutzy sisters — Cheryl and Machelle — who flew from Pennsylvania . . . to San Diego, specifically to try and get on a Baja Ha-Ha boat. But realizing that the party was a few hundred miles away, the sisters got on a plane, and showed up at Spaulding still wearing their backpacks.

So, you are probably wondering now, why didn’t we give them a chance? Because the next day we happened to get confirmation, that our good friend from Canada wanted to join us. He shared the same interest in taking more time sailing down the coast to avoid overnight sailing as much as possible and give that dog /kid a chance to go ashore more frequently. And to check out that Surf along the way. The fact that he is 6 ‘ 8 kinda rules out space for more people on the boat for a longer period of time.

That’s the reason, why we decided to not join the Baja-Haha, but we still hope, that we meet a lot of them in Baja or down the coast and can hang. Cheers!

We have introduced our dog in the last blog, find it here, now we would like you to know a bit more about the sailboat, Alsager. First of all, it is made out of steel. Which I think is awesome.  It makes me feel more secure simply because it’s less easy to destroy than wood or fiberglass.

” Alsager “, formerly ” Cepheus III “. 1968, built in Holland in Corten steel (Rabbit II design).

The Captain was in correspondence with the daughter of Dick Carter and had the honor of exchanging Emails with the builder Frans Maas, who sadly has passed in a capsize of his yacht during the Light Vessel Race, Belgium this year. Deepest sympathies to his family!

Your yacht is a Dick Carter design, better known as RABBIT II. Fastnet winner overall 1967.

Rabbit II was built in 1967 yard Job No 190.

We built two sister ships: CEPHEUS III Job No 208, the owner was J.Sheppard Poor-USA. At that time he was living in Paris and worked as banker for Chease Manhatten Bank

FER FLEUR Job No 212 owner Mark Wallenberg- Sweden.

J.Sheppard Poor sold Cepheus as she had to much problems with the draft in Chesapeake Bay. Second owner unknown.

Dick Carter draw the lines- and sailplan. I did the steel construction plans and the interior- and deckplan.

At the photos she is looking in very good shape. I think it is CHEPHEUS III

Kind regards.

Frans Maas

Of course we cannot leave him behind. He has adapted to being a real good sport, when it comes to sailing. We hope, he will continue to like it.

Click on the picture below to check it out, it’s special. 🙂

Enter “full screen” for better viewing

Thank you all, for the likes and great comments, after we spilled the news about our plan to sail towards Mexico. Please keep them coming, especially since crazy things are happening everywhere. We will be careful and I trust the Captain and his experience!

Preparations have started and this might give you a little idea, what is going on in my head  …  😀

Here we are, planning a new adventure. This one is the biggest one for me, Mats and our dog Noah just yet! The Captain has done it before. Sailing South. Towards Mexico. Since the Captain has quit his job in the Bay area for now, there is not necessary a big rush coming back. We might just stay the winter in Mexico. Go kiting, snorkeling, fishing, learning to make Sushi and checking out the main land.

A big achievement is, that we have found someone, who wants to join us for the ride. He is a good friend from Canada and an experienced Adventurer, Sailor, Surfer, Fisher and fluent in Spanish. He is easy to get along with, a cool guy who just went on his first Burning Man and he is also Giant! 😀

We are very excited, with some mixed feelings for the unknown on my side. Since I am usually up for an adventure, I am also just very curious.

We will try to let you join the craziness as much as we can. It might not be easy due to none-existant coverage, so there will probably be longer periods without any updates. You can always check our Facebook page or best subscribe to our youtube channel to get the latest clips. Thanks for sharing the experience with us! ❤

We had a really nice visit from the Captain’s cousin with some of his Family from Hamburg and we all went sailing on a gorgeous windy day. We sailed towards the Golden Gate Bridge and like many other summer days, thick fog was rolling in. In addition to that, we were fighting a strong flood trying to get out the gate. There were a lot of boats around us this Saturday, but no whales to be seen. We turned around and decided we wanted to sail back into the sun and did a nice loop around Angel Island. Hope you like our video clip as much as our visitors enjoyed the sail.

After getting back from our little sailing trip, we brain stormed. We have been away from home a big portion of 2017 so far and our son is not in Kindergarten/school yet. He has also been great when it comes to boat life. The Baja-Haha sounds like it could be fun for all of us. Especially for me and Mats who do not have that much sailing experience, the idea of open water sailing is intimidating and knowing you will always have boats somewhat close by, seems like a good idea. At least I hope. 🙂 The Captain has already done the stretch between San Francisco and Mexico more than once, he knows his way around. So, why postpone, if the resources and minds are on track? At least that is in our thoughts right now. Should we try to do it? What do you all think?

What is the Baja-Haha? It is a boat rally from San Diego to Cabo, Mexico. About 150 boats meet every year in San Diego and make there way to Cabo, with stops along the way. Lots of families with kids. Here are some facts from there website.

The goals of the Ha-Ha are simple: for everyone to get to Cabo safely while enjoying some great sailing and making countless new sailing friends along the 750 mile stretch.

The event begins every year near the end of October. The 2017 dates will be October 29-November 11.

The two stops along the way are Turtle Bay, a dusty but charming fishing village far off the main road, and primitive Bahia Santa Maria, which is truly out in the middle of nowhere. The former has a couple of small tiendas, a few low-capacity restaurants, an internet cafe, and usually some diesel. It does not have ATMs, banks, McDonalds, boatyards or spas. Bahia Santa Maria has nothing — except a restaurant that magically appears one day a year, along with a rock ‘n roll band, just for the Ha-Ha.

October 30, 10:00 a.m. – Baja Ha-Ha Kick-Off Parade. Complete schedule: 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. – South Bay boats pass San Diego to Harbor Island. 9:45 a.m. – All boats gather off America’s Cup Harbor between Harbor Island and Shelter Island. 10:00 a.m. – Parade past southwest corner of Shelter Island past San Diego fireboat. 11:00 a.m. – America’s Cup starting gun begins Baja Ha-Ha XXIV. View a diagram of the parade route here. October 30, 11:00 a.m. – Start of Leg One for all boats off Coronado Roads. Wear your Halloween costume on the starting line and be eligible for a special prize! November 2,2 pm – Daytime: The epic, world famous, Baja Ha-Ha Cruisers versus Mexicans baseball game at Turtle Bay. Evening: Restaurant hopping, such as it is, in Turtle Bay. November 3 – Famous Turtle Bay Beach Picnic Party from noon until sundown. Bring all your gear. Hot dogs will be sold for charity. Beer for sale by locals. Be careful landing your dinghy – you don’t want to be dumped and have your outboard chop you up! November 4, 8:00 a.m. – Start of Leg Two to Bahia Santa Maria. November 6 – ‘Bahia Santa Maria Day’ – a lazy layday meant for relaxing and exploring the Bay. November 7 – Hiking, beach walking, sports and beach party – if surf permits – at Bahia Santa Maria. November 8, 7:00 a.m. – Start of Leg Three from Bahia Santa Maria to Cabo San Lucas. November 9 – ‘Can’t Believe We Cheated Death Again’ dance and party madness for the young at heart at Squid Roe until the last body falls. Optional. November 10 – Cabo Beach Party all afternoon on the beach and perhaps with bonfire into the evening. Details on the site and time to be announced later. Hopefully we’ll get discounted food and drinks again this year. Either way, no problemo for a fleet that knows how to have fun. November 11 – Awards Presentations hosted by Cabo Marina adjacent to the fabulous launch ramp in Cabo at 6 pm. Free soft drinks and beer. November 30, 4:00-7:00 p.m. – La Paz Beach Party at La Costa Restaurant. Mexican folk dancing, live music, food and drinks, door prizes, more. Free for the first 50 Baja Ha-Ha XXIV participants; everyone welcome.

If you are interested to find out more about it, you can read on there website directly here.