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An uphill travel
The day finally came – all that was to be stowed away was stowed away, the systems tried and checked, all ready to go. Our hired captain (John) and the crew (Bones) flew in on Saturday 5/23 and together we wrapped up the last few things. The most important was the installation of the AIS system, to help us avoid other ships and be seen while underway, especially in busy shipping lanes around LA and San Francisco. A quick run to a local Kroger store to get food supplies (2 full carts) and we were ready. Departure was set for around noon on Sunday, May 24th. Right in the middle of a busy Memorial Day Weekend. The start was a bit rough. We were departing at the tail end of a strong high-pressure system, that has been pushing wind and waves from the north. It was supposed to be calming down, giving us a window to hop around Point Conception…
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Sorting the stuff out
In May the COVID situation seemed to get reasonably under control for me to take some courage and fly down to LAX and stay on the boat. The flight was actually an interesting experience in itself – the airport was eerily empty, no travelers, minimal staff, no lines, everything closed, yet the planes flying. There were about 20 people on a 200-seat plane. We all boarded with the reverse row number – highest row numbers first – and not with the first-class-first order. Everyone was asked to wear masks and there was no food service or any kind of service throughout the flight. But I had a full row to myself and it was a short flight, so overall a good experience. I think I would meet more people on a trip to a grocery store than on that flight. This was the first time I had used my maximum luggage allowance – 2 bags of 70 lb each Once…
