Hi Jeff,
I hope Sven chimes in. I think he sailed there twice from Marina Del Rey on his E-23 La Petite.
Sorry I didn't spot this earlier. I've been so preoccupied with other projects that I haven't been here except for drive-by visits every few months.
Remember:
>Yes, La Petite is For Sail/Sale !
>
>We've decided to sidegrade to a scandinavian design of the stinkpot
>persuasion, an Albin 25. We are starting a major new project which will
>occupy too much of our time to allow us to leisurely sail out of Marina Del
>Rey, but the stresses will still dictate time on the water so we'll get a boat
>we "turn on" to get out.
Well, never had the heart to actually do it, at least not yet. We haven't had time to get on the water for many months either but this Friday we'll head back to Catalina if nothing goes awry.
Back to your question, too late to be of any use to you.
Yes, I think we've been out there 3 or 4 times on La Petite and many times on the Great Escape dive boat. We love the island, mainly because it is an island with "nothing to do". McDonalds or pizza places ... forget it
We've actually been very lucky with the weather every time. We have that boating and diving book (name ?) which covers the local islands and have called off a few trips when there was even a hint of Santa Anas in the air. The only recommended anchorage is by the landing, staying clear of the CG mooring. That anchorage is inside a sometimes vigorous kelp bed which provides some protection and offers 30' anchor depth. In case of Santa Anas your only choice is to get out of there.
Once we got there and you were not allowed to go ashore due to the brown pelican rookery. We tried to find out how to know in advance if the island would be open but that was really frustrating and we never did get an answer.
You can't mind the barking sea lions through the night. I detest dogs that bark at night but the sea lions were no problem at all for us. We did bring ear plugs the first time to be on the safe side but never used them.
Sitting in the cockpit at night with even the anchor light turned off was like being on another planet. We'd hear snorting sea lions diving around us and under us. The most amazing feeling came from seeing the bioluminescence of the sea lions as they dove under us, leaving greenish "contrails" around and below us.
It was a bit unnerving to think that any one of the males would probably swamp us if he decided to jump aboard, but none ever did. Being 10-15 feet from a couple of 800 pound bulls as they were fighting next to the landing ladder was also a bit terrifying. Snot and chunks of blubber flying with impressive bellowing as accompaniment. Locking eyes in mid-fight was also interesting ... I could almost see his little brain trying to figure out if I was part of the supremacy-fight on the boulder behind the ladder.
The walk around the island is also beautiful but very noisy if you walk through the seagull rookery (on the path). You get dive-bombed and they scored a direct hit on Nancy one visit. You also get to see how they put up a neighborhood watch if you stop for a while. A couple or three seagulls will stand there watching you intently as you sit drinking your water or having a snack. As soon as you make a move to get up they alert all the others and bedlam breaks out again.
Some of the vistas are spectacular. There are 3 or maybe as many as 5 hiking loops across and around the island and it is worth your time to just hike and let it all soak in.
Hmmm, I think I just made myself want to go back again. Maybe we'll go there instead of Catalina this Friday !
-Sven
