Spinnaker Run To Tamales Bay

It was to be the last trip for the summer of 2021. I had three days and a forecast for a gentle southerly to blow us up the coast. Left at 3 AM to catch the outgoing tide, and was passing Pt Bonita at 5.00 AM, still in the dark. Nearly hit the Bonita Channel port (red) marker off Rodeo Beach - did not expect it to be unlit. By 7.00 AM we were passing the Duxbury Reef marker (Bolinas) in daylight, already crowded with fishing boats.

Outbound in red, 31 nautical mile spinnaker run in bold red, inbound in blue. 129 NM total.

As always, the ocean breeze finally filled in a couple of miles past Duxbury Reef. It was very light, however, barely five knots. Finally I could shut off the noisy outboard motor and launched the "big ass" spinnaker in a dead run towards Pt Reyes. This spinnaker is over-sized for the Tiki, and drags its foot in the water, unless there is enough breeze to fill and lift it clear (even though my rig is 4' taller than standard). There was just enough breeze to keep it out of the water, and it pulled the boat at around wind speed of 3 to 5 knots, and kept pulling it all day long.

Approaching the turn around Pt Reyes.

We gybed around Pt Reyes with the set to port and headed down the long West side of the peninsula towards Tamales Bay.

By the time we were off the Tamales Bay Point, we were back on a starboard set and only doused the spinnaker as we passed the channel entrance buoy. Thus ended the longest spin run on Little Cat so far of 31 very pleasant and relaxed nautical miles.

I fired up the outboard and headed across the bar into Tamales Bay. The breeze filled in again astern, so I hoisted the mainsail, and motor sailed down the bay.

Approaching Tamales Bay Pt

We motor-sailed against the outgoing tide, hugging the south west shore exploring all of the delightful bays and beaches. The first of the larger bays is White Gulch, but a north easterly breeze made it too windy and exposed to make a good anchorage for the night. After around 6 nautical miles, I dropped anchor at the aptly named No Name Beach (one bay south east of Tamales Beach with its camping ground), and set about putting up the boat tent and preparing  dinner. In a long and memorable day, Little Cat and I had covered 61 nautical miles in around 14 hours.

 

Marshall Beach Campers

The next morning I had a lazy breakfast and then set off to explore further into the bay. Marshall Beach was the next named cove heading south east up the bay and was occupied by a friendly party of paddle-in campers. On the far side of the same bay is Laird's Landing with a delightful little beach and small beach house in the trees. It was a very calm spot and would make a great overnight spot in the future.

Laird's Landing (note the little beach house in the trees)

Heading further down the bay, we passed Indian Beach and Heart's Desire and got as far as Shallow Beach before turning around. The environs of Shallow Beach are private homes, so I mistakenly thought that I had reached the extent of the park reserve, not knowing that it continued again beyond the private land. We headed back to Heart's Desire and anchored under the cliffs at the northwest end of the beach for a long lunch break.

Indian Beach

This is a really beautiful spot and is accessible by road, so there were a quite a few people at the beach. After lunch, we headed back up the bay, re-exploring all of the nooks and crannies of the west side. We crossed into the central channel that passes Hog Island and out towards Lawson's Landing looking for a good launch spot for an early start back in the morning. 

Lunch stop at the north western end of Heart's Desire 

I settled on Jack's Cove which is a magic little spot not to far from the Bay entrance. It is right next to the channel so made sure to put out plenty of scope on the anchor so as not to drag in the night. I had motored around all day with the tent still over the gaff, so it did not take long to get the boat ready for another night, and to cook up some lasagna on the stove.

Jack's Cove in the late afternoon on an overcast day

l was up at 3 AM and started to pack and make the boat ship shape for the 55 nautical mile passage back to San Francisco Bay and home. We set off at around 5.30 AM and were passing the Tomales Bay Channel/Entrance Buoy at 6 AM. I was hoping to sail back (obviously) and hate the sound of the outboard droning, but as we turn South and set a course for Pt Reyes, the wind was hard on the nose.

 

Sea Grass at Jack's Cove

If I had time to spare I would have been happy to tack to windward and spend a night at Drakes Bay to make a two-day passage. But alas I had commitments and had to be back home before nightfall. So we chugged to windward in a short and fairly unpleasant chop making around 5 knots. I had a fresh full tank of gas and decided to do a test to see how long the outboard run before the tank ran dry.

 

Camp Chaos

We rounded Pt Reyes at around 10 AM into a 1 knot tidal current. I had hoped that the wind might be more favorable after rounding the Pt, but the wind swung back right on the nose (of course). So, Little Cat motored on for hour after hour, passing Duxbury Reef again at 2 PM. Finally, as we approached Pt Bonita, the wind filled in astern and I hoisted the white sails to run through the Golden Gate. As is typical for San Francisco Bay the wind was patchy inside the Bay and we encountered 30+ knot gusts heading past the Paradise Cove area in the late afternoon. Little Cat and I arrived home in good time and logged 129 nautical miles in three days. The run up to Tomales Bay had been a light-wind spinnaker delight, while the trip back was a noisy motoring slog and not so much fun. On my next trip to the Bodega Bay area, I plan to have more time to enjoy the trip and avoid having to rush back on a tight time schedule.

Pt Reyes looking grumpy in the overcast