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chartering to Catalina Island

PkandLisa

Moderator
I'm an Ericson owner on the Chesapeake bay and we'll be traveling to Carlsbad for Thanksgiving. We're thinking about chartering a boat and sailing to Catalina Island over the break. Thinking about a Friday or Saturday night in Avalon. Could use some advice - what port should we leave from? Is the weather still nice enough? Recommended places to visit while we're there...and my biggest hurdle right now is where can I charter from. I've been surfing the web looking for places in Newport Beach and haven't found a good one yet. I found a great charter place out of Marina Del Rey, but it seems that might be a little far away.

Thanks for the advice,
Parker
 

Jim Mobley

Member II
Try Long Beach

I'm sure others with more experience will reply, but you should probably look further north than Newport Beach. If the wind is blowing both Avalon and Two Harbors are generally uphill from Newport Beach.

Long Beach is closer to Catalina and you might get to sail both ways. I've never chartered with them, but Marina Sailing www.marinasailing.com has a base in Long Beach at Rainbow Harbor.

Weather will probably be okay, it's been cloudy the last couple of days, but it's supposed to clear by the weekend. We generally don't get much rain until December or January.
 

Sven

Seglare
PkandLisa said:
I found a great charter place out of Marina Del Rey, but it seems that might be a little far away.

If you want to visit a town Avalon is your best bet, but if you want to visit the island Isthmus Harbor is really nice and Marina Del Rey is a good starting point.

I don't know how crowded Avalon is at this time of year but you will probably want to check in advance.

The weather needs to be watched. Last year our TG stay at Isthmus was cut short by a fast moving low pressure which ended up sinking one boat in the harbour after we made a run for it.

Fog can also be unpleasant if you have to cross the shipping lanes with no visibility. Been there, 100 yds of visibility and a few miles of container lanes to cross.

Up towards MDR the wind pattern is pretty predictable if there is no storm: Light or no Westerly wind in the AM which starts picking up around noon or 1 PM.

If you SCUBA dive you might want to just take a ferry over and dive the Avalon Underwater Park at Casino point, then stay in town over night.

If you end up at Isthmus we'll probably be within hailing distance :)




-Sven
 

Jeff Asbury

Principal Partner
Try these guys. http://www.charternet.com/sailboat/eurosail/

Euro Sail
Club, Charters & Brokerage Ports O'Call Village, Berth 75
San Pedro, California 90731

Tel: (310) 831-2363
Fax: (310) 221-0738


They are out of the LA Harbor in San Pedro. San Pedro is your closest shot to Catalina. Only about 22 nautical miles to Avalon. It takes me only about 4.5 hours with a 12 to 15 knot breeze with my E-27. No more than 5 hours. Usually it is a good tack this time of year. If you decide to go to Two Harbors, you may be beating up wind and want to motor sail. Check your weather first of corse.

Beam Winds!
 

tramp

Member I
Charter a yatcht

I have an 34 Ericson in Dana Point Ca. Catalina is about 34 miles from the harbor. There are hotels right at the harbor. Carsbad is only about 25 miles south of the harbor and is a straight shot down the freeway. If you want to charter a boat for Catalina, that is a very easy thing to do. Call Ed at Dana Island Yatchts. (www.danaislandyachts.com ) He runs all the charter boats in the harbor, and is a good guy. Most of the boats are Catalina 34, 36, 42's. All privately owned and used by Ed and the owners. As for the weather, you do need to watch the reports. if a North Easter is expected, stay away from Avalon ( the main town on Catalina). You have several choices on Catalina, Avalon for people and entertainment, Two Harbors for more remote, and Cat Harbor for solitude and to escape the world. Cat is very protected from almost any condition when you tuck up. I would also suggest getting on the net and taking the virtual tour of Catalina, very cool. Come on out and have a great time.

Tramp
 

Jeff Asbury

Principal Partner
Very good advice Tramp!

Very good advice Tramp! They had a bad North Easter blow at Avalon Harbor on Sunday Oct. 15th. Big close set swells in the harbor with waves hitting the wall in front of the Hotels sending splashes up two stories. A few boats needed assistance from the Harbor Patrol getting to open waters. Read the letter on page 46 in Latitude 38. North Easters can happen any time from October through March. I guess the Harbor Patrol did a great job assisting quite a few boats. Cat Harbor is a bit farther, but always a safe anchorage. I like the Dana Point departure idea if you are going to be in Carlsbad.:rolleyes:
 
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