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Ignacio LA to Hawaii -- Follow His Progress

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Ignacio Gonzales, Ericson 35-II, sent this message as an email to friends.

Bon voyage!

https://share.delorme.com/IgnacioGonzalez

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” - Attributed to Mark Twain

By now, you all have heard me ramble on in varying degrees about this solo trip to Hawai’i. And on the eve of my departure, here I sit here at the dock in Los Angeles, my home town, ready to cast off the dock lines tomorrow morning, with about 2,200 miles, or about 20 days, to sail alone in front of me before returning to the San Francisco Bay Area shortly thereafter (also alone).

That quote sure sounds good, don’t you think? What the quote doesn’t capture is the actual experience of preparing, literally, to sail away. It doesn’t quantify in any way the number of cuts and bruises and headaches one gets from becoming an “expert” in fiberglass, mixing epoxy, running electrical cabling, plumbing, sewing, and a long list of other knowledge the self-sufficient sailor must develop. I don’t think Mark Twain (or whoever wrote that) ever had to squeeze into a small fiberglass locker and hold a yoga-like position to run a new piece of hose. Nor does it describe in any way the many other challenges of making a trip like this alone, nor that I would meet so many kind people generous with their time to offer advice, assistance, and other help.

What I can say with certainty is that the trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles I completed last year somehow felt insufficient, a tease, and that each day that I’ve been sailing since then in these benign and seductive Southern California waters, I’ve wondered (ok, more than wondered) about the experience further offshore. And since I have to return to San Francisco anyway, why not take the scenic route back north, making a stop in Hawai’i?

You can follow my progress here. With any luck, I should be in Hawai’i sometime in the next 3 weeks, and with even more luck, my boat and I will make it in one piece.

https://share.delorme.com/IgnacioGonzalez

Best,

Ignacio
 
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Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Ten days out and more than halfway there.

One thousand miles from the nearest land.

What's for dinner, Ignacio?
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Next summer maybe. Still sweating upgrades and perfections on the new boat. I watched Ignacio go through all the prep this past year--he left from here--and I'm glad to see him finally at sea. He's earned the rest!
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
"Running in 8-10 footers some breaking. Dbl reef with tiny bit of jib poledout on opposite for balance"

https://share.delorme.com/IgnacioGonzalez

Sunday 6:10 PMMessage
"Light rain most of the day. Fully overcast. Light wind,small waves. I'm at N 24 31.1270' W 147 52.9662', elev 15 ft, course W (267 T) at 4.7 kn."

Capture.jpg
 
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bgary

Advanced Beginner
Blogs Author
Good timing. Hurricane Blas has been sucking up energy and the remnants of Agatha are starting to move near Hawaii.

With any luck Ignacio will be in and battened down before things get too "interesting".
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
InReach message:

About this time tmrw will put me 45 nm ne of ent to nawiliwili, where illheave to to time a daylight arrival.

<o:p></o:p>
Ignacio Gonzalez sent this message from: Lat 22.953476 Lon -156.523161
<o:p></o:p>
 

Mark F

Contributing Partner
Blogs Author
Looks like Ignacio has picked up some speed in the last 24hrs. That's got to feel good!
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Land ho! and Arrival

About 20 days. Can't wait to hear the weather story.

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kari

Member III
Big congrats and Well done! I'm jealous . . . . would love to do that sometime . . . and yes I know the part about regretting what you haven't done . . .
 

ignacio

Member III
Blogs Author
Made it

I hope to make several posts in the coming days, but for now just wanted to say thanks to all of you for combined support. This community and it's many excellent members has been my best resource to prepare for this trip. Here's a few pics for now. I'm just starting to join the world of the living again after sleeping most of the last 24 hours.

That chair was pretty comfortable on a dead run in mild seas. It offered a great and comfortable vantage point to view the seas ahead of you. It made me think that this is what power boat skippers usually see. In any event, the Lazy Boy wouldn't fit on the boat, so figured this was a good compromise. Within 30 minutes, however, it became clear that the chair wasn't up to the task of offering comfortable views for the duration of the voyage, so back it went below.
 

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davisr

Member III
Why is it that Ignacio's laudable feat gets fewer comments than threads about engine oil leaks and stinky heads? Probably the same reason that there are more threads in Maintenance and Mechanical than Cruising and Racing. Just thinking out loud.

Roscoe
 

ignacio

Member III
Blogs Author
Probably a few reasons for that, but I think it's too easy to remain in a state of "getting ready." It's a real commitment to set a somewhat arbitrary date, and start scheduling and prioritizing time and money around that. I didn't intend to start posting about my cruising here, and most of my prep. projects are not posted here either, largely for the same observation you've made. Instead, I chose to share with just a few people. But with Christian's encouragement (and I owe him and others plenty for the time and advice I incorporated into my trip), I figured it would be of value to some. I believe that's the case, since it's a commitment as well to write the story for publication, and I know there's plenty of good, interested people here.

Why is it that Ignacio's laudable feat gets fewer comments than threads about engine oil leaks and stinky heads? Probably the same reason that there are more threads in Maintenance and Mechanical than Cruising and Racing. Just thinking out loud.

Roscoe
 
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