Doctor’s first thing in the morning was gorgeous but rolly – time to move.

Trip Summary – 9/14/2022

Pulled up anchor at Doctor’s Cove, Catalina Island at 09:30, finished anchoring at Cat Harbor at 16:55. Our plan was Little Harbor, but conditions disagreed.

Quick cup of coffee and ready to sail. With conditions right for it, we sailed (slowly, so slowly) off the anchor – no motor involved! We sailed north-west, up around West End. It’s wild how much of a point it comes to, and how quickly the island grows behind it in each direction. We rounded the point at 12:00, and the already light wind died completely.

Oh well, electric motor on, quietly humming us down the far side of Catalina. Within half an hour, we had enough wind to get the drifter up, but that only lasted an hour before we were seeing 10 knots, then 15, then humming up towards 20 knots.

14:30 we came into Little Harbor under genoa only, navigating around the reef, and while it would have been possible, the small craft advisory, wind pointing directly into the harbor, plus the significant surf was just a little more than we felt like dealing with. Came through the wind while re-raising the main, passed the reef, and held our tack until we could point straight at Cat Harbor. High-powered upwind sailing got us there in no time.

The Anchorage

Cat Harbor, 33°25.7′ N     |     118°30.4′ W

We first dropped anchor on the north-west side of Cat Harbor, but the position of some moored cages just left it less than optimal, so we pulled up and dropped again on the south-east side. We dropped anchor in ~32 feet of water, using 160 feet of chain. We’re about as close to the rocks as we would be comfortable, but the sound of surf hitting the beach nearby is fun. Between the wind and the water, the boat changes positions quite a lot.

Lots of fish activity nearby, including reef sharks, jumping small fish, jumping large fish, and teeny tiny fish that run right into the hull. Nobody came nibbling when I went swimming, we’ll see what happens if we try fishing.

On a sunny day, the water is a spectacular cerulean and very clear. At night, the smell of blooming flowers in the chaparral on the cooling island blows over the boat on each breeze. Very nice anchorage.