For those of you who didn’t know, the Catamaran you’ve either taken or hope to take 114 on, belongs to members Becky and Jeff Hare, who just returned from a long cruise down the west coast. Leaving San Francisco Bay on November 20, 2023, aboard their Lagoon 450, they just returned on Saturday, June 8!
Over those seven months, they explored over 3,000 miles of coastline to Marina Chiapas in southern Mexico. Jeff said, “It was amazing to be recognized when wearing our TWSC hats by fellow members all along the coast! TWSC Students have crossed oceans, cruised incredible waters, and cast off lines for oh so many exotic places!”
Upon his return from his last, single-handed leg, he posted the following on Social Media:
Emerald Sea is home safely and our voyage is over for a few months. I still have to add up all the numbers from my notes, but booked over 7,000 miles from here to the southern-most marina in Mexico. Visited 7 American ports and (about 16) Mexican ports – while we spent most of our time Cruz De Juanacaxtle, Nayarit, Mexico (absolutely love it there), we enjoyed ALL of the Mexican locations we visited. We have over 100 new friends! A friend asked me tonight to tell him about the “Rose and the Thorn” of the trip – The best part for me: The Z-Town String Fest (by far). The thorn: Broken boat parts, especially the unreliable AutoPilot (number 2 on the 17 item fix-it-list). Nothing safety-wise, but dozens of minor things I did not expect. The most surprising: That we did it and nobody got hurt – can’t wait to do it again (and more)!!! The biggest disappointment: On the evening of a Starlink Launch, we sailed VERY NEAR where the booster rocket lands on the recovery barge. The fog rolled in and we didn’t see anything (but I watched the whole thing streaming video on Starlink). It took SOOOO long to go north (due to high winds), I ended up sailing the last segment on my own – from Morrow Bay to SF Bay. We learned SOOOOO much! Lots to do this summer, and planning to do it again next winter….
We look forward to a few more entries of their adventures over the next few weeks. Sailing Vessel Emerald Sea will soon be scheduled for Cruising Catamaran classes so we encourage you to take advantage of this before they head out and do it again next year!
In sailing, the word “Corinthian” refers to the non-professional arm of the sport. Sailors compete for the love of it, not for any monetary reward. At some levels of racing, this distinction is strictly enforced according to rules of the International Sailing Federation.
But in
the nineteenth century, sailboat racing operated like horseracing today. The
actual sailing was left to professionals, while owners ashore wagered over gin
and tonics. Part of this was based on the complexity of the boats and the skill
and physical strength required to sail them. However, there was also a class
distinction. The requisite experience would not have been gained by the
comfortable progeny of the moneyed class, but by the working folks who earned
their livings at sea. As a result, those who actually did the sailing and
earned the honors lacked the proper social standing to be members, or even
guests, of the host yacht club.
In
1871, a group of sailors began a new tradition of “Corinthian” racing when they
founded the Seawanhaka Yacht Club in New York. Owners would sail their own
boats, without professional crew. These radical sailors took pride in their
hard-earned yet amateur knowledge of the arts of the sea. But why did they call
themselves Corinthians? The ancient tradition considers Corinthians to be
degenerates, not amateur athletes.
There
were four main games in ancient Greece: the Olympian, Nemean, Pythian, and
Isthmian games, the latter held at Corinth. None included sailing events. In
all the games, the athletes competed naked, but fortunately this tradition
hasn’t been adopted by modern Corinthians. All were amateur in this respect:
The victors received wreaths, not monetary prizes. However, both Plutarch and
Plato report that the athletes’ home cities lavished awards of significant
value on their champions, so the word “amateur” isn’t quite accurate. In any
case, I have found nothing to distinguish the games at Corinth from the others with
respect to amateurism. Yet the websites of the most eminent “Corinthian” yacht
clubs trace the tradition back to this city.
I think
the real story is a little different. I certainly wouldn’t wish to suggest that
the term was made up by a PR firm, as was the case with Ricardo Montalban’s “Fine
Corinthian Leather” which was concocted for Chrysler. Yet there must be a more
convincing explanation for the use of the term, and we’ll attempt to configure
one next time.
(As with all Trolling, the author chooses to remain anonymous)
Many Bay Area residents have heard about the Bay Bridge Troll. You may have even been asked about it by fellow crew, and how to see it. Like all Trolls it lives under the bridge, and like other Trolls is hard to find. I have failed to find a clear guide on how to find the Troll, so this is my attempt to help fellow Tradewinds members Troll their crew.
The first step is to take all the classes up to and including BBC (ASA 104) so you are allowed to this part of the Bay on a Tradewinds boat, or find a skipper who has taken BBC and is willing to have you as crew.
Next, make sure you have some binoculars as the Troll is only 18 inches tall, and it’s a long way from the water to where the Troll is. In addition, when you do get close other structures get in the way.
Finally, the details on where to sail…
Sail under The Bay Bridge, heading south on the San Francisco side, around Yerba Buena Island. Leave way more room than you think you will need. If you get close to the island you seem to get sucked onto it. Wave at the Coast Guard commandant. He lives in the house you just saw on the South end of the Island. Not bad for public housing although the fog horn might keep him awake!
Head towards the Bay Bridge, but on the Oakland side. The following pictures show you where to look to find the Troll.
Heading north towards the Bay Bridge look to the area marked.
Getting closer, look at the cantilevered section of the beam that rests on the piers. The Troll is on top of this, but again he is small.
Finally with binoculars you should be able to see the Troll. If you wait too long the white metal walkway will obscure the Troll. I told you he is small!
Crop of the above image showing the Troll in a little more detail.
Now you know everything you need to know to Troll your fellow crew!
Tradewinds instructor Dan Seifers asked me the other day why we say “Roger” on the radio to confirm we’ve received a message. Why Roger, and not Reginald, or for that matter, Hermione?
If you go cruising you’ll probably want to learn the
phonetic alphabet so you can spell your boat name and perhaps your HAM call sign
in a way that can be understood in foreign ports. I can still quickly rattle
off “kilo-golf-six-echo-uniform-delta,” sometimes involuntarily at
inappropriate moments. However, even if you memorize this way of spelling
things, you won’t find any “Roger” among the Mikes, Juliets, and Charlies. But this
wasn’t always the case.
“Roger” is a holdover from the phonetic
alphabet used by the Royal Air Force and the US Air Force prior to 1956, at
which time he was replaced by “Romeo” to represent the letter “R.” In
addition to changing “Roger” to “Romeo,” “Able” was
replaced by “Alpha,” “Baker” was replaced by “Bravo,”
and “Easy” was replaced by “Echo.” There were some additional changes due to fuzzy
comprehension by speakers of Texan, Bostonian, Bronxish, Liverpudlian, and other
languages, until the alphabet was adopted internationally. The current phonetic
alphabet with “Romeo” was adopted by the International Commission for
Air Navigation in 1956, by the International Telecommunication Union in 1959,
and then by the International Maritime Organization in 1965.
During WWII, the phonetic “Roger” was used to
indicate R for “Received” in radio usage. Apparently no one wished to
change it to “Romeo” after combat ended and the alphabet changed, with
the result that what we have today is a small tribute to the Second World War.
So when you say “Roger,” remember those heroes of Normandy and Okinawa, the Po
Valley, and the Ardennes Forest.
I once heard Bugs Bunny derisively call someone a “maroon.” Bugs didn’t know how to pronounce “moron,” thereby proving he was one. Tradewinds’ BKB class introduces the word “bowline,” which is not pronounced like it looks. The “bow” should sound like the “Bo” in Little Bo Peep, and the “line” like the last name of the country singer named Loretta. Taking this class many years ago I thought, Oh, great. As if learning the words isn’t bad enough, you have to learn a whole new way of pronouncing things. Luckily, the list of odd pronunciations isn’t as long as it used to be. We don’t have to know how to pronounce “studding sails” or “crossjack” anymore (stuns’ls and cro-jeck, just in case). But let me warn you about a few I’ve sorted out in my unending, if unsuccessful, quest to avoid looking like a maroon.
Sheave:
This is the wheel in a block that turns so the line will run freely. Ever been
in prison? Me neither, so I learned this from my ex-brother-in-law. It’s
pronounced just like that weapon all the bad guys use for protection, shiv.
Ratlines:
In the tropics, rig some 1/4” line to the shrouds with a Prussic Knot as ladder
rungs so you can climb aloft like sailors of old and spot reefs. Say the second
syllable like Loretta’s last name, as in bowline, above. (Perversely, jacklines,
leechlines, and lifelines do not share this trait with their brothers of the
“line” family, and are pronounced like they look.)
Gunwale:
Some boats are still built with a wooden rail at the place where the deck meets
the topsides, but the word can just describe the edge of the deck. Rhymes with tunnel.
Forecastle:
Nowadays you work “foredeck” or “bow” and you sleep in the “forward cabin” or “forepeak,”
where the “V-berth” is located. You’re not going to need this word unless you
ship out with Long John Silver. But it’s common in literature, so when you’re
reading aloud in your book group, pronounce it folks’ll, as in “folks’ll do that.”
Leeward:
You can pronounce this either like it looks or the slightly saltier loo-w’rd. But avoid saying “by the loo.”
That means something entirely different.
OK, to be honest,
these are the easy ones. Some pronunciations are a little more controversial or
regional, and not so simple to pin down. We’ll get to those next time.
This month is women’s history month, and as if to put an exclamation point on that, on March 7, 29-year-old, 5’2” 100-pound Cole Brauer claimed her permanent place in the history of sailing when she sailed her First Light across the finish line of the Global Solo Challenge in A Coruña, Spain, placing her second among 16 starters in the race. More than half of those starters, all seasoned seamen older and bigger than her, had retired. This completed a 30,000-mile, 130-day non-stop solo circumnavigation passing the great capes, and it’s a little hard to get a reliable figure, but I think this makes her the 187th skipper and the 13th woman in history to have accomplished this feat. Six of those 187 were American, but she is our first female. (By comparison, over 6,000 people have climbed Mount Everest.) This is the figure according to the International Association of Cape Horners, a group founded by Robin Knox-Johnston, who was the first to complete a solo, non-stop trip around the world by way of the great capes in 1969. Unlike in the days of Knox-Johnston, during her voyage we were able to get updates of Cole’s progress from her boat by satellite. Throughout an ordeal that would push the most hardened sea-dog to the limit, she looked impossibly fresh and cheery without a hair out of place, as though she’d just left a church social. It was a hold-my-beer smackdown.
Women have not always been welcomed in our sport, as Cole herself has very publicly discussed. All the more credit is due to the very impressive women who have brushed the detractors aside and gone on to accomplish feats that would make ordinary humans tremble. The first female circumnavigator was the wild and clever Jeanne Baret. She had to spell her name “Jean” and pass herself off as a man to gain a berth on the French ship Etoile in 1766. She posed as the manservant to her lover and managed to pull it off. The story has many twists and turns and deserves a thorough look, which we don’t have space for here.
Another early and perhaps even more impressive example is that of Mary Ann Brown Patten, a young woman from Massachusetts and the wife of Joshua Adams Patten, the captain of a clipper ship named Neptune’s Car. When the skipper took ill with tuberculosis just before they approached Cape Horn on a voyage from New York to San Francisco begun in 1856, he became incapacitated. She knew her husband had no trust in the first mate, yet the second mate was illiterate and didn’t understand navigation, which Mary did. She had learned much about navigation and running a ship on a previous circumnavigation with her husband on Neptune’s Car. The first mate attempted to organize a mutiny, and she responded by meeting with the crew and convincing them that she would make a fit leader. This scene is really difficult to imagine: a nineteen-year-old girl persuading a very tough crowd facing life-threatening dangers to put their safety in her hands, and accept her as captain of a square rigger. Yet they went on to round the Horn and continue to San Francisco. She was eight months pregnant when they docked.
The first female to do a solo circumnavigation by way of the Panama Canal was Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz of Poland in 1976-78 on Mazurek, a Conrad 32 sloop. Shortly after Krystyna, New Zealand’s Naomi Christine James became the first woman to circumnavigate solo via the great capes on the 53-foot Express Crusader, although she had to make a stop.
One of my favorites is Tania Aebi, the first American woman to complete a solo circumnavigation. She didn’t go via the great capes, and at one point she sailed 80 miles with a friend, so the Guinness Book of World Records didn’t count her as quite legit. Yet she was alone on Varuna, a Canadian version of the very cool Contessa 26, for the other tens of thousands of miles. She departed for her voyage from New York in 1985 at the age of eighteen, having only a textbook understanding of celestial navigation. She had done some ocean passages with her father but had never been the skipper. Her father recognized her as having potential, despite some bad behavior as a teenager, and said he would buy her a boat, but she had to sail it around the world. He was criticized for his reckless parenting, but she proved him right and made it. She wrote about it in Maiden Voyage, which was a best seller. Upon her return she became famous, and was interviewed by Jane Pauley of NBC. When Jane asked her what made her think she could do it, she said, “I dunno. A lot of other ninnies have already done it. I guess I can do it.”
Tracy Edwards of Britain is another one for the record books. Frustrated by the exclusion of women from leadership positions in sailing races, she managed to get Royal Jordanian Airlines to sponsor her and entered Maiden, with an all-female crew, in the 1989 Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race. This was astonishing to sailors and writers, who ridiculed the attempt and predicted with confidence that she would not finish one leg and the crew would be lucky to survive. Ha! Tracy and her crew came in second in class, winning two legs outright. The story would become the subject of an inspiring documentary, itself called Maiden, that I highly recommend.
Then there was the formidable Isabelle Autissier, a French woman who competed in the 1990-91 BOC Challenge, becoming the first woman to complete a solo circumnavigation in a competition. In the BOC challenge of 1994-95, Isabelle was dismasted 900 miles south of Adelaide, Australia, and the rescue was a major story. But that mishap didn’t stop her. In an even more dramatic event, during the Around Alone race in 1998-99, she was capsized 1900 miles west of Cape Horn, and her boat remained upside down. She was rescued by fellow racer Giovanni Soldini of Italy, who sailed 200 miles into a 40-knot gale to find her.
In 1998, Kay Cottee of Australia became the first woman to complete a non-stop, solo circumnavigation on 37-foot Blackmores First Lady, taking 189 days.
There is quite a long list of legendary female sailors including Laura Dekker, the youngest person to complete a solo circumnavigation at 16; Australia’s Jessica Watson, who completed the same feat at an equally young age, but was denied the record because having started and ended in the southern hemisphere, her voyage failed on a technicality to be long enough to qualify; Dawn Riley, a member of Edwards’ crew mentioned above, and team captain of the all-women’s 1995 America’s Cup entry, Mighty Mary; Dee Caffari, the first woman to sail solo, non-stop around the world in both directions; Pip Hare, who sailed solo around the world in the 2020-21 Vendée Globe and will be in the next one; Clarisse Cremer, who set the new female record in the same solo, 2020-21 singlehanded race (this beat Ellen MacArthur ‘s 2005 time, then the world record regardless of gender); and Jeanne Socrates, who holds the record for the oldest solo circumnavigator—77 years—by way of the great capes. Those stories I will reluctantly leave the reader to search for as there is just not enough space here. You can do so with my promise that your efforts will be repaid with jaw-dropping stories of gutsy women right out of the pages of fiction.
Finally, and most recently, there is South African Kirsten Neuschäfer, who won the 2022 Golden Globe race outright. This is a retro race based on the very first Golden Globe race won by the aforementioned Robin Knox-Johnston in 1969. In this event, radar, GPS, and long-distance radio are prohibited and the skipper must navigate by compass, sextant, and dead reckoning. She was the first woman to ever compete in the race, and obviously, the first woman to win, and indeed the first woman to win any round-the-world race via the great capes, whether crewed or solo, non-stop, or with stops.
You might say all of these women paved the way for Cole, but that isn’t quite right. Each one paved her own way, determined and undaunted.
I have great affection and respect for the hard-won traditional arts of the sailor. Every modern sailor must still, to this day, master them just like the mariners of yesteryear. This ancient body of knowledge, plus some other aspects of sailing described below, are some reasons for my feeling that our sport is superior to any other leisure time endeavor. You like feeling superior, right? Well, that’s silly. Or is it?
1. Sailing is the oldest of our recreations, with the exception of hunting and fishing. The history of our sport is not hundreds, nor thousands, but hundreds of thousands of years older than tennis, golf, biking, or skiing. The earliest undoubted evidence of human voyaging is the settling of Australia by the aboriginal discoverers. They could not have reached it without an ocean passage of twenty-five miles or more. Further back, there is trustworthy evidence of human habitation on Crete 130,000 years ago, before Homo sapiens were in Europe, which implies those explorers were Neanderthals. Crete has been an island sixty miles from the mainland for millions of years. But the most radical possibility for early voyagers is the case of Homo floresiensis, also known as the “hobbit people,” who inhabited the island of Flores in Indonesia a million years ago. As to the common theory that any of these folks were accidentally blown by storms to these destinations, this ignores the fact that in order to gain a sustained foothold, which is what they did, you need quite a number of fellow pioneers to start, including, obviously, females. It required repeated, planned trips in some kind of boat. Despite all the fluctuations in weather, sea level, and human interaction since those early times, the ocean waters you sail on now are the same as those faced by these early voyagers. Besides boats, another ancient technology is cordage. On my first day at Tradewinds as a beginner, I was struck by the fact that in the twentieth century, ropes were being used to control the boat. Ropes? We have servos and actuators and hydraulics. What is with this primitive gear? Like the first boats, ancient cordage, made of organic things like vines or sinew, doesn’t survive through the ages so we lack archaeological proof. The earliest hominid technology we have evidence of, over three million years ago, is stone tools. Knapping stone tools is not easy, and takes skill and foresight. It is much less difficult to strip leaves off a vine, creating a rope. Again, nameless people, who weren’t yet human, thought up a simple contrivance to help with their lives that we still use today. The connection to these earliest technological innovators is part of the heritage I became aware of through sailing.
2. Sailing has had an immeasurably larger impact on history and societal development than any other leisure time activity. The Age of Discovery and the voyages of the ancient Polynesians were conducted by sailors. The Americas and Australia had been settled long before the Europeans stumbled on them—under sail—but as mentioned, Australia, and probably much of the Americas, was accessed from sea by the aboriginal discoverers. No tennis match ended an empire, nor saved a culture from a fall, but: 1) After the sea battle of Salamis stopped Persia, Athens enjoyed a brief surge of intellectual development that has never been surpassed. Had Persia won, the Greeks would not have begun the first democracy, and there may never have been a Socrates, Herodotus, Plato, or Sophocles. 2) The British Isles were saved twice by sea from would-be conquerors from Europe, after they had earlier been invaded by the Vikings, who were renowned sailors. Under Elizabeth I at the Spanish Armada, and again against Napolean’s fleet at Trafalgar in ships commanded by Horatio Nelson, the nation was protected by its sailors. 3) The astonishing planning, execution, and good fortune of American sea power has carried many a day including Normandy and the Battle of Midway. None of these battles were the least guaranteed and a gambler would surely have bet against both Greece and America at those engagements. How different the world would be had the outcomes been other than they were.
3. Sailing has the best literature. Although there are great sportswriters in baseball, golf, fishing, and football, are Homer, Melville, and London among them? Homer wrote the first, and arguably still the greatest, seagoing epic at around 700 BC. Odysseus’ homeward voyage has been the subject of fascination, skepticism, and spin-offs for over two millennia. Melville’s Moby Dick is to this day still assigned in high schools. You may have read and hated it, as I did. I suggest you revisit it. It is a mountain of a book, based on a true story which was the subject of The Heart of The Sea, the great movie by director Ron Howard. The chapters on the biology of the whale, dismissed as filler by my high school teacher, are actually what a textbook description of a whale’s anatomy would be like if written by Shakespeare. London’s Sea Wolf and Cruise of the Snark may have you questioning why you ever left land.
4. Sailing is a weighty undertaking. No one is going to die because of a poor golf swing. Being a captain, however, means taking full responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of your crew and boat, as well as that of other mariners. I cannot think of another recreational activity with quite this level of gravitas. Becoming a captain is a powerful life choice to make.
5. Sailing widens horizons. If you spend hundreds of thousands on a new Lamborghini, you are still going to be driving the same roads as the plebeians. But if you spend a fraction of that on a boat, you can go anywhere, to places where there are no roads. You don’t need an agency, industry, or supervisor to give you permission. You can open all the doors yourself.
6. Sailing leads to adventure. Not all sailors have an attraction to this sort of thing, as an adventure is something with an outcome that is not a given. Even a day sail on the Bay offers that. With the Bay Area Summiteers, we’ve shown that great explorations can be undertaken even without going offshore. It’s good to work an untried goal into every day on the water.
7. Finally, the experience at sea will build self-confidence in all areas of life. As you build your skills in tennis, golf, and skiing, you’ll be more confident in your performance. But you will not meet the variety of issues that any skipper will face. Weather, boat gear, sail trim, crew management, and foreign regulations are a sample of the challenges that will challenge your perseverance and your ability to make sound decisions in the face of uncertainty. However, after musing on all of this, do me a favor. If you run into Serena Williams or Tiger Woods, don’t lord it over them. They aren’t to blame for the limitations of their sport. Humility is the mark of the true sailor, and as a teacher of this virtue, the sea is second to none.
Sailing into an unfamiliar harbor is fraught with peril for mariners, terrifying if you are seeking shelter from a storm. The entrance to San Francisco Bay is one of the most dangerous on the West Coast. The combination of strong wind, traffic, current, fog, and dangerous waves created when storm seas meet the Fourfathom Bank against an ebb is so treacherous that there are over 300 shipwrecks just seaward of the Golden Gate.
We had several very difficult approaches on our circumnavigation of 2001-2003, one of which resulted in a grounding, and several had our hearts in our throats. We never entered harbors after nightfall, standing off all night even in heavy weather, to avoid it. The one time we broke this rule was in Manzanillo in calm weather, and it almost did us in.
You don’t want to ground your ship on a shoal or rock. This problem has been recognized by mariners since time immemorial, and dealt with by numerous means. In the great days of exploration, Columbus, Magellan, and Cook would send small boats into an inlet to find a fairway, as the waters they sailed had never been charted. Lead lines, like the ones these boats would have employed, have been in use since at least 500 BC. It took a long time for mariners to survey the entire world of coves and rivers. Late friend Hank Strauss, a sailor who participated in the ’79 Fastnet Race, took soundings for the US Navy at the Solomon Islands in WWII because of a lack of reliable information, so this process was not completed until very recently.
Once a safe way in was found into a frequently visited river or harbor, a “pilot,” a person with local knowledge, was engaged to guide sailors in. The earliest mention we have of this practice is found in Homer in around 700 B.C. We hired a pilot in Borneo to help us navigate the Kumai River and its tributary, the Sekonyer. Fishermen there and in many other places in the third world have no navigation marks, no charts, no depth sounders, and no GPS. They just know the river. In San Francisco, where we welcome over 8,000 ships a year from all over the world, piloting is a stressful, highly-paid job done by mariners with very, very high levels of knowledge and experience. They have to be skilled in piloting both bars and rivers, as they take ships, some that are larger than the Sales Force Tower laid sideways, all the way to Sacramento. They have to be able to draw all the charts of the area from memory complete with marks, just as a London cabbie has to know every street.
When the shoals and hazards had been established, various methods were used for locals to mark the way for themselves, or for others following. Although early sailors traded tips on getting into this or that harbor, there wasn’t an organized procedure. This was how it was for thousands of years of shipping, and then in the 13th century, charts and buoys began to appear. That earlier navigators managed with minimal or non-existent aids is a measure of their resourcefulness. Or daring. Or insanity.
One ancient method of indicating the way was to designate range marks on land. Mariners lined these up and followed them to make a safe passage. Sometimes those were a church and a tree, or two rocks. We still use that concept today in modern marks, and they can be seen in the San Rafael Channel and at the end of Potrero Reach. Modern marks are two rectangles with a central vertical stripe, a higher one behind a lower one.
Range marks show the middle of the channel, and lateral marks, which make up the majority of Aids To Navigation (ATONs) in our Bay, show the edges. At first these were just sticks, as are still seen in the third world and even in the US in minor waterways. If you go to Lawson’s Landing in Tomales Bay, you might be able to see the sticks just offshore locating the edge of the channel between sand bars, which are not official ATONs and are not on the chart. At Lawson’s they indicate only one side of the channel, but which side? There’s your problem. The official marks leading into the San Rafael Channel are also on only one side, but as they are colored green, we know to leave them to port. Keep a sharp watch.
It is difficult to construct a detailed account of the history of these arrangements. The newborn US created The United States Lighthouse Establishment, later known as the U.S. Lighthouse Service, in 1789. By the mid-nineteenth century, a nascent lateral buoy system was developed by a few countries in northern Europe. Standardization included red marks on the right and black, later green, on the left when returning to a harbor. According to legend, this setup originated in the Port of Liverpool, often visited by American ships, and the US Congress adopted their Lateral System nationwide in 1848. By the early twentieth century there was still only sporadic agreement on markings between nations, but in 1957, 20 countries got together to form the International Association of Lighthouse Authorities, or IALA. In 1971 there was an accident with major casualties in the Dover Strait in the English Channel which lent urgency to organizing a more consistent arrangement, so in 1973 the IALA began to sort out all the disparate local systems with intent of unifying them. The result was adopted in 1980, but even then, because of the potential for confusion resulting from changing familiar marks, it was only possible to distill the various systems down to two separate groups: region A and region B. We’re in B. For lateral buoys in IALA-A, it is green, right, returning rather than the reverse that we use. In that system red ones are on the left but are still even numbered. However, they are shaped like cans, and the green ones on the right are pointy. Take note of this if you’re sailing in Europe or the South Pacific.
Back to San Francisco. The first chart of San Francisco Bay was created by José de Cañizares in 1776. He was an ensign on the first ship ever to enter the Bay, the San Carlos, commanded by Juan Manuel de Ayala after whom our favorite Cove is named. Believe it or not, Ayala had planned to do the survey but was incapacitated because he literally shot himself in the foot. You’ll see soundings, but no aids to navigation on this chart.
However, now we have them, and despite this, if you sail long enough on San Francisco Bay, you will touch somewhere. Don’t ask how I know. But those red marks in the Ford Channel will keep you safe if you observe them. This unfortunate skipper seems to have missed the memo, and is aground just outside the red mark. Be conservative near these marks, as just inside there isn’t a strait drop. Mud sloughs off at an angle to the bottom of the dredged channel.
You probably have learned that the green marks that look like cans are called “cans,” and the red ones which are cone-shaped, “nuns.” The common explanation for this is that nuns wear pointy hats. This always befuddled me. Have you ever seen a nun wearing a pointed red hat? A perusal of that source of all wisdom, the Internet, revealed scores of pictures of nuns in their habits, contemporary and historical, but only one had a point.
A much more likely explanation for the origin of the nickname for the red buoy is found in John Rogers’ Origins of Sea Terms. Rogers, a pretty reliable source, writes that “It appears to have gotten its name from the early English word nun, for a child’s top that was tapered on both ends. The word comes from the Old English nunna, with the same meaning.”
It’s taken thousands of years and a lot of dangerous, sometimes tragic surveys to get to the system we have today, when all major harbors and most minor ones are marked. Now all we have to do, as beneficiaries of this hard-won history, is pay attention to what the marks are telling us.
by Jeffrey Hare, Instructor and Owner of Emerald Sea
This 3rd post in our series will cover a topic of keen interest to sailors; Places to stop and what to see and do between San Francisco and San Diego (will cover Mexican ports in future entries). There are plenty of weather applications and advice out there, so I will cover only what we observed when traveling south in late November of 2023, and again North in June of 2024. With the proper ASA skills learned prior to venturing out to these ports of call these destinations will be a great adventure! You should have taken ASA 106 at least and I highly recommend Advanced Anchoring and Docking, Weather, Costal Navigation, in addition to some offshore time as crew prior to making the trip on your own. I am partial to Cruising Catamaran as there are only 5 classes for 2024 – book yours today!
General observations and advice: California Marinas have a fairly high occupancy rate, so don’t expect to get a slip upon sailing up to their front door. Call ahead and reserve a slip as soon as you have a solid itinerary. The Marina will likely want a non-refundable deposit, or possibly the entire amount for your stay whether you show up on time or not. It is perfectly normal to be charged for the length of your boat by the foot, or the length of the available slip your boat fits in, whichever is larger (if you have a 45 foot boat and only a 50 foot slip is available, you will probably be charged the 50 foot fee). For transient boaters electricity and water is included and unlimited – it is nice to have a little electric heat when spending a few nights at chilly California locations.
Some marinas have a generous, calm, and comfortable anchorage area (first come first served and can not be reserved) – this is true with Pillar Point, but not true with Monterrey even though charts show a large open space at both. If your vessel is equipped with a tender, kayak, or stand up paddle-board, it is actually a lot of fun to utilize these tools to get to shore for dining, shopping, or hiking. Most marinas will have a dingy dock available for a nominal fee – docking at restaurants is typically free if you patronize them. You can also pull up on the beach and mostly people will leave your boat alone – just like a car in a parking lot, don’t leave anything of value in sight and easy to grab in your boat. If you beach your dingy, be aware of the tides and pull them up off the beach accordingly – If you have a heavy dingy with a heavy motor this might pose a problem when you need to drag it all back to the water so be careful.
The top photo above shows the nice breakwater and what looks like a generous anchorage area at Monterrey Bay. Combining this with other applications like Google Earth in the lower photo, you get to see all of the boats that nearly fill that area, and get the sense that this might not be an anchor area at all!
Other advice I would give is taking advantage of advice from people who have sailed to these ports before, and also using your smart device (mine is an iPad) with Google Earth to observe any obstructions (temporary obstructions such as boats and fish traps still need to be on the forefront of your on-watch crew).
Speaking of on-watch crew – I have two crew members forward with one focusing on the Starboard side and another looking only at the Port side of the boat with practiced hand signals, this is done any time entering a confined space. These Crew members are not just watching distance from the sea wall and rock obstructions, but anything that might foul the propellor – fish traps, loose fenders, and even stray kite string! Occasionally there might even be an improperly lit (or unlit) boat in your path – the more eyes-on the better.
The southern ship traffic lanes are very busy 24 hours per day – the photo here of my Radar and AIS showing a huge amount of traffic on the night of November 20, 2023 as we exited the bay. Emerald Sea felt like a target, especially since one of the vessels is called “Target” and their heading seems right at us! Never let your guard down and use all instrumentation available – a short time after the top photo was taken, another batch of vessels came into view including the cruise ship “Crown Princess”! At this time, another Tradewinds Instructor (you know who you are) was aboard and I think may have been at the helm! As a quick-quiz, I believe there is a COLREG about deck lights not obfuscating navigation lights (which rule is this?) – apparently this does not apply to Cruise Ships as seen in the 3rd photo.
Shelter Cove:
Some charts will show an anchor area at Shelter Cove, just south of Pacifica and outside of Pacific State Beach. While this anchorage area offers good holding ground I don’t like it due to risk of getting kelp wrapped in your propeller and exposure to surf. It is probably a good place to dive for a few hours but I would not personally trust it overnight.
Pillar Point / Half Moon Bay:
Traveling south all sailors should be aware of the Pillar Point Marina at Half Moon Bay – a favorite destination for the ASA 106 Offshore Passagemaking class. The marina gets very busy on the weekends with sailors taking a few days to visit this nearby locale, but the large and expansive anchorage area offers plenty of room to anchor if the marina gets full. Use all of your ASA skills (especially your Radar class if trying to get there on a Friday night) prior to venturing here and I recommend only approaching during daylight as there are hazards to the entrance.
Reference your chart upon approach – have your crew help you identify the Safe Water Mark as well as Buoys 1, 2, and 3 while you approach the entrance – you do not want to cut corners here. The gap in the breakwater is very narrow and this is when I typically have crew on the bow calling distance to each side.
Half Moon Bay offers a wide variety of wonderful dining experiences, groceries and supplies, boat parts, and many things to see. Because of the large breakwater this area is safe in any weather and offers an excellent resting spot whether running south or north. Highly recommended by the crew of Emerald Sea.
When going south: Stop here if your crew is new to offshore cruising / If anybody just needs a rest, shows any sign of seasickness, or just to rest. It is a perfectly save area either at anchor or in the marina.
When going north: If you have the extra day, I think it is nice to arrive in San Francisco Bay Refreshed, clean and rested. This is the perfect stop to do that.
Santa Cruz Anchorage and Santa Cruz Small Craft Marina:
While this area offers protection from north winds, it has absolutely nothing to offer to protect your vessel from ocean surf – I do not recommend this anchorage. I am sure it is fine for a lunch break or to take a few hours to paddle board or kayak, even the beach landing is hazardous due to high surf – should only be attempted in very calm conditions. I have friends who anchored here overnight and were miserable not just to the relentless waves, but also the all-night music coming from the bars on shore.
As for the marina, this is the most compact and congested marina I have ever visited. Santa Cruz offers great dining experiences – you had better call far in advance to try to get a place to dock. For any boats over 35 feet I don’t personally recommend it.
Capitola Beach at Soquel Cove:
Similar to my comments about Santa Cruz Anchorage, there is little protection here from wind or surf. If you have a way to get to shore this location offers shopping and dining experiences but I would not recommend an overnight stop.
Moss Landing:
This area offers protection from any weather condition and consists of several marina areas. You have a better chance of getting a slip here, as long as you call ahead, than you do in Monterrey. There is no designated anchor area. The marina offers everything needed including a fuel dock and plenty of room to maneuver…. While the entrance is wide open this area is very popular for fishing – you need to be on the lookout for rogue fishing apparatus on approach.
Monterey Bay — Breakwater Cove, Municipal Marina, and General Anchorage Area:
The first point to make here is that if you intend to proceed south, I highly recommend at least an overnight stop here for the Skipper and crew to rest. If you manage to get a slip in either marina the crew should shower, have a couple of nice meals out, take a nice long walk, and get at least one good nights sleep (more if you are not used to overnight passages). My own policy is to make sure there is a two-day weather forecast that you really like as the following stretch will be the longest without anywhere to go/do/stop. If not done already, this is where the Skipper should establish the watch schedule to impose upon departing. With a minimum of 3 crew members, I like a 4 hour shift on the helm, followed by a 4 hour shift on watch (see ColRegs rule #5), which subsequently allows for a 4 hour period of sleep. This schedule allows each crew member 8 hours of rest in a 24 hour period. When on watch they can relieve the helm when needed while being aware of current conditions. Nuff said about my watch schedule – back to Monterey Bay….
All services are available here including boat yard and fuel dock.
If you have not reserved a slip and/or they don’t have room for you inside the breakwater, the General Anchorage area is clearly marked just to the north of the breakwater. I have anchored here and it can be rolly as it offers little or no protection from wind or surf. Anchor well with plenty of rode while you also pay attention to the tide and weather forecast. This area is good to either wait until there is room at the marina or the weather forecast clears for a minimum of two days and you just go. This is a nice sandy bottom and good holding.
Going South: Depending on your boat speed it is something between 10 and 20 hours to the next stop of Morrow Bay. You should (at a minimum) stop here or have stopped at Half Moon Bay so the crew can rest and prepare.
Going North: If after sailing upwind from Morrow Bay, this is a great place to celebrate your accomplishment and let the weather settle for your next leg to Half Moon Bay or even San Francisco Bay.
Stillwater Cove at Pebble Beach:
This is just a couple hours around the corner from Monterey. While a legitimate anchor area, I don’t recommend this due to the rock hazards at the entrance. It does offer good protection if a storm from the North blows up, and some protection from westerly winds and surf, do your best to skip this and move along. I consider this a last-resort place to weather a storm. If going North, do your best to continue to Monterey – it’s close. If going South – stop here only if some storm took you by surprise.
Wreck Beach:
Another last-resort anchorage area. This has good holding ground but does not offer much of protection against anything. Use only in case of emergency. Remember: It’s named “Wreck Beach” for a reason. Avoid if possible.
The only reasonable stopping point between Monterey Bay and Half Moon Bay — San Simeon Bay:
This anchor area offers good holding and protection from both North and Western weather. It is not very big – comfortable for maybe 5 boats with swing area, so be careful. Very helpful if you are exhausted and just can not making if going south, or if you are going north and want to sneak ahead another 20 miles (north of Morrow Bay) to make sure a short weather window or uncertain weather report is something you want to tackle. While there is no fuel, there is a restaurant and general groceries here if you can get to shore with a dingy/kayak/SUP.
Going North: Use this if the weather is stronger if you want it to be and don’t want to have to return that 20 mile investment from Morrow Bay.
Going South: Unless a storm comes up, just power through and continue on to Morrow Bay if you can. All your supplies are there and protection from any storm.
Morrow Bay:
I recommend stopping here either Northbound or Southbound as you should celebrate your accomplishments and prepare for the next milestone in your journey. There is no haulout and very little in terms of marina space, there is plenty of both mooring balls and anchor areas as long as you can get your tender/Kayak/SUP to the many dingy docks. I waited here several days on a northbound journey and serviced the engines and sail drives as all of the supplies needed are here. The dining options are plentiful, there are several Auto parts stores within a short walk, and plenty of things to see. Enjoy this time to take nice long walks and stretch your legs!
Going South: Keep a keen eye on the weather around Point Conception. The wind and surf can both get high but you only need a 12 hour window. Don’t mess with the weather – this is a very serous section of the coast (I promise weather paradise once you get south of Point Conception. Keep your eyes peeled for a Starlink Launch from the nearby Space Force base at Vandenberg – quite spectacular but is over quite quickly…
Going North: This is where you will want to wait for good weather for what may be a 20 hour northward bash. Remember the prevailing winds blow north to south, so the entire western coast northward is called “The Baja Bash” for good reason. You will be motoring, so wait for a 24 to 36 hour weather window before moving on. There is plenty here to keep you occupied and this area provides some of the best protection against nearly any weather.
Point Conception:
This is not an anchor area, or a safe refuge. Instead to the sailor it is more of a phenomena. The prevailing north-to-south costal winds are concentrated on this land mass that sticks out into the sea. Check the condition of the 46218 weather Buoy (https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=46218) before rounding either from the north or south. Be extremely cautious here.
Cojo Anchorage: This is located on charts just south of “Government Point”. It is not recommended unless there is an emergency or you just need to wait out the weather for a few hours without having to backtrack. There are some Coast Guard mooring buoys here also.
Going south: Once you have rounded Point Conception you enter a very large area of Southern California that will feel like a sailors paradise. Point conception does a great job of blocking strong winds and surf from here to San Diego and if you enjoy a fairly constant 10 knots of wind, knock yourself out. I recommend only a few days on Catalina on a mooring ball to celebrate how far you have come so far.
Going North: Use this anchorage again if you don’t want to back-track and just need to wait a few hours for the heavy waves and wind to settle down. I don’t recommend this for an overnight stay
Between Point Conception and Mission Bay:
There are hundreds of places to stop and enjoy as this is considered by everyone in Southern California to be the best sailing grounds anywhere (we in San Francisco Bay disagree). It’s calm, little surf, so enjoy as long as you like. Enjoy the Channel Islands, many marinas and ports of call. I typically have an agenda so after staying a day or so in Catalina, head straight to San Diego. When your direction of sail permits, this is the perfect time to deploy your spinnaker if you have one.
Channel Island Harbor and Marina:
I take it back. This harbor is a great stopping point to take on water and a rest. It is wide open and offers many services. The only caution is to watch for kelp in the area as I have had to dive the propeller to get it off!!!
Mission Bay Mariners Village and Marina Village. This area is far inland and protected from any weather, not that they get much in this area of Southern California. There is both an anchor area (the bottom seems clay and it was difficult for me to set my anchor here), and several large marinas both before and after the bridges. The marinas are sometimes not very friendly to transients but be persistent If you want to stay. There are some good dining options here.
San Diego Bay:
Marinas: There are many – 4 are even “Safe Harbor” marinas who share management with our own Marina Bay Yacht Harbor. The marinas closer to the city are very busy, more expensive, and full, so I recommend checking for slip-space with the marinas further away, such as the Chula Vista Marina, otherwise known as Safe Harbor Chula Vista – we have stayed here several days and there are all the needed facilities including a West Marine within walking distance.
Anchoring: Because most of San Diego Bay is a military security zone, you can’t just anchor anywhere for as long as you like. Checking on your charts, there are several designated anchorage areas starting with “The Shelter Island Yacht Basin Anchorage area A-1, through “The Glorietta Bay Anchorage Area A-5” (and probably some others – photo above was taken December 4, 2023 at the Glorietta anchorage looking toward the Hotel Del Coronado). Outside the bay, only the Zuniga Shoal, just off the North Island Naval Air Station runway, is unlimited and unreserved. This is somewhat protected but you feel a little exposed compared to being in the nice secure bay.
Written by Jeff Hare, Tradewinds Instructor and Emerald Sea Owner
Living in the Bay Area we take the Golden Gate Bridge for granted. We casually (and perhaps automatically) glance up at it during our daily commute and it’s presence gives us reassurance, confidence, sense of community, and even a feeling of contentment – this monument is recognized the world over and is uniquely ours. It serves as a convenient container that that we, mostly, stay on the east side of and rarely, if ever, venture beyond. This bridge is truly a portal through which we have access to the world. Going under it excites persons in this realization, and his is exactly how the crew of Emerald Sea felt on November 20, 2023 when we passed under.
Let’s rewind a little bit to our departure planning. As we had never conducted such an extensive journey there were a few chores and considerations necessary and will itemize those here:
Crew Selection: This is a fine art and I would recommend several local overnight runs with your proposed crew before tossing them all in a confined space for a long period of time. Personality traits of your crew that seem minor during short hauls might become more pronounced over long periods of continuous exposure. Make sure your crew is used to and able to tolerate each others traits. Secondly I would recommend each crew member take time to understand their own body’s reaction to the rolling sea, possibly being constantly cold or wet, and take steps to build up a tolerance.
Life Raft: We needed a new Life Raft as these things have a well documented shelf-life and the previous one had expired. Selection of a life raft carries several criteria including available storage space, typical cruising crew size, project distance from shore and expected time to rescue – the cost of rafts vary dramatically! For Emerald Sea there is a convenient out-of-the-way life raft carriage at the stern near the dingy, so thankfully the new raft was a similar size and fit nicely. These things are surprisingly heavy so thank goodness we had strong friends.
Ditch Bag: Opinions regarding the contents of this survival kit vary dramatically. We agree they should be updated at least on an annual basis. In addition to life-prolonging and comfort items, we recommend some technology devices: A waterproofed solar charger for your phone, flashlight, and rechargeable VHF radio along with a waterproof phone case. A water filter. An extensive hand-line fishing kit. While some people prefer collapsible drink cups, we feel a few of the ubiquitous red solo cups a very capable option – these can be packed with absorbent cloths and even a small first aid kit and wrapped in plastic wrap to seal them. Gravity fed water filters are common now and while will not last long, will likely last long enough. We cycle high-protein food bars available over the counter and replace them when the freshness date approaches.
Documentation: DO NOT attempt to enter Mexico with incorrect or incomplete documents – we have observed vessels being turned away. When you enter Mexico there will be an extensive “check in” process at the port of entry (most commonly Ensenada in the North or Chipias in the South). Once inside Mexico vessels must “check out” within 48 hours of departure and “check in” within 48 hours of each point of arrival (if you stay at a location for less than 48 hours, or anchor at a location without a Customs Office this is not necessary, but it should be noted on your prior check-out document – we will get into this process later).
We recommend you are prepared with photocopies of all of your documents as the staff appreciates this and it will make the process faster. Also when you complete and submit any forms it is recommend you keep copies of that – I just took cellular phone photos and put them in a photo folder as this was quick and easy.
Documents required for the check-in to Mexico include: 1. Passports for all crew members. It is interesting to note that persons entering Mexico by aircraft are granted only a 15 day visa. Persons entering by boat are granted a 6 month visa. If a person having entered by boat departs the country by aircraft and returns, their 6 month visa resets to the arrival date by aircraft. 2. Vessel Documentation. 3. A valid TIP (Temporary Import Permit). This permit must be applied for and granted in advance of your arrival. It must include the hull number of the vessel as well as any tender associated with the vessel (make SURE the hull numbers are correct and also that the Vessel Documentation number on the TIP is the same as on your documentation). As of this time, the TIP for a boat is valid for 10 years. 4. The Skipper must complete a form provided by the port that summarize the vessel, the sail plan, and expected departure from Mexico date – the port keeps this copy and the vessel should keep a copy and have this available for the next port at check-in. 5. Mexican Insurance: This is not your vessel insurance. The Government of Mexico requires additional insurance coverage while traveling there. This can be applied for online at Baja Bound Insurance Services. 6. Government Agents may inspect your vessel so be prepared. If they elect not to, thank them and get on with your day.
We chose to check in to Mexico at Marina Coral which also conveniently has a fuel dock. While expensive (even by Bay Area standards), the staff at this marina is extremely efficient and helps you through the processes including a ride to the Customs office. We give gratuities generously as this can be a lengthy process if you are not at least conversational in Spanish.
Check in and out with the Port Captain: Each time you leave a particular port, Ensenada for example, you need to find the Port Captain and check out. This will again require the passports of all crew members (especially if you have added or perhaps a crew member has left), vessel number dates, sail plan, and next port of arrival including the date you plan on getting there. You should retain a copy and the original will stay with the port. When you arrive at the next port, present them with the check-out of the previous port also. As noted earlier, not all ports have photocopy capabilities so while you must present originals, having photocopies to leave with each port is helpful.
Finally people spend a lot of time trying to figure out how much and what type of cash to bring. In the more touristy cities, credit cards are widely accepted touristy spots and prices may even be posted in dollars (Ensenada and Cabo). In more remote areas however Pesos are required. ATM’s are readily available in the larger towns and I recommend these be taken advantage of when available so you have the cash when in smaller towns. Just like the United States, make sure you use a well known bank and pay attention to the ATM for any thing that does not look normal – even wait to observe locals using the machine first. ATM Machines will typically charge a transaction fee: anywhere from $30 pesos to $200, and will probably display an exchange rate and ask you to agree. If the exchange rate is not favorable, decline that option and the ATM will withdraw from your bank in pesos, whereas your bank will perform the exchange (you won’t know what that is until you get your statement.- I have mine configured to send a text-message for any withdrawal). Normally, American Banks use a better exchange rate than the Mexican banks, so make the best decision for you.
Make sure you have enough cash in Pesos for the smaller towns. In Bahia Tortuga you will need Pesos to buy food, fuel, and provisions.
Baseball and fishing have opening days for the season, but what opens? A gate? A bottle? In the case of sailing on San Francisco Bay there was once something that actually did open on opening day.
In many
parts of the country, the climate dictates that boats be taken out of the water
for winter, so it’s natural for there to be some sort of celebration when they
are recommissioned in the spring. Despite our more temperate climate, the custom
was brought here and observed at scattered locations where boats were kept in
the 19th century.
In the
late 1800s, some people owned houseboats that they called “arks.” They spent
the summer months anchored in quiet Belvedere Cove where the San Francisco
Yacht Club is now, but in winter things could get somewhat dicey in the open
water. Tiburon Lagoon (now filled in) on the back side of Corinthian Island
provided excellent protection, but Main Street, which connected Tiburon to Beach
Road and Belvedere Island, would have been in the way. A drawbridge was
constructed that permitted the arks to pass into the lagoon for winter on
“closing day” in the fall. When the bridge was opened in the spring, “opening
day” featured a celebration and parade.
If you
go to Tiburon, walk west along Main Street and just after it curves, on your
right you’ll see many of the quaint old arks, now firmly anchored on land. Behind
them where the parking lot is now was once Tiburon Lagoon, and just a little
past the arks was the location of the bridge. Go into Sam’s Anchor Cafe, and in
the last dining room on your left as you head toward the deck, you’ll find a
photograph of the drawbridge on the wall.
The Pacific Inter-Club Yacht Association
(PICYA), formed in San Francisco in 1896, united local celebrations, including
Tiburon’s, into a sail called a “Cruise in Squadron” in 1917. This became
Opening Day and is still organized by the PICYA. In 1963, a “Blessing of the
Fleet,” based on a tradition of blessing fishing boats that dates from at least
medieval times, was added specifically for recreational boats under the auspices
of Tiburon’s Corinthian Yacht Club.
The Blessing of the Fleet occurs this year on April 28 at 10:30 in Raccoon Strait. The opening day parade of boats begins at 12:00 off of Chrissy Field. For details see https://picya.org/event/opening-day-on-the-bay/
Last time we spoke of the odd pronunciations of some sailing terms. Today we will delve into some less certain ones.
Saloon: Some folks use “salon” when referring to the dining and lounging area belowdecks. Well, do you go there to get your hair washed, cut, colored, teased, combed, and blow-dried, while urbanely discussing Proust? OK, me too. But wouldn’t you rather have a tall drink with Kitty and Doc at the Long Branch? “Salon” is common among power boaters, although John Rogers, in Origins of Sea Terms, considers it a lubberly corruption. I’m going with “saloon.” But you could just say “cabin.”
Fake
or Flake: Is one winding of a coil of line a “fake” or “flake”? Do you
“fake it out” or “flake it out?” The historical sources, like Falconer and
Smyth, commonly prefer “fake.” But Clifford Ashley (The Ashley Book of Knots) and John Harland (Seamanship In The Age Of Sail)—neither lightly dismissed—say
they’ve never heard anyone use “fake.” The best policy with this and “saloon”
is, as always, to follow the captain’s lead. But what if you’re the captain? Ahh, the burden of command.
Key,
cay, and quay: “Key” doesn’t present a problem. But in the Caribbean, “cay”
is also pronounced “key.” Cay comes from the Spanish word for island, cayo, and the Florida “Keys” evolved
from the same etymology. Locally, the only related difficulty we have is with
Paradise Cay on the Tiburon Peninsula. I
called Tom Moseley of the family that developed the area to ask about the
pronunciation. Tom says that his dad loved the Virgin Islands and named the
marina and housing development after the “cays” there. He pronounced it “key.”
But the locals in Marin County kept pronouncing it “kay” instead, and eventually the Moseleys learned to accept
“cay” rhyming with “day.”
A quay is a wharf, not an island, and has a French origin from an earlier Celtic one. But often this word is also pronounced “key,” causing confusion. In the British Isles, quay is normally pronounced “key.” (An exception can be heard in the traditional Irish song, “Star of the County Down,” where “quay” rhymes with “bay.”) In New England it’s “key” as well, but in the Midwest “kway” is more common.
In the case of cay and quay, it’s best to do as the locals do. After all, I live in San Ra-fell, not Sahn Raah-fah-yell.
