"It was a Monet, Seurat painted kind of afternoon; dappled grey and blue clouds filled the muted sky, reflecting in the placid marina at St. Francis Yacht Club. Multi-colored masts and hulls shimmered lightly in the water, surrounded, as were we, by almost balmy, calm air.
We arrived on the dock just in time to hoist Nat up Elise’s mast. Once she was at the top, we supplied various tools – pliers, nuts, thread, tape, scissors, knife – to assist her efforts at re-threading the main ?? halyard. While chatting, watching, and waiting, we all continued to prep Elise for our upcoming departure; Bertran, from Belgium, Juan, myself, Larry, and Nathan.
It turned out that the wait was auspicious; by 3:30 we began to feel some wind, and by the time we departed the marina harbor we were moving at perhaps 10 knots. We raised the jib sheet in short order and headed towards Angel Island. Just enough keeling for Diane and Larry to begin refreshing themselves on their rusty sailing skills!
As we approached Angel Island, we decided to head towards the Golden Gate, and raised the bright red spinnaker. What a lovely sight - red spinnaker against the hazy red striations of light between the GG Bridge spans. Juan caught a few pictures while we moved smoothly through the bay. I caught myself, a few times, thinking of our son, Andrew and wishing he could share this afternoon with us.
We jibed to turn back, Nat right on the clock, hoping to return to the marina by 5:15 pm. Indeed we did, on the dot. Who can put a price on the mix of freedom, adventure, and relaxation provided by a few hours sailing on the SF Bay with pleasant company?"
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