SunHarbor3-07




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	NEW! Virtual Swap Meet Used Marine Gear (3)

Sun Harbor Marina

5000 N. Harbor Drive

San Diego, CA 92106

Tel: 619-222-1167

Fax: 619-222-9387

E-mail Address:

kathy@sun-harbor.com

Web Site:

www.sun-harbor.com

Office Hours:

Monday - Saturday

8:30 am - 5:00 pm

Important Numbers:

Harbor Police:

619-686-6272

US Coast Guard:

800-424-8802

Marina After Hours:

619-808-9518


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Whale Watching in Southern California Boater Guidelines

Thar she blows! ‘Tis the season for whale watching in Southern California. January, February and March are the peak months for the migration of the California Grey Whales, as they make their annual migration, into Mexican Waters. However, it is important to take great care when witnessing this amazing spectacle. In fact, all skippers need to be especially vigilant this time of year, even if you are not “whale watching”, especially when three miles or less offshore. I know one boater who inadvertently struck a whale off Catalina.

If powerboating, it will be more comfortable and easier to locate whales in the calm morning hours. However, afternoon sailing is ideal because the lack of propeller noise is less disturbing to the whales. (Whales travel around 4 knots, so you may need to furl in the jib when following alongside.) The whales will be traveling parallel to the coastline, heading south/southeast. You may spot them as close as a mile offshore, up to 5 miles offshore.

Look for the characteristic “spout”, which is a misty spray, lasting only a few seconds before it disappears. Keep everyone involved in the search. Watch for other boats that may be following a whale. If there are only a couple vessels, you might join them, but don’t overwhelm a whale with a large group of boats. Better to find your “own” whales if you can.

Whales will usually spout three or four times, about a minute apart, before diving or “sounding” for 7-10 minutes. This is usually when you see the tail raised… have that camera ready! While waiting, hold your course and speed, but be looking 360 degrees for the whales when they surface. They often come up somewhere else.

Due to the increased popularity of whale watching, it is important that boaters use care and restraint, to avoid stressing or harming these magnificent creatures. To see the complete guidelines for whale watching online, click here. In particular, look for printable brochure entitled: “Be Whale Wise, Marine Wildlife Guidelines for Boaters, Paddlers and Viewers.”

A summary of these guidelines follows:

1. Be cautious and courteous in your approach, to the whales and other boaters.

2. Slow down, to 7 knots within 400 yards, and slower as you get within viewing distance.

3. Keep clear of the whale’s path. If whales are approaching you directly, cautiously move out of the way. Avoid abrupt changes in course or speed.

4. DO NOT APPROACH whales from the front or behind. Come carefully in from the side, gradually turning to parallel their course. Remember, the whales are trying to avoid being hit by boats…they don’t know what you are going to do. As the ocean water visibility is usually around 50 feet, they cannot see you…they only hear you.

5. Try not to approach closer than 100 yards to any whale.

6. If you find yourself closer than 100 yards, put engines in neutral or turn and sail clear.

7. Limit your viewing time to 30 minutes for a particular whale or pod of whales…in consideration of the animals, and other boaters. When departing, do so at moderate speed until well clear. Good luck, and enjoy!

Bob Sherman

Bob Sherman has over 19 years of Yacht-sales experience and is the owner of YachtSource. He is also qualified to instruct on all vessel types, and has held 100-ton Captain’s license since 1982. He is an avid sailor, scuba diver, and enjoys many outdoor activities.

About Tides - Did You Know?

The tides at a given place in the Earth's oceans occur about an hour later each day. Since the Moon passes overhead about an hour later each day, it was long suspected that the Moon was associated with tides but it took Newton's Law of Gravitation to provide a measurable understanding of the association.

The gravitational attraction of the Moon is not limited to the water; in fact, the Moon exerts a gravitational force on every object on and in the Earth, however, the fluid in the Earth's oceans is much more easily deformed than Earth’s solid matter, and this leads to significant tidal effects.

Here’s a fascinating web site to visit if you’d like to know more about tides, and for a printable tide table for your area, visit free tide tables.

Let's Talk Hook-up

Let's Talk Hook-up is a two-hour live call-in sportfishing talk show broadcast every Saturday and Sunday simulcast on XX Sports Radio and 105.7FM.

The show features live fishing reports from Baja, call-ins from skippers on the water as well a private boater report and current news from local landings. A different expert guest joins host Pete Gray and co-host Rick Maxa on the show each week.

The show airs 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. every Saturday and you can also listen live to the program on www.hookup1090.com. If you have any feedback about the show, drop in and see Pete Gray in his office above Pizza Nova, Suite 220.

Ballast Point - More Than Meets The Eye

Next time you cruise out to the open ocean past Ballast Point, pause to imagine yourself a time traveller and savor some of the incredible history that happened there.

If it were the 1800s, you may have seen Yankee skippers gathering stones to serve as ballast in their vessels during their returns around the Horn to their home town, Boston. Chances are you would also have seen large numbers of whole beached California grey whales being rendered into large vats of whale oil. Your pleasure cruise likely would be interrupted by the nasty smelly mess of whale carcasses set adrift in the bay after the whalers had finished extracting their oil.

In the late 1800s, you would have seen the Ballast Point

lighthouse which consisted of two dwellings and a light tower that was part of the keeper’s quarters. (The old Ballast Point Lighthouse was torn down in 1960 to make room for more modern changes.) A far cry from the Ballast Point of today which is the site of the submarine base.

This is just a fraction of the history that lives in the place called Ballast Point. For a fascinating read, visit this San Diego Historical Society link for first hand account of what life was like at Ballast Point, written by Norma Engel, the daughter of the late Herman Engel, veteran of the Navy and of the old Lighthouse Service, who was keeper at Ballast Point from 1914 to 1931. Also fascinating is “The fort that never was on Ballast Point” by Ronald V. May.

Sun Harbor Marina Minute

Kathy OBrien

Greetings from the staff of Sun Harbor and welcome to the March 2007 marina e-mail newsletter.

Remember that Daylight Savings Time begins on Sunday, March 11th, and this year, St. Patrick’s Day is on a Saturday (March 17th, of course) - what a great way to start off Spring boating.

Welcome Aboard

We have four new additions to the Sun Harbor community this month: Stephen Lloyd (Nordic Reach), Will Maisch (Sahalie), Mike McLeod (Long Ben), and Richard Gentile (Destiny). Welcome aboard.

Sun Harbor’s Nautical Swap Meet

Why not check your garage, storage bins, and hidden compartments on board to see if you have some items you’re not using that you can turn into extra boat space and extra cash? Sun Harbor Marina will host a Nautical Swap Meet on Sunday March 4th from 6 am to 10:45 am in the parking lot. (No heavy oily engine parts, please). Those interested in having a display area can call George at 619/313-1885 or the marina office. The display fee is $10 per area, maximum of 3 display areas per person. The fee is paid via proof of purchase of a $10 gift card from Pizza Nova. The gift card can be used for dining or take out from Pizza Nova.

Sea Grant

Then, on Saturday, March 10th at 10:00 a.m., plan to join a discussion on Invasive Species, Non-Toxic Bottom Paints and Boater environmental responsibilities presented by the University of California’s Sea Grant Extension Program.

Coming In April

The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) developed by The International Maritime Organization is finally available for you to purchase! The system is mandatory for large cargo and passenger ships and ships on international voyages, and it is voluntary for recreation vessels, but the GMDSS provides a huge improvement on maritime communications and will definitely increase the safety of you and your boat.

On Saturday, April 14th at 10:00a.m., Jim Davis, an educational officer from the U.S Coast Guard, will be hosting an educational presentation on the GMDSS here at Sun Harbor Marina. We welcome you to come, learn, and enjoy!

Also Coming in April

The Port Of San Diego's Day At The Docks is the West Coast's largest public celebration of sportfishing, signaling the official start of Southern California's spring saltwater fishing season. An interesting and fun event for the whole family, Day At The Docks takes place on Sunday, April 22nd. Click Here for complete details.

Keep Up The Good Work!

Thanks to Sun Harbor Marina’s continually great track record (thanks to everyone for helping us keep the Marina up to par) we are blessed with only one dock inspection a year. But that is not to say that we don’t occasionally fall beneath the standards. We try to remind ourselves of what those standards are, and follow them. The Port looks for errors in things that could further pollute the bay, and/or cause a decrease in your safety.

• Gasoline/Diesel, Oil, Batteries, Painting Supplies, Gardening SuppliesCleaning Solvent, Household Cleaners are things that can’t be on the dock, without being additionally contained. (This is the most common mistake we make here!)

• Painting, Sanding, and Hull Cleaning must be done with the utmost care! A good tip to remember is always pouring only the required amount of any paint, or cleaner into a small container (not using it straight out of the big container) so that if there is an accident, only minimal amounts will spill.

• Trash must always be put in trash cans away from the dock, and until then stored in secure containers.

• Please regularly check you and your neighbors’ boats for any problems -including Sinking Boat Indicators (bilge running non-stop, boat listing to one side, water standing in the cockpit…)- and alert us of any problems. This is really important to you and your boat’s safety!

• Unidentified Slicks are terrible for the environment, and big contributors to pollution! Nothing should ever be poured into the bay!

• Motors, Appliances, BBQ’s are a major safety hazard when their on the dock. We have storage rooms for your convenience.

So far, So good! This is just a reminder! Thanks!

Quagga Muscles - Muscling In On California?

Quagga mussels are an invasive aquatic species that grows to about an inch in diameter. Sometimes they are larger, sometimes they are microscopic. The small, freshwater bivalve mollusk is triangular with a ridge between the side and bottom. It has black, cream, or white bands, and often features dark rings on its shell almost like stripes.

These muscles reproduce quickly and in large numbers. Once established, there is virtually no chance of eradication from a waterway. Their establishment in California waters could result in an environmental and economic disaster. Quagga muscles upset the food chain by consuming phytoplankton that other species need to survive and have so many other disastrous characteristics that they are too numerous to list here. For boaters, the impact is that their ability to rapidly colonize on soft and hard surfaces causes serious economic problems. In addition to the hulls, engines and steering components of boats, plants and sediment, Quagga mussels attach to submerged surfaces such as piers, pilings, water intakes, and fish screens. In doing this they can clog water intake structures hampering the flow of water.

The Quagga primarily moves from one place to another through human-related activities. They

attach to hard surfaces and can survive out of water for

up to a week. The microscopic larvae also

can be transported in bilges, ballast water, live wells, or other equipment that holds water.Authorities discovered Quagga mussels living in the Colorado River at Lake Mead and Lake Mohave and Lake Havasu along the Arizona-Nevada borders in January. It is likely they were transported on the hull of a recreational boat.

Here’s a link to a printable poster we recommend you look at to see what you can do to help stop the spread of this invasive species. Also, for more information about the Quagga muscle, you call toll-free 1 (866) 440-9530.

Hello From Sara - New Sun Harbor Marina Intern

Hi! If you’ve been receiving calls from an unknown girl named Sara, that would be me! I’m interning for Kathy, here at Sun Harbor Marina. I go to High Tech High School, which is actually just right around the block from the Marina. We have an intern program at our school, where we are required to work in an outside business for one full semester. I am very lucky to be working here at Sun Harbor Marina, I love it! I’m learning a lot about recreational boating and about all of the hard work Kathy does to keep the Marina running smoothly. I am not much of a sailor- do to the fact that I’ve only been on a cruise ship-, but I own horses and they are basically my first priority, when I’m not in school. Its been great working with everyone so far, and I’m looking forward to meeting those who I haven’t yet!

-Sara Islas

Let Us Hear From You

That’s it for now - Remember, if you have any questions or items you would like to discuss, please send us an email. We would like to hear from you.

Kathy OBrien - Sun Harbor Marina

kathy@sun-harbor.com