Hawaii - the Start

Talk about escaping by the skin of our teeth - our Tuesday morning flight was iffy what with a major nor'easter headed our way threatening to close down the entire north east corridor down to the D.C. area.  The morning dawned gray and bleak, with snow starting right as forecast, at 8, as we sat in the boarding area and was covering the ground while the plane underwent the deicing process shortly after 9.  Ours may well have been the last flight out, our daughter Melaina reported a friend, due to depart shortly after us, found the airport closed for the duration, with her flight postponed until Friday.  

As  the plane was being deiced, the captain came into the cabin to inform us we'd be departing, but things might be interesting in Chicago (which had hundreds of cancellations the day before) with snow covered runways and high winds.  Conditions weren't bad when we arrived with intermittent periods of snow with only a few inches of snow on the ground.  Our problem was waiting for our gate to be vacated - not sure why they didn't change gates since a number appeared to be free.  Our 40 minute wait cut our transfer time down to minutes and when we arrived at the gate for our SFO flight, they were boarding passengers.  Not surprising, given the number of cancelled flights from the east coast, our plane wasn't full, a rarity these days.  No need to sit 3 abreast!

Half Dome at Yosemite National Park as seen from the plane 

As arranged, John and Nan, my brother and his wife, met us at the baggage area and took us for a wild flower walk at Edgewood,a nature area, for a welcome stretching of our legs before continuing to their house.  It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day and a walk was just what the doctor ordered after 7 hours sitting in economy airline seats.  The hike gave Nan a chance to to rehearse her Saturday morning guided  wildflower tour, her first for the season.  It is a lovely area, and a real gem in an area where open areas can be difficult to find. 

Walking in Edgewood with Nan and John

John arranged for us to go for a sail Wednesday with friends, Tom and Debby Martin, on the Great Escape, their Ericson 35. A real treat for us since we've never sailed on San Francisco Bay. Although it was a long drive into the city where they keep their boat, it gave us easy access to the Bay with a variety of interesting destinations.  After some discussion, we headed for Angel Island.  While it wasn't as sunny as Tuesday, the tops of the towers on the Golden Gate bridge disappearing into the fog, we had a nice breeze, giving us a great sail across the Bay. A treat for those of us who haven't been sailing since October.

Underway to Angel Island

Great Escape on the dock at Angel Island

We made use of the park docks on Angel Island and after lunch in the cockpit, we headed ashore to explore the island.  After watching a movie about the island's history, we hiked to a lookout area with a great view of the city and Golden Gate Bridge on the perimeter road.  Unfortunately we didn't have enough time to circumnavigate the island.

Map of Angel Island- the island has an extensive history

Sea lions lounging on the docks

The fog had lifted by the time we headed back, giving us great views of the bay and city.  As we approached the city, 3 kite surfers came streaking toward us with the latest in board design using hydro foils like those used on the America Cup contenders. On the second pass, we had one on either side of the boat, doing a good 40 kph.  Wow, they really moved!  The day was a real treat for us and we enjoyed meeting Tom and Debby.  Maybe we'll have an opportunity to repay them should they ever be in our area.

Blue bird

San Francisco with Alcatraz in the fore ground

Golden Gate Bridge

The fog had lifted by the time we headed back, giving us great views of the bay and city.  As we approached the city, 3 kite surfers came streaking toward us with the latest in board design using hydro foils similar to those on the America Cup contenders. On the second pass, we had one on either side of the boat, doing a good 40 kph.  Wow, they really moved!  The day was a real treat for us and we enjoyed meeting Tom and Debby.  Maybe we'll have an opportunity to repay them should they ever be in our area.

Kite boarder with hydro foil

A very enjoyable day!