yes, we're finally leaving.

The boat is 90% packed (110% if you look at the way she's sitting in the water). Tuesday we tidy up the apartment for the subletter, grab our clothes bag and move back on to the boat. We'll sail to San Francisco on Wednesday for a last swim and sauna at the Y and stock up on food. That night we'll anchor in SF. Thanksgiving Day, weather permitting, we head out the gate and point south.

Up until yesterday, I wasn't quite sure if we'd ever leave. Alex kept assuring me that the end was near, but the mess of cables, tools and hoses said otherwise. But, here we are. It may be full, but the boat is clean and organized and we're ready to leave.

We'll do our best to update this as we head down the coast. Our first stop is Half Moon Bay to say hello to Muriel, and pick up a set of charts with a dear history. Muriel is an amazing woman who after a full teaching career became a rafting and xc ski guide. When she and her husband were our age, they sailed a wooden Folkboat (the predecessor of our boat) from England to San Francisco via the Panama Canal. So, with her charts (and a modern gps and set of electronic charts), we'll retrace her path to at least Mexico.

After Half Moon Bay, we'll make a couple of stops before we get to San Diego, but in order to beat the coming winter storms we plan on moving along fairly quickly.