Start New Sailors Off With a South Bay Winter Charter
By: Ian Brosnan
If you have young children in your life that you want to introduce to sailing, a winter charter is a great way to start.
During the summer, the sea breeze created by warm air rising in the Central Valley reliably provides for adventurous sailing in the South Bay, especially when the wind opposes the current and stands up a good choppy sea. However, these aren’t the best conditions for introducing new sailors to the thrill of charter sailing.
Wintertime winds are much lighter, and the sun is still warm. Not for nothing do we joke that summer is for foul weather layers, and winters are for shorts and t-shirts. Unless there is a storm coming through, winds will be light (and motoring more frequent). All this means that winter is a great time to charter and introduce younger kids to sailing San Francisco Bay. Starting from the South Bay provides an opportunity to build up to ever greater adventures.
The natural way to start is with a half-day or full-day local charter. You can sail or motor up to the San Mateo bridge, anchor in the creek for lunch, enjoy a sunset sail, or get dinner from the taco truck at the Redwood City municipal pier. You can do them all, of course, but a shorter day will probably be easier on everyone. More on this below.
The next step is an overnight trip to Coyote Point marina. Amenities here include playgrounds, the CuriOdyssey museum, and the park itself. There is a small playground near the marina entrance, and about a mile up the park road is a much larger playground, Magic Mountain, with a large castle slide. The marina is in the flight path for San Francisco International Airport, providing nearly endless entertainment for plane-watchers.
After Coyote Point, South Beach Harbor Marina is your next stop. This is a longer, but still gentle, transit. Once there, a small playground for younger children can be found at the marina entrance. Also within a short walk are Mission Bay Kids Park and Crane Park to the south. To the north along the Embarcadero are the Ferry Terminal, a new fire station, Fisherman’s Wharf, and the Exploratorium. A short ride on the Muni will bring you to Golden Gate Park and the California Academy. Sunset sails from South Beach Harbor are also easy. South Beach Marina is also close to the CalTrain terminus. If the transit by sea seems too long, the train allows you to bring children and family for a weekend charter in the City
More complex trips can be made to the anchorage at Aquatic Park Cove ($10 for an overnight stay at Ghirardelli Square with waterfront views), Horseshoe Cove and the Bay Area Discovery Museum at the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge, and the day slips and overnight anchorages at Angel Island.
Sailing with children is more than easy destinations. There are many books and internet guides for sailing with children. You should review them, but generally they focus on keeping kids engaged and happy with four rules, (1) bring plenty of toys and entertainment, (2) bring plenty of snacks, (3) plan short stints underway, and (4) turn back to the marina while everyone is still happy. On our charters, we often bring legos or duplos and drop the table in the main cabin (on Sea Breeze, the table is held up with a gas piston; after lifting the cushions to allow the table free passage, loosen the locking nut at the pedestal base and push quickly and firmly down on the center of the table to lower it).
The Bay has a lot on offer in the winter, and it is a great season to start some chartering with younger sailors before the strong Sea Breeze returns.
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