Herb and Margaret were kind enough to send over this photo of a original painting that they had painted of the Chrokeva while she was at anchor in Palmyra in the late 1970's.



























A few cool photos of our recent trip to Alamitos Bay

July 2008

We spent the entire month of July on the guest dock of Fiddler's Cove Marina in Coronado. The weather was perfect all month and although we did not get done as much as we had hoped we sure had a great time. The time we spent with good friends was some of the best times we can remember.

We were able to get several projects done while at the dock. Right before we left Mark went up the main mast to rig up haylard for the spinnaker. The spinnaker has been in storage since we purchased the boat but we figure it is time to pull it out and get familiar with using it. Mark also worked on re-designing a issue that we had with the outhaul (a rather complicated fix to a bad design). Mark has gotten very handy with the sewing machine and re-upolstered the nav station cushions. He also built a deck box for Chrokeva which looks great and gives us a ton more room for cleaning and paint supplies. We purchased a wood heater off of ebay and have been brainstorming on where to put it (more to come on that project later). All in all it was a productive month "

Catalina - June 2008

We left Newport Beach at approx. 4 am on the 9th of June heading out to Avalon harbor. As usual it was a uneventful trip as we motored the entire way. We had 7 people aboard for the trip to Avalon including 4 teenage girls and 3 adults. We then picked up two more guests that had taken the express over on Wednesday which brought the total aboard to 9 for the rest of the trip. Needless to say it was a full house on the Chrokeva.

Once we arrived at Avalon we met up with more friends from Chrokeva's sistership the Teal Sea. We spent several nights enjoying the hospitality of Craig and Debbie from Teal. Spending time at Teal Sea also had the added advantage that the teenagers stayed on Chrokeva while the adults enjoyed there time at Teal Sea. Nothing like a little space :)

On Thursday we motored over to Emerald Bay which is a rather remote but beautiful anchorage. We were amazed to be able to see the bottom at a depth of 30 feet! We were able to anchor with a bow and stern anchor right next to Teal Sea. What a sight it was to see two CT54's anchored together in this wonderful place.

On Saturday morning it was time to pull anchor and sail home. The weather was good as we had 20 knots on the stern almost the entire trip back.

IS IT SUMMER YET?????

It sure has been a long chilly winter and we are all ready for the summer to come with some warm weather. I am definately adding a heater to the list of things that are needed in the near future. Trying to keep the boat warm with my Mr Heater (which is totally unreliable as it only works when it feels like it and eats propane like nothing I have ever seen) and the alcohol heater I bought of Ebay (puts out as much heat as a few candles on a good day) has proved to be a real challenege even in southern California. I know I know it's not like we are in Alaska but cold and damp is still a bad combination.

Mark has been spending just about all his free time (which is not much) fishing. He even accomplished catching this prize ....... YIKES!!! He can't expect me to eat this thing can he?

Goodbye 2007.....Hello 2008

Well another year is gone and we are another year closer to cutting our dock lines and heading out for our extended cruise. We are currently looking at the fall of 2009 as our date to head south and thankfully that date really does sound closer than it did last year.

Looking back on 2007 I realized just how much has happened for us this past year. We took a big step in February by moving aboard full time (a decision that we are so glad we made). Amanda started a new school, met some really great friends and celebrated her 16th birthday. We learned alot about the boat (and each other), definately got a little saltier and took a few hard knocks along the way. We met some really great people this past year and had a wonderful time with friends new and old. Chrokeva got a few upgrades including a new stove, new solar panel, new toilet, new windlass, and lets not forget the 110 washer/dryer. We also got our 200 gallon a day water maker up and running (which I am sure we will need now that we have a washer/dryer. All in all a pretty good year :)

Plans for this year? Well back to school for Amanda, work for Mark, and lots of time moving the boat and learning more about the Chrokeva. We would all like to get certified to dive since the Chrokeva is outfitted with dive equipment as well as a dive compressor (something that I think we all would enjoy). We will be spending the summer again in San Diego and hopefully make a few trips to Catalina and possibly the Channel Islands. Upgrades for the Chrokeva scheduled for this year are looking at a new paint for the topside and a haulout and bottom paint sometime this year.