This year I bought another boat. A Cal 2-24, a little 24 footer with a mast
low enough to fit under the bridges in Mission Bay. The price was right,
a one owner boat since 1968 in great shape. So, I bought her. Mischief. Marinas in Mission Bay get 10 dollars/ foot. Moorings are 610/ year. It was an easy decision. Being on a mooring has both advantages and disadvantages. It's always facing into the wind so you get nice breezes over the nose, it's quiet, no noisy motorboats next door. Of course, you need a dinghy, the boat is difficult to keep clean, maintenance is difficult sometimes. What I've tried to include on this page is information to build a mooring, and get it inspected and installed in Mission Bay with as little pain as possible. Your boat will also needs to pass inspection before it's allowed on the mooring. Apparently, there's been some derelict boats and the city is trying to clean things up by requiring yearly inspections. For necessary paperwork and mooring instructions call the parks and recreation dept. and speak to Albert, he is very helpful and knowledgable. He will give you all the information you'll need to get started. (619) 235-1169 They're located at: 2125 Park Blvd. San Diego 92101 (In Balboa Park in the old Navy Hospital) Mooring Costs and Suppliers you'll need: Prices are as of May 2008, I'm not responsible if they've changed. Mooring Ball 215 dollars Oceans West 2886 Main St. San Diego, CA (619) 544 1900 Engine Blocks 130 dollar for both A-Z Salvage (Ask for Jose) 3202 Main St. San Diego, CA (619) 234 6691 Ask for Jose Shackles and Chain 150 dollars Pacific Rigging Loft 1694 Main St. San Diego, CA (619) 239 7685 Stencils 2 inch and 3 inch 10 dollars Ace Hardware Sand Blasting 75 Dollars RW Little Co 3923 Pacific Highway San Diego, CA (619) 287 3705 Making the Mooring: Before you start building, go to Pacific Rigging and show them the blueprint Albert will give you. The guys at Pacific Rigging are very knowledgable and they have some great advice. They recommend a pear link, swivels, etc. A little different from the blueprint but much safer. The parks and rec. dept. inspects the moorings every year and if they're deemed unsafe they'll impound them. I hear it's expensive. I used four 3/8 G-335's to connect the engine blocks to the pear ring for redundent fastening. The blueprint showing the engine block attachment is nearly impossible to do. Painting the mooring is pretty straight forward. Two inch stencil for PRIVATE, below that your mooring number in three inch stencil. Remember to put PRIVATE and your number on two sides in contrasting colors to the background. Use a swivel at the mooring end; wire tie everything just like the blueprint shows. The moorings are out there unattended and you don't want your boat floating away. Use the 3/8 chain they recommend and the correct lengths. I had to shorten the chain at inspection time, no excess. Don't forget to bottom paint the underside of your mooring. Inspection of Mooring: Inspections are done at the Lifeguard Station on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month at 8 a.m. only. I rented a U-Haul trailer to get the mooring over there. 15 dollars a day for the trailer. George with the Parks and Rec dept. does the mooring inspections. He takes his job seriously and will fail you if your engine blocks are oily or greasy. I was failed for greasy engine blocks. George also drops your mooring in the bay on Fridays after you pass the inspection. After purchasing your engine blocks from A-Z Salvage take them directly to RW Little for sandblasting. They need to be very clean, RW knows what you need and they're very helpful. Remember to remove the freeze plugs. The forktruck driver at RW Little works very hard, tip him. The shop forman is very helpful, he's done several engine block cleanings for other boaters. Inspection of Boat: Saturday mornings only. There are some things you need to need so you'll pass the first time. Valid up to date registration. Day and night visual distress signals are required. They recommend the SOS light for night and the orange distress signal flag for day. The reason they're recommended is they don't expire, just change the batteries every year. They also don't burn or start fires. Flares work too, I had flares. Fire extinguisher. If your boat has a motor you'll need an all around white light. West Marine has them for 30 bucks. Of course, your running lights need to be in working order. They allow the flashlight red and green lights and the stern lights. If your vessel has a holding tank you'll need to tie wrap the handle closed. PFD's and a throwable. Be sure your CF numbers are legible. Mine were 40 years old and required replacing. Check the length of stuff growing on the bottom of your boat, three inches is the max they'll allow at anytime. If you have any questions of have some more advice you'd like to post please email me. |
