SoCal Offshore Oil Rig Aware

Shark Attack/3 Oil Rigs/24 Nautical Miles/7 Hours/Done

2010-08-03T11:38:00.000-07:00

It had been a long wait for the right weather, and my patience was rewarded with a perfectly calm day, never mind the great white shark that attacked me.

I launched from Gaviota State Beach on Monday, August 2, 2010 at about 7:00Am to cross to my last three oil rigs, Heritage, Harmony, and Hondo, and complete my crossings to all 23 oil rigs in Southern California. There was a fog bank offshore, which hid Harmony and Hondo, but Heritage, which I was heading to first, was popping in and out of it. I actually had a little tail wind from the Gaviota valley pushing me perfectly towards Heritage. I reached the oil rig 8 nautical miles offshore in 2 hours.

I had actually paddled by Heritage 10 years ago when Jim Gabriel and I did the 26 nautical mile crossing from Gaviota to San Miguel Island. Here’s a link to the trip report.

As I headed to Harmony, it was still in the fog, so I steered by compass to find it. I had a swell pushing me nicely along the way and paddled the 6 nautical miles in an easy 1.5 hours.

I had another easy 3 nautical miles to Hondo, my last Southern California oil rig.

I left Hondo at about noon for the 7 nautical mile crossing back to Gaviota State Beach. But along the way, I was attacked by a 15-foot great white shark. Fortunately, I was still able to make it back, finishing the 24 nautical mile loop in 7 hours. Here’s the link to the shark attack report.

Four Former Oil Rigs

2010-07-14T21:11:00.000-07:00

Looking over an old chart, I thought I missed four oil rigs off Santa Barbara. It turns out Hilda, Hazel, Hope, and Heidi were torn down in 1996.

Still Don't Have the Weather

2010-07-11T09:29:00.000-07:00

With only three Southern California oil rigs left, I'm anxious to get them done. But I'm still not having the weather. This area offshore from Gaviota has volatile weather, and I'll have a long upwind leg getting back to shore in the late afternoon, so it's really worth waiting for the right day.

Not Today

2010-06-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

I had the day off and the weather forecast was good enough for crossing to the last three oil rigs, but I had to work till midnight last night, which made the lack of sleep and the three-hour drive to Gaviota not worth it. Hopefully I’ll finish crossing to the oil rigs soon after the July 4th holiday.

1 Oil Rig Repeat/25 Nautical Miles/7.5 Hours/Orange County Connection

2010-06-21T17:07:00.000-07:00

I had hoped to finish crossing to my last three Southern California oil rigs today, June 21, 2010, but the weather forecast off Gaviota seemed iffy, so I decided to cross again to oil rig Eureka, but this time from another direction. Eureka is 8 nautical miles off the coast and the southernmost oil rig in California. When I crossed to it previously, I launched from Alamitos Bay, which in the City of Long Beach and County of Los Angeles.

This time I wanted to bring oil rig Eureka down to Orange County, where so many people chanted, “Drill, Baby, Drill!” So I launched from Newport Harbor for the 25 nautical mile round trip.

With west swell and light south wind, the water was lumpy and crossed up. Progress was slow, and after about 2 hours, I almost turned around, but I decided the suffering would be good for me. It took me 4 hours to get to Eureka and 3½ hours to get back to Newport. It was a long day bouncing around on the water but worth it to make the Orange County connection.

Foggy Night Crossings/8 Oil Rigs/22 Nautical Miles/6.75 Hours/Bonus Oil Rig

2010-06-07T15:01:00.001-07:00

On a clear night, the well lit oil rigs offshore from Carpenteria stand out like Christmas trees. But this night was foggy, and I felt it was meant for me.

I launched through the surf at Carpenteria on Sunday, June 6, 2010 at 8:00 PM, which was around sunset. With the fog, I couldn’t see the sun going down. After launching it quickly became dark. There wasn’t much to see. All night long, I never saw the moon or stars. I couldn’t even see the swells or waves. I could barely see my hand in front of my face. My red LED light was shining on the compass on my front deck. The bioluminescence in the water, stirred up by my bow wave and paddle strokes, was such a bright neon bluish green, it almost hurt my eyes to look at it. The bioluminescence also showed fish scattering. I could hear dolphins feeding on the fish but never saw them. A pup sea lion followed me for a while and I could see its bioluminescent trail going under and around me.

After two hours of paddling, I should’ve been at the first oil rig, “C.” But I couldn’t hear or see anything. For the first time in 10 years, I turned on my GPS. It showed that I flew right by the oil rig and was nearly 2 miles past it. The mistake cost me an hour. Off course, offshore, and in the dark and fog, not to mention solo, I had to focus on keeping my cool.

Soon oil rig “C” appeared and being in its light was comforting. Oil rigs “C,” “B,” “A,” and Hillhouse are only about ½ mile apart, and shortly after leaving one, the next one would appear as a faint glow through the fog.

After those four oil rigs, it was time to leave the comfort of the lights and venture back into the dark abyss for another 3 nautical miles. Seven nautical miles offshore, oil rig Habitat was the farthest out I’d be for the night.

Then it was another 3 nautical miles back towards shore for the remaining three oil rigs, Henry, Houchin, and Hogan, also about ½ mile apart.

Once I left Hogan, the fog had lifted enough that I could see lights on the coast 4 nautical miles away. I landed through the surf at Carpenteria at 2:45 AM.

It was a fine piece of sea kayaking and a night I will never forget.

By 4:00 AM I was situated with all my gear put away, and I slept for two hours in my truck before driving to Goleta to finish off one more oil rig by itself and not far offshore. The 1.5 hour round trip paddle to oil rig Holly and back was uneventful, except for all the oil I had to paddle through. Supposedly, the oil is natural seepage, but it’s been debated.

No Crossings Memorial Day Weekend

2010-05-28T21:06:00.000-07:00

I won't cross to any oil rigs this Memorial Day weekend so I can spend time with family and friends.

Another Blown Out Weekend

2010-05-21T19:41:00.000-07:00

I was really looking forward to some more oil rig crossings this weekend, but the wind will be blowing up to 25 knots. This spring has been unusually windy. But I’m patient and will finish the oil rig crossings plenty soon.

4 Oil Rigs Off Oxnard/28 Nautical Miles/8 Hours/1 Whale

2010-05-17T19:29:00.001-07:00

On Monday, May 17, 2010, I launched from Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard, California at 6:00AM. The weather was cloudy, drizzly and cool, but most importantly, calm, which is exactly what I needed for a 28 nautical mile day offshore, especially with the first 13 miles into the weather.

I was surprised it took me three hours of paddling to reach oil rig Gilda 10 nautical miles out. There must have been current working against me.

Oil rig Grace was another three nautical miles out and my turn around point for heading in the general direction back to the harbor. Best of all, any weather or current was now helping.

I’ve used oil rig Gail many times in the past as a navigational stepping stone between Santa Cruz Island and Oxnard.

Not long after I left oil rig Gail, I saw a splash so huge I knew it had to be from a whale breaching. It was about a quarter of a mile to my left. A minute later I saw the whale come up for a couple breaths and then raise its fluke to dive. Ten minutes later I saw it spout twice. It was too far for me to get any photos or identify the species, but I’m assuming it was a blue or humpback whale.

Only four nautical miles off the coast, oil rig Gina is probably the oil rig crossed to most often by kayakers.

Me 24 nautical miles into the paddle and at oil rig Gina.

I was happy to be back in Channel Islands Harbor and land at 2:00PM after eight hours of paddling. Lucky for me, today was one of those rare days when the afternoon winds didn’t pick up.

Weather Not Looking Good For Crossings This Weekend

2010-05-05T20:27:00.000-07:00

I have Friday and Monday off from work, but the weather is not looking good for crossing to more oil rigs. Winds up to 25 knots are in the forecast. I’ll keep checking.

7 Oil Rigs Off Long Beach/26 Nautical Miles/8 Hours

2010-05-03T19:12:00.000-07:00

Seven oil rigs off Long Beach, 26 nautical miles, eight hours of paddling, and as soon as I landed, a guy on the beach asked me if I take my kayak out on the ocean. It was the perfect opening to tell him about the seven oil rigs just off the coast.

I launched my kayak from Alamitos Bay in Long Beach, California this morning, May 3, 2010 at 7:20AM.

I paddled straight out to oil rig Edith 8 nautical miles off the coast. I have crossed to this oil rig many times before. In this photo you can also see three other rigs, Ellen and Elly (the pair), and Eureka, in the distance.

As I paddled from Edith to Elly and Ellen, a sea lion joined me for the crossing.

As I crossed from Elly and Ellen to Eureka, another sea lion was crossing the opposite way. In this photo you can see Elly and Ellen, and Edith in the distance.

Eureka is the southernmost oil rig in California.

I took a break for lunch on the water at Eureka.

It was a long paddle back closer to shore for Emmy, which is little over a mile off the coast.

I had to paddle straight upwind to get to Eva.

It was another 5 nautical miles upwind to get to Esther. With the distance and upwind battle, I was getting tired. I really had to focus on being patient and relaxed. Occasionally, I set up a natural range on the coast to monitor my progress.

Needless to say, it was long day of paddling and I was happy to be back in Alamitos Bay.

This completes the oil rigs in the Los Angeles/Orange County area, so next I’ll be venturing north to start crossing to the oil rigs off Santa Barbara. I’ll also start posting info on the oil rigs and past oil spills in Southern California.

I’m also happy to report that while I was on the water, our governor announced that because of the Louisiana oil rig disaster, he has changed his mind about possibly expanding offshore oil rig drilling in California. But that isn’t going to stop me from continuing to help people become more aware of the oil rigs we already have along our coast.

I Have a Cause!

2010-05-02T19:05:00.000-07:00

I’ve never been a person with a cause. But the disaster at the oil rig offshore from Louisiana has made me realize the risk we face with oil rigs along the Southern California coast. As a sea kayaker who loves to cross to our Channel Islands, I’ve often paddled by our offshore oil rigs. I appreciated them as aids to navigation, often using them as a stepping stone in foggy weather. I also found a certain beauty in them, with their towering size, the hum of the machinery, and their lights shining bright at night. But since the Louisiana disaster, I see them in an entirely different light. Yet many Southern Californians don't even know we have oil rigs off our coast. I'm going to paddle my kayak to each and every oil rig to help people become aware of them.

I took the above photo of myself during a solo kayak crossing to oil rig Edith 8 nautical miles offshore from Long Beach, California, on April 19, 2010. The banana is a joke about the superstition that bananas are bad luck on a boat. Little did I know the Louisiana oil rig disaster would happen on the following day. I think the point now is that offshore oil rigs are bad luck, not bananas.