No Place Like Home
Cruising in the California Delta means peaceful days and relaxing nights, without ever having to leave the house.
November 1, 2002
Overhead, millions of stars in the
sky compensate for what would be a rather dark, moonless night. The air is still, almost
breathless, as if the heat of the day has relaxed its grip but doesn't want to let go of the
evening.
You are submerged neck-deep in the hot tub on the upper deck, icy drinks within reach, and a silence so complete that you can hear your heart pulsing in your ears. Heads tilted back to stare into the depths of the sky, and comfortably full from the thick steaks prepared earlier on the barbecue, you are watching for the occasional bright speck of a satellite to pass overhead. It's Day Three of the houseboating exploration of the California Delta, and it's clear that life really doesn't get much better than this.
Known to insiders simply as "The Delta", this maze of criss-crossing waterways begins about 40 miles northeast of San Francisco and spreads over a wide area bounded roughly by the cities of Sacramento and Stockton. Three major rivers feed more than 1,000 miles of navigable waterways, and though only a few hours by boat from the gusty winds and chill waters of San Francisco's Golden Gate, the Delta is a world apart ... warm days, calm anchorages and tranquil beauty.
The Delta is rich with history, and everywhere you turn there are reminders of the days when this was once marshland, with paddlewheel steamers carrying miners to the gold fields during the California gold rush. The real fortune, however, lay in the dark soil beneath these very waters. When levees were built that reclaimed 55 islands from the marsh, the fertile loam made farming a major industry.
Houseboating is the most popular way to explore the Delta, and Herman & Helen's Marina has a solid fleet of brand-new and impeccably maintained rental houseboats, including the top-of-the-line 56ft Odyssey. This boat is complete with everything from the previously mentioned hot tub to air conditioning and a fireplace for cool evenings.
A mini-fleet of watertoys is a perfect addition to the houseboat, including a nearly new Sea Ray 185 bowrider and a Yamaha WaveRunner personal watercraft that is wicked fast - even with three people aboard. The small boats can be used to zip around and explore the waterways far from the mother ship. They also allow access to some of the better fishing areas, and can venture into places the 56-foot houseboat won't fit.
The Odyssey packs a remarkable amount of living space into 56 feet, and it's rock-steady on catamaran pontoons. Two queen-sized private staterooms are aft, another private cabin has upper/lower bunks, and there's also a "penthouse" on the upper deck, a low-ceilinged cabin with two big double bunks perfect for kids. The dinette and couch both convert to doubles, and though the brochure says you can sleep 15, six fit comfortably.
The living area is surrounded by big windows, and the galley is fully equipped with every household amenity including a dishwasher (wow!), a trash compactor, and a double-door refrigerator with icemaker. There's a lower helm station with good visibility, and the air conditioning easily handles midsummer heat. If you want to push the season, either early or late, the fireplace would be pleasant. There's also a big-screen television with VCR, although that is sometimes what you're hoping to leave behind.
The upper deck is a great place to spend your time while underway, shaded by the big Bimini top over the helm. This deck provides a great vantage point, since the reclaimed farmland is often 20 or more feet below the level of the water on which you're cruising, so you have to look over the levees to see the land below.
The plan is to spend the first night at The Meadows, so the boat winds its way along Potato Slough and then up the north fork of the Mokelumne River. The bridge for Highway 12 is a small barrier, but a quick cell phone call raises a cheerful bridgekeeper who immediately stops traffic and swings the immense bridge open. He is the first encounter with a Delta person, other than the efficiently pleasant staff at the marina, and he comes out of his tower to wave and shout "Have a nice day," as the Odyssey slides through.
Further on, another cell phone call, another bridge quickly opens and, again, the bridgetender comes out to wave. By this time, the nature of the Delta has changed from the low, flat farmlands of the south to thickly wooded areas dotted with marinas and waterfront restaurants. The adventure continues into Snodgrass Slough, threading through the narrowing waterways between towering willows as white herons stand on their long, thin legs and watch impassively.
The waterway opens out suddenly into The Meadows, and there are already a handful of boats, both house and other, already snugged into the bank. Some have taken up permanent moorings, complete with floating patio decks and flotillas of water toys. The Meadows attracts a number of summer-long residents, who either move aboard full time or commute to work via speedboat, returning in the evening or on the weekends to resume their quiet life afloat.
Anchoring in the Delta is as simple as tying your bow line around a sturdy tree trunk and setting an anchor to hold the stern out. At first you're a little cautious, tying up the bow first and then using the Sea Ray to run out the stern anchor. By the third day, you're casually dropping the stern anchor as you head toward shore and are snugged down in no time.
The moment the engines shut down, there's no lapse in activity. Fishing rods go into the Sea Ray for bass and catfish, the WaveRunner departs for explorations, and the remainder of the group finds lazy spots to read. But the peace and quiet of The Meadows is soporific (not to mention the soothing hot tub), and the crew retires early.
You're probably already familiar with the Delta, but you just may not know it. Hollywood has turned the area into a number of faraway locations, which shows how varied the scenery really is. It served, easily enough, as the Mississippi for Tom Sawyer's film adventures, but it was also the waterways around China for John Wayne's "Blood Alley" and just as quickly became Catfish Row for Gershwin's Porgy and Bess. It was the Congo for Young Indiana Jones, the Deep South for John Travolta's "The General's Daughter," and it's seen regularly on television as European canals, Southern swamps, African jungles and even as the California Delta.
It's a water-oriented way of life in the Delta, and the adaptations are endlessly fascinating.
The mail is delivered from a sterndrive runabout by a postman who also brings the local gossip. The sheriff patrols his beat by boat rather than car, and school children take their dinghies to catch the school bus. Sailing yachts capable of long ocean voyages can be found tied casually to a tree trunk while the crew frolics in the water, and big sportfishers equipped with massive fighting chairs sit idle while their crews stalk the elusive bass and catfish among the reeds. Throaty runabouts zip waterskiers through the natural slaloms of the winding channels, fishermen drift in their aluminum skiffs, and ferryboats of all shapes connect the islands.
There's no "best" season to enjoy the Delta, although summer is the busiest time since, starting in mid-June, the waterways are a carnival afloat and it's harder to find a secluded spot. Hot afternoons and warm evenings are the rule in summer, with swimming and barbecues being the pleasures.
You can beat the summer crowds by renting in early June, and you might just be rewarded with perfect weather: cloudless blue skies, water already warm enough for comfortable swimming, and afternoon temperatures that soar to 100 degrees. Tied to a tree in The Meadows, you can find an area to yourself with no neighbors, but by July the shoreline will be lined with other.
Fall is also nice, when the weather is balmy during the day and sweater-cool in the evenings. The crowds are gone, the air is clear, and the wildlife are returning to their haunts. Winter is usually crisp but sunny, with a little tule fog in the mornings to encourage snuggling back into your warm bunk for another hour.
Walnut Grove on the Sacramento River is a quiet town to explore what could be any small hamlet in the mid-America of the '50s. The town thoughtfully provides free docking for visitors, so you can enjoy a peaceful lunch and restock at the local market. From there, it's a short trip to Locke, an almost ghost town that was founded as a Chinese community for the laborers first in the gold fields and who later became levee builders. The deserted streets and false-fronted buildings bring back images of another era, with fan-tan parlors, opium dens and brothels.
One of the draws to Locke is Al-The-Wop's, a legendary bar and restaurant that dates back to the 1800s, with a 20-foot ceiling covered with dollar bills thumb-tacked there (it'll cost you a buck to see how it's done). The menu runs toward steak with all the trimmings, and the tables have jars of peanut butter and jelly to spread on Al's famous French bread.
But Lost Slough is probably the best kept secret of the Delta, a meandering byway that is quiet and green, with hyacinths floating on the surface and towering willows overhead where you can spend three days without seeing another boat. Steamboat Slough, formerly a shortcut for paddlewheelers heading for Sacramento, is now a quiet channel with several pleasant anchorages, and Disappointment Slough disputes its name with sandy beaches.
So that's the Delta. By day, you can ski the waterways while looking over the levees at the farmlands far below your feet, or you can simply sprawl under a shady tree with a trashy paperback and an ice chest full of cold drinks. Nightlife can range from partying until the wee hours at a local club to watching comets zip through the clear skies. Hunt bass, work on your tan, float idly on an air mattress, relax.
The Delta is exactly what you make it.
When You Go
There are many places that rent house boats in the Delta Helen & Herman's Marina, (800/676-4841, www.houseboats.com) has a great selection of well-maintained boats and watertoys at reasonable prices.
The 56-footer is $2650 for four weekday nights during the summer, which drops to $2695 for seven nights in the off-season. There is a refundable $500 security deposit, and an optional deductible waiver for $25 a day. Fuel, including the Sea Ray and WaveRunner, came to about $250.
Make sure you pack your own supplies to cook on board in the fully-equipped galley, complete with dishwasher, trash compactor and a double-door refrigerator. And for a special night out, don't miss Al-The-Wop's legendary bar and restaurant when you're cruising the Locke.
For more information contact California Delta Chambers, P.O. Box 6, Isleton, CA 95641, phone (916) 777-5007 or www.californiadelta.org. They offer an 88-page guide to the Delta and Hal Schell's invaluable map for $5 including postage and tax.
November 2002
You are submerged neck-deep in the hot tub on the upper deck, icy drinks within reach, and a silence so complete that you can hear your heart pulsing in your ears. Heads tilted back to stare into the depths of the sky, and comfortably full from the thick steaks prepared earlier on the barbecue, you are watching for the occasional bright speck of a satellite to pass overhead. It's Day Three of the houseboating exploration of the California Delta, and it's clear that life really doesn't get much better than this.
Known to insiders simply as "The Delta", this maze of criss-crossing waterways begins about 40 miles northeast of San Francisco and spreads over a wide area bounded roughly by the cities of Sacramento and Stockton. Three major rivers feed more than 1,000 miles of navigable waterways, and though only a few hours by boat from the gusty winds and chill waters of San Francisco's Golden Gate, the Delta is a world apart ... warm days, calm anchorages and tranquil beauty.
The Delta is rich with history, and everywhere you turn there are reminders of the days when this was once marshland, with paddlewheel steamers carrying miners to the gold fields during the California gold rush. The real fortune, however, lay in the dark soil beneath these very waters. When levees were built that reclaimed 55 islands from the marsh, the fertile loam made farming a major industry.
Houseboating is the most popular way to explore the Delta, and Herman & Helen's Marina has a solid fleet of brand-new and impeccably maintained rental houseboats, including the top-of-the-line 56ft Odyssey. This boat is complete with everything from the previously mentioned hot tub to air conditioning and a fireplace for cool evenings.
A mini-fleet of watertoys is a perfect addition to the houseboat, including a nearly new Sea Ray 185 bowrider and a Yamaha WaveRunner personal watercraft that is wicked fast - even with three people aboard. The small boats can be used to zip around and explore the waterways far from the mother ship. They also allow access to some of the better fishing areas, and can venture into places the 56-foot houseboat won't fit.
The Odyssey packs a remarkable amount of living space into 56 feet, and it's rock-steady on catamaran pontoons. Two queen-sized private staterooms are aft, another private cabin has upper/lower bunks, and there's also a "penthouse" on the upper deck, a low-ceilinged cabin with two big double bunks perfect for kids. The dinette and couch both convert to doubles, and though the brochure says you can sleep 15, six fit comfortably.
The living area is surrounded by big windows, and the galley is fully equipped with every household amenity including a dishwasher (wow!), a trash compactor, and a double-door refrigerator with icemaker. There's a lower helm station with good visibility, and the air conditioning easily handles midsummer heat. If you want to push the season, either early or late, the fireplace would be pleasant. There's also a big-screen television with VCR, although that is sometimes what you're hoping to leave behind.
The upper deck is a great place to spend your time while underway, shaded by the big Bimini top over the helm. This deck provides a great vantage point, since the reclaimed farmland is often 20 or more feet below the level of the water on which you're cruising, so you have to look over the levees to see the land below.
The plan is to spend the first night at The Meadows, so the boat winds its way along Potato Slough and then up the north fork of the Mokelumne River. The bridge for Highway 12 is a small barrier, but a quick cell phone call raises a cheerful bridgekeeper who immediately stops traffic and swings the immense bridge open. He is the first encounter with a Delta person, other than the efficiently pleasant staff at the marina, and he comes out of his tower to wave and shout "Have a nice day," as the Odyssey slides through.
Further on, another cell phone call, another bridge quickly opens and, again, the bridgetender comes out to wave. By this time, the nature of the Delta has changed from the low, flat farmlands of the south to thickly wooded areas dotted with marinas and waterfront restaurants. The adventure continues into Snodgrass Slough, threading through the narrowing waterways between towering willows as white herons stand on their long, thin legs and watch impassively.
The waterway opens out suddenly into The Meadows, and there are already a handful of boats, both house and other, already snugged into the bank. Some have taken up permanent moorings, complete with floating patio decks and flotillas of water toys. The Meadows attracts a number of summer-long residents, who either move aboard full time or commute to work via speedboat, returning in the evening or on the weekends to resume their quiet life afloat.
Anchoring in the Delta is as simple as tying your bow line around a sturdy tree trunk and setting an anchor to hold the stern out. At first you're a little cautious, tying up the bow first and then using the Sea Ray to run out the stern anchor. By the third day, you're casually dropping the stern anchor as you head toward shore and are snugged down in no time.
The moment the engines shut down, there's no lapse in activity. Fishing rods go into the Sea Ray for bass and catfish, the WaveRunner departs for explorations, and the remainder of the group finds lazy spots to read. But the peace and quiet of The Meadows is soporific (not to mention the soothing hot tub), and the crew retires early.
You're probably already familiar with the Delta, but you just may not know it. Hollywood has turned the area into a number of faraway locations, which shows how varied the scenery really is. It served, easily enough, as the Mississippi for Tom Sawyer's film adventures, but it was also the waterways around China for John Wayne's "Blood Alley" and just as quickly became Catfish Row for Gershwin's Porgy and Bess. It was the Congo for Young Indiana Jones, the Deep South for John Travolta's "The General's Daughter," and it's seen regularly on television as European canals, Southern swamps, African jungles and even as the California Delta.
It's a water-oriented way of life in the Delta, and the adaptations are endlessly fascinating.
The mail is delivered from a sterndrive runabout by a postman who also brings the local gossip. The sheriff patrols his beat by boat rather than car, and school children take their dinghies to catch the school bus. Sailing yachts capable of long ocean voyages can be found tied casually to a tree trunk while the crew frolics in the water, and big sportfishers equipped with massive fighting chairs sit idle while their crews stalk the elusive bass and catfish among the reeds. Throaty runabouts zip waterskiers through the natural slaloms of the winding channels, fishermen drift in their aluminum skiffs, and ferryboats of all shapes connect the islands.
There's no "best" season to enjoy the Delta, although summer is the busiest time since, starting in mid-June, the waterways are a carnival afloat and it's harder to find a secluded spot. Hot afternoons and warm evenings are the rule in summer, with swimming and barbecues being the pleasures.
You can beat the summer crowds by renting in early June, and you might just be rewarded with perfect weather: cloudless blue skies, water already warm enough for comfortable swimming, and afternoon temperatures that soar to 100 degrees. Tied to a tree in The Meadows, you can find an area to yourself with no neighbors, but by July the shoreline will be lined with other.
Fall is also nice, when the weather is balmy during the day and sweater-cool in the evenings. The crowds are gone, the air is clear, and the wildlife are returning to their haunts. Winter is usually crisp but sunny, with a little tule fog in the mornings to encourage snuggling back into your warm bunk for another hour.
Walnut Grove on the Sacramento River is a quiet town to explore what could be any small hamlet in the mid-America of the '50s. The town thoughtfully provides free docking for visitors, so you can enjoy a peaceful lunch and restock at the local market. From there, it's a short trip to Locke, an almost ghost town that was founded as a Chinese community for the laborers first in the gold fields and who later became levee builders. The deserted streets and false-fronted buildings bring back images of another era, with fan-tan parlors, opium dens and brothels.
One of the draws to Locke is Al-The-Wop's, a legendary bar and restaurant that dates back to the 1800s, with a 20-foot ceiling covered with dollar bills thumb-tacked there (it'll cost you a buck to see how it's done). The menu runs toward steak with all the trimmings, and the tables have jars of peanut butter and jelly to spread on Al's famous French bread.
But Lost Slough is probably the best kept secret of the Delta, a meandering byway that is quiet and green, with hyacinths floating on the surface and towering willows overhead where you can spend three days without seeing another boat. Steamboat Slough, formerly a shortcut for paddlewheelers heading for Sacramento, is now a quiet channel with several pleasant anchorages, and Disappointment Slough disputes its name with sandy beaches.
So that's the Delta. By day, you can ski the waterways while looking over the levees at the farmlands far below your feet, or you can simply sprawl under a shady tree with a trashy paperback and an ice chest full of cold drinks. Nightlife can range from partying until the wee hours at a local club to watching comets zip through the clear skies. Hunt bass, work on your tan, float idly on an air mattress, relax.
The Delta is exactly what you make it.
When You Go
There are many places that rent house boats in the Delta Helen & Herman's Marina, (800/676-4841, www.houseboats.com) has a great selection of well-maintained boats and watertoys at reasonable prices.
The 56-footer is $2650 for four weekday nights during the summer, which drops to $2695 for seven nights in the off-season. There is a refundable $500 security deposit, and an optional deductible waiver for $25 a day. Fuel, including the Sea Ray and WaveRunner, came to about $250.
Make sure you pack your own supplies to cook on board in the fully-equipped galley, complete with dishwasher, trash compactor and a double-door refrigerator. And for a special night out, don't miss Al-The-Wop's legendary bar and restaurant when you're cruising the Locke.
For more information contact California Delta Chambers, P.O. Box 6, Isleton, CA 95641, phone (916) 777-5007 or www.californiadelta.org. They offer an 88-page guide to the Delta and Hal Schell's invaluable map for $5 including postage and tax.
November 2002
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No Place Like Home: Cruising in the California Delta means peaceful days and relaxing nights, without ever having to leave the house.
