New saga for yacht anchored illegally
Vessel drifts free, awaits pickup by owner at harbor
The seagoing saga of a yacht illegally anchored in Aquatic Park Cove sailed into new waters when the boat broke free of its anchor, drifted into the Hyde Street Pier and on Saturday was moored at a harbor run by the Port of San Francisco.
Skipper Bryan Pennington, who has openly defied the laws of the San Francisco Maritime Park by anchoring his trimaran close to shore for more than 130 days, was not on board his vessel when it broke free Thursday, said Morgan Smith, acting superintendent for the National Park Service, which has jurisdiction over Aquatic Park. After drifting into the pier, the boat was towed by a private company into the Hyde Street Harbor, which is under the authority of the Port of San Francisco.
As of Saturday, the boat had not been reclaimed by Pennington, who often spends days ashore in the Fisherman’s Wharf area, then paddles a blue plastic kayak out to his boat, where he sleeps at night.
“The boat is waiting to be reclaimed,” Smith said Friday. “He could get the boat and sail right back into the cove.”
Aquatic Park Cove is not a marina and there are no facilities for pumping out waste. A permit is required for anchoring in the cove and it allows for a maximum of five consecutive nights and 30 nights total a year in the cove. Pennington has no permit and has been in open violation of the ordinance.
The National Park Service has brought legal action against Pennington, who has pleaded not guilty. The case is scheduled to be heard in federal court on April 26. The government is seeking a “stay away order” that would give Pennington 72 hours to remove his boat from Aquatic Park.
The case is being closely watched by swimmers with both the Dolphin Club and the South End Rowing Club because Pennington’s boat has been anchored in their swimming lanes close to shore. Swimmers claim he has been polluting the waters by dumping sewage overboard. Shortly after he put down anchor, the words “Move the Boat” were painted on the side.
“It’s great that he’s out of there,” said Dolphin Club President Reuben Hechanova. “The swimmers are elated because there is no obstruction or pollution.”
In a brief interview with The Chronicle last month, Pennington, 52, claimed to be a “world traveler whose home port is ‘planet earth.’ ” There is a history of him mooring his boat in harbors illegally, and Smith said the park service would pursue its case against him regardless of whether he returns to the cove, in order to set a legal precedent.
A representative of the Port of San Francisco did not return a call requesting comment. This is not the first time Pennington’s boat has broken free and drifted into the pier.
“It didn’t appear to do any damage,” said Philip Delano of Tow Boat US, which towed the trimaran on Thursday. “The rigging of the trimaran laid up against the heavyduty dock lines. It was actually a pretty gentle touch, but it wouldn’t have stayed that way once the tide changed.”
A park official who declined to be named said Pennington’s ongoing legal situation would have no bearing on his ability to reclaim the boat, a Searunner 34 that sleeps five.
“I will say as a practical matter, we’re not the Byzantine empire and we can’t put chains around the Golden Horn to prevent him from sailing in or anything like that,” the park official said. “So there’s nothing that would prevent him from sailing back in and of course we’d have to deal with that.”