Three ways to set sail in the Bay Area waters
The Bay Area’s splendid late summer and fall weather make it a perfect time to get outdoors. Whether you own a yacht, a dinghy or just a pair of deck shoes, there are plenty of ways to get out on the water — even if you don’t own a boat. Here’s just a sampling. SAIL WITH A CLUB >> The Bay Area has its share of swanky private yacht clubs, but it also has sailing clubs where avid sailors, boating enthusiasts and the just-curious set can take lessons and borrow or rent watercraft.
Mountain View’s Shoreline Lake Boathouse, for example, offers two-day sailing classes ($325) for beginning, intermediate and experienced sailors, as well as regattas, a racing club and an outrigger canoe club. Find details at shorelinelake.com.
Membership in Berkeley’s Cal Sailing Club ($120 for three months or $375 per year) includes unlimited sailing lessons and use of the club’s sailboats and sailboards. Just want to dabble? The club’s monthly open houses welcome guests for free half-hour sails aboard keelboats or dinghies with a club member. The next events are 1 to 4 p.m. Oct 20 and
Nov. 17; www.cal-sailing.org.
SAIL WITH A CHARTER >> Charter boat companies abound in the Bay Area, thanks to the region’s many tourists. But locals can play tourist, too. Take a sunset sail ($60) with Adventure Cat Charters, which ties up at San Francisco’s Pier 39; www.adventurecat.com. Or head for the Santa Cruz Harbor for a wine-tasting sail ($50) with O’neill Yacht Charters or craft beer and pizza aboard the Chardonnay II ($68); oneillyachtcharters.com and www.chardonnay.com.
RENT A BOAT >> If you’ve already got the knowledge and you just need a craft, the Bay Area’s lakes and harbors offer all sorts of rentals, from sailboats at Shoreline Lake to kayaks at Oakland’s Jack London Square and paddleboats at San Francisco’s Stow Lake. Check Discoverboating.com for more ideas.